Tom King and Daniel Sampere’s Wonder Woman continually raises the bar. King teased that issue #14 would be massive and he wasn’t wrong, as it revealed the latest move in the war between the Sovereign, the secret king of America, and Wonder Woman. After the defeat of Amanda Waller in Absolute Power, the Sovereign decided to hit Wonder Woman where it hurt, killing her long-time lover Steve Trevor. This led to Wonder Woman taking the initiative, sending the Wonder Girls to destroy the Sovereign’s wealth in issue #15.
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Wonder Woman #16, by King and Bruno Redondo, sees Detective Chimp, sent by Wonder Woman, unravel the events of Steve’s murder and learn everything he can about the Sovereign, finally revealing the real name of the villain – Henry Charles. This information was passed on to Clark Kent, who published a story about the reality of the Sovereign. Issue #16 also had a backup from King and Khary Randolph, which sees Jimmy Olsen make a TikTok-like video about Clark’s article, revealing the origin of the Sovereign and giving readers the surprising story of how he took the throne.
Spoilers Ahead!
The Sovereign Almost Didn’t Inherit the Throne of the United States
Clark Kent was able to learn about the history of the Charles family and reveals it in his article. They were able to take power by stealing the Lasso of Lies from Native American tribes, using it to trick the Founding Fathers into thinking they were starting a democracy and not another monarchy. The Charles family ruled from the shadows with the power of the Lasso and the wealth that the family had acquired as monarchs, tailoring the United States to their wishes at every turn.
Related: Absolute Wonder Woman #1: An Icon Reimagined for the Ages
Clark combed through government and medical records, finding out that the Sovereign had a sister named Claire, who was now living on the streets of Gotham. Claire proved her identity with pictures she kept and revealed her story to Kent. Her father felt that Henry wouldn’t make a good monarch and was going to give the crown to Claire, breaking centuries of tradition, something that angered Henry immensely. However, Henry struck first and killed his father, taking the crown from his sister and exiling her to poverty and shame.
The Sovereign’s Origin Shows His Reasoning for Hating Women
The backup story to Wonder Woman #16 goes into the detail about the origin of the Sovereign and gives the genesis of his hatred of women. Since the beginning of this series, readers have noticed just how misogynistic the Sovereign is. His hatred of women was always right up front, from his reaction to the story’s inciting incident – an Amazon murdering a group of men in a bar – through his torment of Wonder Woman and the creation of a world for her with the Lasso of Lies that made her a ’50s style housewife. His misogyny was intensified by his sister almost taking his throne, becoming the driving force of his battle with Wonder Woman.
Wonder Woman has been dropping major events on its readers since King and Sampere took over the book. Its reveal of Wonder Woman’s daughter Trinity was only the beginning, and this origin story is only the latest. The backup story also lets readers in on the consequences of the destruction of the Sovereign’s wealth in Wonder Woman #15 – the loss of his mansions throughout the United States – and the main story sets up Wonder Woman’s next strike against him, as she brings her daughter to Hippolyta and teases what could be a resurrection for Steve Trevor.
Wonder Woman #16 is on sale now.
