Blu-Ray Review: Wonder Woman Commemorative Edition

We crack open the Wonder Woman re-release and see what it’s all about.

DC released its Wonder Woman Commemorative Edition and it’s an exceptional film. With its retro animation and onus on one of the most underappreciated superheroes in Wonder Woman, aka Princess Diana of Themyscira, the DC Animated Universe scored a major hit. The Wonder Woman Commemorative Edition hoe video release is a worthy pickup.

Let’s start with the packaging. I snagged the Blu-Ray copy. On the outside, there’s a cardboard slip cover. The backdrop is shimmery, and it’s textured. This lends a premium feel to the slipcover, differentiating it from vanilla cardboard slipcovers. Moving on to the film itself, the Blu-Ray iteration comes with three copies: a Blu-Ray, DVD, and digital copy. Considering this array of formats, you’re guaranteed to have at least one compatible platform. While I don’t really care all that much about digital copies, at least DRM-locked digital copies, Wonder Woman Commemorative Edition throws in three formats for basically the price of one standard Blu-Ray.

Aside from the feature film, Wonder Woman Commemorative Edition includes several special features. “A sneak peak at Batman and Harly Quinn” analyzes the characters of Batman and Harley Quinn. The likes of DC Entertainment Creative Director Animation, Mike Carlin, weight in. As Carlin explains, “We knew the Suicide Squad movie was coming and there was a lot of buzz about the Harley Quinn character.” It’s neat hearing DC Animation talents like Carlin, Executive Producer Bruce Timm, and Video Director Wes Gleason discussing Batman and Harley.

The sneak peek is fun, but “What Makes a Wonder Woman” is a real gem. It’s a short extra, a bit over 10 minutes. However, this probes the character of Wonder Woman, from her inception to present. Experts such as The Essential Wonder Woman Encyclopedia co-author Phil Jimenez and Lauren Montgomery, director of 2009’s Wonder Woman discuss the character’s many incarnations. Additionally, this featurette explores what Diana embodies. Notably, her feminism and how the character stands on her own.

“Wonder Woman: A Subversive Dream” clocks in at 25 minutes and is a really delightful, enlightening, and insightful history of Wonder Woman. This traces her roots to comics creators, and society during the time when comics rose to prominence. “A Subversive Dream” mostly concentrates on Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston. Marston was like a pre-Dr. Phil version of Dr. Phil. The American psychologist went on to author comics, and spawn the character of Wonder Woman. His wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, largely inspired Princess Diana.

Another beefy featurette, “Wonder Woman: Daughter of Myth” focuses on the mythology behind Diana. Her origin has remained pretty untouched. The goddess Aphrodite created Diana from clay, and grew up on the utopian Paradise Island, comprised only of women. This video is just over 25 minutes and it’s a fascinating look at Wonder Woman lore. Like many other heroes, she’s been graced with a smorgasbord of writers and illustrators. But unlike most other characters, Diana’s narrative has been fairly untouched. That’s a unique aspect of Wonder Woman’s origin story.

The trailer is listed as an extra, which is a standard inclusion. I’ve never really understood this. If you have the actual film, why watch the trailer? But hey, if you want to watch the trailer, it’s here too. Finally, there’s the most substantive inclusion: the complete movie with commentary by the creative team. The writer, producer, and director offer a roundtable discussion about the film. I really enjoyed this inclusion. You probably won’t want to watch the commentary track version before the actual film. But there’s everything from an analysis on the new look of Wonder Woman, to capturing the feel of a massive battle in animation, why it’s a bloody, dark film, and more. It’s pure cinema gold.

Wonder Woman Commemorative Edition is an excellent film that boasts a fantastic set of features. It’s worth picking up for the main feature alone. A few of the featurettes are interesting but not necessarily substantive. But the character analysis videos, as well as full movie replete with commentary, offer several hours of entertainment. Plus, the packaging includes a shimmery, textured slipcover. The three copies alone make Wonder Woman Commemorative Edition a phenomenal value.