The idea of Amanda Conner drawing an ongoing "Power Girl" series just feels so right -- so it's all the more frustrating that I already feel like this title is starting to flag. On the surface, all the elements seem about right: gigantic spacecraft dragging a city off into the sky, fights with a massive gorilla with a human brain, and even the secret origin of the villain. But why, then, is this already getting a little stale?
On the bright side, Conner's art is still top-notch. As long as she's still on "Power Girl" I'll certainly be taking a look, because I just love the way she draws people. Her art has a graceful, perfectly curved line that draws the reader in to every page. There's a strength behind it too, though; curves can still pack a punch (both literally and figuratively) and that's what we get here. Looking at Power Girl in this comic, she really does come across as a strong, larger-than-life powerhouse that is a real force to be reckoned with. There aren't many artists who seem to really understand how to make someone both tough hand feminine, but Conner has it down to an art.
The other characters are equally well-drawn here, for that matter. When Satanna crouches down in front of the dying Ultra-Humanite and says, "The first thing I'll do is make good on your promise to Mr. Carlson," there's a great mixture of compassion and cruelty on her face that it just reminds me once again how good Conner is as an artist. Even the cameo of Power Girl's fellow members of the Justice Society are drawn wonderfully; I couldn't stop giggling at the look of determination on Liberty Belle's face, and I don't think I could ever get tired of watching Wildcat beat up old-school robots.
On the other hand, Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray's script feels like it's running out of gas. This issue is a massive fight scene with a small divergence into the Ultra-Humanite's origin. The problem is, that fight scene doesn't really place the characters in a much-different spot than when the issue begins. It feels almost like the writers are stalling here, and that's never a good sign when your book is only on its second issue. Only the two pages with the new supporting cast show anything out of the ordinary, but with them being so brand-new it's hard to really care about them at this stage of the game.
"Power Girl" #2 is one beautiful book, but other than that, I'm a little worried. Good art can certainly boost the overall feel of the book, but the story here seems almost like an afterthought. Hopefully next month will get the title rolling again. This is a book I want to see succeed, but something needs to happen soon in order for that to take place.