Tom King returned to writing monthly comics with the current run of Wonder Woman and he has a vast plan to shake things up. What he has in mind was done multiple times before with Batman, Superman, and many other heroes, so it’s not a new idea, but regardless, move over, Super Sons, we shall be introduced to Wonder Woman’s mysterious daughter – Trinity.
Inspired by something artist Mitch Gerads shared with him, King said to IGN he had the idea for Trinity in his brain for a while. “Hard to remember exactly, but I think I stole at least the first spark from Mitch Gerads, the brilliant artist whom I’m blessed to work with on so many things,” he said.
“Mitch had a great idea for doing a sort of all-ages short story to follow up on our Mister Miracle series where Jon and Damian would be babysitting Scott and Barda’s kid, Jack. This got me thinking about the son of Batman and the son [of] Superman as older brother babysitters and how…they should be looking after…the daughter of Wonder Woman,” he continued.
King also looked to his three children and his familiarity with the “dynamic and its potential for comedy and drama. Super sons…and daughter.” He then added, “It was the kind of thing I’d want to read with them at any age. So, after I had that idea in my head, I couldn’t get it out.”
He wants to bring the same energy Damian had when his debut “went off like an atom bomb in the DC Universe.” More than his mere presence, the way Damian played off his father and the other Robins made him special, and King hopes Trinity has the same impact. “[It’s] not enough to just have a generic daughter of Wonder Woman.”
Likewise inspired by Dan Jurgens and the introduction of Jon Kent, King praised the way Jon reshaped Superman’s mythos. “His strength seems to be his ability to talk to a new generation of readers, to show them both the relevancy of Superman’s ideals and the need to evolve those tenets,” he said, wanting this to be what Trinity does for Wonder Woman.
“This was a model for the impact we wanted for Trinity: someone who could reflect the greatness of Wonder Woman and still show a next possible step for the ideals embodied in that very impactful and very unique hero,” he added. More than that, however, King wants Trinity to “play in that same sandbox,” with Jon and Damian and “add to that chemistry.”
That’s partly where her name comes from, she completes a trinity, but King didn’t come up with it – a podcaster, Darrell Taylor, did. “Darrell is a super comic fan and I’ve been bouncing ideas off him for a decade to try to see what works and what doesn’t,” King explained. “…he said ‘Trinity’ and it just fit perfectly.”
Other reasons that ended up being her name include “She’d have three lassos…she wasn’t another Wonder Woman, she was something new; and also, it was just cool.” King admitted too that he went “through fifty very bad names” before Taylor’s suggestion stuck. “It’s nice to have nerdy friends,” said King.
Trinity, a 20-something, will be in adulthood upon her debut but her first appearance won’t take place in the present, wherein she isn’t born yet. The setting of King’s story is approximately 20 years after Wonder Woman #1 and readers will be allowed to see her grow up and mature into the hero they meet. Some of that will be through flashbacks.
“I think it’s safe to say we’ll see more of that future as we move forward with the story in Wonder Woman, which centers around how that future came to be,” King explained about his intended timeline. “But it’s important to add that the main focus of Wonder Woman the book will be Wonder Woman the hero.”
He added with a tease, “The point of every issue and every arc of our story is to show the readers how awesome Diana Prince is, how relevant she is to today’s world, and how kick-ass her powers [and] personality are. Trinity is part of that story, but there’s a lot more than just Trinity coming. A LOT more…”
But he knows he wants to keep the focus on Trinity and her mom. “Being the daughter of Wonder Woman, being raised with that particular and particularly historic superhero as your mother has an impact on Trinity that can’t be underestimated,” he said. “Trinity can never escape her parents.” That’s plural, meaning she has a father, probably Steve Trevor, but King’s not telling.
Keeping it just to Diana, he continued, “Good or horrible, absent or present, your parents’ legacy, their decisions are always with you, and you forever struggle to reconcile what they have done with who you are. It is not enough for Trinity to find her independence; she has to learn what it means to be the daughter of Diana.”
Wonder Woman #800 goes on sale on June 20, and Wonder Woman #1 follows in September. King discussed why he returned to monthly titles for such a big arc. “I love where DC is going now, where Jim Lee and Marie Javins are taking us, all the energy coming out of DC Studios, and I just wanted to be a part of it,“ he said.
Are you ready to say hello to Trinity, daughter of Wonder Woman, or is this a played-out concept? Give us your answer below.