For eighty years, Wonder Woman has been one of the fiercest warriors in DC Comics. During that time, she has proven that she is no stranger to sacrifice, with her death in Dark Nights: Death Metal being one of the biggest events last year. Even so, as one of DC's Big Three superheroes, Diana Prince has not vanished from its universe since her death. Reappearing in her own Wonder Woman series after Death Metal, it appears that Diana is poised to make her reentrance back on Earth–this time with one small, but significant change.

In Wonder Woman #777, Diana was slashed across her face by Janus using the God Scraper weapon (written by Michael W. Conrad and Becky Cloonan, pencils by Emanuela Lupacchino, inks by Wade Von Grawbadger, colors by Jordie Bellaire, letters by Pat Brosseau). Since then, Diana has had a small scar on her cheekbone from the wound. Despite being such a storied warrior, it is unusual for Wonder Woman to sport a scar that is a testament to the battles that she's fought.

Related: Alex Ross Explains How Batman Got Those Iconic Scars

With her return to Earth bound to happen at some point in the near future, bringing Wonder Woman back with her new face scar would not only give her death the weight that it deserves, but also even out some of the ways that she has been depicted across her publication history. Scars have long been used in superhero comics and beyond as a way to express and emphasize details of the journey that characters have gone on. With Batman in particular having his own scars incorporated as part of his character design, it is time that Wonder Woman also have one of her own. 

Wonder Woman's cheek scar from Janus, from Wonder Woman #777

On another level, Diana’s scar opens up new ways of understanding the core themes that drive her character, continuing her current comics’ exploration of her identity. It is significant that she got the scar from Janus, considering that the Roman god's evil half murdered the gods on Olympus and represents the dangers of a future with no regard for the past. In many ways, some of Wonder Woman’s best strengths lie in her ability to broker an agreement between the past and future, and keeping her scar would be a perfect reminder of these qualities about her character. 

Wonder Woman’s current comics have taken a deep dive into the notion of legacy and afterlife, examining how the sacrifices she’s made as a warrior have altered her path as a demigoddess. Diana’s death in Dark Nights: Death Metal has given her comics the opportunity to explore everything that makes her unique in the DC Universe. And while she may seem untouchable as opposed to a human, battle-hardened warrior like Batman, keeping her facial scar would be a powerful reminder of the sacrifices that Diana has made for the greater good. Never before has a hero like Wonder Woman gone on a quest to save the gods of Olympus like this before, and this journey should be memorialized through keeping her cheek scar. 

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