Power Girl - Physical Appearance and Costumes

Physical Appearance and Costumes

Power Girl's original Wally Wood artwork (1976) showed her as relatively busty but otherwise her figure and build conformed in appearance to other contemporary comic book women. However, in Wonder Woman # 34 (2009), written by Gail Simone, Dinah Lance, the Black Canary, mentions Power Girl as having the top bosom of DCU, comparing her assets with a "national treasure". Her classic suit is one of a skin tight spandex white leotard with very high cut leg holes and an opening in the chest.

Power Girl was at one time portrayed as having a highly athletic but slender physique. Artists Bart Sears (in the Justice League Europe series), and later Alex Ross (in the limited series Kingdom Come) restored Power Girl's well-endowed shape. Ross rendered her as a heavily muscled Power Woman (as if an ardent bodybuilder).

The character is consistently depicted as a large breasted young woman, and her physique is one of her most recognizable attributes—-to the extent that various writers have acknowledged it in both serious and humorous ways.

For example, Justice League Europe #37 (1992) attempts to explain Power Girl's revealing costume by having Crimson Fox question her about it; she receives the reply that the costume "shows what I am: female, healthy. If men want to degrade themselves by staring, that's their problem, I'm not going to apologize for it."

Conversely, in JSA: Classified #2 (2005), writer Geoff Johns has Power Girl explain her cleavage-window to Superman, revealing that "the first time I made this costume, I wanted to have a symbol, like you. I just…I couldn’t think of anything. I thought eventually, I’d figure it out. And close the hole. But I haven’t." A similar treatment of the character can be seen in Superman/Batman #4 (written by Jeph Loeb), in which the heroes need to distract the Toyman while Batman and Superman battle Captain Marvel and Hawkman. Batman suggests that Power Girl's endowments would be likely to distract Toyman, a thirteen year old boy. Toyman later attempts to make a reference to the size of her chest before being cut off by Batman. A variant of this joke is included in the Superman/Batman: Public Enemies movie.

Power Girl's costume design has varied greatly over the years. Her classic costume design from All-Star Comics #58 is that which is in use today: a red cape and belt, blue gloves and boots, and a white bodysuit sporting a cleavage-exposing window on her chest (its variable size and shape determined by the artist depicting her). This cleavage window was closed for the first time in All-Star Comics #64, pencilled by Wood. According to Gerry Conway it was dictated by publisher Jenette Kahn, because "she felt it was sexist". During her time with Justice League Europe/America, she wears a capeless yellow and white spandex unitard, and later a blue and white spandex unitard with a short mini-cape, headband, and a diamond shaped opening on her chest, once again exposing her cleavage. She has also worn a headband, as had Supergirl prior to her death in Crisis on Infinite Earths. In a guest appearance in Green Lantern, Kara is seen in her large wardrobe closet with every costume design she has ever worn in DC continuity, deciding which costume to wear for that mission. Her original costume returned when Geoff Johns and David Goyer had her rejoin the JSA.

In Justice League: Generation Lost #16, she sports a variation of her traditional costume, that includes pants.

As part of the New 52, Power Girl was reintroduced into the DC Universe as first being the Earth-2 Supergirl, where she wears a variation of the traditional Supergirl costume designed by Kevin Maguire that features a new S-shield, which is the same as the new Earth 2 Superman's, and has a cape that attaches directly to the shield. She also has red gloves and a red belt. However, some aspects of her continuity have been retained- she was still adopted by Clark Kent and Lois Lane, married on Earth 2 before their deaths and still uses "Karen Starr" as her secret identity, as well as still being a software entrepreneur After some time passes, she decides to take on a new identity as she is now trapped on the mainline DC alternate Earth. Here she adopts the identity Power Girl, where she wears a white one piece body suit that covers her legs, with blue stripes along her sides. She also has a red cape that attach to a new P-shield symbol over her left breast.