DCU Book Club-Girl Power! Week 17: POWER GIRL (2009-) Issues 1-6

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Welcome to our inaugural Girl Power! edition of the DCU Book Club. Once a month, taking the place of a week of regular book club, we will focus the wonderful ladies of the DCU. Whether they are a hero or a villain, Girl Power! selections will be all about them.

To kick us off, we’ll read the girl of power herself: Power Girl

:bulb:Did you know? :bulb:
Power Girl first appeared in ALL STAR COMICS #58, 1976.

Here’s an excerpt from DCU Encyclopedia’s Power Girl Introduction:
"The family tree of the House of El is a complicated thing in its own right, but it becomes even more so when the Multiverse is involved. Kara Zor-L is the cousin of Superman. But this version of Kara is actually the Supergirl from Earth-Two, making her biologically identical to the Supergirl we know and love, yet completely different.

Kara became stranded on Earth-Prime after the Crisis on Infinite Earths. There was already an active Kara Zor-El on this Earth, but Earth-Two’s Kara went by the code name Power Girl, and the civilian name Karen, to conceal her identity and prevent confusion. Karen’s different life experiences gave her a much different outlook than her doppelgänger, and a unique fighting style to match."

Wanna learn more? Check out the full DCU Encyclopedia Power Girl entry here: Power Girl

Throughout the week, please feel free to share:

  1. Is this your first time reading a Power Girl comic?
  2. When and how did you first become aware of Power Girl?
  3. How do you describe Power Girl’s personality?

Our spoiler discussion kicks off this Friday (January 11) at 5p.m. EST and lasts all weekend. Feel free to leave spoiler-free thoughts throughout the week.

Questions, Comments, Concerns? Feel free to reach out to me, JLWWSM, on Discord: https://discord.gg/SUs87JP

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I’ll start us off:

  1. Yes, this is my first time reading a Power Girl comic.
  2. When I was in high school, a group of guys were huddling around a Power Girl comic - they were quite smitten with her physique. :slight_smile: That was the first time I saw Power Girl.
  3. I’ll share my description of her personality later in the week.
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Great choice! Funny enough, I actually have this whole run (and the JSA Classified run that proceeds it) in a nice, big trade. :smiley:

As for the questions:

  1. As that last statement implied, is redo Neely not my first time reading her. I have read this run, the one that follows it, as well as the Worlds Finest book from the New 52 that starred her and Helena Wayne as The Huntress. Not to mention the guest appearances in other books…

  2. I think I first saw her in the first arc of Superman/Batman, with the popular bit where she distracts the 13 year-old Toymaker for…obvious reasons. :joy:

  3. If I were to describe Power Girl’s personality, it would be…big; and no, I’m not making a boob joke. She’s tough, brash, fiercely loyal, and passionate not just about seeing justice done, but improving the world both in and out of costume.

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It’s on my to-read list, will be getting to it soon but probably not this week. Also, if interested, a while back I started a whole Girl Power thread so this just reminded me of that, so feel free to take a peek: https://www.dcuniverse.com/community/boards/comics/girl-power

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Nice choice!

  1. No, I’ve read oodles of books featuring PG in some capacity over the years. This series is my favorite starring title of hers (she also has a mini from the 80’s).

  2. First exposure to her was the issue of Superman/Batman where’s she told to distract Toyman. After that was JSA Classified. Her “What do you think I’m missing?” moment with Doctor Midnite from issue #1 of that series still stands out clearly to me all these years later.

  3. I think she has a very strong, determined personality. It’s honestly what’s kept me interested in her for so long. She’s one of my favorite DC characters in general, and one of my absolute favorite female characters too.

I’m looking forward to revisiting this series =)

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Looking forward to it. here we go!!

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  1. No, I read Justice Society of America when she was on the team and also during Infinite Crisis.
  2. My first exposure came from those I just mentioned. When I lived in San Francisco at a local comic shop we would make fun of her actually due to her you know. Saying g they were her sole superpower.
  3. She comes off very brash, sassy, but caring in her personality. The way she was portrayed in Infinite Crisis highlighted she is a strong character, even if made into a different version of Supergirl.

I will definitely be joining into the Girl Power! Book club reads!

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Definitely sassy, yes. Although, I can’t say I’m feeling that boob-tube. I’m no prude, mind you, but it feels very male-gazey, especially nowadays. It’s a fun and unique-looking costume to be sure, though. Really colorful. Supergirl the TV show solved the flimsy costume really well, I thought. It’s still a very girly costume but more practical and less strippery. And they even poked fun at it early on. If Power Girl makes an appearance on Supergirl, I would expect them to update her costume.

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  1. First time reading her solo book, yes!

  2. Like most others Batman/Superman was my first exposure to her. I also remember her being a loading screen image in DC Universe Online

  3. I’ll have to get back to this one!

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Really looking forward to this! Great job @JLWWSM I’m super happy to have you on the team!

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I read the first issue, good start, well written, I liked it a lot. This is my first time reading an arc focused on Power Girl, I believe I was introduced to the character in the Batman Superman run that was published back in 2010

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That full Power Girl series is one of my all-time favorites. Such a good fun take on the character.

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I wonder if the Judd Winick run from this series will pop up in the Comics section eventually. That wasn’t as good as the Palmiotti/Conner stuff, but fun nonetheless.

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Has anyone read this in Landscape Mode on their TV? OMG, it’s awesome that way.

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The only way to fly!!!

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@Jay_Kay & Vroom
Thanks for joining in on a re-read. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

@Mae
Thanks for bumping your thread. I bookmarked it and will be sure to review it when I prepare future selections.

@PrincessAmethyst
It seems our first exposures to her were somewhat similar. Her bosom definitely gets people’s attention. I look forward to seeing you in Girl Power! Book Clubs :slight_smile:

@MattMcDonald
Thanks for the kind words - I’ve certainly learned from you. Also, it looks like this is both of our first time reading her solo book.

@IssacBrown
Glad to hear you like the first issue. I liked it too :slight_smile:

@OldManJonah
I’m so glad to hear the full series is one of your favorites - I’m looking forward to finishing the whole series.

@Vroom & @ Don-El
I’m reading it in landscape on my TV and it’s a completely different experience. I love it!

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It seems like a lot of you are familiar with her from the Batman Superman run. It’s fun to see everyone’s responses to the 3 questions.

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This is not my first time reading a Power Girl comic.

I was reading All-Star Comics when she was first introduced many decades ago.

Her personality greatly depends on the decade and the writing team. My favorite rendition of her was in the All-Star Comics and then almost 20 years later in JSA (now in our library with all those black Alex Ross Portraits). She is best shown as a super smart confident character.

One of the odder concepts over the years was making her magical and related to early Atlantis and Arion as I recall. Sigh

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Regarding PG in the Superman/Batman series, her and Huntress hang out in issue 27. I won’t spoil it, but it’s a fun read =)

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She and Huntress had a series on New 52 I bought at the time. I wonder if Power Girl is the woman Mr. Terrific is sad concerning in the Terrifics? I only read them in the Walmart Giants

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