Red. White. Blue. Stars. Stripes. Thinking of the American flag? Probably, but it’s also what Wonder Woman commonly wears in all of the comic books.

I know I’m a couple months late, but I finally saw "Batman vs. Superman," and our lovely Wonder Woman made more than a couple appearances. I hadn’t really had an interest in her until I saw her in the movie and was like, "wow, she’s awesome." (Plus her new trailer looks great.) I also became more interested when I learned more about her origin story and her connection to the Greek Gods. (I love Greek mythology.) Yes, she is an empowered lady who takes down giants with her sword and shield and looks sexy while doing it -- seems like pluses all around. Let’s get a little background on our bad-ass lady friend before going into anymore discussion.

Her Origins

So let’s start with how she was born -- or rather, sculpted. That’s right: Wonder Woman (or Diana Prince, as we know her on earth), was sculpted from clay by her mother Queen Hippolyta (Queen of the Amazons from Greek Mythology) and given superhuman powers by the Greek Gods. This means she is Princess of the Amazons -- not a bad title to throw around. Among other God-like abilities and attributes, she was meant to “be as beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena (Athena took lots of interest in Diana), as strong as Hercules, and as swift as Hermes.” Demeter, Hestia, Artemis, Hermes, Aphrodite and Athena are just a few Olympian deities who gave Diana some superhuman powers and personality traits. I could go on for a couple paragraphs about what each God gave her, but I won’t bore you with the details. Basically, it’s not fair how smart, powerful, and strong she is. Her arsenal includes the Lasso of Truth, a pair of indestructible bracelets, a tiara, which serves as a projectile, and some Amazon-based technology weapons. Diana is roughly 5,000 years old, but only in the last about 100 years has she made her appearance in a non-Amazonian society. (Amazons were originally meant to protect “man’s world,” but ultimately abandoned it -- that is, until Wonder Woman takes an interest.)

**There are various origin stories, including one involving Zeus (which the new movie will be based off of), but this is the so called original.

Comics and the "Real World"

Wonder Woman was created by William Moulton Marston (well, his wife suggested he make the superhero a female, actually), and Wonder Woman was first introduced into the comic world in December of 1941 through All-Star Comics, which merged with National Periodicals to form DC Comics. Since she was first released during World War ll, she was often depicted fighting Axis military forces (her new movie also takes place during this time period, as it’s when she first appears in the “human” world). Marston was the creator of a systolic-blood-pressure-measuring apparatus, which was vital to the development of the polygraph (AKA the lie detector). Marston's experience with polygraphs convinced him that women were more honest in situations different than men and could work more efficiently.

Marston once wrote, "Wonder Woman is psychological propaganda for the new type of woman who should, I believe, rule the world.” And in a 1943 issue of The American Scholar, Marston wrote, “not even girls want to be girls so long as our feminine archetype lacks force, strength, and power. Not wanting to be girls, they don't want to be tender, submissive, peace-loving as good women are. Women's strong qualities have become despised because of their weakness. The obvious remedy is to create a feminine character with all the strength of Superman plus all the allure of a good and beautiful woman.” William Moulton Marston: A true believer in the feminist movement who implemented a bad-ass, female superhero into a world of mostly male readers.

While Wonder Woman wears a fairly skimpy outfit that can be seen in a sexualizing manner, I believe it’s more empowering than anything. Marston meant for this superhero to inspire a generation, and having a sexy outfit does more good than harm. Women want to feel sexy, and they should -- it’s part of our empowerment. Feeling like we can strut that fine ass and feel powerful while doing so is the ultimate form of freedom.

I love Diana’s outfit in the "Batman vs. Superman" movie. I personally think the colors were more tasteful than the original outfit, and she certainly still looked like she could kick your butt. And the actress, Gal Gadot, did a wonderful job and played a very elegant yet powerful superhero. Wonder Woman stands beside men and absolutely crushes whatever opponent they’re facing. While she’s almost always outnumbered by her male counterparts, she sends a strong message about how powerful women truly are (and just equally bad-ass and strong as men are). She also gives way to many other DC Comic heroes who aren’t commonly featured, such as Aquaman, The Flash, and Cyborg. I am psyched for the "Wonder Woman" movie that is going to be released in 2017. (Watch the trailer here). She will continue to liberate women and give them a powerful image as women around the world continue to fight for true equality.