History YMMV / WonderWoman2017

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: One of the biggest criticisms of the film is the choice to have it revealed that [[spoiler:Ares was escalating the war by secretly manipulating key players on both sides instead of [[HumansAreBastards portraying humanity as solely responsible for the conflict]]]], particularly since it would have provided a great reason for Diana to seclude herself from humanity. This is especially strange given that up until that point in the movie, Diana's entire character arc was about learning how humans are both capable of evil and good, but the choice for [[spoiler: Ares]] to appear throws all of it under the bus.

* ActorShipping: Many fans have begun shipping Creator/GalGadot and Creator/ChrisPine thanks to their on-screen chemistry and an almost ''unbearably'' adorable [[https://giphy.com/gifs/chris-pine-gal-gadot-longing-3og0IMVr5foNWRXQbe look]] she gave him during an interview--which is context is actually her being embarrassed for flubbing something in English and him teasing her to try to make her feel better. For the record, she's married, he has a long-term girlfriend.

** Many were outraged when it was reported that Gal Gadot's paycheck for the film was far lower than Creator/HenryCavill and Creator/BenAffleck were getting for their DCEU appearances. However, the intricacies of the contracts involved means the discrepancy isn't as large as it might appear from the numbers that were reported, plus Cavill and Affleck were already known stars while Gadot was a relative newcomer (for comparison, she actually got ''more'' than Chris Hemsworth or Chris Evans got for their first MCU films). Furthermore, there's also a difference between a first film (where the actor has very little leverage, as someone else could easily get the role instead), and sequels (where the actor has much more leverage as the studio doesn't want to have to recast [[TheOtherDarrin the same character with a new face]]). She will get a ''much'' bigger paycheck for ''Film/WonderWoman1984''.

* {{Anvilicious}}: The message of how [[HumansAreFlawed human beings have equal potential to be good and evil]], that all of the world's suffering can't be fixed by "getting rid of the bad guy", is quite literally spelled out in an almost child-like way. However, [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools they're good messages]], and make the important distinction that evil can't be vanquished, but that ThePowerOfLove ''does'' have the potential to at least overcome it.

* ActorShipping: Many fans have begun shipping Creator/GalGadot and Creator/ChrisPine thanks to their on-screen chemistry and an almost ''unbearably'' adorable [[https://giphy.com/gifs/chris-pine-gal-gadot-longing-3og0IMVr5foNWRXQbe look]] she gave him during an interview. [[note]] Which is context is actually her being embarrassed for flubbing something in English and him teasing her to try to make her feel better [[/note]]

* SpecialEffectFailure:
** The second trailer has a [[https://youtu.be/1Q8fG0TtVAY?t=34s shot]] of an Amazon swinging from a rope on a cliff; she keeps going in a straight line when she should be traveling on a curved path, and the rope is extended in a rigid 45° angle throughout the sequence.
** Some of the green screening early on in the film is rather dodgy, but it improves as the film goes on.

* SpiritualSuccessor: It didn’t take long for people to point at this Wonder Woman and call her a better Superman than the one we got. It probably helps that ''[[Film/{{Superman}} Superman: The Movie]]'' was used as the basis for this film.

* WTHCastingAgency:
** Creator/PattyJenkins herself was ''very'' skeptical when Gal Gadot was cast as Diana in ''Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice'' by Creator/ZackSnyder (she said her "heart sank"). Then she saw what Gal was capable of, and she was won over. The rest is history.
** [[spoiler:David Thewlis as Ares. He's perfectly fine when Ares is masquerading as Sir Patrick]], but once TheReveal happens, he looks completely out of place, both in the flashback of Ares after his fall, and when Ares puts on his armor. However, he does an excellent job as the voice of Ares and since he's in battle the entire time, we don't get too many closeups of his face.

** When Oscar voting came around, it wasn't nominated for ''anything'', not even technical awards, which are usually seen as consolation awards for comic book/superhero films. The most puzzling snub is omission of Rupert Gregson-Williams for Best Original Score since many critics have praised him for building an entire soundtrack using only ''Wonder Woman'''s leitmotif. Needless to say, some people were pissed off, though Gal Gadot urged everyone to not make a big deal of it, saying that no one involved with the film had awards on their mind and are just happy so many people loved it. As a consolation, Gadot was invited as a presenter for the Oscars ceremony on March 4, 2018, which felt like a gesture of recognition for some.
** ''Black Panther'''s six Oscar nominations - including for Best Picture - the next year resurrected the controversy as some believed ''Wonder Woman'' could've made history by being the first superhero movie to be nominated for Best Picture.

* WinTheCrowd:
** When Creator/GalGadot was cast as Wonder Woman in ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'', responses were mixed, to say the least. Even with the trailers of that movie briefly showing her in action, some weren't convinced. Then early footage of her solo film was shown on a DC television special and much of the doubt placed upon her was erased. People were further won over with her performance in ''Batman v. Superman'', which is generally seen as a highlight even by that movie's detractors, and her solo film eventually cemented her as bona fide star material with good acting chops.
** The second trailer had optimism and humor, calming some of the fears that the movie would be bleak and depressing like ''Dawn of Justice''. It also had a well-received ShoutOut to the very optimistic 1978 ''Superman'' movie, which Jenkins cites as one of the influences on ''Wonder Woman''.
** Critical and commercial reception was ''vastly'' more positive. It's also had a more consistent run, with a leggier run than any other the DCEU.

* TheyCopiedItSoItSucks: Though the two films mostly fall under FriendlyFandoms, there are a few viewers who feel that this movie has too many elements [[http://comicbook.com/2017/06/02/wonder-woman-captain-america-first-avenger-comparisons/ that are similar to]] ''Film/CaptainAmericaTheFirstAvenger'' and that it hurt the film.

* SomeAnvilsNeedToBeDropped: The message of how [[HumansAreFlawed human beings have equal potential to be good and evil]], that all of the world's suffering can't be fixed by "getting rid of the bad guy", is quite literally spelled out in an almost child-like way. However, [[Administrivia/TropesAreTools they're good messages]], and make the important distinction that evil can't be vanquished, but that ThePowerOfLove ''does'' have the potential to at least overcome it.

* CatharsisFactor: Diana bravely ''charging'' across the proverbial "meat-grinder" of No-Man's-Land to protect the innocent citizens of Veld. Trench warfare, and indeed all modern warfare that followed, is infamous for stripping its victims of all courage, honor and human dignity, reducing them to animals who only want to survive; and here we have a lone-warrior '''refusing''' to relinquish her humanity in the face of such despair and cruelty, willing to ''die'' if that is what it takes to save one more innocent life. Little wonder this moment is inspiring on ''both'' sides of the fourth wall; stirring the fires of courage in the soldiers to save Veld in narrative, and being the moment where the DC Cinematic Universe '''finally''' becomes Hopeful and Heroic for the audience.

** The German soldiers who survived the war were shown immediately making peace with soldiers from enemy nations. Were they driven by the temptations of Ares or the cruel fist of Ludendorff?[[note]]Given that in real life, many German soldiers and a segment of the German navy had begun to mutiny and participated in the German Revolution alongside supporting the social-democratic government and communist-led revolution, it's possible to see it as insurrectionist.[[/note]] Or are they simply relieved to be alive after what just happened? For that matter, are they making peace with enemy soldiers, or are they, to their knowledge, celebrating surviving the battle with their comrades? Chief, Charlie and Samir were wearing German uniforms and it was still rather dark, so it's possible they were mistaken for German soldiers.

* LesYay: A rather low-key example is Antiope and her lieutenant Melanippe. The two are almost always shown accompanying each other, and when [[spoiler:Antiope dies, Melanippe has a serious BigNo reaction over her body.]] Given the Amazons' reputation for bisexual/lesbian leanings, it's easy to interpret the two as lovers. (Melanippe is the sister of Antiope and Hippolyta in both myth and DC Canon, but this doesn't seem to be true in the film.)

* HarsherInHindsight: Several early reviews of the film were quick to trash ''Film/ManOfSteel'' and ''Film/BatmanVSupermanDawnOfJustice'' director Creator/ZackSnyder, with many requesting that Creator/PattyJenkins take Snyder's place as the [[MyRealDaddy "architect"]] of the Franchise/DCExtendedUniverse. The film was released to the public just short of two weeks after Snyder stepped down from his work on ''Film/{{Justice League|2017}}'' [[TearJerker due to the suicide of his daughter.]]

** An unusual one has emerged, with critics who praised ''Wonder Woman'' and their supporters using the success to get in jabs at the previous DCEU movies (or more accurately, praising ''Wonder Woman'' at their expense, with lines like "The first good DCEU film" being a common theme among reviews), while on the other side are fans of Zack Snyder and the [=DCEU=] who are tired of the bashing pointing out that he did in fact have some creative input and deserves credit for casting Gal Gadot in the title role, something Patty Jenkins has said she wouldn't have done. Conversely, there are some Snyder fans who claim ''Wonder Woman'' having jokes and a more optimistic tone is "selling out" and pandering to critics and audiences who prefer the [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU]], a move they argue has undercut the uniquely DarkerAndEdgier feel of the previous DCEU films.

* CompleteMonster: [[InsaneAdmiral General Erich Ludendorff]] demonstrates that even in a world of gods and monsters, [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters some humans can be the most evil beings around]]. A ruthless UsefulNotes/WorldWarI German general who believes in continuing the war, Ludendorff executes a man simply for complaining supplies are low and encourages the inhumane research of Isabelle "Dr. Poison" Maru, testing her [[DeadlyGas gas]] on live subjects. When he encounters his high command who wish to sign an armistice, Ludendorff gasses them as well, but throws in a single gas mask, well aware it will do nothing to stop the gas. Ludendorff later tests the gas on a civilian village, and when he engages Diana herself in a battle to the death, he is in the process of having the gas loaded into a plane to subject all of London to a horrible death.

* MagnificentBastard: [[WarGod Ares, the God of War]] once wiped out his fellow gods when they quarrelled over Ares' wish to [[KillAllHumans eliminate humanity]]. Surviving while injured and crippled, Ares instead plays on humanity's own preexisting prejudices and fears to sway them to destroy themselves, giving humans ideas for weapons and helping to manufacture peace that he knows they can't keep, setting the stage and giving them the matches to burn it down. When he reveals himself to [[Characters/DCEUWonderWoman Diana aka Wonder Woman]], Ares elaborates on his methods, also wishing Diana to join him to wipe out humanity and [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans make the world a paradise]].

* CompleteMonster: [[InsaneAdmiral General Erich Ludendorff]] demonstrates that even in a world of gods and monsters, [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters some humans can be the most evil beings around]]. A [[Characters/DCEUWorldWarIEnemies ruthless German general]] in UsefulNotes/WorldWarI who believes in continuing the war, Ludendorff executes a man simply for complaining supplies are low and encourages the inhumane research of Isabelle "Dr. Poison" Maru, testing her [[DeadlyGas gas]] on live subjects. When he encounters his high command who wish to sign an armistice, Ludendorff gasses them as well, but throws in a single gas mask, well aware it will do nothing to stop the gas. Ludendorff later tests the gas on a civilian village, and when he engages Diana herself in a battle to the death, he is in the process of having the gas loaded into a plane to subject all of London to a horrible death.

* CompleteMonster: [[InsaneAdmiral General Erich Ludendorff]] demonstrates that even in a world of gods and monsters, [[HumansAreTheRealMonsters some humans can be the most evil beings around]]. A ruthless German general in UsefulNotes/WorldWarI who believes in continuing the war, Ludendorff [[BadBoss executes a man simply for complaining supplies are low]] and encourages the inhumane research of Isabelle "Dr. Poison" Maru, testing her gas on live subjects. When he encounters his high command who wish to sign an armistice, Ludendorff gasses them as well, but throws in a single gas mask, well aware it will do nothing to stop the gas. Ludendorff later tests the gas on a civilian village, and when he engages Diana herself in a battle to the death, he is in the process of having the gas loaded into a plane to subject all of London to a horrible death.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: One of the biggest criticisms of the film is the choice to have it revealed that [[spoiler: Ares was behind the war instead of the people fighting in it [[HumansAreBastards purely because they wanted to]]]], particularly since it would have provided a great reason for Diana to seclude herself from humanity. This is especially strange given that up until that point in the movie, Diana's entire character arc was about learning how humans are both capable of evil and good, but the choice for [[spoiler: Ares]] to appear throws all of it under the bus. Its such a sore spot for people that many feel it damages the films quality, or outright ruins the movie.

** Ares. Some viewers hate him, feeling that he detracts from the gritty realism and GreyAndGrayMorality of the film, to say nothing of his [[{{Narm}} unintentionally hilarious look]]. Others are fine with him, enjoying [[spoiler:Creator/DavidThewlis]]'s performance of the character and liking how he at least ties into the [[HumansAreBastards bigger]] [[WarIsHell themes]] of the film. To the film's credit, he doesn't explicitly interfere with the free will of mankind nor did he force anyone to do his bidding, thus preventing him from cheapening the overall actions and impacts of the human villains.

** [[spoiler:Ares]] is one Wonder Woman's top villains in terms of influence, power, and overall notability. The choice to end the very first solo film with him defeated is seen as a huge waste by many viewers, as [[spoiler:Ares]] easily is strong enough that he could be a good climatic villain at the end of perhaps another movie that builds up to him. He even works well as a potential BigBad for a ''Justice League'' style villain if built up enough. Sadly he is killed after appearing at the end with no real build up.

** This isn't the first UsefulNotes/WorldWarI film set in the trenches to feature [[spoiler:David Thewlis as a bad guy. Creator/StevenSpielberg's ''Film/WarHorse'' got there first]].

** Diana and [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse Carol Danvers]]. Many fans pair the two given how they're the flagship heroines of their franchises, or because they because [[GirlOnGirlIsHot other motives]].

* MagnificentBastard: [[WarGod Ares, the God of War]] once wiped out his fellow gods when they quarreled over Ares' wish to [[KillAllHumans eliminate humanity]]. Surviving while injured and crippled, Ares instead plays on humanity's own preexisting prejudices and fears to sway them to destroy themselves, giving humans ideas for weapons and helping to manufacture peace that he knows they can't keep, setting the stage and giving them the matches to burn it down. When he reveals himself to [[Characters/DCEUWonderWoman Diana aka Wonder Woman]], Ares elaborates on his methods, also wishing Diana to join him to wipe out humanity and [[UtopiaJustifiesTheMeans make the world a paradise]].

** Creator/ChrisPine had been considered by some a wooden "pretty boy" actor before this film, with his portrayal of Captain Kirk being especially mocked. But then comes the scene where [[spoiler:he perfectly conveys Steve's conflicted feelings about his impending HeroicSacrifice without needing to say a word]]. He also gives a good conveyance of his horror at the travesty of the Great War when being interrogated in the Amazon throne room.

** [[spoiler:Steve's sacrifice]] and Diana screaming in agony from it.