Death: No Big Deal?

Superheroes as we know them today have moral codes that guide them through every decision they make. Specifically, each superhero seems to have some sort of moral revolving around death. For the original superheroes such as Superman, Captain America, and Batman (though he may occasionally bend the rules), death is never the solution, regardless of the villain’s transgressions. Some of the newer superheroes have contrary morals about death. For instance, the Punisher kills those he judges to be in the wrong, and the same goes for Ghost Rider.

            In reading Wonder Woman, I found myself questioning what exactly her moral stance was. Sometimes she would rescue the villain (Nazi whose parachute fails) whereas other times she is content to let the villains die (explosion at the Nazi factory) or even kill the villains herself (crashing a plane into a U-boat in the TV show). Not only does she seem to make the choice of life or death at random, but the choice itself is never even addressed. The concept of death in general seems to be entirely glossed over. While Wonder Woman gets the job done and saves the day in the end, it seems as though she is relatively indifferent to the collateral damage as long as it does not include American lives.