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Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?


Hawksmoor

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I just finished reading another of the whoppum good JSA trade books and I must say I am impressed.

 

Reading one comic I have to ask are Power Girl's superpowers confidence based? She took a drastic powerdown after the Teasdale event, where in she nearly died. But now we have her back, bigger and stronger than ever.

 

Which leads me to think that just perhaps Power Girl is a tough as she thinks she is able to be. Dr. Midnight's evaluation of her powers was one of the greatest pieces of continuity wrangling I have ever read. Powergirl spills what twists her backstory has undergone and he quietly debunks them saying that her powers are human and biologically based. Nice work on that!

 

Hawksmoor

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

I just finished reading another of the whoppum good JSA trade books and I must say I am impressed.

 

Reading one comic I have to ask are Power Girl's superpowers confidence based? She took a drastic powerdown after the Teasdale event, where in she nearly died. But now we have her back, bigger and stronger than ever.

 

Which leads me to think that just perhaps Power Girl is a tough as she thinks she is able to be. Dr. Midnight's evaluation of her powers was one of the greatest pieces of continuity wrangling I have ever read. Powergirl spills what twists her backstory has undergone and he quietly debunks them saying that her powers are human and biologically based. Nice work on that!

 

Hawksmoor

 

Pickup the forthcoming JSA Classified whereing Geoff Johns will be shedding light on the origin of the mysterious Power Girl! (Apparently it has something to do with the Legion of Superheroes).

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

So it isn't out yet?

 

Hmmm....LOSH tie in? How does that get less confusing? Oh I get it! Powergirl is supposed to be the Heroine whose true superpower is telling you her origin and making yo u think *you* need therapy. :D

 

Hawksmoor

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

They are about to do Power Girl's "definitive" origin in JSA Classified. Should spill the beans on her powers also. Geoff Johns, the writer, really needs to get his ego back in the box though. He completely invalidated the origin that her creator Paul Kupperberg gave her. Paul was the one that first introduced her as Earth 2's Supergirl and he did her post-Crisis, Arion's my grandpa revamp in Secret Origins. I have some hatred also for Gerard Jones, who surgically depowered PG in JLEurope, and Bart Sears, who drew her as a Penthouse Comics sight gag.

 

It would be amusing if she was DC's Gladiator. John Byrne made Gladiator's powers will based, carried the concept over to DC with The Man of Steel and it was jettisoned when they ramped Supes back up to pre-Crisis power levels. Perfectly good power justification just lying around DC's offices.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

So it isn't out yet?

 

Hmmm....LOSH tie in? How does that get less confusing? Oh I get it! Powergirl is supposed to be the Heroine whose true superpower is telling you her origin and making yo u think *you* need therapy. :D

 

Hawksmoor

 

 

I never promised it would be less confusing, just more illuminated.

 

First orgin. Cousin of the Earth-2 Superman (basically, Supergirl). Then came Crisis.

 

Second Orgin. Granddaughter of Arion (of Atlantis) shunted 45000 years forward in time and magically given power. Poo-pooed by Doctor Mid-Nite in recent JSA story.

 

Next: I'm thinking time displaced Daxamite.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Power Girl's power-level(s) never seemed to fluctuate that much in my opinion (her actual powers did though).

 

PG is unusual in that she is both a fan and creator favorite, so she winds up guest-starring or becoming a part of the cast of a lot of DCU titles.

 

Lessee: JLI, JLE, Sovereign Seven (brought in last minute to save the book), Birds Of Prey, JSA, Supergirl and I think she's been brought into a lot of the Superman titles too.

 

Like Batman and a few others, Power Girl is sort of a bridge character that appeals to silver-age fans as well as "bad girl"/Michael Turner fans.

 

She wouldn't be a bad candidate for having her own title though.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Geoff Johns' date=' the writer, really needs to get his ego back in the box though. He completely invalidated the origin that her creator Paul Kupperberg gave her. Paul was the one that first introduced her as Earth 2's Supergirl and he did her post-Crisis, Arion's my grandpa revamp in Secret Origins. [/quote']

 

With all respect to Paul Kupperberg, that really was a crap idea. The tone of Arion and Power Girl are completely different and not really compatible.

 

I'm all for Geoff Johns waving his magic continuity wand and fixing this.

 

Weren't PG and Arion also tied into the New Gods and Warlord storylines ? I know a lot of fans and Mike Grell weren't happy with that either.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

With all respect to Paul Kupperberg, that really was a crap idea. The tone of Arion and Power Girl are completely different and not really compatible.

 

I'm all for Geoff Johns waving his magic continuity wand and fixing this.

 

Weren't PG and Arion also tied into the New Gods and Warlord storylines ? I know a lot of fans and Mike Grell weren't happy with that either.

 

Heh, and Aquaman too. It's the Atlantis thing. Apparently they are all the same Atlantis. I've always wondered what the heck happened to them in LoSH times.

 

The Arion patch was weak, but he was Kupperberg's baby also and "wouldn't it be cool if they were related?" No, not really, but I was just glad to see PG survive the Crisis. Now if someone would just stitch up that rip in her tunic before she flops out in combat.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Except the Lead thing, unless she is Andromeda/Laurel Gand. Wait a sec! Before Zero Hour didn't Rond Vidar and Laurel have a blond baby girl in the Giffen era?

 

hmmmmm....

 

Hawksmoor

That's what I'm thinking: Karen is actually Lauren Gand, sent to the past by one of the TMK LSH in a desperate attempt to save her from the ravages of Zero Hour.

 

Since Rond Vidar (Lauren's father) required a Green Lantern Ring to impregnate her, Lauren has a little of the 'Green Beam' wihin her; enough to alter her susceptibility from Lead to Green K to 'unprocessed natural material' to... what's her current weakness nowadays, anyway?

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Except the Lead thing, unless she is Andromeda/Laurel Gand. Wait a sec! Before Zero Hour didn't Rond Vidar and Laurel have a blond baby girl in the Giffen era?

 

hmmmmm....

Ooooh! That would be nice.

 

I suspect, though, that any LSH connection will tie-in with the current continuity Legion of Super-Heroes, so as to cross-promote. And we don't really know anything about Daxam in the current series.

 

But Johns was involved in the current reboot, inasmuch as it was a Teen Titans crossover that kicked things off. He sounded like a fan of the new reimaging.

 

And, veering wildly off-topic, should Shikari from the last reboot LSH still be around somewhere?

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Ooooh! That would be nice.

 

I suspect, though, that any LSH connection will tie-in with the current continuity Legion of Super-Heroes, so as to cross-promote. And we don't really know anything about Daxam in the current series.

 

But Johns was involved in the current reboot, inasmuch as it was a Teen Titans crossover that kicked things off. He sounded like a fan of the new reimaging.

 

And, veering wildly off-topic, should Shikari from the last reboot LSH still be around somewhere?

 

This newest incarnation of the Legion has no shelf life and won't long outlast the departure of Mark Waid, when he gets bored. Paranoid, militant, antisocial teenagers. With superpowers. What a great book. :nonp:

 

I have mixed feelings about Shikari. I love Dawnstar, so giving her "slot" to someone else horks me off. I have always wanted more non-humans in the Legion, so I was glad to see her there. I didn't follow Shikari's era of participating in the Legion so I am not familiar with her character, and honestly didn't know she was a Dawnstar riff til I read it in Chaim's Legion Helpfile. I honestly doubt that she's Waid's cup of tea, but who knows with that guy?

 

I didn't know that Power Girl's upcoming origin was going to involve the Legion. I have a sense of dread coming over me.

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In sovereign 7 didn't they say that the "De Powered" PG was a fake?

AFAIK, pretty much the entire Sovereign Seven thing was booted from continuity -- including that "injured by natural materials" stuff.

 

Arion apparently knew PG's mother. PG apparently just got some form of heat vision (flash vision?) back. And PG had some reaction when the JSA was time-traveling through the year of the Crisis.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

AFAIK, pretty much the entire Sovereign Seven thing was booted from continuity -- including that "injured by natural materials" stuff.

 

Arion apparently knew PG's mother. PG apparently just got some form of heat vision (flash vision?) back. And PG had some reaction when the JSA was time-traveling through the year of the Crisis.

An allergic reaction? :D

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Next month, Supergirl debutes in her own title (Yes, Supergirl as in THE Kara Zor-El). The first arc will have her facing off with and I assume allying with PowerGirl. Should shed some serious DC Continuity on both of them.

 

Kimmie, hoping DC won't fuck up both Karas in yet another short sighted clueless frenzy. I am Kara Zor-El's biggest fan!

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Next month, Supergirl debutes in her own title (Yes, Supergirl as in THE Kara Zor-El). The first arc will have her facing off with and I assume allying with PowerGirl. Should shed some serious DC Continuity on both of them.

 

Kimmie, hoping DC won't fuck up both Karas in yet another short sighted clueless frenzy. I am Kara Zor-El's biggest fan!

Let's just sum up my cynisism in the following: I pray for both of their souls.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Lets review what I remember about Power girl and look at the theories.

 

1. Powergirl is not vulnerable to kryptonite, at first she thought that she was annother kryptonian until someone unleased some kyrptonite on her and she realized nothing happened to her.

(from this we can rationonilze that her powers are at least not wholely will based otherwise she would have lost her powers because at that time she believed she was kryptonian)

 

2. Before Crisis she was roughly on par with Superman in terms of powers and power levels. After which she lost a significant ammount of power in compairison to Superman.

 

3. Information came out saying she was granted powers by old Atlantean sorcery which also made er vulnerable to magic. I have not seen the issues where this is debunked but I have been on limited purchasing of my comics so I could have easily missed this.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

1. Powergirl is not vulnerable to kryptonite, at first she thought that she was annother kryptonian until someone unleased some kyrptonite on her and she realized nothing happened to her.

 

This is, of course, a retcon, as is all of this stuff.

 

2. Before Crisis she was roughly on par with Superman in terms of powers and power levels. After which she lost a significant ammount of power in compairison to Superman.

 

She really only lost power compared to Superman when she was injured during the JLE period. She might have been talked down a bit before then, but it wasn't really obvious.

 

Before Crisis was when she was a Kryptonian, of course.

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3. Information came out saying she was granted powers by old Atlantean sorcery which also made her vulnerable to magic. I have not seen the issues where this is debunked but I have been on limited purchasing of my comics so I could have easily missed this.

It was "debunked" (retconned, whatever) in JSA, on several occasions. Dr. Midnight examined her twice (once upon rejoining the JSA, once after she was shot by the Crimson Avenger), and basically told her that her powers weren't magic-based. Also, Arion himself (her purported grandfather) told her the entire story had been a lie he'd used for his own purposes, and told PG to say hello to her mother for him when she saw her again.

 

Also:

 

4. PG has just (re)gained some kind of heat vision (or "flash vision") in the most recent JSA issues.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

2. Before Crisis she was roughly on par with Superman in terms of powers and power levels. After which she lost a significant ammount of power in compairison to Superman.

 

Minor quibble. Prior to Crisis, she was roughly on par with the Earth-2 Superman - who was noticably less "super" than his earth-2 counterpart.

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Re: Is Power Girl/Kara Starr the DCUs Gladiator?

 

Minor quibble. Prior to Crisis' date=' she was roughly on par with the Earth-2 Superman - who was noticably less "super" than his earth-2 counterpart.[/quote']

 

Except for when they actually met and fought.

 

As always, this stuff is highly variable.

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