| Themyscira | |
|---|---|
 A rebuilt and relocated Themyscira as seen inWonder Woman (vol. 2) #177 (Feb 2002), art byPhil Jimenez. | |
| First appearance | As Paradise Island: All Star Comics #8 (October 1941)[a] As Themyscira: Wonder Woman (vol. 1) #310 (December 1983) |
| Created by | William Moulton Marston Harry G. Peter |
| In-universe information | |
| Type | City-state /Island country |
| Race | Amazons |
| Locations | Earth, in the midst of a vast ocean. |
| Characters | Wonder Woman Donna Troy Hippolyta Mala Philippus |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
Themyscira (/ˌθɛmɪˈskɪrə/)[2] is a fictionalunitarysovereigncity-state andarchipelagicisland nation appearing inAmerican comic books published byDC Comics. Previously known asParadise Island and theAmazon Isles, it first appeared inAll Star Comics #8 (October 1941).
Themyscira is ahomogeneousnation of women governed byAphrodite's Law, which declared that the Amazons would be immortal as long as no man sets foot on their island.[3][4] Men are banned from Themyscira under penalty of death.[5] Themyscira's location is undisclosed; as a security measure, the island can shift its location over both land and time, remains undetectable from the perspective of any outside observer, and as soon as anyone leaves the island, they forget its location.[6][7]
Themyscira is thetheocracy andcapital city that serves as theAmazonians' government and place of origin forWonder Woman. The name for the entirearchipelago became "The Paradise Islands", when the city was renamed "Themyscira" with the character's February 1987 relaunch inWonder Woman (vol. 2) #1.[8] Both the island and city are named after the mythological city ofThemiscyra, the capital of theAmazons inGreek mythology.
Themyscira made its cinematic debut in the 2017 filmsWonder Woman andJustice League, and appeared in the 2020 sequelWonder Woman 1984, set in theDC Extended Universe.
When Wonder Woman's homeland is first introduced in 1941, it is referred to as Paradise Island, a secret and hidden island on Earth inhabited by the Amazons of myth. The Amazons were given a break from the hostilities and temptations of Man's World, and so were decreed to start a new life-improving themselves by sequestering themselves to this island away fromancient Greece, after being enslaved byHercules. With the island blessed by theOlympian Gods, no man was allowed to physically set foot on it. WhenUnited States Army intelligence officerSteve Trevor's plane crashes there duringWorld War II, he is nursed back to health just outside of the capital city by Princess Diana, daughter of the island'sQueen Hippolyta. Diana later competes against other Amazons to become Wonder Woman, the emissary from Paradise Island who will accompany Steve back to "Man's World" and aid in the fight against theAxis powers. It was established that all Amazons are adept at a discipline called "bullets and bracelets" in which they can deflect bullets fired at them using the chain bands on their wrists.
It was originally implied, but not yet fully confirmed, that Paradise Island was located somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. In the1970s television incarnation (as portrayed by Lynda Carter), Paradise Island's location was set in the Bermuda Triangle. A2009 animated movie version had set it in theAegean Sea.
Originally, there were three generations of Amazons living on the island, with Princess Diana being from the second.
This basicback-story remains intact throughout theGolden Age andSilver Age of Comic Books, until the 1985–1986 "Crisis on Infinite Earths" storyline. Upon the conclusion of thislimited series, most characters in the DC Comics universe underwent some revamp orretcon in their storyline history, and Wonder Woman was one of several characters whose entire continuity wasrebooted.
The 1987 relaunch of theWonder Woman series establishes that the Amazons are the reincarnated souls of women slain throughout pre-history by men. Shaped from clay over 3,000 years previous and given new lives by five Olympian goddesses –Artemis,Athena,Demeter,Hestia, andAphrodite – the Amazons are granted immortality, great physical strength, highly acute senses, beauty, wisdom, and love for one another. They are tasked to teach the merits of virtue, love, and equality to the men of "Patriarch's World".[9] They have founded thecity-state of Themyscira in ancient Greece,[10] which is ruled by sisters Hippolyta andAntiope.Ares, the God of War and a chief opponent of the Amazons, manipulates his half brotherHeracles to gather forces and attack Themyscira. Heracles subdues and ravages Hippolyta, and his forces succeed in ransacking Themyscira and making the Amazons their slaves. Hippolyta pleads with the goddesses for help. Athena agrees to aid the Amazons, but only if they do not go against their purpose of creation by seeking revenge. When they agree to her terms, Athena frees the Amazons from their chains. Once freed, however, the Amazons proceed to slaughter most of their captors. Antiope leads a force of Amazons off into Greece, seeking vengeance on Heracles. As decreed by the goddesses, Hippolyta leads the remaining Amazons to a remote island where, as penance for their failures as teachers, they become guardians of Doom's Doorway, preventing the escape of the monsters beneath. Renaming the island paradise Themyscira after their fallen capital, the Amazons began their new lives, erecting buildings and monuments and perfecting their skills as artisans and warriors.
For centuries, the Amazons of Themyscira live in a perfect state of harmony with their surroundings, under a theocracy. They know no racism, although many consider Antiope's Lost Tribe of Amazons as little more than savages. They do not think in terms of male gender; the word "policeman" is alien to them until Diana's departure into the outside world. Homosexuality is completely natural to them – while some Amazons are chaste, others have loving consorts. Their city is composed entirely of Greco-Roman architecture from 1200 BCE, and they wear Greek garb, togas, sandals, and period armor. The Amazons also all wear the Bracelets of Submission as constant reminders of their Enslavement and obedience to their patrons, although only Diana can deflect bullets with them. They are fervently religious, worshipping their gods as living deities. Artemis is their primary goddess, and they worship her with a sacrifice of a deer. The Amazons celebrate their creation each year in a Feast of Five, remembering the goddesses who brought them to life.
Occasionally, theNereides bring to the shores of Themyscira young infants who would have otherwise drowned in accidents. The Amazons of Paradise Island would initiate a process called "send forth", where these infants are tutored spiritually in Amazonian ideals, and they are then sent back mystically to the place of their disappearance scant moments after being lost at sea.Julia Kapatelis, Diana's first friend in Patriarch's World, is one such infant.
Themyscira is presently located in theBermuda Triangle but possesses the magical ability to teleport to any location or time period its inhabitants desire.
In recent times, Hippolyta's daughter Diana, also known as Wonder Woman, has become an ambassador to the outside world. With Diana's help, the Amazons have opened the shores of Themyscira to dignitaries of "Patriarch’s World". The creatures beneath Doom's Doorway were defeated, and for a time the Amazons destroyed their battle armor as a testament to a new period of peace. The Amazons opened up their shores to dignitaries from Patriarch's world, female and male, but that exchange was almost destroyed byEris, Goddess of Discord. The Amazons even conducted their own tour of the United States, where they were framed for the murders of several people by Antiope's descendants, the mercenary assassins ofBana-Mighdall, andCirce. It was during the "War of the Gods" that the Amazons recrafted their armory, vowing to again become warriors. Circe would transplant many of these mercenary women of Bana-Migdhall, called theLost Tribe, to Themyscira, where, after warring with the Amazons already there, the two factions joined forces to stop Circe herself. The two sects of Amazons forged an uneasy truce, living at opposite ends of the island.
ProfessorJulia Kapatelis, a close friend to Wonder Woman and the Amazons, was later presented with agrant by theNational Geographic Society to locate the original Greek city of Themyscira.[10] Julia however had to leave the excavation midway through the project once as one of her daughter's friends committed suicide.[11] Whether the original city of Themyscira has been fully excavated or not it has not been shown.
Later still,Darkseid's forces ravaged Themyscira during a search to locate the Greek gods, killing nearly half of the Amazons there in the process. As they began rebuilding, the Amazons found themselves reverting to stone. This was as a result of the gods' departure from the mortal plane, and the Amazons' connection to their creator beings so diminished as to revert their bodies to their primordial state. With the gods returned to Olympus, the Amazons were again transformed into their flesh and blood state, yet more Amazons were killed in a confrontation with the demonic entity known asNeron.
With Diana and Hippolyta adventuring in Patriarch's World as Wonder Woman for longer and longer periods of time, the Banas and the Themyscirans were manipulated into a bloody civil war at the hands of Magala, who had been possessed by the spirit of Antiope's murderer,Ariadne. Using the pre-existing disdain of the tribes against each other, Magala used allies among both Amazon cities to spark the vengeful conflict. The island was left in ruins, and the war was only stopped when Hippolyta abolished the royal family, renounced her throne.
Left at odds but on even political ground, the Bana Amazons and the Themyscirans joined forces against the alien forces ofImperiex. Themyscira, mystically moved into outer space, was destroyed, and hundreds of Amazons from both tribes died.[8] When Wonder Woman led each tribe of Amazons into an ecumenical prayer, funneling power into the new god Darkseid, the warrior women helped destroy Imperiex and its allyBrainiac 13.
After the island had been destroyed byImperiex during the "Our Worlds at War" storyline, Themyscira was rebuilt and relocated, this time to theBermuda Triangle.[8] Designed by the likes ofJulia Kapatelis, theMartian Manhunter,Steve Trevor, Canadian architect Jean Claude Tibet, and Amazon master designer Kaleeza Fashed, the new Themyscira was built with the help of alien technology. Adding to the re-creation of the islands, Themyscira was restored by the combined might of the Greek and Egyptian goddesses the Amazons worship. Transformed into a mighty series of floating islands dedicated to the free exchange of information and ideas, the new Themyscira was governed by members of both tribes of Amazons. After some time Themyscira was nearly destroyed in a jealous fit of rage by the goddessHera. She was angry that Zeus was magically spying on the bathing form of Artemis via scrying the pool and kicked the pool itself.[8] Because of her actions the islands ceased to float in mid-air under their own power and instead resumed being a cluster of traditional islands once more.
Recently, Themyscira was under attack byOMAC forces, as described in DC Comics'sInfinite Crisis. Due to this attack, as well as the many various other attacks the island has suffered through since Diana became Wonder Woman, it was decided that theOlympian andBana-Mighdallian goddesses would transport the island and its inhabitants (sans Diana) to an undisclosed location to live in peace.
Under the direction of the writerWill Pfeifer, the Amazons attackWashington, D.C. as retaliation for the attack on the island in a six-part mini-series titledAmazons Attack. At the end of the series, the Amazons have their memories erased byGranny Goodness (posing as the goddess Athena) and are scattered throughout the world with false personas. Only Hippolyta and four of her original Royal Guard remain on Themyscira. The Queen is exiled to near-empty Themyscira (which had seemingly been sunk and restored during the battle) for her crimes of attackingMan's World, though her actions had been influenced by the evil Circe.
Later, Zeus then revives the Amazons' memories and provides transport for them to return to Themyscira.
During the "Dark Nights: Death Metal" storyline, Themyscira was transformed into the new Hell where Wonder Woman became its warden who guarded the prisoners there. Gemworld became part of the transformed Themyscira.[12]
When the Wonder Woman comic book was first introduced, Paradise Island possessedhorses, and creatures called Kangas – reminiscent of the island country Australia'skangaroos – that the Amazons both rode likemounts.
The Kangas were probably abreed of kangaroos which were introduced into the island from Australia viacoastal migration, which the Amazons bred them and where they originated from[citation needed]. Diana's Kanga was namedJumpa.
There were also smallerrabbit-like creatures wandering Paradise Island.
When theWonder Woman comic book was revamped and started anew in the mid-1980s this was scrapped and the island only had common game animals such asantelopes,deer,wild boar,bears,lions, andfish, pets such asbirds,cats,foxes,dogs, andmonkeys, and livestock animals such ashorses,donkeys,camels,cattle,water buffalo,sheep such as theEuropean mouflon,goats such as theKri-kri, andpigs (domesticated descendants of wild boar). The only exotic/mythological creatures on the island were more sinister in nature and existed in Doom's Doorway to the underworld, which the Amazons swore to keep trapped and never to escape. In the waters surrounding Themyscira also livedNaiads and in the forestsDryads who played most of their days away, occasionally with the Amazons.
In 1999, when writerEric Luke took over the Wonder Woman comic book, he had several lost mythical creatures from around the globe take asylum on Themyscira. These creatures consisted of:Chiron thecentaur, a whitePegasus,Ladon thedragon, achimera, and asphinx.[13]
When writerPhil Jimenez wrote the title in the early 2000s, he had severaldinosaurs from the land ofSkartaris also take refuge on Themyscira in addition to the reappearance of Kangas on the island. To date, no Kangas has been seen as riding animals.
WriterGreg Rucka reintroduced a secondPegasus to serve as Wonder Woman's riding companion, this one black with red eyes. It is assumed he still lives on Themyscira.
In 2003, a flashback story byMatt Wagner calledBatman/Superman/Wonder Woman: Trinity has the island defended by sapient giant birds. They perish in the defense of the Amazons.
The 2007 storyline "Amazons Attack!" depicted the Amazons as having creatures such as giant Stygenwasps and some domesticated Pegasi, large amounts of saddledChimeras, and threetitan-sizedogres.
The "Countdown to Final Crisis" storyline reveals that Themyscira is protected by a school ofmegalodons.
When writerGail Simone took over the title, she showed that Hippolyta cared forgriffins in the royal stables. She also introduced the island of Thalarion, the home ofGargareans during the "Rise of the Olympian" storyline. The Gargareans own herds of pegasi andwinged lions, with their leaderAchilles also has a domesticated, monstrouswar elephant named Mysia.
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