Power Girl Returns

Power Girl (2023) #0

by Leah Williams, Marguerite Sauvage (Artist), Vasco Georgiev (Artist)

Power Girl takes center stage!

With new powers and a new mission, Power Girl faces a challenge unlike any she’s experienced before! With Omen’s guidance, she now strives to battle the demons—literal and figurative—lurking within the minds of some of the greatest superheroes in the DC Universe. But the nefarious Johnny Sorrow has been searching for a connection to Earth-0, and the superheroines’ work may unwittingly give him the means to make their world his personal stage! Can Power Girl and her estranged Super-Family bring down the curtain on Sorrow’s evil plans? And at what cost?

Collects stories from LAZARUS PLANET: ASSAULT ON KRYPTON #1, ACTION COMICS #1051-1053, POWER GIRL SPECIAL #1, and KNIGHT TERRORS: ACTION COMICS #1-2.

Genres: Comics, Dc Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics

144 pages, Paperback

First published October 3, 2023

About the author

Leah Williams is an American writer originally from Oxford, Mississippi. She has written comics for Marvel, BOOM! Studios, Vault Comics, and is working on more. Her debut novel was a YA Fantasy book titled The Alchemy of Being Fourteen and she is currently writing its sequel, The Divinity of Hitting Fifteen. Leah has nonfiction articles and essays published in The Atlantic, Oprah Magazine, and Salon.

Reviews

[Alex Sarll]

Now that Carol Danvers is a big deal, you'd think the time would be right for Power Girl too, given she's essentially the same character except fun. Or at least she was last time I checked in, and therein lies the problem, because – barring a team-up book where she was mainly there as tank, straightwoman and object of Harley Quinn's motorboating fantasies – that was more than a decade ago, and Rao forbid DC ever leave well enough alone. So, yes, PG still has the controversial boob window – and, in one of the most winning moments here, defends it as an alternative to supersuits that lack ventilation. But where her personality used to be appropriately bullish to carry that off, now it's curdled into self-loathing, blaming herself for the two worlds she's outlived, unable to trust, pushing people away...not, in short, remotely fun anymore. Her powers have also had a rejig, so now she's an ace coder from being raised in a simulation, and also temporarily psychic because of yet another stupid bloody crossover, so together with new friend Omen (who may or may not be a preexisting character) she sets up as a therapist for non-verbal superheroes, which you might think would be a niche concern even in the DCU, and you'd be right, because that only lasts three issues before it collapses into a pocket apocalypse. At the end of which there's some sign of character growth and healing – which is then instantly junked in favour of two issues trapped in a nightmare realm's visions of rejection and abuse because of, yes, yet another stupid bloody crossover. It's miserable, disjointed, confusing, and – especially considering how kick-ass other comics I've read from Leah Williams have been, how much better Marguerite Sauvage's art usually looks – altogether a firm warning that reports of DC rediscovering the plot have been greatly exaggerated.

[Mike · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like what Williams is trying to do in the storytelling. I don’t quite gel with the pacing/jumpiness from scene or thought to thought or scene - and I’m not sure if it’s the writing or the art’s blocking. It’s so hard to tell where one ends and the other begins, in these collaborative media.

[Adam Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bridging the gap between "Lazarus Planet" and "Knight Terrors", this Volume covers a lot of Power Girl's jump back into the main stream of the DC Universe. Having inherited telepathic abilities in the Lazarus Rain, she connects with Omen, who teaches her and they are able to help both Beast Boy and Supergirl pass through some issues.
The book was well written, but really only serves to reconnect readers with the character, and gets her involved back in the "Super-Family" books. Hopefully Power Girl, now taken the name Paige, will be around for a long time.

[Roman · Rating 2 out of 5]

До того як ДС запустили повноцінну тривалку про Павер Ґьорл сценаристка Лея Вільямс працювала з нею в додаткових історіях до різних серій. Взагалі можете сприймати цю збірку як нульовий том до актуальної серії.

Перша історія є тай-іном до події "Lazarus Planet". Про неї не можна багато чого сказати оскільки вона є дуже короткою та абстрактною, з головного Підж тут зустрічає Омен та дізнається, що має телепатичні здібності.

Наступний сюжет відбувається в додаткових історіях до Action Comics #1051-1053. Лея тут представляє досить цікаву ідею з тим, що Павер Ґьорл та Омен вирішують використовувати новоотримані здібності першої для психологічної допомоги героям. І перша частина історії справді прикольна, у ній наші героїні допомагають Бістбою. Однак в наступних двох починаються проблеми. У двох наступних номерах Павер Ґьорл допомагає Суперґьорл, а також Супермену (Джону) й дізнається, що якийсь лиходій намагається через них дістатися до неї. І все б нічого, але Вільямс тут починає робити конфлікт з тим, що Підж почувається лишньою в Суперродині й, що вони самі не дуже її люблять. Мені це рішення не дуже сподобалося оскільки береться нізвідки й відчувається досить натягнуто.

Іншим моментом з якого багато людей згоріли є те, що Павер Ґьорл починає себе називати Пейдж, замість Карен Стар. Особисто я не є великим шанувальником Павер Ґьорл, єдиною серією де вона була головною героїнею яку я читав була Н52шна серія "World's Finest". І то там героїнею була Павер Ґьорл із Землі-2 яка була показана в Н52, у той час, як в цій збірці у нас та сама стара Підж. І ідея зі створенням нової громадянської особистості не ж чимось жахливим, але те як ім'я Пейдж з'являється виглядає більш комічно.

Сюжет який розпочався в "Action Comics" в результаті завершився у "Power Girl Special" в якому виявляється, що відповідальним за атаки на Джона та Кару був Джонні Соров. Виявляється, що більшість людей в Метрополісі впали в транс і те саме відбувається в інших містах оскільки Джонні відіслав туди своїх вершників. І тепер тільки Павер Ґьорл та Омен здатні його зупинити. По ходу сюжету виявляється, що як такої телепатії  у Павер Ґьорл немає й насправді здібністю яку вона отримала під час Планети Лазаря є астральні удари, тобто вона тепер як Супербой Прайм здатна пиздити реальність. Щодо самого завершення сюжету то він розчарував, більшу частину часу він топчеться на місці, а також основний акцент робиться на, досить нудних, діалогах ніж екшені, плюс прибічники Джонні взагалі не були потрібні, як на мене й тільки забирають сторінки коміксу. А, ну і ще котик Суперґьорл тепер житиме з Пейдж.

Останні пригоди Пейдж перед переїздом у власний онґоїнґ відбулися в тай-іні з двох номерів "Knight Terrors: Action Comics". За сюжетом Павер Ґьорл опиняється в жахіті в якому їй доводиться переживати симуляції симбіотичного корабля який вона колись знищила (лорознавці ДС напишіть, будь ласка, коли це було). І в кінці йде тизер з тим, що у звичайному світі частинка корабля готується повернутися для помсти. Загалом нічого особливого, але може бути. Щодо малюнку то тут за нього відповідає Васко Ґеорґієв, в той час, як усі минулі пригоди Підж малювала Маґдален Вісаджіо. Обидва художники видали цілком непогану роботу, окремо хочу виділити стиль Вісаджіо який мені досить непогано зайшов.

Якщо оцінювати перші пригоди Павер Ґьорл під керівництвом Леї Вільямс то вийшло досить слабко. Ідея з психологічною допомогою героям була цікавою, але на жаль сюжет пішов у зовсім не ту сторону в яку хотілося б, плюс конфлікт з Суперродиною відчувався натягнуто Певна віра у те, що ми побачимо щось хороше в самій тривалці у мене є, але поки "Power Girl Returns" є слабкою збіркою.

[Batgirl_ALT_21 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fantastic reintroduction to the beloved and often rarely understood Power Girl 😁👍🌟!!

The premise for our main plot occurs between the events of Lazarus Planet and Knight Terrors. While that may seem daunting for those who haven't read either event...it's not because everything you need to know is referenced in this Graphic Novel and doesn't have or hold a significant impact on our main protagonist, Power Girl.

We begin by observing Power Girl as she falls through the sky with grace, explaining that she believes herself to be dying after the events of Knight Terrors while working with Zatanna and Shazam to stop the theft of the Night Stone. In the process, she is actively plumbing to her presumed death until it all ceases, and she wanders what seems to be a psychedelic mindscape but is suddenly startled by the scream of an injured creature who she tries to help but fails. Power Girl then meets a Gingered Woman who's named Omen who now shares a telepathic connected bond to Power Girl (Why does she have this power, and who is this new girl/woman? We never truly get an answer about why Omen is in the so just go with it. As for the power of telepathy, it has to do with the Lazarus rain and Power Girl holding onto a piece of the Astral Plane).

What follows is a blossoming friendship between Omen and Power Girl as they seek to use their newfound telepathic mind powers to help Meta-humans/superheroes confront their deepest fears and restore their mental health by entering their Mindscapes (which is a really freaking cool concept 😁🙌). We also learn that Omen is a clinically licensed psychologist with an extensive background in addiction, acute trauma, counseling, and cognitive psych.

The first patient that the team assists is Beast Boy, who is trapped in a calf-like form and brought in by Nightwing, who explains that Garfield has been in this form for a while post *Being shot in the face by Deathstroke*. Omen remains grounded with Garfield in the physical realm, while Power Girl uses her power of the Astral plane to enter the Beast Boys' mindscape. Once inside, Power Girl confronts various red animal attacks, which is explained to be Beast Boy's connection to "The Red," which gives him his powers. It is at this point that the two deduce that the problem is likely within Beast Boy's genetic code, and after Power Girl untangles it, Beast Boy returns to his normal self fully healed.

The second patient who visits the two newly established experts is Supergirl, whose problems stem from a language barrier as she recently lost her ability to communicate beyond nonsensical speech. Power Girl once again enters Kara's mindscape and seeks to find her Broca or Wernicke's area to resolve Kara's twisted speech. In the process, Omen learns through observation in the physical plane that Kara is capable of producing normal speech upon being frustrated by Power Girl, which leads to Power Girl pissing her off and Supergirl freeing herself by releasing her frustration verbally. The plot, however, seems to thicken as a bouquet of Black roses appears in Kara's mindscape as a calling card from a person named Sorrow. In the physical plane, Supergirl is now fully restored and is requested to bring Jon to further unravel these clues left in the Super-Family's mindscape.

The next day, Power Girl enters Jon's mind and, with the guidance of Omen, seeks answers along his language areas via genetic code. What follows is Jon becoming injured and put to sleep to reduce the risk of psychological/physical pain, but before he rests, Jon manages to give Power Girl, then cutest new alter ego, Paige. Power Girl locates the genetic code and finds a mask centered at the end of it as Omen tries to force Paige to awaken, but the two become trapped under "Sorrow's" mindscape where he is the sole person of significance until Power Girl Astral punches her way out thereby freeing Omen and herself. The two then confront Sorrow, who reveals that he has his horsemen (Poet, Pipper, Pin, and Pendulum) doing his bidding by keeping everyone in the USA in a subconscious slumber.

We then skip to Power Girl returning to Metropolis to check on the Super-fam in hopes of finding a clue to resolve what has happened. Upon entering Superman's apartment, she finds Connor, the Twins, and Superman of China passed out, so she puts them into bed and then flies to Kara's apartment. Power Girl is then attacked by Streaky the Supercat, who finds Kara's diary, where she explains that she loves Power Girl and sees her as an extension of herself but doesn't understand why they behave like oil and vinegar or why Power Girl continues to isolate herself from the rest of the Super-fam. After Paige has a mini-meltdown and destroys half of Kara's apartment, she leaves to confront her own mindscape via the Astral Plane, which results in her falling right into Sorrow's grasp. Sorrow then goes on to explain how he always held a form of telepathic connection to Power Girl and that he loved to feed off of her sadness. Omen manages to free Paige but is then forced into a tango by Piper, while Power Girl is offered the opportunity to rule with Sorrow, which she declines. Finally, Paige searches her mindscape to find encouragement from the Superman she once knew, who died on Earth 2, but with her grief, she learns that she can take control by using the Astral Plane to take down the horsemen. She does so via swift punches and delivers the final blow to Sorrow. Finally, Paige makes amends with the Super-fam and gets a new roommate in Omen and Streaky who wishes to live with her.

The last arc apart of this series is the Knight Terrors tie-ins, which add a nice touch to wrap up the run. I won't go into detail because it's better read by the reader themselves 😉👍.

Overall, this was an epic run and a great reintroduction of Power Girl that has completely revitalized this remarkable heroine 😁🙌💯!! 9.5/10 🌟!! I had to dock .5 because the conflict resolution of Sorrow felt a bit rushed, but the rest of the arc was incredible!!

I can't wait to read more 😁❤️🎉!!

[Mohan Vemulapalli · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Power Girl Returns" is a clunky but overall quite readable book that reintroduces PG to current Earth-1 continuity. Taking place after the "Lazarus Rains" story arc, the book starts with a bang as PG realizes that her near death experience has resulted in the development of an additional set of super powers that now equip her for telepathic and astral adventures.

Expect an ongoing collaboration with an often ignored redheaded super, a new outfit to go with the new powers, some Streaky action, super family dynamics and the reappearance of a classic PG villain.

[Viola · Rating 4 out of 5]

She's back!!!!

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5, Lazarus Planet/Knight Terrors stuff was terrible, but the rest was pretty good. Not sure why Fire & Ice are featured as a cover though since they are unfortunately not in this at all?

[Artemis Crescent · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Power Girl Returns'

And return she does.

Hooray, another 'Power Girl' comic, and it's one that I like!

I'd only ever liked 'Power Girl, Vol. 1: A New Beginning', which I read ten years ago! I wanted more of Power Girl, where she is 1) written well, 2) treated respectfully, 3) not treated like a joke - for example, regarding the (in)famous boob window on her costume, 4) not overly sexualised, and used as a lazy excuse for female objectification fanservice, 5) not a throwaway victim with no thought put into her character and her trauma, 6) not a random, last minute throwaway victim with no thought put into her character and trauma, and 7) allowed to reach her full potential.

Like she matters.

Because she does.

Not because she is "sexy". Not necessarily because she is one of the strongest superheroines in the DCU, physically. But because she is a sassy, savvy, self-aware, funny, witty, smart, technologically-and-logically-minded (she's not really a meathead who just likes punching things), moody, badass, rough (not like that!) yet warm, and complex heroine.

Thankfully, the contemporary comic, 'Power Girl Returns', understands this about her. She even swears a lot in it, albeit censored by DC Comics. And there is no overt, obnoxious fanservice in the art in sight.

Sure, 'Power Girl Returns' can be taxing, confusing, convoluted, inconsistent, awkwardly paced, and annoying at times, but in spite of its obvious problems, I enjoyed it. I'm just happy to see Power Girl receive over a modicum of the respect she's always deserved.

The artwork in every issue is great, too. Very colourful, crisp, creative, and bright, even in the later, darker storyline.

The gist of 'Power Girl Returns', its reason for being, is: Power Girl just came back from nearly dying in the 'Lazarus Planet' DC storyline, which I have not read, and this Kryptonian/first-proto-Supergirl who's survived two crisis events and universe rewrites now has psychic powers, because of Lazarus Rains or trauma or something. She uses her new powers to become a psychic psychotherapist for fellow superheroes, alongside Omen, whom I've wanted to read about properly in comics for years, and am glad she is given her moments to shine, and be Power Girl's new best friend (where's Atlee, aka Terra? Idk).

With PG's psychic powers comes the ability to astral-punch, to go with her regular punching.

Power Girl herself, understandably, has severe psychological troubles and obstacles to overcome. These include self-esteem issues, self-loathing issues, suppression issues, abandonment issues, identity crises, imposter syndrome, mood swings, blocking out love from others and herself, letting go of her true emotions, letting go of her past, social anxiety, and self-isolation and avoidance when it comes to the "Superman family" or the "Super-Family". There are many traumatic events in her life to process and pick through.

She finally becomes friends with Supergirl, and comes to accept the Kryptonians on Earth - the Supermen, women, kids, and pets - as her family, where she is in fact loved and welcomed by them.

It's where she belongs, where she's always belonged, if she only lets them in, in her lonely, confusing, "insignificant" existence.

Past, present and future, Power Girl matters. She's no longer a victim, either.

Then suddenly she isn't psychic anymore (or at least she's not telepathic), and is trapped by night terrors/simulations, looping over and over again, in DC's 'Knight Terrors' event.

Typical.

We go from a light, funny, hopeful, clever, thoughtful, caring, individual and personal character angle and study of Power Girl, to dark, grim, repetitive, DC mass event canon BS.

Oh well, it's all really interesting on the whole.

Oh and PG's new civilian name is Paige, given to her by Superman's son Jon, after Omen's nickname for her, Peej. She's not Karen Starr, CEO of a billion-dollar science and engineering company, anymore, I guess.

As well as Power Girl, I am borderline stanning the superheroines featured and spotlighted here:

Omen - telepath, redhead, and PG's new superhero partner, friend and roommate, and who is very much her free therapist.

Supergirl, aka Kara - her and PG's interactions, and them finally getting to know one another and coming to an understanding, a meaningful bond, a shared-soul sisterhood, is something that's needed to happen for decades, and it is wonderful, powerful and glorious.

And Catwoman suddenly appears on one page to beat a monster of her own. The reader doesn't see her interact with Power Girl or anyone else.

There's also Kara's Kryptocat, Streaky (seriously with that name?), who reminds me of Carol Danvers's alien cat.

Other superheroes who appear are Zatanna and Mary Marvel in a 'Lazarus Planet' flashback at the beginning of the comic, and Nightwing, Beast Boy, and Superman. A sweet, caring, embracing Superman. Good. Excellent.

'Power Girl Returns' - it's a much needed fresh start for Power Girl. Even though it could have been a lot better, it could have been a lot worse, too. I'm going to take what I can get out of this superheroine's solo books, which are few and far between.

I'm happy I read it. I'm happy to own it.

Now I'm going to review its sequel (I think?), 'Power Girl Vol. 1: Electric Dreams'.

Leah Williams's comic run of PG looks interesting, experimental, dynamic, and well-thought out so far.

Go, Power Girl, go!

Final Score: 3.5/5

EDIT: I just learned that the two women on either side of Power Girl on the back of the paperback volume are Fire and Ice. I have barely heard of them, and they are not in the comic itself. And why does PG look so much like Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel? The blonde hair, the costume, the powers, everything. It can't be the cat connection, surely!

[Ray Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Power Girl has long been one of my favorite female DC heroes. I just wish DC felt any kind of affection for her, despite the fact that they know she's one of the more recognizable ones. She has been rebooted so many times it's no even funny.

When you factor in the fact that I got this book at the library, it's not that big a surprise that this didn't get a higher rating. I'm not sure where this lands in the timeline of the Power Girl trades I have; this trade had stories from 2022-2023, so it looks like it's well after the ones I have. But Power Girl has psychic powers now? Wtf?

With that out of the way, I really would have liked to have enjoyed this more than I did, but I had a hard time getting past the whole mental needle-scratch I had. I might have enjoyed it more if I had read it in order, after whatever compilation came before, but I didn't. Just my opinion, and I might revisit it if I get a chance to read more in order. We'll see.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not 100% sure what the point of this is. You ever read one of those stories where it's like, the writer wants to tell a story, but they don't have the characters that they want? You either get Alias, where the writer creates a whole new character instead, or you get this, where the writer forces an existing character into their narrative whether they like it or not.

So we get Power Girl gaining psychic powers and operating as a psychic therapist by punching her way into people's brains. Sure, okay.

I liked the ultimate villain reveal, mostly because I haven't seen him in a long time and I've always enjoyed him, but that doesn't do much to change the fact that this is Power Girl Returns, but Power Girl isn't really Power Girl at all.

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another attempt to 'reboot' Power Girl?
...yet the boob window costume cleavage remains

Go with your strengths, DC. Hahahaha.

This time around, the Lazarus Rain activated...psychic PUNCHING powers in Power Girl. Bemoaning her forever alone status, PG (by the end of this collection, renaming herself 'Paige') finds that she can enter the mental landscape of superheroes and villains. So....now she's a pugilist psychologist? At least she is, long enough for them to reestablish her connection to the (now quite large) Superman family.

Bonus: We're reminded that she's an Earth-2 girl, kinda/sorta/same-sies as Supergirl
Bonus Bonus: Supergirl's cat, Streaky is now living with Power Girl?

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

Surprisingly not at all fun like I expected from Leah Williams and the return of Power Girl. Way too much time is spent on her convoluted and so often retconned backstory that I'm not sure what's still pertinent and what's not. All I know now if that she was raised alone on a spacecraft by A.I. and she now has psychic punching powers due to Lazarus Planet. She's hooked up with Omen (A little known character from the Titans) and their helping people psychically while PG recodes their psyche. None of this makes any sense. The Knight Terrors issues are a complete waste of time just like the entirety of that event.

[Aidan Hepler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Idk why this is rated as low as it is. This was such a great story to read!! It's got heart with Power Girls journey to being accepted by the super family and being able to accept herself, it's got great character building with Omen and Power Girls friendship, and the art is great!! Sure, at times it's overly confusing, and sometimes the story was messy or rushed, but those were only minor problems!!

[Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Favorite Female DC Superhero

This is a very fresh take on Power Girl -her depiction is different from the other arcs that I have read. Here, Power Girl has her own identity and she was able to face her adversities by herself.

I hope that she finally breaks out from the shadows of her other superhero colleagues. I am looking forward to the next Power Girl comics!

[Sharon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Doesn't hold a candle to Amanda Connors run, but at least Streaky made a couple of appearances. I normally like Marguerite Savage's art, but the layouts were chaotic (and not in a good way) and the coloring ran the gambit between undersaturated and oversaturated. Skip this one and read or reread Connors run.

[Magnus Frederiksen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Znark… Snyggt illustrerat men helt ointressant story.
Denna är nog skriven för att attrahera unga tjejer som inte läser serier att läsa. Inte för att vara sån, men tror inte det är en storsäljare. Men om den fyller sitt syfte lyfter jag kepsen och bugar. Bra jobbat. Även om sugen att läsa en serie om Power Girl just dött.

[Shannon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Power Girl has been my favorite DC hero for many many years. She was strong and sexy and confident. And now she has been transformed into an annoying, whiny, immature bitch.
I’m pretty sure my days of buying DC comics is done.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not the Power Girl from the Geoff Johns JSA run, but it's a great new version rich with psychological depth even more interesting than her new powers. Leah Williams sets this character apart from her past in this accessible, fun jumping on point.

[Abram Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

The art inside this is so gorgeous why did they pick that hideous cover.

[Aloysius · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty good study on the inner mind of Power Girl, and a delightfully disturbing foe for her to face off against, too!

[Jipi Perreault · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best take on the character since Conner/Palmiotti run.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did not know very much about Power Girl so this
was new for me. I found the writing very intelligent
and a good challenge for me. Very interesting.

[Clarissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

5-star art (I adore Marguerite Sauvage's work) but 2-star storytelling. Maybe Leah Williams just isn't for me or she'd be better on a different character.

[poier · Rating 3 out of 5]

a lightweight, breezy, fun read. Sauvage's artwork is gorgeous, even though it can look a little static.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Therapized yuri

[Benjamin Kimble · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this a lot more than I thought I would! During the events of Lazarus Planet Power Girl’s powers were altered. Now she has some sort of psychic abilities. With Omen helping her they open up a psychic therapy place for superheroes. What’s most interesting about the writing in this is seeing Power Girl deal with being a part of the superfamily and not a part of it. She struggles, because Supergirl is there too, they say she’s welcome, but she’s always the black sheep. I also loved the art. Marguerite Sauvage has a really unique light airy style that made this book stand out. I’m excited to see where Leah Williams’ Power Girl ongoing takes the character.

[Stephen Ede-Borrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just re-read this and I had almost forgotten just how good the writing and the artwork in this book is. An excellent pair of story arcs with PG being given, or rather kept with, the personality that she has built up over the last (almost) 50 years.
An excellent and enjoyable read - highly recommended to any and all PG fans.