William Marston was an unusual man–a psychologist, a soft-porn pulp novelist, more than a bit of a carny, and the (self-declared) inventor of the lie detector. He was also the creator of  Wonder Woman , the comic that he used to express two of his greatest feminism and women in bondage. Comics expert Noah Berlatsky takes us on a wild ride through the  Wonder Woman  comics of the 1940s, vividly illustrating how Marston’s many quirks and contradictions, along with the odd disproportionate composition created by illustrator Harry Peter, produced a comic that was radically ahead of its time in terms of its bold presentation of female power and sexuality. Himself a committed polyamorist, Marston created a universe that was friendly to queer sexualities and lifestyles, from kink to lesbianism to cross-dressing. Written with a deep affection for the fantastically pulpy elements of the early  Wonder Woman comics, from invisible jets to giant multi-lunged space kangaroos, the book also reveals how the comic addressed serious, even taboo issues like rape and incest. Wonder Bondage and Feminism in the Marston Peter Comics   1941-1948  reveals how illustrator and writer came together to create a unique, visionary work of art, filled with bizarre ambition, revolutionary fervor, and love, far different from the action hero symbol of the feminist movement many of us recall from television.

Wonder Woman: Bondage and Feminism in the Marston Peter Comics, 1941-1948 (Comics Culture) PDF

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