Wonder Woman is an animated film from 2009 and part of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies line, involving a kind of Super Hero Origin for the title character. It stars Felicity's Keri Russell as Diana/Wonder Woman, and Firefly's Nathan Fillion as Steve Trevor. The film involves Diana's first venture into the outside world in order to stop Ares, the Greek god of war, from gaining all the powers of Olympus and using them to destroy the world.Along the way, she is helped by Steve Trevor, and the two become involved in a somewhat complicated partnership whilst trying to track down Ares.
Steve: Your mother and Ares? Really? The whole God of War thing didn't raise any red flags? I guess it's not surprising. Women always go for the bad boy.
Almost Kiss: Steve tries this on Diana twice. The first time, he's very drunk and she rejects him (by moving out of the way as he leaned in, letting his head fall onto a bar stool). The second time, it looks like it’s about to happen after Steve both points out the hypocrisy of the Straw Feminism that some of the Amazons possess and expresses his true feelings for Diana... then she slaps him in the face (supposedly for attempting to make another move on her).
Hades helps Ares by breaking his restraints, secretly anticipating his defeat and subsequent enslavement in the Underworld.
Diana tricks Ares into using Zeus' lightning to finish her rather than doing it the old-fashioned way. This lets her pull him into the blast using her lasso, weakening him long enough for her to behead him.
Book Ends: In the battle at the beginning of the movie, Hippolyta is seen slicing off the head of the son that she was forced to conceive with Ares. In the last battle of the movie, Diana beheads Ares in a similar manner.
Chivalrous Pervert: The film's version of Steve Trevor comes across as one.
Combat Pragmatist: A sparring match seems to be over when Artemis poises a sharp, broken staff at Diana's neck...until Diana throws Artemis to the ground by yanking on her ponytail from behind.
Conflict Ball: Ares' mere presence forces one upon the entire world. It also leads to the President approving a missile strike on Themyscira without a second thought.
Double Standard: A major plot point. The reason Persephone defects is her frustration and resentment at being forced to live a military life while Hippolyta was allowed to have a baby and raise a family.
Dressed In Layers: Diana goes out with Steve in a dress. She had her costume on the entire time underneath it, as the fight with Deimos demonstrates.
Dual Wielding: Some Amazons, with zombie!Alexa being the most notable one.
Everybody Hates Hades: Played with. Hades looks like he's agreeing to free Ares so the restored god of war can kill, well, everyone on Earth and provide Hades with their souls, but it turns out there's only one soul Hades is really interested in, revealed when his Batman Gambit comes to fruition.
Exact Words: Hades informs Ares that Zeus "begged me not to help you" when Ares asks him to remove his Restraining Bolt. At the very end of the movie, when Ares has been killed and is another helpless slave to Hades, Hades reveals that the reason Zeus asked for that was that Zeus would not be able to save Ares again.
Eye Scream: Persephone loses her right eye in the opening battle.
Face Heel Turn: Persephone falls in love with Ares during her time guarding his cell and helps him escape.
Fat Bastard: Hades again, at least towards the dead who serve him if his treatment of Ares' dead son is any indication.
Foot Focus: A fair amount of the Amazons at the beginning, walking barefoot along sand and beaches. Diana herself spends her entire fight with Deimos barefoot since fighting in heels would be impractical, and we get focus of her feet upon her finishing kicks. Images of the Foot Focus can be found here and the fight can be found here.
Foreshadowing: Alexa says to Persephone that "the heart wants what the heart wants, even that which is worst for it", referring to Diana's wish to see the world of man. However, it foreshadows Persephone's affair with Ares and impending betrayal.
Grapes of Luxury: Hades is depicted as an overweight slob who enjoys eating grapes served to him by the damned whom he has enslaved.
Grey and Gray Morality: Persephone's arguments about the wrongness of Hippolyta's hiding the Amazons away from Man's World:
Hippolyta: "You were given a life of peace and beauty!"
Persephone: "And denied one of families and children. Yes Hippolyta, the Amazons are warriors, but we are women too."
Groin Attack: Diana does this to Steve when they first meet (right after they have a brief sparring match in which Steve says that he thinks he "likes her"). Artemis also threatens to castrate him herself if he doesn't leave Diana alone.
Also in the opening by a couple of Amazons; seems Jewel Kick is a standard Amazon skill.
Hoist by His Own Petard: Ares gains the powers of the Olympian pantheon, with the intention of using them to overthrow Olympus and destroy the world. In his fight against Diana, he attempts to use Zeus' lightning to finish her, but she uses her lasso to pull him into it and jumps out of the way. The blast of lightning depowers Ares long enough for Diana to decapitate him. Seconds before this, Ares calls out to Zeus to save his life (like he did in the prologue), but it seems dear old daddy wasn't too pleased with the "overthrow Olympus and destroy the world" plan.
If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: The 'female warning male' variant. When Steve Trevor asks Artemis what Wonder Woman's "deal" is, he's met with this reply.
Artemis: Her deal is that I will personally castrate you if you come within five yards of her.
Immortality: The Amazons and Ares are all immortal. Ares even has followers who have been waiting patiently for him to return since ancient times.
Ironic Echo: In the opening battle, Artemis rebukes Alexa for relying on wisdom from "some dead philosopher" rather than fighting with her sword. Later, during the battle in DC, Alexa saves the Amazons from their own dead sisters by revealing to Artemis a chant which releases the undead Amazons from Ares' control... a chant that Alexa learned in a magic book by "some dead philosopher".
Monumental Damage: Including the Lincoln and Washington Memorials, the Reflecting Pool (at least from getting blood in it), the White House and the Capitol Building. That first one pisses Steve off.
Steve neck snaps an Ares cultist during his and Diana's infiltration.
Cheetah manages to do one with her feet during the ending.
Non Action Girl: Alexa, much to the bane of her sister Artemis. Until she comes back from the dead, that is.
No Social Skills: Wonder Woman. She's less naive than her portrayal in Justice League—while she questions things just as often, it's not because she doesn't understand what's going on, it's because she finds social mores that are borne of patriarchy annoying and pointless.
Offing the Offspring: Heroic example: Hippolyta beheads the son Ares "forced on her", who was murdering her fellow Amazons for his father.
Off Model: Upon Deimos's appearance, Diana immediately dons her tiara. In the next shot, it's gone, only to return in the shot following that.
Used repeatedly throughout the film. Particularly effective when Diana herself uses it.
A hilarious one is when Steve tries to prevent the missile strike on Themyscira. He panics when it seems that the jet won't shoot anything...before realizing that the invisible jet's missiles are also invisible.
One-Winged Angel: As soon as the President of the United States orders a nuke against Themiscyra, the psychic energy of the destructive force and hate that went into deciding to use it transforms Ares, making him twice as tall and bulky as he was before and giving him some very demonic looking armor.
Our Presidents Are Different: A trigger-happy one who jumps to conclusions rather quickly. However, it's mentioned that Ares' mere presence inspires violent thoughts in man, and he was standing on the White House roof for a while.
Our Zombies Are Different: Controlled by the god of war, who has gained the powers of Hades. All of them are Amazons. Any more who are killed instantly come under Ares' control. They are freed from his control by an ancient chant, however, and seem to have most of their former minds intact when that happens.
Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: Subverted. It looks like Ares plans to sacrifice Persephone—who betrayed her fellow Amazons to free him—to open the gates of Hades, but he simply uses one of his cultists as a sacrifice instead.
R-Rated Opening: The movie opens with a brutal battle sequence that includes the above-mentioned beheading, and the first line is about sex (Hippolyta taunting Ares about not being good in bed).
Rule of Three: Steve finally gets that kiss on his third try.
Soft Water: Steve falls a long way into a river while he's being chased by the Amazons, but vines and tree branches slowing him down as he falls pay lip service to the inaccuracy of the trope.
Straw Feminist: Wonder Woman and some of the other Amazons have tendencies in this direction, but mostly seem to get over them by the film's end.
Stab the Scorpion: Diana and Steve manage to do this to each other simultaneously as they infiltrate the Cult of Ares—Diana with her tiara, Steve with a jackknife.
Steve: Let's get you changed into something that won't get me arrested for solicitation first.
Tempting Fate: "What other depraved thoughts must you be thinking?"
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: Given by Trevor to Diana after Steve saves her instead of stopping Ares from opening the gates of Tartarus.
Thou Shalt Not Kill: Critics of the 2011 TV pilot called the writers out on having Wonder Woman killing bad guys in cold blood, but she'd already gone there with this movie which at one point shows her slicing the throats of two security guards with her tiara. (Steve also does a Neck Snap on a guy from behind.)
There were a few critics of that here too, according to That Other Wiki, to the extent that the Novelization leaves out them murdering the guards. The producers of the 2011 pilot were either warned too late about this reaction or just didn't listen.
Title Drop: By the little girl at the end. Up until then, the titular character had been called "Diana".
The Unfair Sex: Played with but deconstructed over time as Diana and later Hippolyta realize that gender doesn't matter when it comes to certain decisions.
Unfazed Everyman: While Steve is a Badass Normal, he otherwise fits this trope quite well. He takes Greek gods, immortal Amazons, magic lassos, and invisible aircraft with the exact same response: be surprised for a moment, move on.
Villainous BSOD: Ares has one after his son Thrax is beheaded by Hippolyta.
Vorpal Pillow: Alexa. Justified in that she had just been stabbed and the hand over her face doing the smothering was Ares'.
Why Couldn't You Be Different?: Artemis is not happy with her sister Alexa's non-warrior ways. Instead of grieving for her death, she's angry at her failure. When Alexa comes back as a zombie, Artemis curses her for all her mistakes. However, they reconcile after Artemis realizes she's trying to speak a spell to free them from Ares' command.
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