The fate of one of DC Comic’s most beloved characters has always been irrecoverably connected to the sensational Wonder Woman. The third corner of the DC Universe’s “Trinity of Power” (which is comprised of Superman and Batman) earned her own sidekick back in 1965 when Donna Troy was then introduced as the inheritor of the mantle of “Wonder Girl” and joined her peers as a member of the Teen Titans. Her role alongside Dick Grayson, the “original” Robin, and Wally West, the Kid Flash would prove titular when the Titans were reformed in the 1980s.
The mystery behind the true origins of Donna Troy, an orphaned baby rescued from a fire by her idol-namesake Wonder Woman, is then raised as an adopted daughter of the queen with the Amazons of Paradise Island. One of the principle arcs for the character, especially as she prepared to walk down aisle in the landmark Tales of the Teen Titans #50 (1985). It became paramount for Donna Troy to put together the missing pieces of her backstory especially as she prepared to enter into matrimony with the “mortal” Terry Long. She enlisted her best friend Dick Grayson who to the task discovered some important components of Wonder Girl’s story — all of which would soon be erased!
Who is Donna Troy?
After the earth-shattering events of the Crisis on Infinite Earths Donna Troy’s origins were also again tossed to turmoil. At the conclusion of Crisis the comic’s Modern Era Wonder Woman was erased from history (not-entirely mind you), only to then be reintroduced into the context of relative contemporary history. In other words, the “new” Wonder Woman arrived in Man’s World during the advent of a villainous plot by Darkseid to discredit Earth’s Legends, and after the Teen Titans had been formed, (not to mention the Justice League of which WW was a founding member); the sonically powered Black Canary replaced most of Wonder Woman in the rebooted timeline! Wonder Woman had all-but been erased from Donna Troy’s backstory.
With that in mind, Donna Troy’s origin had to be reexamined. Greek and Roman mythology would still be part of the connective tissue that bound the two wonder women, but Donna would become linked to the Titans of Myth (placing her a rung above her Amazonian sister for sure) — and as reintroduced as Troia. With new powers and a new identity, Donna returned to the Titans. Marv Wolfman and George Pérez creators of The New Teen Titans (Pérez also had a very hand in the new Wonder Woman title) unbeknownst to both, would be responsible for elevating Donna Troy to one of the more powerfully iconic characters in the DC Universe.
Donna would go on to have a pivotal role in the design of the “reestablished” multiverse during the fallout of Infinite Crisis. With the premiere trinity taking a leave of absence to recoup from their battle weariness, Troy assumed (temporarily) the mantle of Wonder Woman, soon after that she took up a leadership role in the Justice League — just before the FLASHPoint that would once again “reboot” the DC Universe. This time though things did not fair so well for our beloved Donna Troy, who found herself all-but eradicated in the world of “The New 52” — though not forgotten!
When Geoff Johns, Chief Creative Office at DC Comics decided along with his creative staff on the specifics regarding the relaunch of all the lines including Wonder Woman the Amazon princess received a very dramatic redux including the revelation that she would be indoctrinated onto the pantheon of gods as a daughter of Zeus; enhancing her powers to godlike levels to rival that of Superman. During her initial run, Diana would rightfully reinsert herself into the origins of the Justice League as a founding member, she would also usurp the role and claim a mantle as the newly appointed God of War and become Queen of the Amazons. Writer Brian Azzarello and artist Cliff Chiang pioneered an incredible premiere arc in Wonder Woman leaving the book in very capable hands when it was their time to pass it along.
Ready for Battle
The husband/wife creative team of David and Meredith Finch now work to test Diana’s more than ample shouldered responsibilities to their edge. Between her duties as goddess, queen and heroine, Wonder Woman is thrust into a rebellion among her Amazon sisters who have decided she is unfit to lead them any longer. Their solution is to create a nemesis for Diana, and through black magic summon up a warrior worthy of taking on the demigoddess. From the cauldron emerges (who else) Donna Troy — a hardened war-mongering, antithesis to Diana that is prepared to wrestle Wonder Woman for ultimate power over the Amazons.
Emerging as if from the ether, the “new” Donna Troy is commissioned to take on the God of War and Queen of the Amazons.
The two faced each other in combat — proving their comparable might, though very little of the Donna Troy we’ve all grown to love are inherit in this form. After Diana bests her “sister” in battle and imprisons her in Mount Olympus her fate is left to the winds. When (or how) she’ll reemerge is a matter still in development. During the recent Convergence several alternate-universe versions of Donna presented themselves, though none appeared to have the relevance that had become so apparent upon the character shortly before the FLASHPoint reboot that gave audiences “The New 52” multiverse, and the present DCU continuity.
That both Donna Troy and her fellow Titan Wally West were both missing from early mainstream storylines was one of the bigger shocks to longtime fans, who believed both characters had really earned their place alongside the “big guns” the latter taking on the role of the new Flash after the loss of Barry Allen during Crisis. Now that both West and Troy have returned respectfully to mainstream continuity, under what appear to be diminished circumstances, if there were any casualties from the “multiversal” fall-out from the “FLASHPoint” it certainly was felt on fans of both these characters. Now that they’ve been reintegrated into the universe, only time will tell if Donna Troy will ascend back to greatness.
Or in the least, be a thorn in the side of Wonder Woman rivaling as one of the DC Universe’s most powerfully gifted super women! Wonder Woman faces new challenges in her own mostly title, while is still part of the super-couple appearing in Superman/Wonder Woman and joins her teammates on the front-lines in Justice League as they prepare for the return of Darkseid and the Anti-Monitor.
