Wonder Woman vs. Wonder Woman to settle a 30-year-old plotline

This is part of the "retro" series of books put out by DC Comics in recent months, showcasing the type of stories they used to run way back then. In this case, former WONDER WOMAN writer Roy Thomas tells a story that picks up from a plotline he did in the 80s, back before the various "CRISES" and reboots changed Wonder Woman drastically. This story involves Dr. Psycho giving Wonder Woman foe, the Silver Swan the appearance and powers of the amazing Amazon in an attempt to kill the original and take her place.

Thomas can be criticised for picking up an old plotline from the Reagan administration and then acting as though it all happened just two months ago. But at least he, in typical Silver Age fashion, tries to fill in the reader on what happened before, in contrast to modern writers who assume that the reader has been following his book all the time.

The violent and spiteful nature of both the Silver Swan and Dr. Psycho is depicted well as is their flaws which eventually result in their tragic defeats. If anything, they are the real protagonists of this story with Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor acting as mere foils.

Just the same, it is a relief to see both Diana and Steve acting so normal and upbeat in contrast to all the angst and anger that has dominated comics recently. And yes, this story does cement the Wonder Woman-Steve Trevor relationship which DC Comics so casually discarded a few years ago, without ever finding a suitable replacement.

But the major flaw of this story is the art. The book starts off well with Rich Buckler's pencils, then suddenly,  artist Tim Smith 3 takes over and the quality starts to deteriorate. As the story progresses, the art takes a sharp nosedive, becoming simplistic and crude as though the artist was trying to finish the project in a few minutes-- at gunpoint. Why DC Comics allowed such amateurish art to be published is a serious question. At least back in the real 1980s, they'd have guys like Ric Estrada or Don Heck always ready to do competent fill-in work.

Conveniently, the book also includes a reprint of the original Roy Thomas tale that introduced Silver Swan and Dr. Psycho although like too many of these 'retro' active specials, it only offers the first chapter of a multi-part tale. The Gene Colan art in the reprint may be startling to modern eyes but at least it is clearly professional and well-polished.

By the way, I was not familiar with the work of "Tim Smith 3" but from what I can see on the web, he has a manga-like style and is capable of better than this book. How sad that his debut in the big leagues of DC Comics should be one of his lesser efforts, clearly done in haste.