Casual fans of Wonder Woman may have been intrigued or confused by the armored outfit
the hero wears in her solo movie. After all, it's a pretty far cry from the classic look
Lynda Carter sported back in the '70s. But comic book fans know that Wonder Woman's costume
has been in constant flux for the past 75 years. Why? Here's a look at the untold truth
of Wonder Woman's costume.
The original costume
When Wonder Woman first appeared in All-Star Comics #8 in 1941, she was already recognizable
as the iconic hero we know today. Inspired by patriotic drawings of Lady Liberty from
the Sufragette movement and World War I, artist H. G. Peter and writer William Moulton Marston
came up with a look featuring a gold tiara, bracelets, red strapless top decorated with
a golden eagle, red boots, and blue culottes spangled with white stars. Yes, that's right,
it's not a skirt — it's culottes.
So why does Wonder Woman dress like the American flag if she's not even from America? Because
Wonder Woman's mom, Queen Hippolyta, cleverly designed the costume to make her daughter
more popular and appealing to Americans. Now there's a savvy public relations move!
A sanitized post-war version
When Marston died in 1947, the radical feminist subtext of Wonder Woman died with him, killed
off by new writer Bob Kanigher. Diana soon embraced traditional gender roles for the
1950s, longing to marry Steve Trevor and settle down as a housewife. Her costume changed to
reflect her new values: her boots were replaced with ballet slippers, her hair was pulled
back in a more conservative 'do, and her swimsuit like costume became more demure, carefully
covering her cleavage and upper thighs.
No costume, just fashion
In the late 1960s, Wonder Woman underwent a drastic makeover, losing her superpowers
and her star-spangled costume to become a globe-trotting action hero in the mold of
Emma Peel, the popular character played on the British TV series The Avengers. Not only
was the new, mod Diana a fashion plate in her own right, modeling a line of sleek jumpsuits
befitting an international adventurer, she even opened a fashion boutique to help other
women find their own inner Wonder Woman.
The new look Wonder Woman ended in 1972 when Gloria Steinem featured Wonder Woman on the
cover of the first issue of Ms. Magazine and successfully pressured DC Comics into returning
her to her superpowered roots.
A new logo
Diana's costume received an important update in 1982. DC President Jenette Kahn wanted
to give Wonder Woman a distinctive logo that could be used for trademark and licensing
purposes. That eagle on her chest was nice and patriotic, but it was also very generic,
unlike the logos for heroes like Superman and Batman. Graphic designer Milton Glaser
created a new double-W logo with wings. In the comics, Diana is given this new design
by members of a real-world charity organization called the Wonder Woman Foundation, and decides
to wear it to help raise awareness of social issues facing women around the world. Versions
of this logo have been in use ever since.
A different Diana
After the DC Universe was rebooted in the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover, writer/artist
George Pérez was brought in to relaunch Wonder Woman in 1987. Though he left the costume
mostly the same, he gave it a new background to explain exactly why it looks like an American
flag. In this new origin story, Steve Trevor's mother Diana crashed her plane on the hidden
island of Themyscira in the 1940s and died helping the Amazons defeat a mystical threat
from the underworld. To honor her legacy, Queen Hippolyta named her daughter after Diana
Trevor, and designed a ceremonial suit of armor based on the Women in the Air Force
patches on Trevor's flight jacket. That armor would eventually become the basis for the
outfit we know and love from the movies.
Going full '90s
In the 1990s, the big trend in the comics was replacing old heroes with newcomers. For
Diana, that meant she lost the title of Wonder Woman to another Amazon named Artemis. Diana
kept up the good fight, of course, but she did it wearing biker shorts, a strappy bikini
top, a bolero jacket, and no less than three belts. She even got a shorter haircut with
bangs to complete the extreme aesthetic. Naturally, she got her title and the costume that goes
with it back after a few months, and her hair even grew back out as soon as she put it on.
Thank the gods!
Hippolyta's sword
A few years later, Diana again stopped being Wonder Woman and her lookalike mother Hippolyta
took her place. Hippolyta's Wonder Woman costume brought back the classic eagle, but made it
more like armor than a simple insignia. Meanwhile, the W logo moved to her belt. She also wore
a skirt and carried a sword and shield instead of a lasso. Though Hippolyta's time as Wonder
Woman has largely been forgotten, the design changes made by artist John Byrne have had
a lasting impact on Wonder Woman's look.
Donna's armor
The Infinite Crisis crossover shook up the DC Universe in 2006 — not least with another
new Wonder Woman in the form of Donna Troy, Diana's adopted sister of sorts, and the hero
formerly known as Wonder Girl. As the star of a relaunched Wonder Woman series written
by Allan Heinberg with art by Terry and Rachel Dodson, Donna wore a fully armored costume
with a gladiator skirt and a sword on her belt.
Diana's pants
After dressing Wonder Woman in her classic outfit for a number of years, DC Comics decided
to go totally off the rails in 2010 and revamped her outfit to include a black leather jacket,
a choker, and some yoga pants thrown in for good measure. While some fans were happy to
see her wearing a more practical outfit instead of a star-spangled swimsuit, the unfortunate
'90s vibe created by artist Jim Lee brought back too many traumatic memories. It didn't
end up mattering much either way, though, because DC changed her look yet again just
a year later.
Armored in silver
In 2011, DC continuity was completely rebooted, and their entire line was relaunched with
52 new #1 issues. Diana's new look was once again designed by Jim Lee, but this time it
hewed closer to the original look, albeit with some significant alterations. All traces
of yellow and gold in the costume were replaced with silver instead, and the red on her top
was textured to make it look more like armor than fabric. This costume also included a
sword — which has been standard for all Wonder Woman costumes since — and for some
reason another choker.
The movie look
We caught our first glimpse of Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman in July of 2014, in a promo image
for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but since then fans have had plenty of opportunity
to see the new cinematic look in action.
The top is dark red and armored, while the bottom is a blue gladiator skirt. She has
the W logo on her belt, like Hippolyta's costume, although there's another W layered into the
eagle design on her chest. Her tiara points down rather than up as it traditionally has
in the comics. And of course, she carries a sword and a shield, in addition to the magic
lasso. It all adds up to one of the most instantly iconic looks in Wonder Woman — and superhero
— history.
In 2016, DC once again rebooted their line of comics, introducing another new costume
for Wonder Woman. This time, however, artist Tony Daniel took the popular look from the
movies and used it as the basis for the design, ensuring that fans of both the comics and
the films won't be confused — or disappointed.
No matter what she's wearing, one thing is for sure: she's a wonder, that Wonder Woman...
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