THE THEATER — As I watched the advanced screening of "Wonder Woman" starring Gal Gadot, a long-buried childhood memory came flooding back to me.

I remembered being a little kid and watching an episode of the "Wonder Woman" TV show starring Lynda Carter with my little sister. For those of you not familiar with the old TV show, whenever Wonder Woman needed to change quickly from her street clothing to her superhero uniform, she would spin faster and faster in tight concentric circles until she became a blur on the screen. Then in a blinding flash, her clothes would instantly change from business sensible to business superhero.

Needless to say, as a kid this concept intrigued my 4-year-old sister. Being the encouraging older brother I am, I convinced her there was a strong possibility that she could replicate this maneuver with the same results as Wonder Woman, so she gave it her best. Quickly she got dizzy, lost her balance, spun out of control and smashed her eye on the coffee table.

To avoid getting into trouble, I just walked away from my crying sister and led my mom to believe I had no part in the incident. Not long after, the TV show was canceled, and I forgot all about it.

I bring it up now partly out of guilt and partly because, after nearly 40 years, there is actually a reason to get excited about Wonder Woman being on screen again.

Here is my take away from DC’s new Wonder Woman:

What worked:

Finally a strong DC movie

With less-than-stellar results from the "Batman v Superman" movie, a tepid "Man of Steel" reception and an abysmal "Suicide Squad," I was almost worried that DC may not come up with the goods to really get the Justice League storyline rolling. With the release of "Wonder Woman," we see an extremely strong character and ally come to the screen. I’m beginning to feel like this is a sign of better things to come.

Gal Gadot

What can I say? Gadot as Wonder Woman is beautiful, strong, independent and has a presence that holds the screen. We were left with a good idea of this at the end of "Batman v Superman" when Wonder Woman makes her initial appearance, but now I can confidently say, she carries that same energy through this entire film.

Gadot is more than capable of holding her own in a stand-alone movie, as well as back-to-back with Batman and Superman. In fact, I can’t think of a film I’ve seen where I have heard more positive vocal and nonvocal commentary on the character.

Chris Pine

A lot of credit goes to Chris Pine in his role as Steve Trevor in this film. Pine brings a worldly sense of humor and timing to the film that balances out Wonder Woman’s hard charging naiveté. He supports Gadot perfectly in this film without getting lost as a secondary character.

Broad appeal

It is safe to say that there was a good mix of people in the theater, all of whom brought their own personal expectations of the Wonder Woman character and what she means to them. So there was a fine line the film had to walk to make people happy. Fortunately, there was something for everyone in this movie to enjoy and plenty to get excited with the quality of special effects, strong visuals, action, writing and on-screen chemistry.

What didn’t work:

Slow to get going

The movie took awhile to really get moving and kick you in the gut with any action. A lot of time was spent dedicated to establishing the context and history of Diana (Wonder Woman) as an Amazon princess. The setting was rather two-dimensional and not much was gained from all the time spent upfront trying to explain it. I think the history may have been better communicated in cut scenes throughout the film rather than risking the attention of the audience at the beginning.

Superhero cliches

As we have seen more than our fair share of superhero movies over the years, it is evident when writers and creative directors struggle to define more interesting universes for their characters. Whether it is cheesy imaginary home universes to over-the-top sidekicks and supporting characters, there is a lazy sameness to a lot of superhero movies these days.

"Wonder Woman" is no exception: With its bland idyllic home island Themyscira and the ridiculously overstyled bad guys, we aren’t left with a deeper appreciation for the creative work that goes into these movies.

No extra scene during the closing credits

Maybe I’m spoiled or maybe DC just didn’t care, but I was little disappointed that there was not an additional scene after the credits rolled. I say this as a spoiler of sorts so you don’t waste your time sitting in your chair waiting for an extra nugget of film. I always like how these extra scenes add a little deeper understanding of the character or what we can expect in the future.

Oh well, I guess it’s just a Marvel thing.

Conclusion

This movie was entertaining and every bit as good as I hoped it could be. I think it should do well for DC as it sets a new standard for what they are capable of, "Suicide Squad” notwithstanding. I think a lot of people will genuinely enjoy this take on a superhero movie. Hopefully, DC continues with this formula and even improves on it.

"Wonder Woman" is PG-13 for a reason. To find out more about what parents should know before taking their kids, check out John Clyde’s content guide of "Wonder Woman" on Friday.

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