Wonder Woman "The New Original Wonder Woman" #1.1 (1975) (TV)

"Women are the wave of the future, and sisterhood is stronger than anything!", 20 February 2005

During a dogfight with a Nazi plane, Major Steve Trevor (Lyle Waggoner) is shot down over the Bermuda Triangle. He is rescued by the all-female inhabitants of the uncharted Paradise Island. Escorting Trevor back to the U.S., Princess Diana (Lynda Carter) stays to do whatever she can as Wonder Woman to help the Allies defeat the Nazis. She is soon up to her bracelets in a Nazi plot to bomb the U.S. mainland.

The New Original Wonder Woman was the pilot movie for the television show. I'll admit upfront that this is hardly award winning material. But, that's not the point. It's a helluva lot of fun. It's a campy, cheese filled good time. Don't watch this movie expecting a tension filled WWII drama. Instead, the movie presents a whole cast of bumbling Nazi's for Wonder Woman to thwart.

One of the things that makes the movie work for me is the cast. For the most part, both Lynda Carter and Lyle Waggoner play their characters with a straight face. But there is a hint of playfulness that's infectious. When you consider that this was the first movie that Carter had ever starred in, it's amazing that she was able to pull-off the character of Wonder Woman.

The New Original Wonder Woman is definitely a product of its time. Television shows have become so serious that something as cheesy and fun as this just wouldn't fly next to shows like CSI and Law and Order. But, in the 70s, Wonder Woman and Lynda Carter were nothing short of cultural phenomenons. Everything about the show (the costume, the bullets and bracelets trick, the golden lasso, the "spin", etc.) is ingrained into anyone who grew up with it.

7/10