Wonder Woman's mother Hippolyta is murdered as Trial of the Amazons begins

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The Justice League loses another member at the start of the Wonder Woman event series

Hippolyta is murdered in Trial of the Amazons
Hippolyta is murdered in Trial of the Amazons (Image credit: DC)

Who saw that one coming?

The trial is about to begin. Amazons hailing from all corners of the globe, from the noble Themyscirans to the forgotten Bana-Mighdall to the mysterious Esquecidas, have converged on Paradise Island for a single purpose. 

A new champion is to be chosen to guard Doom's Doorway, a portal to unimaginable evil and a threat to all life on Earth. The champion will be chosen via contest, much like the one that made Wonder Woman the Themysciran ambassador to the world of men. But just as the event is about to begin, a horrible discovery is made.

(Image credit: DC)

Hippolyta, mother of Diana, former Queen of the Amazons, and recent Justice League member, has been murdered.

So ended Trial of the Amazons #1 (read Newsarama's review here), the beginning of a storyline that will incorporate every DC title under the Amazonian banner. Fortunately for readers, the story was picked up in a comic that was released the same day, in Nubia & the Amazons #6, the final issue of the limited series. 

The issue sees Nubia, the newest Queen of the Amazons, dealing with not just the loss of an influential figure, but the fact that somewhere on the island, her killer is still roaming free.

(Image credit: DC)

Though no one has been identified as a suspect just yet, there are plenty of characters about whom fans can speculate. The first is Queen Faruka of the Bana-Mighdall, whose open disdain for Themyscirans and brutality in battle would be perfect ingredients in making a murderer.

Next is a character that's not Amazonian at all - in fact, we don't know exactly what it is. And that's whatever is hiding behind Doom's Doorway. In a few chilling scenes within this book, we see that something is certainly making its way out of the supposed supernatural prison, potentially to murder the queen. 

Finally, there's Hippolyta’s lover Phillipus. Though she's shown no reason to kill the love of her life, she is certainly the character with the most access to the former Queen.

(Image credit: DC)

Of course, these are all just speculations. Unfortunately for Nubia, who has to piece the whodunnit together, tensions are at an all-time high, and there's an entire island full of adept warriors with a myriad of personal aspirations and dubious morals. 

The only break the Queen will get is that there's one Amazon in Themyscira with almost no reason to have anything to do with Hippolyta’s murder. 

And that Amazon has a Lasso of Truth.

Trial of the Amazons #1 and Nubia & the Amazons #6 are on sale now.

Trial of the Amazons is just getting started. Will it rank among the best Wonder Woman stories ever?

Grant DeArmitt
Grant DeArmitt
Freelance writer

Grant DeArmitt is a NYC-based writer and editor who regularly contributes bylines to Newsarama. Grant is a horror aficionado, writing about the genre for Nightmare on Film Street, and has written features, reviews, and interviews for the likes of PanelxPanel and Monkeys Fighting Robots. Grant says he probably isn't a werewolf… but you can never be too careful.