REVIEW: Power Girl #1
Williams has continually shown she has a deep understanding of Power Girl and has been the perfect choice to bring her back into the forefront of DC storytelling. There’s plenty of avenues to explore from this attention grabbing first issue which has all the potential to be great series.
After being featured in the Lazarus Planet event earlier this year, followed by a back-up story in Action Comics, and her own one-shot special, Power Girl has finally landed a new ongoing series! Power Girl #1, “Gang’s All Here” continues P.G.’s Dawn of DC adventure with a master crafted jump-on issue. It’s a brand-new start for Power Girl as she’s brought properly into the House of El era of DC Comics.
The standard cover, by Gary Frank & Brad Anderson, says it all. A take on the classic action hero walking away from an exploding backdrop, an Explosive First Issue indeed. The cover also plays as a fun analogy for this new direction as Paige walks confidently away from her messy comics history.
The variant by Jonboy Meyers is dynamic take on the theme of Power Girl blazing a new trail of adventures. Meyers’s anime style adds a great sense of motion as Paige flies towards us on a bright sunny day. The fun detail of the House of El jackets having zipper pulls in the shape of the “S” shield is an especially nice touch.
Paying homage to Power Girl’s history is the variant by Otto Schmidt. Highlighting the major outfit designs and hairstyles she’s worn since her first appearance made this piece deserving of the wrap-around treatment. Although her past has always been mired by surviving the original Crisis on Infinite Earths, she’s always maintained a strong presence in the DC continuum.
There are also some great variant covers by Warren Louw and Sozomaika to look out for:
The interior art team consists of Penciller Eduardo Pansica, Inker Julio Ferreira, and Colorist Romulo Fajardo Jr. Together they create a visual style that brings out some fun aspects of Power Girl’s world without detracting from her independent and capable demeanor. There’s an entire costume change sequence that is absolutely hilarious as she painstakingly removes an evening gown only to fry it with heat vision in distain for having to wear it in the first place. The social sequences are filled with emotion and body language and the action felt in line with Power Girl’s brawler approach to combat. This art team is going to deliver a wild and exciting ride with plenty of heart and humor.
Having taken the reins of Power Girl since the Lazarus Planet event, writer Leah Williams has definitely given a fresh new voice to Power Girl. With letters by Becca Carey, Williams has firmly established Paige’s backstory within the Dawn of DC directive and has given her a new civilian identity as well. Bringing her in line with her Kryptonian heritage, Paige is also officially a part of the House of El which feels like a cosmic wrong has finally be righted to this fan.
Debuting as Dr. Paige Stetler, Power Girl sticks to her background in technology to further the Better Tomorrow Initiative set forth by John Henry Irons and Steelworks. Holding a charity event to fund her research, things go horribly awry resulting in a near international event with Atlantis. This ends up being all set-up as Superman then tasks her to help investigate a strange new illness that appears to have originated from her particular Krypton (which is quickly pointed out no longer/never existed).
Williams has continually shown she has a deep understanding of Power Girl and has been the perfect choice to bring her back into the forefront of DC storytelling. There’s plenty of avenues to explore from this attention grabbing first issue which has all the potential to be great series.
