Symbol Pending - A Power Girl Blog

What Private Griefs... Cover Date:  September 1986 Released:  19th June 1986 When I was talking about Aftershock, issue #11 of Crisis I mentioned how I thought there should be an issue(s) about people coming to terms with what had happened to them and all they lost. This issue here is exactly what I was talking about, a breather issue dealing with the "death" of the JSA. Not much happens in the issue, the various members of Infinity Inc tell the friends and family of the JSA about what happened to them. Everyone has different, and suitable, reactions to the news. Though being a superhero universe no one reacts to them being somewhere else. Though in places it can get a little complex as we've skipped a good year's worth of subplots between here and issue twelve. Rather than sum up the comics, which really is X gets told about Y and has a reaction to the new, for once I'm going to focus on the two pages dealing with Power Girl processing what happened to her recent...

  Last Days of the Justice Society Cover Date:  July 1986 Released:  24th April 1985 In my copy of Crisis on Infinite Earths Marv Wolfman declare that he didn't kill off the JSA in the Crisis, and he's right this is the book that killed the team and boy what a crazy ride it is! But as I'm apparently still not done with getting irked at Crisis fallout we get one doozy of a retcon. For we start with the JSA gathered at the graveside of both Helena and Dick Grayson. But I hear you say, metaphorical reader, Robin survived that disaster, didn't he? Well according to this no! Even worse we don't find out how he died during the crisis, just that between the last scene we saw him in and this funeral he somehow died. Also, the funeral mentions all the other JSAers that have been lost between their start and (then) current day. We also get the obligatory info dump about Infinity Inc and the sudden influx of new members. The plot starts off simple enough, Hitler has the Spear ...

Crisis on Infinite Earths #7-12 Cover Date:  October 1985 to March 1986 Release Date:  4th July to 19th December 1985 Infinity Inc #24-25, 27 Cover Date:  March 1986 to June 1986 Release Date:  19th December 1985 to 20th March 1986 A quick apology here but this one get's a little long, and a little ranty, with issue #7 being so important it didn't seem fair to tack it onto the end of the last blog. And being the end obviously the more important stuff comes towards the end. And for the first time, of many, here I do really like this series. It's obviously flawed, and I will mention a few of the here, but overall it tells the tale it was tasked with doing competently. Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 - "Beyond the Silent Night" ( October 1985) Have you ever watched a show and suddenly an underused character gets all the action and the best lines, before being killed off? This is what happens with Supergirl here, no use burying the lead here it's probably the second...

Crisis on Infinite Earths is frustrating to talk about. Not because it’s bad, it’s a classic for a reason. Firstly it’s what I’d call a funfair comic, trying to include (and mostly succeeding) every aspect of the soon to be gone DC Universe. Also as one of the first event comics, along with Secret Wars, it ushered in a style of comics that you can say is perhaps now overused. With this rebooting the universe many better authors than me have spilled many words about the impact of Crisis on both the real and fictional universe. Finally, this Crisis doesn’t do Power Girl a service, she cameos in about half of the story but only really plays a part in the last few issues, still let’s look at the entire thing as a whole including her fleeting appearances in Infinity Inc. Crisis on Infinite Earths #1-6 Cover Date: May 1985 to September1985 Release Date: 3rd January to 6th June 1985 Infinity Inc #21-22 Cover Date: December1985 to January 1986 Release Date: 19th September 1985 to 17th October...

Aftermath -- and Prologue Infinity Inc #11 Cover Date: February 1985 Released: 15th November 1984 So you've spent almost a year setting up your team, all the new backstories and the building threat of the one big bad. Now he's defeated what do you add now? More backstory! Yes, this issue tells the tale of how the Star-spangled Kid has reconnected with his partner Stipesy, just a few weeks ago, to help defeat a plot of some gangsters. It involves armoured automobiles and seems pretty solid, but it's totally out of the blue and brings all the momentum of the tales to a screeching halt. It's a shame as the issue has start's really good, and with a Power Girl moment to boot, with the now recovered Superman wondering if the Metropolis could ever forgive him for what he's just done. He even claims that it means that he's never really been at home on Earth, which works better for the juggle planet Supes compared to the more "down to Earth" modern Supes w...

A Dark and Deadly Place Infinity Inc #10 Cover Date:  January 1985 Released:  18 th October1984 We start with a glorious splash page with a fourth world break, with Ultra-Humanite apparently addressing the reader. Instead, he's addressing our water affected JSAers and offers them more of the water so that the effects won't wear off again (maybe permanently, though it's not made clear). And whilst they consider whether to fight him of not the Infinity Inc began to gather around the mountain in ones and two's. As they do they share information to get all of them, and the reader, up to speed on what has happened over the last few issues. And all together and up to speed, they decide to just crash into the place to finally, finally, face the Ultra-Humanite. This genius of a plan is obviously come to by our one and only Power Girl, who's never been one to give up on a frontal assault! She does however get take out straight away by Superman melting her lead scroll tube, m...

How Green Was My Victory Infinity Inc #9 Cover Date:  December 1984 Released: 20 th September 1984 We open by finding out what happened to the Star-Spangled Kid and Brainwave, Jr, no they weren't crushed by the avalanched caused in #7 but were instead transported to Limbo where they meet the original Brainwave. Old Brainwave is in his Golden Age Doctor Sivana look, which avoids confusion as he's also taken on exactly the look Junior is wearing here. After a quick round of explaining how he was a bad dad, and that Junior's mom is Merry and the sister of Star-Spangled Kid, Senior explains whilst he could transport them to Limbo none of them can leave. Obsidian and Jade are watched leaving the JSA headquarters by Harlequin, an old foe of the Alan Scott Green Lantern. But enough continuity references for this issue it's time for the main point of the story fighting Green Lantern in spaaaccceee..... First Starman has a go at defeating the Lantern but is caught by an illusion...

Atomic Dreams - - Nuclear Nightmares! Infinity Inc #8 Cover Date:  November 1984 Released: 16th August 1984 We start with a bit of a double-dip as we get a (nice) full-page splash of the group of the heroes over the, apparently, unconscious form of Steve Trevor. We then go through how Diana wanted to gift him with immortality as she was watching him get older whilst she aged much, much slower. They then have a spat about whether to take him to a nearby hospital or to Paradise Island, Wonder Woman still being under the influence and all. After a quick scuffle, she flees in her invisible jet with Steve to get him looked after. Then talking of hospitals we visit Jay Garrick (Flash) recovering in hospital and talking with the Mayor from earlier in the story. Dr Mid-nite and Shiera rock up to find out what's happening, which helpfully means we can get an update in the story so far and Infinity Inc's involvement in the whole thing. The Alan Scott (Green Lantern) hijacks the signal, ...

Past Glories -- Future Tears Infinity Inc #7 Cover Date:  October 1984 Released: 19st July 1984 I don't normally comment on covers, even if they're very pretty I'm more bothered by the story inside, but I've really got to mention this issue's cover and not for the best of reasons. Maybe it's my 21st-century brain but the signs of violence, and Power Girl's position, are too accurate for a comic that includes a talking ape. It's also hard not to assume things being that only Power Girl, and Huntress last issue, have been shown taking such a visceral beating. To be honest, I think it's just an artefact of Bronze Age ideas about accuracy, but it's not something I'm comfortable not mentioning. We open with a rather smug Ultra-Humanite giving us a couple page roundup of the plot so far before we get to the story proper. And boy what a first half of an issue as Power Girl and magic water influenced Superman battle it out. Fight scenes are difficult...

Day's of future what? Divide -- and Be Conquered Infinity Inc #6 Cover Date:  September 1984 Released:  21st June 1984 As if my month-long break from the future year of 2022 has somehow settled down a comic from... oh so long ago, Infinity Inc settles down in the style of storytelling I've grown so used to from the All-Star's Comic days. As I pointed out before it's actually not that much different from the Teen Titan stuff I've been covering through February, from the... wow that long ago now! Though the Teen Titans is more in the subplot bubbling under mode rather than the split the team we've gotten here. And to be fair the last few issues have also been doing this, though I sort of missed it due to being swamped with multiple backstories! We open with Nuklon being in danger from a Green Lantern constructed vice squashing him down and threatening to impale him on its very green spikes. The teamwork together and between Obsidian and Jade's lantern inherite...

  Dead Men's Bluff! Infinity Inc #5 Cover Date:  August  1984 Released:  24 th May 1984 First let me be clear I really like this comic, it's really well told and pretty to look at! That and it probably has some of the strongest Helena panels we've had in a long time. I've never seen the deal with deconstructed comics before, but this patience trying. But hey we get Ultra-Humanite at the end, you know the whole reason this comic started in the first place! We start with a little play fighting as Lyta takes out her frustration with her mothers (Wonder Woman) apparent death with Silver Scarab. This end with a little playful flirting after Lyta thinks she's knocked him out with a massive rock. I know where this goes, though I didn't pick up on the name at the time, as I've mentioned elsewhere I'm a Vertigo kid so it's a neat link but I won't spoil the surprise until the time comes. The main body is in various offices dealing with various men, men bei...

Origins and Outcasts Infinity Inc #4 Cover Date:  July  1984 Released:   19th April 1984 This is still set up, this time Jade, Obsidian and Northwind, so apart from the cover Kara only get's one panel near the end. Oh, and out of interest I checked and Generations basically lasts a full year (12 issues) so I'll stop babbling on about how everything is just set up. That's 1/4 of the run of the comic, which is an impressive show of confidence from Roy. It's also most of the appearances Kara, so we're be leaving the book more or less when Kara does. The others are around Crisis which is a different kettle of fish that we'll get to when we get to it! So enough stalling onto the story! We start with Jade, Obsidian and Northwind taking Solomon Grundy somewhere in the protective bubble Jade formed the last issue. To pass the time they basically start to tell each other their backstories. Jade start off with her being a regular kid growing up in suburbia, apart from the...

Solomon Grundy Goes Hollywood Infinity Inc #3 Cover Date:  June  1984 Released: 22nd March 1984 We start we the Power Girl waking up, and for the first few pages, she really takes the lead waking up the other two (Huntress and Star-Spangled Kid), though waking them up by flying in the fresh air is a little dubious at best. As the three recover from the last issues mind whammy we get a quick summary of what happened previously. They then tell us about all the adventures in 1942, in a couple of pages, fighting the wonderfully named Lady Ultra-Humanite.   As a quick aside I find it fascinating that the original Ultra-Humanite brain transplant was into Dolores, I know it's a pulp thing but from my (limited) reading it's never made a big deal that he choose a female host. Of cause being comics no big deal is made about him choosing an ape next, but I can't help reading it with my progressive 21st-century brain. With a quick Central Park aside to show, pretty subtly for comics...