Power Girl #10 – Review

By: Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray (writers), Amanda Conner (artist), Paul Montes (colorist)

The Story: Terra manages to save Power Girl from the gravity well stuck to her chest. They limp away, back to PG’s apartment, where the comic dork with the pictures of Power Girl comes with his terms. He demands/ requests three things: that she accompany him to his local comic shop, that she take care of two bullies, and help him ask out a girl. The Ultra-Humanite wouldn’t interrupt a plan like that, would he?

What’s Good: Power Girl as a series is about the medium, the culture that surrounds it, its audience and its conceits. This is a book about metafiction. Put on your protective goggles before reading – because Palmiotti and Gray have scripted big sections of this book to laugh at you. I enjoyed this issue making fun of comics, including Satanna trash talking Terra for reusing superhero names (“There’s like what? Two…three…Flashes?”), Power Girl trashing on Satanna’s motivations (“She attacked me because, well, because that’s what people like her do.”), and Terra asking why villains can’t just shut up during fights. The writers have fun laughing at them (and us, because these are sacred cow conventions we’ve come to expect as readers). The fanboy crushes on fictional, chesty women is also aimed squarely at those who buy this book (or Power Girl posters, models, action figures, etc). Gray and Palmiotti also take a shot at the industry (a comic doesn’t show up on time because an artist fell behind schedule) and in the end, Terra trashes on Power Girl in the “totally clichéd hero/friend fights” where she gives Power Girl the chance to say “I know you’re stronger than this” and “this isn’t you.” There are too many more gems than can fit in this space, but leave a comment if you spot more. The art and inks are, as always, clear, clean, dynamic, and fun. The cartoony, self-aware style fits well with the type of humor the writers are building.