Wonder Woman: The Complete Third Season [5 Discs] [DVD]

This four-platter/eight-sided DVD set from Warner Home Video contains all 26 episodes from the third (and final) season of Wonder Woman, starring Lynda Carter and Lyle Waggoner, which aired in 1978 and 1979 on the ABC network. The full-screen (1.33:1) image is bright and crisp, and the sound has been mastered at a decent volume level as well, which is a help since this series was part of that wave of '70s shows that emphasized the soundtrack music whenever the action sequences came up (there was always some variation on the Wonder Woman theme accompanying Carter's going into action). Carter herself, in costume as the Amazonian princess or her identity as Diana Prince, was practically a walking special effect, and she never looked better than you'll see here. As to the episodes themselves, watching them is a lot like opening a time capsule from the 1970s, the lead episode starring period teen heart-throb Leif Garrett and subsequent episodes taking place in discos and other venues popular in the era. Probably the most interesting episode here is "Time Bomb," in which our heroine encounters a villainous traveler (Joan Van Ark) from the year 2155 -- although nothing in this series is done on a level to be taken too seriously, even as light entertainment. The major bonus features include a commentary track by Carter in which she tries to make some serious observations about the series and the role -- she hasn't a hope, but the effort is appreciated -- and a rather self-serving documentary entitled "Wonder Woman: The Ultimate Feminist Icon," in which Carter appears with a handful of feminist scholars obviously grateful for the screen time, making some good (and a few dubious) observations about Wonder Woman, the origins of the character, and its creator. The material on William Moulton Marston is more interesting than anything else here, including the show itself, which is the reason that even non-fans of the series might just appreciate this DVD package anyway. One additional bonus feature is an extra, free-standing DVD that contains an episode of the Saturday-morning adventure series Shazam, an adaptation of Captain Marvel, which looks very crude and threadbare compared to Wonder Woman or, as it was officially known, The New Adventures of Wonder Woman.