Wonder Woman
Going into 2017, the DCEU had struck out three for three, in terms of widespread opinion. The bleakness of Man of Steel and BvS, not to mention the off-kilter Suicide Squad, had been met with fierce backlashes. What was needed, then, was a movie with mass appeal, that had a firm grip on its story, characters and tone. Enter Wonder Woman.
Patty Jenkins’ period fantasy adventure was a unique blend of DC, mythology and history, with a dash of Disney thrown in for good measure (and yes, a bit of the Marvel formula, too). The villains could have been stronger, but Gal Gadot’s heroine was solid enough to carry the movie, demonstrating the mix of grace and grit that Diana of Themyscira needs. Outside of its own confines, Wonder Woman‘s biggest achievement is probably that it’s proven to those misguided Hollywood execs that there’s a serious thirst out there for female-led superhero movies.
Even with the disappointing reception of Justice League, 2017 has brought DC the unqualified success of Wonder Woman, granting the franchise a ray of hope moving forward. It’s no wonder that the sequel is being fast-tracked, with a release date set for 2019.