Power Girl #17

Power Girl.  I love her.  You should too.  That's really all I need to put for an intro, but I guess I should reiterate that not only does PG continue to be one of the funner and more unique characters in comics today, but that the creative team driving her current series is excellent.  I've said it before, and I'll probably have to say it again.  Now, to the review.
 

Here's that recap you (hadn't) asked for...

Power Girl is in a bind.  Her company's hemorrhaging money due to a mysterious embezzler, her old friend/foe Maxwell Lord has resurrected and made it so nobody remembers who he is, and it appears he has friends in the lowest of high places.  Luckily for Karen she has a new tech geek side-kick in the form of her former employee, Nicco Cho, and (for this issue anyway) Batman helping her track down who stole her company's money and what sinister means they intend to use it for.  There are twists and turns abound, but more importantly, there's Power Girl.  That's a very very good thing. 
 

"I'm just sassy..."

What makes Power Girl so fun is the way Judd Winick has written her since he's taken over the series.  He walks the line between making her a fun and spunky girl-next-door type, and being a tough and powerful "take no guff from anyone" super-heroine (she is the CEO of her own company, after all).  You know how she's going to react to something when it happens, but it's the moments where she says or does something completely out of left field that make this a fun read.  Her supporting cast is also great, with Nicco maintaining enough wit to keep up with Kara, while contrasting her more "get to the point" nature with his long-winded geekiness.  It was also a treat to see Karen working alongside Dick Grayson, and the chemistry Winick writes them with here makes me think that the Superman/Batman series should shift to a Batman/Powergirl book featuring Karen and Dick.
 
As for the art, I'm not sure what other work Sami Basri has done in the past, but he's quickly become one of my favorite artists.  He renders his heroes/heroines so well and the facial expressions he sticks on Karen really compliment perfectly with Winick's writing.  There's certainly been action in this series (particularly this issue), but it's the fact that Basri manages to put forward dynamic and beautiful art with talking heads and smashing heads alike that is most impressive.  Once again, Sunny Gho's colors really sell the package.
 

I think I'm in love

The only thing holding this issue back was its somewhat intermittent feel.  The action, Batman cameo, and writing helped to alleviate that, but there's no doubt that this was a bridging issue that only set-up an advancement to the story rather than bringing it about within the issue.  However, Power Girl continues to be one of my favorite series from any publisher out there right now, and with the direction this issue points the reader in, it looks like the best is yet to come.
 
Power Girl #17 gets 4.5 stars out of 5.