Wonder Woman, Volume 3: Iron

 I've always enjoyed Wonder Woman as a concept, and as a supporting player, but she's never really spoken to me as a lead character, and the closest that I've ever gotten to getting on board with her as a lead in her own series was when Greg Rucka was writing her monthly book around the time of INFINITE CRISIS. Now, having read the first three volumes of her "New 52" reboot over the past week, I can finally say that I have discovered a Wonder Woman that works for me, and I'll throw in this for good measure: WONDER WOMAN is, far and away, the best that "The New 52" has to offer.

 Brian Azzarello has always been hit-or-miss for me, but his work over the course of these three volumes is nothing short of outstanding, and he's complimented perfectly by Pencillers Cliff Chiang and Tony Akins, who share the art chores.

 The three volumes to date tell an ongoing story that looks to continue on into Volume 4, which will be released in March 2014. Zeus is missing from Olympus, and his children are engaged in a power struggle to see who will assume the throne of Olympus. Zeus' Wife, Hera, finds out that a young woman named Zola is pregnant with Zeus' bastard child, and sends her minions to kill it. The young woman, Zola, comes under Wonder Woman's protection, drawing Princess  Diana of Themyscira into the Olympians dangerous game of thrones.

 This third volume centers around Diana's quest to find Zola's missing child, who was kidnapped at the end of Volume 2. Interspersed with Diana's quest, we are introduced to Zeus' first child, "The First Born", who is headed to Mount Olympus to take the throne that he feels is rightfully his. Diana is aided in her quest by a familiar ally, albeit one who is new (I assume...) to this rebooted universe: Orion, of The New Gods.

 The banter between Diana and Orion is priceless, and I enjoyed seeing them bounce off each other. I hope Orion will stick around through the fourth volume. I'd rather see him hook up with Diana than Superman. Thankfully, Azzarello seems content to just ignore whatever is happening in the rest of the "New 52" Universe.

 WONDER WOMAN, VOLUME 3: IRON was so good that I am tempted to run out and buy the floppies so I don't have to wait six months to see what happens next. Amazingly good stuff.

 DC Comics provided a review copy.