Symbol Pending - A Power Girl Blog

All-Star Super Squad All-Star Comics #58 Cover Date:  January / February 1976 Released:  9th October 1975 It's been a long three years, and quite challenging for many. In that time this blog has gone from an occasional thing to a (mostly) regular thing. I've even hit fifty views on a post, though I'm not sure why which might not seem much but is a big thing to me! More importantly, today, or the 9th of October for those in the future, is the birthday of the first appearance of Power Girl! Now, forty-six isn't much of a momentous occasion but I can't guarantee I'll make it to 2025 and her fiftieth. If I do I'm sure I'll figure something out! One thing I do like to think is that I've improved in my style and I looked back at my early attempts and wish I could have done better. So this birthday is a chance to show how I've improved, if it's popular I may look at redoing the other earlier posts. So imagine it's 1975 and you run across All-Sta

That's me in the corner... The Speaker in the Shadows Wonder Woman #274 Cover Date:  December 1980 Released:  11th September 1980 The great thing about sites like Mike's Amazing world is that you get to find little gems you would have normally missed. Sometimes they're a single panel, like Kara's next JLA appearance, occasionally they're frustratingly difficult to find, like her appearances in Warlord. And occasionally you get something like these Wonder Woman issues. Obstenviously a Helenna team-up comic, as a backup to the main Diana story, only this and one other story (along with a massive cross over with Wonder Woman) contain Kara but boy they are fun little finds. And no despite Helena being a big part of Kara's life I won't be covering the Power Girl less issues. Trust me I've got a lot of Power Girl to cover, including potentially new comics! We open as is right with Power Girl getting angry at someone, thumping the desk of Gothams District Attor

Darkseid Rising Justice League of America #185 Cover Date:  December 1980 Released:  11th September 1980 We start with both a full and two-page splash of Metron summing up the last issue, the Boom Tube apparently allowing them to see current events going on throughout Apokolips. We then get Darkseid himself shows up in the Fortress that Batman, Huntress and Mr Miracle were learning his plans. Apparently being stranded in the astral plane has hardened Darkseid to weakness in life, though not family as he locks the Injustice League in the dread Chamber 13 for harming his son Orion. Though he doesn't care enough to thaw him out, Icicle having frozen them in a giant block of ice. Firestar flame being out in the block of ice is a nice touch as well. We then get the three active heroes attacking the guards dragging the ice block away before we cut to the next scene.  We then get Dr Fate, Hal Lantern, High Father and Oberon in a brief fight with Parademons. Mostly its for High Father to t

Apokolips Now Justice League of America #184 Cover Date:  November 1980 Released:  14th August 1980 A very pop art opening splash page reminds us that we're on Apokolips where Darkseid is being raised from his trapping in the Source Wall. We then get another splash page of Darkseid before we're right into the action with Power Girl, Firestorm and Orion attacking the Injustice Society. For once the fight goes pretty well for our heroes, with most of the bad guys getting taken down pretty quickly. And for once Kara gets some great moments, including to frame of both her and Orion attacking Icicle from different angels as he says "Oh no!" at both, only for them both to go "Oh yes!". We also get a frame of her flirting? or just bantering with Firestorm that's he's being "cute". Alas, the Fiddler plays a tune and the heroes see their worst fears, which for Power Girl is being tickled by lasers of something. Meanwhile, Superman, Wonder Woman and

Where Have All the New Gods Gone? Justice League of America #183 Cover Date:  October 1980 Released:  10th July 1980 Welcome to the 80s! It's been almost a year since the last time Power Girl appeared, it won't be the longest gap between appearances (by a long shot) but it is the first break that happened. Though to be fair, both All-Star Comics and Adventure was both bi-monthly so it wasn't a constant thing month to month. Still, Kara will now have an almost constant run right the way through the eighties. After our one page summary of Earth-1 and Earth-2, we get a glorious two-page splash of the two teams arriving on what happens to be New Genesis. We then get this weird page where Supes explains to Power Girl how he feels a misfit on Earth, but here on New Genesis, he feels among equals. The bit I do get is that he stays on Earth because it's his responsibility to help protect humanity. Obviously feeling left out, Wonder Woman goes on a mini-rant about the only god s

The Defeat of the Justice Society Adventure Comics #466 Cover Dated: November / December 1979 Released: 23rd August 1979 If there's any need to how well Kara and Helena work well this is the last appearance of the JSA, apart from crossovers, they're the only members of the modern JSA to appear in this issue. Even then it's only a few pages to connect the flashback story of the 1950s JSA. The issue starts with Kara bemusing that the full team only seems to come together for funerals and Helena comments how alien Power Girl is by pointing out how the JSA is basically a found family, though obviously, the actual term wasn't in common use yet. She then challenges Kara to a race down the stair who accepts even though she expects to win with superspeed, she even runs down at half speed she's so confident. But Helena is a Wayne and hence already has a plan, jumping down the stairway and allowing gravity to speed her to victory! At the bottom of the stair, where for the tw

  I Accuse... Justice League of America #172 Cover Dated: November 1979 Released: 9th August 1979 We start with an amazing splash page that basically sums up the murder mystery aspects, someone on the JSA or JLA murdered Mister Terrific! A few pages later we get a fuller summary of the last issue, but Huntress no less, hammering home the tragedy of the whole thing. Helena is definitely showing she inherited her dad's detective chops here. Fate and the Lanterns lock the station down with magic and we're away with the mystery part of the story. Supes is obviously ahead of me as he puts Bruce and Helena on the case of working out who did the murder. And we get a real investigation here with the fact that Mr Terrific last words about someone being a traitor being fully examined, then an examination of the scene and evidence being recovered. I'm not sure you could work it all out from the clues but it's nice that they spend time going over the whole procedure of things. Hunt

The Murderer Among Us: Crisis Above Earth-One Justice League of America #171 Cover Dated: October 1979 Released: 5th July 1979   From the very splash page, we know what we're getting, a murder mystery in space! (I mean also the cover but you know what I mean). We then get to the classic one-page sum up of Earth-1 and Earth-2, with the two apparently having some kind of yearly meeting alongside saving the universe. It would explain how each other Earths knows about the other villains but they must be pretty tedious things. Luckily we miss the meeting and cut to the after-party and we have to talk about Zatana's outfit. When she joined ten issues ago in #161 she when from her classic suit to a catsuit and Dracula cape, along with her hair tied way up. It's one of those costumes that if I didn't know who it was I'd be perfectly fine, and to be honest I didn't recognize her until she was identified by Power Girl of all people. Oh, and it's not the costume of Ide

Countdown to Disaster Adventure Comics #465 Cover Dated:  September / October 1979 Released:  21st June 1979 A capsule containing a deadly poison has been stolen from Gotham Hospital, at 5pm the gas will release killing thousands if not millions. At noon the JSA begin to look for the missing capsule, this story happens in real-time... 12:00 pm Flash, Green Lantern and Hawkman search the city to no avail. 2:30pm They learn from Police Commissioner O'Hara that a ransom for three million will be paid, though they swear to continue their search for the deadly capsule. 3:00pm Green Lantern, Flash and Hawkman track down and subdue Gotham thugs looking for a clue as to the identity of the blackmailers. So far there enquiries are fruitless. 3:14pm At the hospital Huntress, with the assistance of Power Girl (yay!) search the records room for clues. Showing the skill inherited from her father, the World Greatest detective, determines a possible suspect. A cleaner from the hospital that shoul

To Everything There is a Season Adventure Comics #464 Cover Dated:  July / August 1979 Released:  12th April 1979 A quiet issue between two big stories, and very Bronze Age at that, it would be easy to bundle this with another issue. Especially as the main focus is on Wildcat and Kara only appearing in a few panels at the beginning and end. But this is it seems my only chance to talk about Charlie Bullock an African-American character that will go on to take up the mantle of Batman on Earth-2, even if he takes on the identity of Blackwing (it was apparently a 70s thing).  Kara, Helena and Dick, rocking a sweet medallion, are going out for a night on the town but Ted grant (Wildcat) refuses (politely), instead choosing to go check out the old neighbourhood where he used to hang out before joining the JSA.  Initially, he's a little despondent by how the neighbourhood has changed for the worse, wondering if he really should have closed his boxing gym he left the place to join the JSA.

The Night of the Soul Thief Adventure Comics #463 Cover Dated:  May / June 1979 Released:  8th February 1979 If there was any proof that I read week to week rather than reading ahead is that here we do get an issue that covers some of Helena dealing with her loss, though it does mostly involve punching people. We also get a return to the better team dynamics of Power Girl. Oh and the cover is a total lie nothing like that happens in the comic at all, Vaux is even a third act reveal not that he's important enough for that to be a big deal! We start with a cool group shot of the JSA running, with some major capeage before Dr Fate admits that he really doesn't know where he's going and takes off with Huntress to track down who gave Jensen his reality-warping powers. One neat little detail is that Helena and Dick are unmasked, but in costume, until the end of this issue. It's a subtle nod that this is closure for Helena Wayne rather than Huntress solving a murder. He then t

  Only Legends Live Forever, part 2 Adventure Comics #462 Cover Dated:  March / April 1979 Released:  14th December 1978 Now I'm not sure if it's obvious from the covers but someone very important dies in this issue! And apparently all the floating heads of the Earth-1 heroes, except ironically Deadman, seem really happy about this fact. And get used to Power Girl looking sad at funerals (well variations of the same one) because that's all she does in this issue with her underwater for the actual fight. Though I'll give the JSA a pass as they spend most of the issue unconscious. In case it's not obvious this is a story very much about the Waynes (actual and adopted) or at least half a story as it's obvious that the story has been cut into two to fit into the comics page count. After a splash page showing the grave of Bruce, and number two weepy Kara, we open proper with a quick summary and a neat little picture looking down at the top of one of the towers, inclu

Only Legends Live Forever Adventure Comics #461 Cover Dated:  January / February 1979 Released:  12th October 1978 Adventure is an anthology comic, but we'll skip the other stories so no talk about the Barry Allen Flash, Deadman or Earth-1 Wonder Woman stories. I'm reading from the trade anyways so even I've not had the joy of the other stories. And for the new comic we're back to the same old, same old, with Power Girl being mardy at the boy. Though to be fair it's because they're putting pressure on her to keep an energy bubble from closed in her and Alan, only for it being a test to get Green lantern to use the full extent of his powers. She storms out, with an admirably cool cutaway of the pneumatic tube to get her back to the mansion proper, pass a now recovered Wildcat who alas seems his normal self. We then get a much sweeter scene where Dick Grayson reveals that he knows that Helena is the Huntress. It even goes to the length to say that she's not th

World on the Edge of Ending All-Star Comics #74 Cover Dated:  September / October 1978 Released:  27th June 1978 More page, more action! is an ironic cover image considering this would be the last issue of the (70s) All-Star Comics. For the few that don't know the story, DC had been increasing their titles from 1977 to 1978 to try and compete with Marvel's success at the time. But a year or poor sales meant they had to suddenly cut a number of their issues, often called the Implosion as a counterpoint to the explosion that DC was flogging all the new titles at the time.  All-Stars was one of those that fell victim to the cut, though it wouldn't be the end of the team as they'd be folded into Adventure Comics for six issues. As aside from the advantage of forty-ish years it seems crazy that they were going to cancel Detective Comics and it was only saved in the eleventh hour by a merge with Batman Family. The issue starts with a splash page showing Hawkman and Dr Fate in

  Be It Ever So Deadly... All-Star Comics #73 Cover Dated:  July / August 1978 Released:  18th April 1978 We open the issue with the story that goes through the entire issue, the two Huntresses fighting each other. As is traditional the heroic Huntress starts out on the back foot, falling for some of the traps evil Huntress has laid down, but after tricking her by setting off a beartrap Helena manages to grapple her evil counterpart into submission. Only for the evil huntress to trick her and throw Helena into a glass cage. I've got to say for how silly the tiger-striped huntress costume is her fringe game is on point! Luckily for Helena Alan is signed up for Power Ring TV and decides to check up on her, right after that point and not a second before, and rushes off to help her out. Garrick and Power Girl apparently bored of waiting for Wildcat to get better rush off, somewhere, to do something that they'll figure out soon enough! We then get more setup for later with Dr Fate a

A Thorn by Any Other Name All-Star Comics #72 Cover Dated:  May/June 1978 Released:  21st February 1978 No messing around as we get right into the action as the splash page show the JSA at a murder scene filled with exposition. And whilst it might be my imagination but Power Girl seems a lot calmer than we've seen her before, just working alongside everyone peacefully like. It's a little weird as Garrick treats her with kid gloves like she still the old feistier Power Girl when he was there at the event that mellowed her out a little. Doubly weird when they take the time to cover the, obvious, fact that Huntress is now officially part of the team.  It seems that Throne is building a criminal empire in Keystone City and the JSA have been called in to bust it all up, starting with an assault on the Courthouse, a journey that lasts just long enough for us to see the new Hawkman costume before the shadow subplot rumbles along.  The fight with Thorne does not go well what with the J

 The Deadliest Game in Town All-Star Comics #71 Cover Dated:  March / April 1978 Released:  27th December 1977 This whole story involves one scene of Power Girl, in her symbiotship having another Kryptonian life in Showcase #98. If you somehow missed it you can read it here . This isn't really an issue about the JSA it's a way to introduce Helena Wayne, aka Huntress of Earth-2. It would be easy to skip this one and see how long the new Karen Star lasts, but Huntress is important to Power Girl and they become besties that lasted to the early 21st century. (Not always the other Huntress, but things will get complicated before she shows up.) So it's worth looking at this introduction, and we get some Wildcat as well so a bonus! So we get the three, oh yeah Star-Spangled Kid is here as well, trapped in a baseball stadium surrounded by the bad guy's, Strike Force. They're in a standoff when bold as you like Huntress pulls out her mini crossbow and starts fighting the vil