It seems to me that Power Girl isn't the force that she once was a year ago. Has the constant controversy surrounding the character lost it's catalytic appeal now that the costume has changed? I just don't hear that buzz anymore and I have to think that it's because DC has revamped the look of the character and diminished her exposure (no pun intended) across multiple tittles.

The top discussion keeping her in the spotlight before the N52 initiative was her choice of revealing costume that exposed her cleavage, the infamous Boob Window. Fans were no doubt polarized by the topic, which lead to heated and often comical debated about weather this super hero style was appropriate for comics, sexist, or just plain stupid. While there have been and are a lot of other comic book heroines with fare more revealing costumes Power Girl bore the brunt of both hate and admiration far more than any other character.

Now that she has been redesigned for a new era at DC comics it appears that her star is fading though the character presses on, but is she striding towards oblivion. With the "Curse" of the boobie window lifted I can say that I have heard a lot less buzz about Power Girl and a lot more nothing as time has passed. Though I like the idea of her Worlds Finest title I'm not sure how well it's doing or what kind of impact Power Girl is creating.

I'd like to know your thoughts.

Absolutely, but then, the majority of DC's characters have. The essence of the character has been lost, replaced with the hollow bare bones of her previous continuity. She's still related to Superman, but it's a Superman we have no connection to, who dies in the very issue he's introduced. She's still friends with the Huntress, but that relationship was largely unknown to the modern fan base, as that particular Huntress hadn't been seen in 25 years. The Justice Society of America, the team which defined her, no longer exists. All of her relationships with the super hero community are gone. No aspect of her previous continuity is relevant any longer. So, we're left with a character who made her non-costumed debut in the Mr. Terrific series, as the title character's sex buddy. Since virtually no one was reading Mr. Terrific, a title which, by all accounts was just terrible, her debut goes, largely, unnoticed. The character generated some buzz when the World's Finest title was announced, but that was fueled by a desire to see the fan favorite Power Girl make her debut in the "new" 52. That didn't happen, as that Power Girl didn't actually come back. Instead DC offered up a Power Girl who carried the trappings of the original in her make-up, but none of the heart. Each subsequent appearance merely serves as a reminder to the fan base that this character isn't Power Girl, and thus there's no support for her.

@chalkshark said:

Absolutely, but then, the majority of DC's characters have. The essence of the character has been lost, replaced with the hollow bare bones of her previous continuity. She's still related to Superman, but it's a Superman we have no connection to, who dies in the very issue he's introduced. She's still friends with the Huntress, but that relationship was largely unknown to the modern fan base, as that particular Huntress hadn't been seen in 25 years. The Justice Society of America, the team which defined her, no longer exists. All of her relationships with the super hero community are gone. No aspect of her previous continuity is relevant any longer. So, we're left with a character who made her non-costumed debut in the Mr. Terrific series, as the title character's sex buddy. Since virtually no one was reading Mr. Terrific, a title which, by all accounts was just terrible, her debut goes, largely, unnoticed. The character generated some buzz when the World's Finest title was announced, but that was fueled by a desire to see the fan favorite Power Girl make her debut in the "new" 52. That didn't happen, as that Power Girl didn't actually come back. Instead DC offered up a Power Girl who carried the trappings of the original in her make-up, but none of the heart. Each subsequent appearance merely serves as a reminder to the fan base that this character isn't Power Girl, and thus there's no support for her.

Very well said. Not to mention that Worlds' Finest is mediocre at best.

Well,after the New 52 a lot other characters have also lost popularity.

@The_Tree: I actually had high hopes for the series as I tend to like the work produced by Levitz, Perez and Maguire, but apparently all three men are just phoning this series in. There's no sense of enthusiasm, from the creators, for the series, which is translating into lackluster interest from the fan base. That and the series is so isolated from the greater DC Universe, as most "new" 52 titles are, that it's hard to imagine anything happening in the series really mattering. What makes a shared universe attractive is the overlap of events in other titles. I think DC underestimated how interested the fan base would be with the world building of their "new" universe.

@chalkshark said:

@The_Tree: I actually had high hopes for the series as I tend to like the work produced by Levitz, Perez and Maguire, but apparently all three men are just phoning this series in. There's no sense of enthusiasm, from the creators, for the series, which is translating into lackluster interest from the fan base. That and the series is so isolated from the greater DC Universe, as most "new" 52 titles are, that it's hard to imagine anything happening in the series really mattering. What makes a shared universe attractive is the overlap of events in other titles. I think DC underestimated how interested the fan base would be with the world building of their "new" universe.

Most definitely. And with the introduction of a new universe, you'd think interest in world building would be a given. Obviously someone wasn't thinking when they were planning out the title.

@chalkshark said:

@The_Tree: I actually had high hopes for the series as I tend to like the work produced by Levitz, Perez and Maguire, but apparently all three men are just phoning this series in. There's no sense of enthusiasm, from the creators, for the series, which is translating into lackluster interest from the fan base. That and the series is so isolated from the greater DC Universe, as most "new" 52 titles are, that it's hard to imagine anything happening in the series really mattering. What makes a shared universe attractive is the overlap of events in other titles. I think DC underestimated how interested the fan base would be with the world building of their "new" universe.

Its largely due to poor writing from Levitz. Hopefully that'll change soon.

ill be honest,the "boob window" became sort of a characteristics of her and i for one enjoyed it as that(also visually)...i read once when she fun of it herself and i totally enjoyed that...all im trying to say is that it gave her an attitude that was differentiating from other female charcaters...

Also,the world's finest isnt very good... :P

I miss the old Power Girl. She was my favorit superhero.

The change of the costume is only superficial, if she cannot maintain popularity for just not having a boob window, then I think we can effectively say that the character was never popular to begin with.

However I dont think thats the most important change of the character, the main problem with Powergirl is her completely apathetic personality, before she was one of the heroes with more connections in DC with the JSA, JLA, Superman, Batman, etc, now she desnt have anyone but Huntress and Mr Terrific who she couldnt wait 2 seconds before backstabbing for a personal gain

@chalkshark said:

Absolutely, but then, the majority of DC's characters have. The essence of the character has been lost, replaced with the hollow bare bones of her previous continuity. She's still related to Superman, but it's a Superman we have no connection to, who dies in the very issue he's introduced. She's still friends with the Huntress, but that relationship was largely unknown to the modern fan base, as that particular Huntress hadn't been seen in 25 years. The Justice Society of America, the team which defined her, no longer exists. All of her relationships with the super hero community are gone. No aspect of her previous continuity is relevant any longer. So, we're left with a character who made her non-costumed debut in the Mr. Terrific series, as the title character's sex buddy. Since virtually no one was reading Mr. Terrific, a title which, by all accounts was just terrible, her debut goes, largely, unnoticed. The character generated some buzz when the World's Finest title was announced, but that was fueled by a desire to see the fan favorite Power Girl make her debut in the "new" 52. That didn't happen, as that Power Girl didn't actually come back. Instead DC offered up a Power Girl who carried the trappings of the original in her make-up, but none of the heart. Each subsequent appearance merely serves as a reminder to the fan base that this character isn't Power Girl, and thus there's no support for her.

This post is perfection.

@arnoldoaad said:

The change of the costume is only superficial, if she cannot maintain popularity for just not having a boob window, then I think we can effectively say that the character was never popular to begin with.

That's an interesting statement. Power Girl had grown into a character that embodies the feminine ideal as well a hero worthy of her own title yet with a characterization that was grounded, creating a character that you wanted to hang out with.

Sure there were different depictions of her, In All Stars she was the Boss, In JSA she was the muscle, in JSA vs, Kobra she was very heavy handed almost militaristic, and in her own title she was a person balancing her profession ambitions and hero life. But suffice it to say that these aren't really the elements that kept her in the daily threads. They were healthy byproducts of her physical aesthetic. I think that a lot of people were exposed to Power Girl because of the superficial banter on the internet and word of mouth in conversations like or about the Boob window. On the off chance that someone was getting a book that featured her for a cheap thrill they discovered a character with depth and sincerity that new comers were surprised to discover.

I think that it was that superficial buzz and hype that eventually got her her own title. I remember Sara Lima once stating that she wanted to Vomit at the mere mention of Power Girl's name but in time the character became one of her most anticipated titles each month.

She was never popular. Her breasts were.

But seriously, she was always overshadowed by Wonder Woman and Supergirl, and maybe Big Barda.

She was most popular when she had an on-going

@mk111 said:

She was never popular. Her breasts were.

But seriously, she was always overshadowed by Wonder Woman and Supergirl, and maybe Big Barda.

That's interesting. How so?

@moywar700 said:

She was most popular when she had an on-going

She was also in 2 other titles. That's a lot of exposure.

@Press Oblivion said:

@mk111 said:

She was never popular. Her breasts were.

But seriously, she was always overshadowed by Wonder Woman and Supergirl, and maybe Big Barda.

That's interesting. How so?

@moywar700 said:

She was most popular when she had an on-going

She was also in 2 other titles. That's a lot of exposure.

Wonder Woman is pretty much the poster female character of DC. And Power Girl, when you really think about it, was pretty much a "spin-off" character from Supergirl.

As for Big Barda, thats more arguable, but she seems to have been involved in more talked-about comics (including the infamous Barda/Superman sex tape comic).

@Press Oblivion said:

@arnoldoaad said:

The change of the costume is only superficial, if she cannot maintain popularity for just not having a boob window, then I think we can effectively say that the character was never popular to begin with.

That's an interesting statement. Power Girl had grown into a character that embodies the feminine ideal as well a hero worthy of her own title yet with a characterization that was grounded, creating a character that you wanted to hang out with.

Sure there were different depictions of her, In All Stars she was the Boss, In JSA she was the muscle, in JSA vs, Kobra she was very heavy handed almost militaristic, and in her own title she was a person balancing her profession ambitions and hero life. But suffice it to say that these aren't really the elements that kept her in the daily threads. They were healthy byproducts of her physical aesthetic. I think that a lot of people were exposed to Power Girl because of the superficial banter on the internet and word of mouth in conversations like or about the Boob window. On the off chance that someone was getting a book that featured her for a cheap thrill they discovered a character with depth and sincerity that new comers were surprised to discover.

But my point was that is not because of the boob window that she is not popular, after all her entire costume is shredded in every single issue of WF

and she still had that depth before, not like now, If you consider that the main "hook" of Pg was just her aestetic then the same applies to every single female comic character

I think that it was that superficial buzz and hype that eventually got her her own title. I remember Sara Lima once stating that she wanted to Vomit at the mere mention of Power Girl's name but in time the character became one of her most anticipated titles each month.

funny, i experience the same with some characters changed by the new 52 now

@Press Oblivion said:

@mk111 said:

She was never popular. Her breasts were.

But seriously, she was always overshadowed by Wonder Woman and Supergirl, and maybe Big Barda.

That's interesting. How so?

lol. isnt it obvious? XD

I prefer to reboot Power Girl on main earth also with a new origin and she needs to be independent of the Superman family. The earth 2 power girl can be sent back to earth 2.

Heh, you said "tittles". And yes, she has lost popularity. Everyone who used to care about her (myself included) has abandoned her to her fate, leaving her sad and alone.

@colonyofcells said:

I prefer to reboot Power Girl on main earth also with a new origin and she needs to be independent of the Superman family.

Atlantis origin then, or Clone of Supergirl with bigger boobs like in the JLU

I think thats the main problem with Powergirl, she is either all in or all out, there is no middle ground

I would like her as Karas older Sister and also cousin of superman

@xtremekidx said:

ill be honest,the "boob window" became sort of a characteristics of her and i for one enjoyed it as that(also visually)...i read once when she fun of it herself and i totally enjoyed that...all im trying to say is that it gave her an attitude that was differentiating from other female charcaters...

Yes.

@arnoldoaad said:

The change of the costume is only superficial, if she cannot maintain popularity for just not having a boob window, then I think we can effectively say that the character was never popular to begin with.

PG could do fine without the boob window if she had good writers, good artists, good costume, etc. But keep them big.

@mk111 said:

She was never popular. Her breasts were.

You can't separate a character from her breasts.

@mk111 said:

Wonder Woman is pretty much the poster female character of DC. And Power Girl, when you really think about it, was pretty much a "spin-off" character from Supergirl.

Supergirl was a spin-off from Superman but obviously you think she did well as a character in her own right.

@Joygirl said:

Heh, you said "tittles". And yes, she has lost popularity. Everyone who used to care about her (myself included) has abandoned her to her fate, leaving her sad and alone.

I care about PG but I'm not sure if the character in WF is PG. She's a fictional character - she can get better. It depends on writers and artists. Superhero comics are all about cheating fate.

I think the new uniform is a miss, but mostly it's just a lack of quality writing in the title. Which is a shame. A Powergirl/Huntress book has no excuse for being bad. It should at least be as good as Superman/Batman was.

I can't speak to whether or not Power Girl has become less popular, nor do I have any idea whether her boob window affects her popularity, but I can speak to the quality of Power Girl's current title, Worlds' Finest, which is, in a word, crap. If PG is losing popularity, it is probably because she is being written horribly.

@PowerGirlFan:

You could separate a heroine from her boobs with a super-mastectomy.

@BatWatch said:

@PowerGirlFan:

You could separate a heroine from her boobs with a super-mastectomy.

And you could super-starve Superman until he is rake thin and possibly still have a great character. That'll sell.

Boob window aside, the new 52 version is nothing like the previous version, so why would she be as popular? Plus the fact that when most people draw her now, they draw her classic costume, thus involking her previous persona. Much like Stephanie Brown, Didio knows how popular the old PG is but refuses to acknowledge it because he's an arrogant misogynist. You can put anyone in the costume and call her whatever you want, but if the characterization isn't there, it's just not her. Plus, as previously stated, World' s Finest it ain't.

Oh and more boob window.

i miss the amanda conner version of pg.

Maybe we need a Power Girl does the dc universe year long storyline.

@PowerGirlFan said:

@BatWatch said:

@PowerGirlFan:

You could separate a heroine from her boobs with a super-mastectomy.

And you could super-starve Superman until he is rake thin and possibly still have a great character. That'll sell.

I didn't say it was a good idea, but I was just pointing out you could separate them.

Also, Superman is strong. Superman is muscle. If Power Girl is boobs, that is kind of sad. @colonyofcells said:

Maybe we need a Power Girl does the dc universe year long storyline.

(facepalm)

The issue is the new Power Girl abandons all characteristics of the old PG. So yeah.

Yes I believe she has

Yes.

DC tweaked Power Girl when they didn't need to. She was more popular than she'd ever been.

before n52 Power Girl was enjoying some unreasonable popularity levels. after n52 /crickets.

They need to change her costume back to something closer to her Amanda Conner standard. Get her hooked up with Atlee and living in NYC fighting crime and trying to run her company and life. PG works better when she is light and comical and not fighting the large scale threats that the Supes do.If I wanted to read about a flying brick with issues i would read about the supes.

@BatWatch said:

@PowerGirlFan said:

@BatWatch said:

@PowerGirlFan:

You could separate a heroine from her boobs with a super-mastectomy.

And you could super-starve Superman until he is rake thin and possibly still have a great character. That'll sell.

I didn't say it was a good idea, but I was just pointing out you could separate them.

Also, Superman is strong. Superman is muscle. If Power Girl is boobs, that is kind of sad.

A thin Kryptonian is still super-strong, e.g. Supergirl. My point being: Some things are just for visual effect.

@mk111: haha Barda never overshadowed anyone.

I think at a point Powergirl was the 2nd most popular female hero behind Wonder Woman.

Yeah her sex appeal made her popular but character development made her a fan favorite.

DC dropped the ball with her in the new 52..the same way they did with all of the JSA heros that

were introduced in the begining of the new 52

Somewhat but then DC changed her from a poke fun at myself character to this more modern female PG we have in worlds finest.

@herrweis said:

@mk111: haha Barda never overshadowed anyone.

That's what I was driving at.

@PowerGirlFan said:

@BatWatch said:

@PowerGirlFan said:

@BatWatch said:

@PowerGirlFan:

You could separate a heroine from her boobs with a super-mastectomy.

And you could super-starve Superman until he is rake thin and possibly still have a great character. That'll sell.

I didn't say it was a good idea, but I was just pointing out you could separate them.

Also, Superman is strong. Superman is muscle. If Power Girl is boobs, that is kind of sad.

A thin Kryptonian is still super-strong, e.g. Supergirl. My point being: Some things are just for visual effect.

Fair enough.

PG was voted sexiest woman in comics.

@The_Tree said:

@chalkshark said:

Absolutely, but then, the majority of DC's characters have. The essence of the character has been lost, replaced with the hollow bare bones of her previous continuity. She's still related to Superman, but it's a Superman we have no connection to, who dies in the very issue he's introduced. She's still friends with the Huntress, but that relationship was largely unknown to the modern fan base, as that particular Huntress hadn't been seen in 25 years. The Justice Society of America, the team which defined her, no longer exists. All of her relationships with the super hero community are gone. No aspect of her previous continuity is relevant any longer. So, we're left with a character who made her non-costumed debut in the Mr. Terrific series, as the title character's sex buddy. Since virtually no one was reading Mr. Terrific, a title which, by all accounts was just terrible, her debut goes, largely, unnoticed. The character generated some buzz when the World's Finest title was announced, but that was fueled by a desire to see the fan favorite Power Girl make her debut in the "new" 52. That didn't happen, as that Power Girl didn't actually come back. Instead DC offered up a Power Girl who carried the trappings of the original in her make-up, but none of the heart. Each subsequent appearance merely serves as a reminder to the fan base that this character isn't Power Girl, and thus there's no support for her.

Very well said. Not to mention that Worlds' Finest is mediocre at best.

You both said what I felt.

@sethysquare said:

@chalkshark said:

@The_Tree: I actually had high hopes for the series as I tend to like the work produced by Levitz, Perez and Maguire, but apparently all three men are just phoning this series in. There's no sense of enthusiasm, from the creators, for the series, which is translating into lackluster interest from the fan base. That and the series is so isolated from the greater DC Universe, as most "new" 52 titles are, that it's hard to imagine anything happening in the series really mattering. What makes a shared universe attractive is the overlap of events in other titles. I think DC underestimated how interested the fan base would be with the world building of their "new" universe.

Its largely due to poor writing from Levitz. Hopefully that'll change soon.

Hopefully. I'm a bit surprised by how long he lasted on the book considering how the current DC management likes to change the creative teams often.

@Press Oblivion:

Pretty much. I'd gotten used to her costume in the same way you'd get used to seeing girls at the gym wearing shorts and sports bras. It's no longer a matter of being "sexy", that's just how it is.

Also, nobody like this new Kara (can't really call her Power Girl) for several reasons.

1) No connections to anything. To the point that there was literally zero reason to bring her in.

2) Whereas Power Girl was a very strong female character along the lines of Wonder Woman, this one covers up more, but makes up for it by acting like a total slut. Not cool.

3) She's virtually unrecognizeable. And I'm not against a costume change, but this new one is just wholly bland and generic, does nothing to stand out. It makes her look like a D-lister, which I guess, she since new52.

Since this version is failing, dc can always send the earth 2 version back to earth 2, and dc can go back to the drawing board and redo the origin of a main earth Power Girl and Helena Bertinelli. Dc already has supergirl and could have a superwoman in the future, so better for Power Girl to have a non kryptonian origin.

I never considered her anything more than a Fanservice character.

@herokiller12344: f you she was an accedent that no one expected to become popular if you grow there boobs so no she isn't fanservice she an accedent

I think the problem is the characterization, and the slow pace of the stories. Almost everyone who's read her Supergirl appearances calls them vastly superior to her depiction in Worlds' Finest. And her first appearance in Suicide Squad, (I'm obviously talking in this post about the DCnU), recalls her similar appearances prior to the reboot.

So Worlds' Finest is part of the problem. But I'm not so sure it's Levitz. After all, he was one of the main guys who helped solidify PG's character back in the All-Star Comics day. He's a guy who's produced recognized classics. And now, long after the start of this thread, we can look back and see that editorial meddling in this title, as well as others, was extreme. Extreme enough to drive both Perez and Maguire away. So perhaps Levitz isn't acting with anything near the freedom we all assume. He is after all under the direction of editorial, the same as most of the others. I think another problem is that she's only in the one title on a monthly basis, while she's always before been a team character, whether or not she had a solo title. And she's not integrated into the wider DCnU. Some of that will change with the four issue crossover with Superman/Batman, but still, she needs to be in one of the Justice Leagues, preferably the main one.

Which I never heard mentioned in these forums until now. We have threads on popularity, hair color, boob size, muscle size, strength and power comparisons and casting for non-existent movies to pass the time between appearances while actual news of character appearances goes un-posted. Same with her appearance in Supergirl, even though she got her original costume back in that series. Any other appearances I missed which I should know about?

Well, as far as I know, she's appeared in Worlds' Finest obviously, a couple of issues of Earth 2, two issues of Supergirl, and one issue of Suicide Squad, with another upcoming next month. This in addition to the issues of Superman/Batman upcoming that cross over with Worlds' Finest. This is a two month crossover, but they haven't mentioned how many issues in total there are, in other words it isn't clear to me yet if it's two issues each.

That's about it AFAIK.

@achilles100: Thanks. I have all those except the upcoming. You left out Mr Terrific and Ame Comi.

@powergirlfan: I doubt anyone wants to remember her in Mr Terrific. Wasn't the best showing for the character...

It was the biggest her boobs got in the DCnU. I haven't noticed anything else interesting about her since then.

Like I said, it's sad when the best appearances of the character so far have been in titles that aren't hers, SQ and SG.