The former Queen of the Amazons Hippolyta, mother of Wonder Woman, is ascending to godhood in the pages of an upcoming one-shot Olympus: Rebirth #1 from DC Comics. Hippolyta was recently murdered at the hands of Artemis of Bana-Mighdall as part of the Trial of the Amazons crossover event, but is clearly not leaving DC continuity anytime soon.
For many years of DC publication history Hippolyta has been a background character, appearing as a supportive or sometimes manipulative presence in Wonder Woman comics, although she did take on the mantle of Wonder Woman herself in the late 1990s and has always been indelibly connected to Diana's origin story. Recently she has emerged as a major force to be reckoned with in DC's new Infinite Frontier era, first becoming a new member of the Justice League after Diana's apparent death, making Nubia the new Queen of the Amazons, before her own shocking death in Trial of the Amazons.
Olympus: Rebirth #1 - written by Becky Cloonan (Batgirls, Trial of the Amazons) and Michael W. Conrad (Wonder Woman, Action Comics) with art by Caitlin Yarsky (Black Hammer) - will follow Hippolyta of Themyscira as she joins the Greek Pantheon of Gods on Mount Olympus, after years of violent conflict with the Gods. The Greek Gods have always played a major role in Wonder Woman's stories, and they were a huge part of Yara Flor's recent Wonder Girl run. Hera, the Queen of the Gods and leader on Mount Olympus, has disliked Hippolyta for years since Diana was a result of an affair between her and Hera's husband Zeus, and it was also revealed in Wonder Girl that Hera arranged the murder of Yara's mother. Check out the gorgeous main cover to Olympus: Rebirth #1 by Julian Totino Tedesco and stunning variants by Tula Lotay and Lee Weeks, revealed exclusively to AIPT:
After years of bitter and violent conflict, the Greek pantheon of gods stands united to welcome their latest goddess…Hippolyta of Themyscira!
Due to her heroic efforts in the mortal realm, the former queen has earned her rightful place among the gods and plans to use her newfound powers to take care of her Amazon sisters from beyond. Little does she know, some of the gods are wary of the new future Hippolyta brings and will do just about anything to stop it!
Now that the three tribes of Amazons are united for the very first time in history, and Themyscira has opened its borders to Man's World, there are bound to be many more threats coming for the Amazons, meaning Hippolyta will surely have her work cut out for her. It is no wonder that the official synopsis reveals that some of the Greek gods are wary of Hippolyta's new position among them, because it is probably not very common that a new god is added to their ranks, but also because she has such intense ties to the Amazons and the mortals, which the Greek gods typically attempt to stay as disconnected from as they can. Additionally, the true mystery of why Artemis murdered Hippolyta has not yet been revealed, and in the mini-story titled What Lies Beneath that played out throughout The Trial of the Amazons it almost seemed like Hippolyta actually planned the murder herself for the greater good. Perhaps Hippolyta knew that she needed to be a member of the Pantheon to be able to truly protect her Amazons, and there is a chance this secret could be revealed in Olympus: Rebirth or in the upcoming series Artemis: Wanted which follows the exiled Amazonian.
As more and more of Hippolyta and the Amazons' history, including their creation by the Greek gods, is revealed in Wonder Woman Historia it becomes clearer and clearer that the former queen has played a truly major role in shaping the Amazons and Themyscira over the last several centuries. Hopefully Hippolyta's new rule as an ascended god of Mount Olympus will allow her to help and support her daughter Wonder Woman even more, while continuing to forge her own unique destiny.
The 46 page one-shot Olympus: Rebirth #1 from DC Comics debuts this August 23rd.
Source: AIPT