Geek Girl in Hollywood: On the joys of the ‘Wonder Woman’ trailer

I just spent five days at San Diego Comic-Con, and between covering for sites, filming videos, being on or moderating eight panels, running around in the heat and typing my digits off, it’s all sort of a blur.

There was something that stood out, however. I got to see part of “Wonder Woman” on the big screen. Warner Bros. released the trailer for the upcoming solo film, while the con was celebrating Diana Prince’s 75th anniversary. I didn’t see it when it was first shown in Hall H, but when I attended the anniversary panel with artists Jim Lee and Nicola Scott, director Patty Jenkins and the lady herself, Gal Gadot, it was shown again. I was not prepared for my reaction.

You have to understand that, back when I was a child, there weren’t many super women to look up to. We had Princess Leia and Wonder Woman. That’s it. I watched the show starring Lynda Carter, wore my Wonder Woman Underoos, used twine as her lasso and colored scotch tape with magic markers around my wrists. I used those markers on a plastic tiara and spun around (a quarter turn counterclockwise, then a few full clockwise turns was the correct method) to transform myself into my favorite superhero. Oh, I loved Batman too, but Wonder Woman was a girl, just like me.

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As some of the panelists regaled us with their childhood stories about what she meant to them, I felt myself applauding like crazy before I even realized it. It was all of us. We all stood on the playground and spun. We all wanted to grow up to be this super woman.

The lights dimmed and they played the trailer, complete with some action poses right from the comics. She was soft, yet powerful. She was funny. She was strong and she was sassy. She said, “What I do is not up to you,” when Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) questioned her actions. I felt my throat catch and actually cried. I admit it. Hell, I admitted it all over social media.

I cannot begin to explain what it meant for me to finally see her up there. Seventy-five years and this is the first time it’s happened. When the lights went up and the crowd roared, I looked around and didn’t see a dry eye in the house. I listened as Jenkins talked about how important it was to finally do this and then I left the room, running to my next appointment.

As I did, I saw person after person, older women, little girls, some guys, a little boy and quite a few babies dressed in her costume. I saw people clutching Wonder Woman toys and posters and wearing tiaras. For a moment, I forgot how tired I was. I just got to see something wonderful and my seven-year-old self is cheering.