Wonder Woman vol. 4: Godwatch

With vol. 3 being the end of the main story Greg Rucka was telling on his latest “Wonder Woman” run, I was skeptical that this volume could really add anything to it.  Said skepticism is justified here as “Godwatch” makes for an awkward end to his tenure as a writer for this title.  The issues collected here at least manage a solid narrative through-line as they flesh out the backstory and character of her antagonist Veronica Cale.  Even if Cale is clearly meant to be cut from the same cloth as Lex Luthor, she’s distinguished here by the ruthless lengths to which she’ll go to make sure her daughter is restored to her proper self and her friendship with her business partner Dr. Adrianna Anderson, a.k.a. “Doctor Cyber.”  You also get to see how Phobos and Deimos became part of the story and they deliver some quality preening villainy along the way.

The problem with all this is that it feels like it should’ve come before the previous volume.  This is one of those rare instances where reading the issues as they came out, since the ones collected here were originally published between the issues collected in vol. 3, looks like it would’ve been preferable to reading them in the collected edition now.  However, they couldn’t have simply made this vol. 3 instead because the final full issue collected here would’ve spoiled part of that one.  “Godwatch” does sport some very lovely art from Bilquis Evely, with Mirka Andolfo pitching in for one issue, and it closes out with a cute story about the first time Wonder Woman met Batman and Superman in this continuity.  All things considered, this is very much a case of the whole being less than the sum of its parts which is a good way to sum up Rucka’s run overall this time around.