Category: Heroes

Coming Soon to Sweet Grove

Don’t you love fictional towns? Sometimes walking the streets in Sweet Grove, Texas feels like coming home.

Or maybe I’m the only one who gets attached to fictional characters and places. It’s why I like to read well-written series set in places I like. Like Cedar Cove, WA (Debbie Macomber) or Wishful, MS (Kait Nolan).

Thanks to Amazon’s decision to close down the Kindle Worlds, the new title I slated for release on July 3 has been burbling impatiently on the back burner.

But it will make it into the world.

Thanks to the owner of the First Street Church universe, my Sweet Grove Romance series can continue. Furthermore, the author coalition that populates that world with dozens of new stories every year, is introducing new sub-genres into the mix. Sweet Grove Suspense is a line of clean Christian romances with suspense elements. Heroes of Sweet Grove features former or current military personnel as the main characters.

I don’t generally write suspense. I do have a military background, and I’ve dreamed up two former soldiers who will walk into Sweet Grove carrying more than their military duffel as baggage.

LOVE’S LINGERING DOUBTS

 

All of the novellas will get NEW covers from Sweet Promise Press

Enter Jazlyn Rolle. She hasn’t lived in Sweet Grove since she was the softball superstar for the Lady Shorthorns. In fact, she hasn’t been back for more than a few days since her brother’s funeral seven years ago. And she’s only stopping in while she picks up Drew memorabilia and figures out what she’s going to do with her life now that her military career has folded.

Bailey Travers would like to get away from Sweet Grove, but his family ties him there. His foster father is about to pass away and his little sister has returned with a college degree, work experience, and a plan to convert the family ranch into a guest ranch. There’s no way she can do it alone.

Back in the day, Bailey had a major crush on Jazlyn. Jazlyn is done with men, after her recent breakup cost her the military career she’d dedicated to her fallen brother.

They’re thrown together when Bailey needs help fighting for the ranch. If only his foster father had left a will. If only his foster parents had completed the adoption process. But Bailey’s learned not to waste time dreaming about “if only.”

In Sweet Grove, even where there’s no will, love still finds a way.

A Peek Inside

In the new publishing company, Ms. Storm implemented some word count caps for each novella. Which meant I needed to reduce the word count. By about 5,000 words!

This benefits you. Now, I’m free to share par of this scene as a teaser of what’s to come. I really wanted to keep this scene (as you read it, I hope you understand why) but ended up referencing it vaguely with a comment by Bailey at the end of the novella.

As soon as Bailey cut the motor, he heard the girls’ laughter. Miles of intestines knotted, and he clenched his teeth. He shoved his hat lower, swung down from the tractor and snatched the neon softball from the beneath the seat.
Just get it over with.

Elise called the girls together, and the voices dimmed to a hum. He was a few yards from the dugout where he planned to drop the ball and get back to work.

A figure separated from the cluster. He’d recognize those muscular legs anywhere. The knot from his stomach reared into his heart, which stuttered like a rusty engine.

His feet forgot to move forward. Jaz stopped a few feet from him, sweeping kinky strands of hair that escaped from the clip at her neck off her forehead. One corner of her lips curled and that same eyebrow quirked.

“We meet again. Or are you following me?”

Bailey blinked. The softball turned to a shot put in his hands, and her words jumbled inside his mind.

She cocked her head, and both brows shot upward. The movement drew his attention to her eyes, which sparkled like topaz in her chocolate face. “Back to “cat-got-the-tongue” huh? I figured spending an hour talking in the library would have changed all that.”

She was right. They had talked at the library, and he hadn’t acted like a freshman facing a hot cheerleader. Not even when she remembered their first meeting. He opened his mouth to answer, but his throat dried and his lips froze.

A few girls in the cluster around the mound turned toward them. One whistled through her fingers, but Elise regained her attention. Bailey flicked his attention back to the gorgeous woman baring too much thigh for his comfort.

She’s going to think you’re an idiot. As if she didn’t already know the worst about him. He licked his lips to gather moisture and make his move.

“What’s up, Bailey?” She stepped closer and nudged his shoulder, as if trying to shake him from a stupor.

Electricity raced straight to his heart, a thousand volts that made him jolt away from her. Her eyebrows furrowed, and she shifted away. The subtle motion of her hips compelled his gaze to flick toward her curves. Which was a major mistake because the sight sucker-punched him.

You can read this third story set in Sweet Grove sometime in August 2018. As an additional teaser, this will be the first in a planned trilogy for Jaz and Bailey’s romance, currently titled “Texas Homecoming.”

Be sure to get Hero Delivery to find out specifics or join the Friends of Sharon Hughson Facebook group.
Have you read and reviewed LOVE’S LATE ARRIVAL and LOVE’S LITTLE SECRETS? Do you enjoy stories about military heroes?

Check Out the Sweet Grove Blog Today

It’s my turn to be featured in the Sweet Grove Sentinel this weekend.

That means I’ve got a post up on the blog on the Sweet Grove website. Check it out here.

It’s all about the new HEROES OF SWEET GROVE series within a series coming on July 3, 2018.

You’ll get the chance to see the pretty cover for the third book in my Sweet Grove Romance series. I hope you won’t be too disappointed that there are only minor glimpses of the Wells and Elise Nelsen.

But beta readers are screaming about the great description and believable attraction between Jaz and Bailey.

Who are they? Click over to the Sweet Grove site and see for yourself.

Don’t worry. I’ll be sharing an excerpt right here in a few short weeks. Just enough to make you eager for the release.

When there’s no will, love still finds a way.

INFINITY WAR Aftershock

This girl is an Avengers fan (as far as the Marvel movie universe goes, anyway). So, I’ve been counting down the days until I could see the latest film.

Some people I know and love went to see it on opening night. Two of them were actually going to the movies with me and my husband when we saw it two days later.

But I can’t blame people for being excited. I did the same thing with the Wonder Woman film last summer.

Here’s some non-spoiler things they said about the movie:

SON: Have you seen THOR RAGNAROK?

ME: Yep. Twice. Cracks me up every time.

SON: It starts right where that one left off (if you stayed to watch the after-credits scene).

ME: I know some people are going to die.

DAUGHTER: Yeah, I even cried.

ME: (Gulps) As long as Cap doesn’t die…

DAUGHTER: Yeah. You’re not going to like it.

WHAT! I was totally worried they were going to kill off Captain America after that tidbit.

A later conversation with someone who hadn’t seen the movie yet. He just happens to be a comic book reader (more power to him, but comic books give me a headache.) I want words. Or I want pictures.

ME: So what happens in the comic book.

NEPHEW: Thanos wins.

ME: Well, that’s not right. What about the Avengers?

NEPHEW: Everybody dies.

HELP! I’m drowning in suspenseful dread at this point.

Just to confirm that I wouldn’t throw something in the theater or leave screaming, I had another conversation with my kids who’d already seen the story.

ME: Is there at least a complete story?

SON: *pauses to think* Yeah. It’s not a cliffhanger ending, but you know there has to be more coming.

ME: Then whose story is it.

DAUGHTER: Everyone’s.

ME: No. That’s not the way it works. If you had to pick someone, whose story would it be.

SON: Thanos

ME: (inside my head) ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I’M NOT PAYING TO GO SEE SOME VILLAIN’S STORY.

DAUGHTER: Yeah, but it’s kind of Thor’s story, too.

ME: (sighs in relief)

And then we showed up at the theater at 6:30 pm on Sunday for our 7:00 showing of AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR.

I was ready for this. I’d been counting down the days. There’s no way I was going to let a few cryptic remarks get me down.

After 20 minutes of previews ( I wish I was joking about this), I’m about ready to march up to the tech booth (or whatever it’s called) and force the movie to start.

After watching the movie, there are still TWO I don’t get.

Two hours later, I’m speechless. Shocked. Stunned. Unsure how to even comprehend what the Marvel writers were thinking.

It’s the morning after now. I’m still contemplating the ramifications of this film. 

A review will come on this very blog later. But first, I need to watch the movie again and decide if I like it or not.

Have you seen it? Did you like it? Only non-spoiler comments in response to these questions please–and thank you.

Paying the Ultimate Price: A Salute to Veterans

Veteran’s Day graces the November calendar, brightening it with red, white and blue. And although this isn’t a day to salute those who paid the ultimate price, it is a time to honor those WILLING to pay it.

Thank you to those currently serving in the United States Armed Forces. I offer you the deepest respect. And to those who served in the Armed Forces in times past, thank you for your service.

Yes, I’m technically a veteran since I served in the US Army Reserve, but it feels like a cheap imitation of the service given by men and women who left their families behind to face enemy fire in a hostile place. I’m in awe of those people (and there was a time in my life when I would have gladly been one of them).

A couple months ago, I read a blog post that touched me. It featured a military veteran.

The Price of Giving it All by Kelly Balarie

Two shadows appeared. One was a small, old, hunched over man with a cane and the other a young and vibrant woman with a flowery dress.

Sitting, they leaned in toward each other and talked. A father and daughter? 

All I could think as I noticed this man’s feeble body, his leaning body on that old war memorial was, “He must be telling her about a life that counted.”

He’s saying, “Sure, I paid a mental price, seeing all that war stuff, seeing people fall. The battles, the pain, the sacrifice. But when push comes to shove, I gave my all. My life. I offered up what mattered.”

Only a few minutes later, I saw the “Vietnam War Veteran” pin on his cap. I wanted to remember this man, because without saying a word, he delivered to my heart a message from God: Kelly, if you give it all up for me, you won’t look back and regret your life. You’ll sit on a memorial of what I did and rejoice over it.

I asked the man if I could take his photo.

To finish reading this post, click here.

I was touched by the idea that God used this bent soldier to speak to the heart of a normal woman. A woman who had never donned a uniform.

He used the old war memorial to remind her (and through her, me) that He will build a memorial of our faith when we give up everything for him.

Jesus promised to reward his followers if they willingly forsook all to follow him. This requires daily recommitting our future to him, picking up our cross and following.

Paul compares the Christian life to that of a soldier.

And let’s face it, most of us live in a cushy home and wear whatever uniform we want and eat things that make military chow resemble Dog Chow. So why aren’t we willing to give it all up for Christ?

As we enter these next few days, flags will fly. Memorials all over the U.S. will host special ceremonies to honor veterans.

If Christ is your savior, consider enlisting in his army, signing on for a lifetime of service. Suit up in the spiritual armor and step outside your comfort zone, committing to give Him all.

He already paid the ultimate price for you.

Are you serving Jesus? Can you commit to following him every day?

Heroes Heroes Everywhere

Heroes are everywhere. The best thing about natural disasters: they bring undercover heroes out in the open.
And because of smart phones that double as cameras and video recorders, these acts of heroism are easily documented in 2017.
For once, the viral posts on social media sites are things that make a person smile and feel good about being human. It’s a really nice change from the political diatribe and the newest report of yet another mass shooting.
I adore “citizen responders” as a descriptor for neighbors practicing the Golden Rule.
Here’s a video of some of those rescues:

Have you heard any inspiring rescue stories of everyday heroes? I’m sure Florida’s storm inspired similar acts.

If you liked this post, you might like Hero Delivery. Subscribe today and I’ll send you free fiction.

Why Tarzan is Still my Hero

Tarzan has been around since before black and white television had Olympic swimmer Johnny Weissmuller portrayed the character whose legend has been recapped many times in movies and comics. Tarzan of the Apes was an all-human superhero (in the jungle at least).
Recently, my husband and I watched the 2016 remake called THE LEGEND OF TARZAN, and I was reminded of my childhood crush on this hero of the jungle.


Edgar Rice Burroughs breathed life into Tarzan in 1912 with a story in The All Story Magazine. In 1918, Hollywood produced the first of nearly three dozen movies (not including TV series) featuring this vine-swinging man who could talk to animals.
Weismuller stared in twelve of these films between 1932 and 1948, so it’s no wonder his name was the first to come to mind.
Even Walt Disney took a shot and animated a couple films featuring this well-loved hero (if the frequency of remakes and story lines is any clue). Millennials remember the music of Phil Collins more than anything else about those movies.
Regardless of the worldwide love affair with the loincloth clad man, I watched this latest movie and recalled several reasons why Tarzan is still a hero to me.

Overcoming Obstacles

Tarzan’s parents died when he was a baby. A female gorilla found and adopted him, but imagine being a human in the troop of gorillas led by a 500-pound alpha…who didn’t want you around.
His humanity would have made him weak among the powerful apes. He wouldn’t have the protection of fur against the elements and predators, nor would he have the strength and bone structure to travel with speed among the trees.
But humans are adaptable. In this newest movie, there was great care given to the changes in his hands and arms because he’d learned to be an ape before being human.
He would have been bullied, an outcast among the troop.
Talk about an underdog.
But his humanity made him curious about the other animals, and he befriended them. Yes, even learning to communicate with them. We all know about the Tarzan yell.

Standing for the Weak

Likely because he had been the weak one for much of his life, Tarzan champions the cause of those being targeted by stronger species. Whether it is his gorilla family or elephants being poached, he doesn’t accept senseless brutality.
As you know in my posts about Captain America and Wonder Woman, this, in my opinion, is the mark of a true hero. He has power but he uses it to help others.
In this movie, it’s the tribesmen who are being enslaved and the animals being poached that earn his protection. Of course, he intends to rescue Jane, but she’s as adamant about protecting their “families” as he is.

Adapting without Losing Character

One of the lines that stuck with me from this film happens near the dark moment. Tarzan has been “sold” to a tribe of natives. The chief of this tribe wants revenge because Tarzan killed his son many years ago (the son had killed Tarzan’s ape “mother”).
Tarzan defeats the chief and much of the armed tribe in hand-to-hand combat and hold a knife to the chief’s throat. They discuss this impasse.

The chief claims his son was just a boy and asks, “Where was your honor?”
Tarzan honestly replies, “I had none.”

He was raised by animals to be an animal. The argument of nature versus nurture comes into play. Was he little more than an ape when he carried out the retribution against the native? Or should he have had more scruples, as a man would (although a goodly number of the men in this film did NOT have any)?
He admitted his lack. He acted on instinct and out of pain and anger. Wasn’t the chief now doing the same thing? Where did this talk of honor come from then?
But as Tarzan learned to be human, he rejected those traits that didn’t mesh with his ingrained love for family. Gorillas are fiercely protective of both territory and troop members, and Tarzan learned this well.
When he met humans, they saved him. Then they tried to capture him and ruin his home. He learned not to trust them. That they would lie and steal and cheat. Were they really more “advanced” than the apes who raised him to survive in the jungle?

THE LEGEND OF TARZAN sends Tarzan and Jane back to the Congo at the request (so they believe) of the Dutch king, since Congo became a colony of the Dutch when all the Europeans finished warring over it in the late 1890s. Really it’s part of a plot to mine diamonds to pay the Dutch debt.
Samuel L. Jackson played an American fighting against slavery and offered plenty of comedic relief in the tense plot.
What do you love about Tarzan? Or who is a figure you saw a heroic in your childhood that doesn’t get much recognition these days?

Like reading this? You’re a click away from getting Hero Delivery, a bulletin with deals and new releases from Sharon Hughson.

Maybe you like romance or some of my other books. I’m sure there’s something worth reading on my page.

Already read one or more of my books? Please leave an honest review on your favorite site. A review is the same as the author discovering a gold nugget in the bottom of her washing machine.

In Memoriam: The Day When Everything Changed

As I prepared my blogs ahead of time, I came to 9/11. Monday is my regular posting day, and I had a post about writing ready to go. Then I typed the date.

And stopped.

Memories swamped me. Where I was. How I felt. How I needed to connect with my traveling husband, and the phone circuits didn’t work.
Even though it’s not a “special” anniversary this year, I recalled it all. I’ve never understood what makes one anniversary better than another. Twenty-five years is silver, and fifty years is golden.

Every year should be a celebration of the fact there is another year to celebrate.

Anniversaries of hard times aren’t celebrated at all. But they are marked on the calendars of our heart. Four years since Mom died. Eight years since Gram died. Five years since my friend moved away.

Today is that day.

A day loaded with melancholy and horror, grief and terror. On the flip side, it’s brightened by national pride and patriotism.

New York City skyline

In memoriam of This Day, I’m sharing an informal bit of poetry.

It Only Takes a Moment

One moment
Life is business as usual
Alarm clock and workout wear
Planning sack lunches
Checking the to-do list
Heading to the gym
Kickboxing and sweat
Another day in the life
Of a blessed American citizen

One moment later
Everything tilts sideways
Planes used as cannon balls
Sirens, smoking towers
People gaping, weeping
Unquenchable fires
No way to evacuate
This has to be special effects
But no, this moment is all too real

Only minutes later
Another plane crashes
The other tower flames
Too much horror
Not enough time
Rescuers become victims
Newscasters are speechless
Video gives awful detail
Life becomes a horror show

One hour later
Jumpers and screamers
A tower implodes
Thousands of innocents
Who woke up to normal
Sleep forever
No one escapes
Tragic terror
Every foundation rattles

Heroes step forth in this darkest of hours
Defined in their moment of sacrifice

One day later
Prayer vigils with candlelight
Fluttering flags at half-mast
Churches overflow
A nation of mourners
Stunned to silence
Awakened to need
God Bless America
News time sign-off

One week in slow motion
Weeping abates, anger stirs
Patriots stand, orders obeyed
Racial profiling
Fingers pointing
Vengeance and blame
Can justice prevail
To rebuild the ruins
Or repay the death toll

One new tomorrow
Greeted in gratitude
Forged in unity
Gained in freedom
Faded with time
Gone so soon
Forgotten in life
Until that one moment
When everything changes

Again


On September 11, 2001, I walked out of the gym after my kickboxing class at the fitness club. I glanced at the screen (they have TV monitors everywhere in those places) and wondered what movie trailer was playing.
Seriously. It was so horrifying, it had to be from a film.
In my car, the radio announcers explained the situation on the East Coast. Shock numbed me. Many hours later it sank in, devastated me.
The experience is beyond words, but maybe those I shared above touch a little bit of the significance of That Day When Everything Changed.
Where were you when you learned about the 9/11 terrorist attack?

Wonder Woman: Being a Warrior is a Good Thing

Perhaps you’re finished with all the Wonder Woman hype. As long as there are new thoughts popping up about this superhero, I’ll be writing about her on my blog.

After all, in the realm of “holding out for a hero,” Wonder Woman has been worth the wait.

Last week, I wrote about Wonder Woman’s pure motives and how that makes her a better kind of superhero than most of the Marvel and DC creations.

When my Social Media Jedi shared an article on my Facebook timeline, I realized there was another reason to give Diana Prince accolades. She isn’t the original female warrior, that would be Eve.

Yes, I do mean Eve, the mother of all living. The one who God made to be a helper for Adam and who Satan convinced wasn’t living up to her full potential without the Fruit.

Woman as Warrior

As Ms. Sanchez pointed out in the article mentioned above, the very word translated “helper” is the same word used to describe God as a help during battle.

God created women to fight alongside their man (or their friends or family or whoever).

In another famous passage about women, Proverbs 31, several of the words used are generally used to describe soldier or battle. Even the word translated “virtuous” in Proverbs 31:10 is translated at “valiant” everywhere else in the Old Testament. And refers to warriors, men of valor, strong and might men.

Apparently, that seemed a little unfeminine for the translators. Shame on them for not seeing women as the warriors they were created to be.

Other words in the Proverbs 31 description of this woman also refer to soldiers. Like bringing her food from afar which refers to hunting (31:14) and girding up her loins (31:17) which is military terminology for suiting up for battle.

Women were never created as weaker or less than man. God intended for them to fight alongside others, helping win the battle against sin and evil.

Warrior with a Cause

It only takes once to get between a mother bear and her cub for an ignorant soul to learn a lesson. If they survive.

Women have many causes worth fighting for. Not the least of these is their marriage and their children. The world will try to weaken a marriage with everything from career promotions that take a spouse away to office romances.

And children arrive in our world helpless. Their mothers step up to provide everything the child needs for survival: food, drink, clothing, shelter and love. (And yes, people do need love as much as they need the physical necessities.)

When the child is sick, she fights the fever. When the child is in danger, she jumps to protect and shield him.

Women look on others with compassion and it gives them a passion to fight for the rights of the downtrodden. I love that Sanchez points out that shedding tears is not a weakness, but is a sign of having a heart closer to Christ’s.

The best part about a woman warrior is that her weapon doesn’t generally shed blood (but she will pick up that kind and use it when necessary). It cuts a conscience to the quick or snips through the BS and to the heart of the matter.

What are some other causes women fight for? Do you feel like a warrior in your life?

Like reading this? You’re a click away from getting Hero Delivery, a bulletin with deals and new releases from Sharon Hughson.

Maybe you like romance or some of my other books. I’m sure there’s something worth reading on my page.

Already read one or more of my books? Please leave an honest review on your favorite site. A review is the same as the author discovering a gold nugget in the bottom of her washing machine.

Wonder Woman: The Pure Hero

Wonder Woman is topping the movie charts and breaking records, but better yet, she’s winning the hearts of a new generation of girls and boys. And she deserves their admiration because she is a hero with pure motives.
I’ve mentioned that I’m NOT a comic book reader. My eyes get too distracted by what’s going on to read everything in order. I tried (with Peanuts and Archie) but my brain is wired for words and a single picture (maybe, if it isn’t too distracting).
The things I say about Wonder Woman in this blog post are one-hundred percent from the cinematic DC universe. I have no idea what her superpowers were in the comics or where she came from.
Maybe she doesn’t resemble the Gal (Gadot) millions loved on the big screen. If not, that’s sad. Those filmmakers made a pretty decent story.
                        >Rambling over<
Wonder Woman is a hero with a pure heart and pristine motivation. As much as I love Captain America, he does have a prejudice that colors his thinking.

What’s not to love about this guy?

Our Gal Wonder Woman does not.

Backstory Baggage

Most fictional characters have a backstory that shapes who they are and what they want. And for the average Joe or Jane Fiction, that’s important.
But those things act like a chain on a superhero.


For example, Superman has a savior complex because his father had high expectations for him to “carry on” their extinct alien race.
Captain America despises the Nazis and Hydra and all the evil they represent and perpetuate in the world. This means he must stop them at any cost. It was the sole reason he was given Stark’s serum in the first place.
We could continue through some of the (mostly Marvel) comic book heroes I’m familiar with, but I think the point has been made.
Diana Prince has none of this backstory baggage. She was raised to believe that her race was created for a single purpose: to protect humanity from destroying itself.


She doesn’t cop a savior-complex or become a crusader. Instead, she walks on the battlefield and changes the things she has power to change. One little step at a time.

Personal Issues

Everyone has personal issues: secret or well-known. Making those have high stakes is what good fiction is all about.
But a superhero with personal issues can cause big problems.
Most of the time, if the issues are too big, the hero turns to the dark side (thinking of Mr. Freeze here) and becomes enemy number one for the good guys.
Why are these such a problem for heroes? Because they have the power to take matters into their hands and SOLVE that issue with resounding finality.
Spiderman is going to stop all the criminals because he didn’t stop the murder of his uncle. Batman is going to clean up Gotham because it’s what his murdered parents would want.
But dispelling their own ghosts isn’t a pure motive for superheroes. Their great power gives them great responsibility. And the responsibility is to those weaker than them.
Our Gal Wonder Woman faces her personal issues—being misinformed or misled—before she tries to save the world. Because the uncertainty Ares gave her by exposing her to his brand of “truth” paralyzed her.
She could have blown up everyone around her in order to get a little peace and think things over. Instead, she took in the truths around her, weighed them with what she’d seen firsthand and what she’d learned as a child, and took a stand.

Relationship Hangups

Even though I was a little disappointed that Diana and Steve Trevor didn’t get a little “happy for now” time together, his death freed her from one of the biggest snares for superheroes. They have relationship hangups that keep them from going after the greater good.
I’ve said Captain America doesn’t have these, but others say his friendship with Bucky Barnes (the Winter Soldier) is his relationship Achilles heel. Pick your side. It doesn’t matter now because I’ve found my new “best superhero.”
Superman has to save Lois Lane rather than the world. Professor X won’t end Magneto because of their friendship. Spiderman and Iron Man are manipulated when the bad guys take their lady loves hostage.
Wonder Woman wanted to save Steve, but it was too late for him. Would she have done it? Not at the price of letting Ares go free.
She was raised to be a warrior in a culture of warriors. They trusted each other, watched each other’s back, but every warrior understands that there is an ultimate price. By putting on the uniform, you accept that risk. (Which is why I think Steve Rogers could have a relationship with Agent Sharon Carter because she can take care of herself and is willing to accept the risk if she can’t.)
Steve made his own choice, and Diana respected his choice. Even though it broke her heart.
Her motivation for protecting humanity? Duty maybe. Revenge, not at all. In her own words: love.

If you want to see how another viewer saw God’s view of women depicted in the film, click on over and check out this post by Marilette Sanchez titled “WONDER WOMAN might be the most accurate on-screen depiction of biblical womanhood.” 
Do you think Wonder Woman is the pure hero? Are there other things that keep superheroes from having pure hearts and just motives?

Like reading this? You’re a click away from getting Hero Delivery, a bulletin with deals and new releases from Sharon Hughson.

Maybe you like romance or some of my other books. I’m sure there’s something worth reading on my page.

Already read one or more of my books? Please leave an honest review on your favorite site. A review is the same as the author discovering a gold nugget in the bottom of her washing machine.

Wonder Woman Screen Triumph

Wonder Woman is my kind of hero, and since I’m holding out for a hero around here, more Wonder Woman content might appear here than on other blogs.  Although, she’s pretty popular at the moment.

And I think her red, white, and blue costume is perfect for Independence Day. All this because Wonder Woman’s feature film catapulted her to the top of many charts.

This isn’t another movie review. You can read my thoughts on the movie here.

Today I’m going to enumerate the things ONLY screenwriters and filmmakers could do for Wonder Woman. Well, except for what the gal does for herself by being a demigod with a pure heart and idealistic motives.

The Superpowers

I have no idea what powers Wonder Woman had in the comics. I watched the television series featuring Lynda Carter, and I knew about superhuman strength, bulletproof bracelets, a boomerang tiara, the lasso of truth and an invisible jet.

The filmmakers include all of those things with the caveat that Wonder Woman can fly on her own. So there’s no invisible jet, just demi-god propelled soaring.

They also give her a shield and sword. The shield might not be as awesome as Captain America’s, but it gives her the protection she needs to walk into machine gun fire. And it works well as a springboard during some of the fight scenes.

The sword, God-Killer, is given prominent screen time, but in the end, it doesn’t live up to its name. It’s a false talisman, and Diana’s courage nearly crumbles along with it.

The best power? Diana realizes love is the greatest power of all.

This felt a little cliche to me, especially since the filmmakers are claiming there wasn’t a romance between Steve and Diana (which there is in the comic book world).

But the sentiment? I totally endorse it.

What did I covet? That lasso. She used it like a whip, a slingshot and of course to reveal the truth of the situation.

Super Visual Effects

Gal Gadot is amazing, but you have to give credit to the digital effects team. And it’s a large team. Don’t believe me? Watch the credits. *20 minutes later* See what I mean?

From the beginning, viewers see the Amazon warriors as superior athletes, performing martial arts moves and acrobatic feats to aid them in their hand-to-hand combat. When Zeus created them to save mankind from constant war, battles were fought in close quarters.

The reaction to the advanced technology the Germans brought to the island? It was sadly lacking. Diana should have been more surprised by the weaponry of the early 20th Century. And how could her training possibly hold up in the face of tanks and automatic gunfire?

The filmmakers give ample room and reason for Wonder Woman to use the fighting skills to awe and inspire everyone. Her demigod reflexes thrust those bracelets (okay, really bracers or vambraces, but that doesn’t sound as pretty does it?) in the path of speeding bullets. But how did she know it would deflect them?

The ultimate battle with Ares could have been more awesome. He didn’t toss around his lightning early or with pizzazz. And he didn’t feel evil to me.

Maybe that was the point?

If you saw the movie, what things did the filmmakers amaze you with? What could they have done better?

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