I absolutely adored the Wonder Woman reboot until this trailer was released, new canon quietly added to the old. One of the most frustrating part of living in a Comic Book Universe is that distinct lack of consequence, why I found The Old Guard ultimately so unsatisfying. Being immortal means you can’t die. It means when Superman does just that in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice some vital viewer agency is lost.

It also means that the response from WW after the death of Steve Trevor that brings about the death of Ares is now largely negated, because there he is, living and breathing all over again, brought back (presumably) by the same mystic curse that grants Barbara Ann Minerva (Cheetah) her full powers. The woman goes from geek, via emergent Apex Predator to full on Cheetah by the end of the trailer.

Spoilers in your pre-game material are always a risk.

Of course, if you’ve read the comics, none of this is a surprise anyway. You’re here to live in the Universe, not be critical of it, yet you know that’s what people are gonna do because that’s the game now. Three teams: Slavish Devotees, Vicious Attack Force and Everybody Else. Superhero movies are like Marmite, you can’t be ambivalent, either live or die by your opinions. Me, honestly I’m disappointed.

They could have used their brains and not killed off Pine at the end of the first film, shoved in a post-credits sequence where it was apparent he’d be back, but it was obvious to everybody that no-one expected the woman as a female lead to succeed. Therefore, this is the better alternative. Crucially however, and nowhere is this mentioned as yet, is Trevor’s clear lack of presence in all the Superman/Batman stuff.

So, bets that once out baddie is beaten, he just disappears again…?

Let’s be honest here, I’d watch Chris Pine cross the street. I have, as it happens, when I was in New York on holiday. When you are as physically arresting as he is in reality, it’s really obvious why you’d want him back in the film but honestly, if this is just to reinforce a plot line that Diana Prince needs a man to be ‘human’ and by definition complete, I’m gonna have words to say to DC.

Not everything has to rotate around love to enthral your female audience. The reason why Wonder Woman worked for me first time around was that you killed this guy at the end as very intentionally-placed mechanic not just to establish why Diana remains to help humanity, but that she understands what it is that drives her. As a metahuman, she will know that committing to those relationships is ultimately futile.

At least, that’s how I’d have written it.

We’ll see how it turns out soon enough.