Since this short subject accompanies the first season of "The New, Original Wonder Woman", no mention is made of the 1974 TV movie starring Cathy Lee Crosby. Instead, producer Douglas Cramer explains how the WWII version of the show came about. Wonder Woman expert Les Daniels talks about the history of the character and Wonder Woman's creator William Moulton Marston, who's second greatest accomplishment was of course inventing the lie detector. Artist Extraordinaire Alex Ross puts in his two cents, gushing about the impact the series (not to mention Lynda Carter) had on him and his work. These interviews are illustrated by clips from the show and comic book art both classic and recent (including Ross's version of WW that is clearly inspired by Lynda).
Undoubtebly, Lynda Carter is as much the main subject of this retrospective as WW is. She is frank, amiable and a bit wacky in her segments, talking about her anxieties during the casting process, the bullet breasts on her costume, working with gadgets and effects and doing most of the stunts herself. Apparently the only thing she didn't like was the invisible plane. She also touches on the insecurities she felt when Wonder Girl was added to the cast (Debra Winger never got a hang of that spinning transformation bit invented by Lynda). Further more Lynda regrets not getting to know Lyle Waggoner better during the run of the show. Unfortunately we don't learn much more of the rumored animosity between the two of them as Lyle proved unavailable to comment on this documentary.
The many familiar faces who appeared as guest stars during the first season are mentioned. Title designer Phil Norman and composer Charlie Fox score are singled out by Doug Cramer for their contributions to the show. It's a shame they couldn't include Fox, like he was in the episode of "I Love the 70s" (BBC 2 version hosted by Lynda Cater). He performed a fantastic unplugged rendition of the theme song in that particular show. This documentary concludes with Lynda acknowledging to having become an icon herself thanks to Wonder Woman and on what she would thinks a future WW movie might touch upon. But it is Alex Ross who phrases it best when he explains that there have been many versions of Superman and Batman over the years, but only one Wonder Woman and that is Miss Carter. And you only have to look at one line of Ross's art to realize that this man is never wrong.
8 out of 10
Undoubtebly, Lynda Carter is as much the main subject of this retrospective as WW is. She is frank, amiable and a bit wacky in her segments, talking about her anxieties during the casting process, the bullet breasts on her costume, working with gadgets and effects and doing most of the stunts herself. Apparently the only thing she didn't like was the invisible plane. She also touches on the insecurities she felt when Wonder Girl was added to the cast (Debra Winger never got a hang of that spinning transformation bit invented by Lynda). Further more Lynda regrets not getting to know Lyle Waggoner better during the run of the show. Unfortunately we don't learn much more of the rumored animosity between the two of them as Lyle proved unavailable to comment on this documentary.
The many familiar faces who appeared as guest stars during the first season are mentioned. Title designer Phil Norman and composer Charlie Fox score are singled out by Doug Cramer for their contributions to the show. It's a shame they couldn't include Fox, like he was in the episode of "I Love the 70s" (BBC 2 version hosted by Lynda Cater). He performed a fantastic unplugged rendition of the theme song in that particular show. This documentary concludes with Lynda acknowledging to having become an icon herself thanks to Wonder Woman and on what she would thinks a future WW movie might touch upon. But it is Alex Ross who phrases it best when he explains that there have been many versions of Superman and Batman over the years, but only one Wonder Woman and that is Miss Carter. And you only have to look at one line of Ross's art to realize that this man is never wrong.
8 out of 10
