Themyscira (DC Comics)

Themyscira (/ˌθɛmɪˈskɪrə/)^[2] is a fictional unitary sovereign city-state and archipelagic island nation appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Previously known as Paradise Island and the Amazon Isles, it first appeared in All Star Comics #8 (October 1941).

Themyscira is a

Themyscira is the theocracy and capital city that serves as the Amazonians' government and place of origin for Wonder Woman. The name for the entire archipelago became "The Paradise Islands", when the city was renamed "Themyscira" with the character's February 1987 relaunch in Wonder Woman (vol. 2) #1.^[8] Both the island and city are named after the mythological city of Themiscyra, the capital of the Amazons in Greek mythology.

Themiscyra made its cinematic debut in the 2017 films Wonder Woman and Justice League, and appeared in the 2020 sequel Wonder Woman 1984, set in the DC Extended Universe.

Publication history

Pre-Crisis (1941–1987)

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 from ancient Greece, after being enslaved by Hercules. With the island blessed by the Olympian Gods, no man was allowed to physically set foot on it. When United States Army intelligence officer Steve Trevor's plane crashes there during World War II, he is nursed back to health just outside of the capital city by Princess Diana, daughter of the island's Queen 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 the Axis 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 the 1970s television incarnation (as portrayed by Lynda Carter), Paradise Island's location was set in the Bermuda Triangle. A 2009 animated movie version had set it in the Aegean Sea.

Originally, there were three generations of Amazons living on the island, with Princess Diana being from the second.

This basic

Themyscira is presently located in the Bermuda Triangle but possesses the magical ability to teleport to any location or time period its inhabitants desire.

National timeline

Turmoil and genocide

• Every headline writer who has written volume two of Wonder Woman has depicted Themyscirian slaughter:
  • Bana-Mighdall
    city.
  • William Messner-Loebs – depicted an Amazon tribal war over Themyscira's ownership.
  • John Byrne – had Darkseid invade Themyscira, kill half the population, and turned the remainder to stone.
  • Phil Jimenez – re-introduced the Amazon tribal war over Themyscira's ownership.
  • Walt Simonson – caused a Hydra to turn the Amazons into stone.
  • Greg Rucka – had OMACs kill over half the remaining Amazon population.
  • Brian Azzarello – had Hera transform all the Amazons into snakes and petrify Hippolyta.
• The island(s) can shift its location over both land and time.^[6]

Enter Wonder Woman

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 by

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 of

New 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]

Flora and fauna

Pre-Crisis

When the Wonder Woman comic book was first introduced, Paradise Island possessed

The Kangas were probably a

There were also smaller rabbit-like creatures wandering Paradise Island.

Post-Crisis

When the Wonder Woman comic book was revamped and started anew in the mid-1980s this was scrapped and the island only had common game animals such as antelopes, deer, wild boar, bears, lions, and fish, pets such as birds, cats, foxes, dogs, and monkeys, and livestock animals such as horses, donkeys, camels, cattle, water buffalo, sheep such as the European mouflon, goats such as the Kri-kri, and pigs (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 lived Naiads and in the forests Dryads who played most of their days away, occasionally with the Amazons.

In 1999, when writer Eric 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 the centaur, a white Pegasus, Ladon the dragon, a chimera, and a sphinx.^[13]

When writer Phil Jimenez wrote the title in the early 2000s, he had several dinosaurs from the land of Skartaris 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.

Writer Greg Rucka reintroduced a second Pegasus 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 by Matt Wagner called Batman/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 Stygen wasps and some domesticated Pegasi, large amounts of saddled Chimeras, and three titan-sized ogres.

"Countdown to Final Crisis" storyline introduced the then-new revelation that the island is protected by a school of megalodons.

When writer

In other media

Television

• In line with comic book continuity of the time, the 1975–1979 Lynda Carter television series Wonder Woman did feature Themyscira (still called Paradise Island at the time) in several episodes. The episode "The Feminum Mystique Part 2" reveals that Paradise Island is located at 30° 22' N, 64° 47' W.
• The island was mentioned in the
  Smallville
  episode "Asylum", in which a newspaper headline reads "Themysciran Queen Addresses the Vatican". The actual island appears in the comic book continuation of the show.
• Paradise Island appeared on the animated television series Challenge of the Superfriends, in the 1978 episode "Secret Origins of the Super Friends", and The All-New Super Friends Hour episode "Return of Atlantis".
• Themyscira appeared in several episodes of the DC Animated Universe series Justice League and Justice League Unlimited between 2001 and 2006 as the homeland of Wonder Woman.
• Themyscira appears in the
  Joker
  infiltrates it disguised as an Amazon and kidnaps Wonder Woman.
• At the end of the
  Zari Tomaz delivers Helen of Troy
  to Themyscira upon returning her to her time. The island is then mentioned several times in the show's third-season finale, "The Good, the Bad, and the Cuddly", as the place where Helen learned to fight like an Amazon.
• Themyscira appears in Justice League Action. In the episode "Luthor in Paradise", Lex Luthor and Circe invade Themyscira to obtain the Oculus of the Argo, an artifact of the Olympian Gods entrusted to Hippolyta by Hera that would give anyone that wields it the powers of Zeus. In the web short "The Goddess Must Be Crazy", Supergirl and Wonder Woman practice their sparring on each other, but Felix Faust manages to attack the island by possessing Supergirl.
• In the Harley Quinn episode "Bachelorette", the titular character takes Poison Ivy to Themyscira, which has been converted into a resort by Eris for the latter's bachelorette party. The pair later discovers that Eris hypnotized Queen Hippolyta and plans to have her sell the island to Lex Luthor, and can thwart the scheme.
• Themyscira appears in the 2019 DC Super Hero Girls episodes "#FantasticBeastsAndHowToMindThem", where in the final scene, Diana takes her pet griffin Steve so that he is free with other griffins and "#AwesomeAuntAntiope", in a flashback, where a young Diana is seen having fun with her aunt Antiope.
• Themyscira appears in the ninth episode of season three, "Souls", in the live-action series Titans (2021). In the episode, Raven trains with Amazons while trying to find a way to get Donna Troy back.