Wonder Woman #196
Wonder Woman #196 (cover-dated October 1971) marks a structurally significant turning point as the final issue written and edited by Mike Sekowsky, closing out the controversial 'Diana Prince' mod era he had shepherded since 1968 and clearing the way for Denny O'Neil's return as scripter starting with #197. It also inaugurates a permanent format change for the series — the page count jumping to 52 pages and the cover price rising from 15 to 25 cents — a shift DC used to pad the book with vintage reprints, including a condensed version of the Golden Age origin story from All-Star Comics #8 that brought Wonder Woman's 1941 debut back into print for early-Bronze-Age readers. Most strikingly, the issue includes what is documented as a previously unpublished Golden Age story ('The Stormy Menace of Goblin Head Rock'), making it a rare home for material that had never seen print before. Taken together, the issue is a hinge point: the last gasp of one creative vision, a publishing-format pivot, and an inadvertent Golden Age time capsule all in a single package.
In a tale that redefines heroism, Wonder Woman [Diana] earns her place when she’s chosen to escort Steve Trevor back to Man’s World, marking the start of her journey as the Amazon’s champion. With the guidance of her mother, Queen Hippolyte, and the wisdom of Athena and Aphrodite, Diana steps forward—her courage tested not by battle, but by the weight of destiny.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The Diana Prince era was launched in 1968 when DC editorial director Carmine Infantino assigned Denny O'Neil and Mike Sekowsky to reinvent a flagging Wonder Woman title, stripping Diana of her powers and costume and recasting her as a mod, martial-arts-trained civilian spy in the mold of Emma Peel from the British TV series The Avengers. Sekowsky eventually took over scripting duties from O'Neil and served as writer-artist-editor through the run; #196 is the last issue on which he holds all three roles before transitioning back to purely artistic work for the rest of his career. The issue's expanded 52-page format — padded with reprints — reflects a broader early-1970s DC experiment with 'Giant' and 'Super' formats as the publisher tried to justify higher cover prices in an inflationary market.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Cover date: October 1971; on-sale date: July 1, 1971; published by National Periodical Publications (DC Comics).
- Final issue written, penciled, and edited by Mike Sekowsky on the Wonder Woman title — his last turn as scripter before returning exclusively to art work.
- Cover pencils by Mike Sekowsky, cover inks by Dick Giordano; interior lead story ('Target for Today?') scripted and penciled by Sekowsky, inked by Dick Giordano.
- Beginning with this issue, the series format changed: cover price rose from 15 cents to 25 cents and page count expanded to 52 pages, padded with reprinted material.
- Includes a condensed reprint of the Wonder Woman origin story 'Introducing Wonder Woman' from All-Star Comics #8 (1941), featuring the Golden Age first appearances of Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor, with art by the original series artist Harry G. Peter.
- Also includes 'The Stormy Menace of Goblin Head Rock,' documented as a previously unpublished Golden Age Wonder Woman story — its first-ever publication.
- Lead story 'Target for Today?' was later reprinted in Diana Prince: Wonder Woman Vol. 3 (DC, 2008); the issue's content also appears in the Wonder Woman: Diana Prince — Celebrating the '60s Omnibus (DC, 2018/2019).
- The cover depicts Diana in bondage/captivity imagery — a recurring motif from the Golden Age Marston/Peter era that resurfaced on this issue's cover — described by multiple collector sources as a notable visual callback to the character's original iconography.
Full credits
Reprints
↩ Reprints All-Star Comics #8 (1941)
Reprinted in Marvila, la Mujer Maravilla #198 (1972), Wonder Woman #[nn] (1972), Wonder Woman #[nn] (1972), Diana Prince: Wonder Woman #3 (2009), Wonder Woman: Amazon. Hero. Icon. #[nn] (2015), Wonder Woman: Diana Prince: Celebrating the '60s Omnibus #[nn] (2019)
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