From Amazon Princess to Vampire Thug: How DC vs. Vampires Created Diana’s Most Terrifying Form

The Elseworlds’ DC vs. Vampires saga is one of the best crossover events that DC Comics has published in recent years. Its brilliance lies in taking the well-worn idea of turning heroes into villains and adding a creative twist, where their unethical actions are less a question of pure evil intent, though there is certainly an element of that, and more a result of the need for survival. As in real life, when one is forced into a situation of survival or demise, there are incredible acts and compromises to long-held values that one will make to stay alive. DC vs. Vampires‘ exploration of how “turned” heroes and villains navigate these choices is top-tier content.

While this Elseworlds saga is a DC Universe-wide event, certain characters, such as Wonder Woman, play a more prominent role. To be sure, once she’s turned, Wonder Woman eventually becomes the second most important vampire in their community. As a result, the DC Universe’s toughest warrior is transformed into its most brutal enforcer. Given broad authority to carry out her duties, she performs them with heart-crushing singularity. Her transformation exemplifies just how extreme a new convert can become, especially when their survival is on the line.

Vampire Wonder Woman Strikes Fear in the Hearts of Humans and Heroes

Wonder Woman is the DC Universe’s preeminent combat specialist — and this isn’t just empty praise. In Justice League of America (2006) #13, the Caped Crusader himself called Wonder Woman the best melee fighter in the world. So it’s no surprise that her presence on the battlefield gives any opponent pause. But whatever fear they may have felt before is nothing compared to the terror they’ll experience when faced with Wonder Woman as a vampire, completely unbound from the values, principles, and discipline that once restrained her warrior’s urge to crush her enemies and see them kneel before her.

[ RELATED: DC Announces New Elseworlds Batman Series Coming This Summer (And We’re Excited) ]

In Matthew Rosenberg and Nikola Cizmesija’s DC vs. Vampires: World War V – Darkness and Light, one of the most terrifying expressions of Wonder Woman’s brutality as a vampire occurs when she literally tears the Green Lantern Corps’ Guy Gardner in half with her bare hands. This enraged reaction is triggered by Guy Gardner killing her disciple Harper, despite his best efforts to avoid taking action. It’s a shocking scene that fans could never envision her committing under normal circumstances, even while fully understanding her immense potential for such violence.

If her unleashed pugilistic prowess wasn’t scary enough, what’s even more terrifying is how skewed her moral compass has become as a vampire. Indeed, whereas before it acted as a guardrail that ensured Wonder Woman chose honor over success, compassion over aggression, and justice over injustice, now her life is dominated by her selfish desires, without regard for how they impact others. Outside of fulfilling the commands of her master, the Queen of the Vampires, Barbara Gordon, Wonder Woman’s actions are driven solely by self-interest.

Drawing again from Rosenberg and Cizmesija’s work in Darkness and Light, we see Wonder Woman slaughter a man while letting her underlings feed on his wife. Then, upon discovering their children hiding, she takes the daughter – Harper, to serve as her pet vampire. She even initially parades her around the community with a dog collar and leash. While she ultimately comes to regard Harper as a sort of daughter, one of the reasons she brutalizes Guy Gardner for killing her. Nevertheless, she always treated Harper more like a slave than an actual family member. It’s hard viewing for Wonder Woman fans, but this portrayal shows just how terrifying she’s become as a vampire.

Wonder Woman’s Corruption Shows Us Just How Good She Was Before Being Turned

Before her transformation, Wonder Woman was one of the foundational pillars of the DC Universe. She was celebrated as a symbol of truth, justice, hope, and compassion. At the same time, she was raised as a warrior, and ultimately became one of the greatest in history. As such, Wonder Woman has always possessed an extraordinary capacity for violence, ferocity, and brutality. In fact, bloodlust is a defining trait of the Amazon tribe, and Wonder Woman epitomizes the ideal Amazonian.

So, the rage and ferocity she shows in DC vs. Vampires – her true danger – was never about the supernatural abilities she gained by becoming a vampire. She always possessed those intense emotions. The crucial difference is that her vampiric transformation liberated her from the virtues and practices that once served to control her raw, monstrous power. The only true “force multiplier” was the addition of a vampire’s inherent survival instinct, which amplified Wonder Woman’s transformation into a truly terrifying force of nature.

Seeing her as the unstoppable predator she becomes in DC vs. Vampires is a testament to her unmatched discipline and the immense mental strength she exerted to suppress such primal urges. It retroactively proves just how much effort it took for her to remain true to her principles before her transformation, revealing the depth of her honor, courage, and strength as a warrior.