NYCC '08 - POWER GIRL GETS ONGOING SERIES DIDIO (with video)
Going back, even before the JSA Classified arc by Geoff Johns and Amanda Conner in which she starred, DC fans have been clamoring for Power Girl to get her own series. That clamoring has only gotten louder as the character has been featured by Johns in Justice Society of America, and will be the focus of this summer’s JSA Annual which sees Power Girl traveling to Earth-2.
Well, it’s time for the clamoring to stop. A Power Girl series is coming, written by Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti, with art by Amanda Conner. We spoke with the team about what’s to come for the Last Daughter of (Earth-2) Krypton.
Newsarama: Jimmy and Justin - first things first - how did you land the title? Was it something that you pitched to DC and had to sell them on, or was it a case where DC was looking to start the series and came knocking?
Justin Gray: Whenever Jimmy and I discussed what we’d like to work on we kept coming back to Power Girl. The problem was that she’d been solidified in JSA and some exciting plans were in place for her. During a meeting with Dan Didio we expressed an interest in writing Power Girl. Dan said he wanted a pitch, but that it would be a while before she would be available. He wasn’t kidding because that meeting took place last summer.
Jimmy Palmiotti: Having worked with Amanda Conner on the character last year, my interest has grown concerning Power Girl’s history and what was next for the character. Justin and I would often talk about “what if” scenarios if we were able to get a series going…and like Justin just said, a lot was going on with her in the DC Universe that we needed to keep track of. At the time, we were asked to develop a new book for another character that we felt was not suited for us at the time.
JG: The book in question wasn’t a good fit and we told Dan that during a meeting.
JP: That’s when we asked for a character we felt we could bring more to the table with…Power Girl.
NRAMA: Wait – so how long have you two been working on the series?
JG: We pitched Power Girl about a year ago. Since that time a lot has changed in the ever-changing DCU, so we’ve gone through several revisions and ideas leading up to the first arc.
JP: Art wise we have had to make a lot of decisions about how we saw the character being handled and had to find the right fit. She is a very expressive character and being able to just draw a sexy well built woman is good for a pin-up, but this is a multi-layered character trying to make her way in the world and we wanted the right artist to be able to express in their visuals not only the obvious, but the inner workings as well. The character demands respect.
JG: We wanted some humor but we didn’t want the book to be driven by humor.
JP: And that’s where Amanda is a fantastic fit for the character. She loves Power Girl and her facial expressions really give the reader something to relate to past the dialogue and what’s going on.
JG: Absolutely, there’s a tremendous comfort level in writing for Amanda because not only will she find a better way to visually communicate an idea or moment, but she’ll do it in a pure and brilliant way that neither of us thought of. This is definitely a case of the three of us working like a band, with each member bringing something different to the project. Once you add Paul Mounts to the mix I think people are going to be very happy with the final product.
The interview with Palmiotti and Gray continues after this short video break. We had the chance to speak with the DCU's Executive Editor Dan DiDio for his thoughts on the new Power Girl ongoing...
NRAMA: You went into it a little, but what's the attraction to Power Girl for both of you? What makes her and her world interesting enough to say yes to when the offer was on the table?
JG: One thing we missed after working on Hawkman was the opportunity to write a big, loud, superhero book that focused on a single character rather than a team like the Freedom Fighters. That said Power Girl comes with some distinct challenges. One of those challenges is the double-edged sword of her physical appearance, which is easy to interpret in a negative when it comes to attracting female readers. The other challenge is to show the clear distinction between Power Girl and the other Kryptonian titles. The philosophy behind this book is dead simple. Power Girl combines larger than life superhero adventures when she’s in costume and quiet emotional resonance when she’s Karen Starr, CEO of Starrware. Starrware also plays a major role in the series in exciting ways. More than just an outlet for her secret identity, Starrware has undergone a change of focus as a result of events in Power Girl’s life prior to the series launch.
JP: For me, starting a book from the ground up, building the world around her from practically scratch and giving Power Girl her own rogues gallery is something I live for in this business. We have a very exciting opportunity to get in there and give this character a whole world and cast of characters she hasn’t had the opportunity to have before this and with the fans blessing, continue to build on this and really make this character one of DC’s top books.
JG: But we need to say that starting from the ground up doesn’t mean we’re ignoring or re-imagining anything. What it means is we’re in a position to add new dimensions to Power Girl’s mythology. There are a number of things that haven’t been covered and PG doesn’t have a personal rogues gallery so there are some exciting opportunities to create them.
JP: It’s endless fun for us and hopefully something the audience will get totally absorbed in.
NRAMA: Power Girl's been seeing a lot of action, both story-wise and internally/psychologically lately in JSA. When does this series pick up with her, and where's her head at, so to speak?
JG: At this point we can’t answer the question directly because it would be uncool to spoil anything that hasn’t been released yet. We’re much more interested in where she’s going as a character as opposed to where she’s been. There’s a concerted effort to put her past behind her and embrace new challenges.
JP: Issue #1 will be a first issue and not a total continuation of other stories…sort of. we are concise of everything presented to the character before the release , but making a clear effort to make the book stand on its own and give the new readers a chance to get to know Kara and who she really is. That said, we are looking at this as a classic character launch that establishes more than explains.
NRAMA: Along those lines, what makes Power Girl, Power Girl? What, in your eyes, are her defining qualities?
JG: Obvious jokes aside, Power Girl is the consummate super heroine, brave, strong, fearless and compassionate.
JP: A powerhouse with a soft side and a foreigner in a familiar land.
JG: It will be great to move away from the multiverse angle and concentrate on who she is, what she wants and what she expects from herself.
NRAMA: Power Girl had her arc in JSA Classified, which went a long way in defining her, but that was part of a larger series that went on to focus on other characters. Likewise, she's a fan favorite supporting character in JSA. How do you go about working her success as a backup singer into making her a lead singer?
JG: Personally I see her as being selfless, which is why she hasn’t stepped forward as a lead singer until now. It isn’t important for her to stand out when she’s part of a team, but here in this book that’s exactly what she’ll do. People want a comfortable preconception about what they're reading and this is just that, a straight up superhero book as big and explosive as we can make it with Power Girl as the star. It's been 70 years of superhero comics and people are comfortable with the roles, even though every angle has been explored, they'll still read endless variations on superheroes and villains, right?
The idea here is the DCU, this whole Earth people have been reading about for seventy years is on constant overload. Aliens, super villains, rogue technologies, these are the things Power Girl has to deal with every day. On the flip side of that we have her alter ego, Karen Starr. Most characters in comics have ordinary lives that they escape from by putting on a costume. Power Girl uses Karen Starr as an escape from the overload of being a super heroine, which is the opposite of nearly every other superhero.
JP: All that and the fact that, like all background singers, this will be her moment to move into the spotlight and shine.
NRAMA: Obviously, and as you briefly mentioned, with Power Girl, there's the cheesecake factor that's been a part of her character since it was created. Geoff and others have taken steps to work her appearance and costume into her character, but what view of it do you two have of it?
JG: This book isn’t going to be our platform for some kind of new age feminist commentary; it is a superhero comic book, an escapist fantasy starring a buxom blonde bombshell who can kick your ass into outer space. Some people are going to find fault with it just because of the costume and the bra size of the heroine and those people can bitch about it on the Google machine if they like because this is America baby! Home of the free!
JP: I love the fact that Kara is larger than life visually and what Amanda Conner did when redesigning the costume for the JSA Classified series played on that exactly like I think it should have and I expect some more changes along the way. This is who she is, this is how she is built and God bless Gerry Conway, Ric Estrada and Wally Wood for such a cool design. Why fight the obvious? Amanda is going to do what she does best and draw the shit out of this book.
JG: Look, Power Girl is a sexy book and that’s only one component of the character. We’re not shying away from it but we’re not interested in making that the primary focus either. One of the many benefits of having Amanda with us as the artist is she’s capable of bringing a natural and reactive female perspective to the scripts. Amanda is also free and clear to add or subtract anything she wants from the story and representation of Kara as a real woman despite her anatomical advantages. Expressive emotion, layered storytelling and a sense of playful bounce are also some of the elements Amanda’s wonderful art brings to the book. She knows how to make Power Girl sexy without being gratuitous or cheesy, which makes our jobs so much easier.
NRAMA: Overall, what's the tone of series going to be? What notes are you going to be looking to hit?
JG: Action and adventure on a massive scale combined with the kind of character development and star treatment Power Girl deserves. Her power levels are on par with Superman and we need stories that reflect that without losing a sense of drama. She’s not invincible but she’s much stronger than the average villain. There needs to be that sense of danger that only Power Girl can confront. As Karen Starr the focus is on Starrlabs and the technologies, big ideas and the wacky sci-fi stuff being explored there on a human level.
JP: Entertaining and fun with a bit of humor as well. The super heroics and over the top action will be there but we plan on establishing a real life and supporting cast for Powergirl and given its her own series, we will continue to build on these relationships. We want to give the reader a complete fix.
NRAMA: Let's wrap with a tease...what gets the ball rolling at the start of the series?
JG: An old villain gets a major power boost, a new character arrives on Earth after years of traveling through space, weird sciences, nanotech tattoos, algae monsters, an alien kaleidoscopic intelligence older than recorded history, a strand of computer code capable of rewriting reality, biotech-enhanced time traveling Neanderthals who clashed with the seven angels of vengeance during the apocalypse of 1955.
JP: A new work place, a new location, a cool group of supporting characters and some new looks along the way.
JG: Oh and there’s futurism and fascism, incursions from other realities caused by the inadvertent manipulation of a lost piece of Niccolo Paganini’s sheet music written in the blood of the world’s first super villain…okay, that just might be the caffeine talking.
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2008, Newsarama.com
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