And now, back to the story in progress:"...by the sheerest chance, Etta falls through the clouds which shroud the planetoid Rykornia." (Phew! Gotta love those shrouded planetoids) Before Etta can figure out where the heck she is, she's surrounded by Rykornians, who conveniently tell her where she is. (I must remember to do that if I ever see an alien. "Greetings, Earthling." "Hi. This is earth." "Duh, Earthling." Then again, maybe not.) King Tassel orders his corn people to capture Etta and secretly plots with Lord Cob that Etta can be used to spread Rykorn seeds on earth. But first, they have to figure out how to get her back to Earth.
Meanwhile, the balloon players return to Paradise Island. Strangely enough (and I swear, I never saw THIS coming), Wonder Woman is the winner! Hippolyte crowns Diana, Queen of the Kanga Carnival and everyone cheers for their Princess. (the crown is really... stupid looking. Kinda balloony and looking a bit like a really ugly lampshade or something).
But Wonder Woman is worried. She draws her mother aside to say, "Mother, I'm worried." (Told you) It seems Diana has noticed that Etta is missing. Hippolyte agrees that her daughter must do something at once. She tells Diana to search for Etta in her invisible plane while she crowns Zalia, who came in second (if, for any reason, the Queen of the Kanga Carnival cannot fulfill her duties, like maybe she'll have to search for a friend 5 miles up in the atmosphere on a planet full of corn or something, then the first runner-up must assume the duties of the Queen. Man, that clause is so darned important!).
Diana tells her mom that she's going to take the Holliday Girls with her, as her leave from Military Intelligence is up and she must return to "the man's world." We see Wonder Woman give Hippolyte a sweet kiss on the cheek while her mother lovingly says, "Aphrodite be with you, darling!" (I really like this panel. The stance of the two women, the mother-daughter affection and bond, the sweetness of the expressions -- very very nice. Sometimes, a panel just says so much, y'know? Lovely. Really. I'm... sorta gettin' all choked up here. It's just that I remember when MY Mom crowned me Queen of the Kanga Carnival lo those many years ago back in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin and she was so proud. The corn was as high as an elephant's eye, the cows were lowing and my trusty Kanga nuzzled my hand for an ever-present corn nut. Memories like that -- you just can't make those up...)As Wonder Woman worriedly patrols the skies with the Holliday Girls, she receives a mental radio message from Etta (what will power!). "Calling Wonder Woman -- need help -- captive of plant people on Rykornia -- concealed in clouds --" Wonder Woman isn't all too sure what the heck plant people are and most assuredly has never heard of Rykornia. This is very troublesome as Etta is busy bragging to the Rykornians about having mental radioed Wonder Woman, "the strongest girl on Earth," for help. Things look dire indeed until the King tells his subjects to untie their "welcome guest." It seems that Wonder Woman's imminent arrival is exactly what he wanted!
Having somehow discovered the world of giant corn, Wonder Woman searches for her friend from the vantage of the invisible plane (good thing she happened to find the heretofore unknown plantetoid just when Etta needed her, huh? What're the odds of that???) Finally, Wonder Woman's keen eyesight spots Etta happily munching away on the yummy Rykorn seeds her hosts have generously provided.
Wonder Woman observes that the Rykornians "don't look savage" so they slide down the nearest giant corn stalks to join the little party. Etta is happy to see her friends. "Woo Woo! Hi, Wonder Woman -- Greets, gals!" she says. (I like "greets, gals" myself. That Etta is one hip chick). The visitors are immediately offered heapin' helpins of Rykorn seeds, which they find very tasty. Wonder Woman breaks up the party early, trying to gather her gals, and the king offers her bags of Rykorn seeds to take with her. "No," Wonder Woman explains, "Earth soil is so fertile we might not be able to check the growth of Rykorn." (Now THIS is the wisdom of Athena at work! Instantly, Diana zooms in on what could possibly be the dire consequences of introducing a foreign agrarian product into the ecosystem. She is a thinkin' machine!!!!) Lord Cob laughs at her reservations and Etta agrees with the veggie-mite, but Wonder Woman doesn't relent. However, unseen by the Amazon, Cob and Tassel sneak a bag of seeds, and themselves, onto the plane.
(Okay, gotta question here. How the heck do you HIDE on an invisible plane??? Wouldn't Wonder Woman and the gals walk up and say, "hey, look. Two crouching Rykornians and a large bag of seeds are suspended a couple feet off the ground. Guess we found the plane.")Somehow, no one notices the corn people or the bag of seeds, now all hidden behind an invisible seat. Etta wistfully hankers after the seeds, (guess Wonder Woman doesn't provide invisible peanuts for the flight, huh?) but Wonder Woman remains firm. "I had a strong hunch the Rykornians were up to mischief Etta. There is something very sinister about those plant people." And though Etta can't figure out what harm plants could do, she lets it go and requests to be dropped off at her dad's ranch. (Etta's father, Hard Candy, owns the Bar-L Ranch in Texas. Dunno if Etta's brother, Mint Candy, will show up in this issue. If so, they should all have a Bar-L of fun! Hey, I never promised not to make corny jokes. Oh wait a sec. I DID promise, didn't I? Ooops.)
As Wonder Woman begins her ascent, the two Rykornians jump off the plane. Through the night, Cob and Tassel sew their seeds. In every stalk of Rycorn will be born a new Rykornian subject "to be used in the war against earthlings! Ha Haaaa!"
Can Earth be saved? Come back tomorrow for the thrilling conclusion of SIEGE OF THE RYKORNIANS!!
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