Makeover time! – Supergirl (2013) #19

Super Power

Supergirl (volume 6) #19
Cover Date: June 2013
Released: 17th April 2013

  • Writers: Mike Johnson
  • Pencilers: Mahmud Asrar
  • Inker: Mahmud Asrar / Marlo Alquiza
  • Colourists: Dave McCaig
  • Letterer: Rob Leigh
  • Editors: Eddie Berganza / Rickey Purdin

We start we something Supergirl does a lot, dying with what I assume is from previous issues, which it seems to have comeback to her after last issues beatdown. Though thankfully she’s not dead merely resting!

We have a cute moment with two soldier talking about how Supergirl is just a kid before wondering what she’d look like grown up! And because subtly is for the weak we have a two page spread of Power Girl carrying away Supergirl. Mirroring the start of the issue she goes over her origins and whilst Supergirl is a little wrought Pee Gee’s is a little more grounded with a cheeky little It’s a living!

Waking up on a mountaintop somewhere the two Kara’s finally get to meet, being surprised that they both look the same, with literal sparks between the two. We than get this beautiful full page of the two of them experiencing each others memories, it’s not particularly deep continuity wise but it expresses the emotions of these two versions of the characters.

At that moments troops attack, guess they didn’t go to far, and the two characters get a couple of pages to show off there prowess. The before they can have a proper conversation Appex, a big purple hulk like villain, attack squishing down Pee Gee. Supergirl distracts him for a few minutes before Power Girl piles in, having another of her wardrobe malfunctions, though midriff this time rather than boob window. After a little bit of a beatdown, with Appex banging there heads together before they punch him together. It nice that they play around with the synchronism of the two being the same person.

Still suffering from the kryptonite poisoning Pee Gee takes Supergirl to her’s (Supergirls) underwater base, Sanctuary. It’s cute how the bases AI’s calls both of them Kara, a confusion about who’s what is a something I struggle with constantly!

Whilst Supergirl is being healed by Sanctuary Pee Gee has a wander around, amazed at this Kryptonian place. Mentioning that she feels underdressed, her costume Sanctuary helpfully provides a new costume for Pee Gee, well I say new because it’s obviously her classic Boob Window costume. The writers obviously having some fun with the fact that people have been clamouring for this costume to return by having the one word said with the full costume reveal being Fine! As mentioned before I don’t have a problem with her original New 52 costume, and to be honest with just how many times it gets strategically  damage I strongly suspect they always planned for her to return to the classic look.

We get a nice little moment with Supergirl saying that Pee Gee looks beautiful (I assume she mean the costume rather than being strangely sophistic) and Pee Gee promising that they’ll work together to help cure the lingering Kryptonite poisoning that Supergirl is still suffering with. Unfortunately this lovely moment is a little ruined by Sanctuary deciding that there really shouldn’t be two Kara’s and it deploying weapons ready to take out one of them…

I need to stop gushing about just this one page, but it nice how the more experienced Pee Gee is upright and ready whilst Supergirl is crouched and unsure of herself, and finally how the base decides on of them must be a clone, because Pee Gee has the worse luck with evil clones of herself!

If you couldn’t tell I have a soft spot for this issue and to be honest it’s because it’s just nails the perfect relationship between the two Kara’s. Maybe it’s because I’ve had to endure the previous Supergirl’s antagonistic relationship between herself and Pee Gee, them just being nice to each other is just a pleasant change of place. Forcing myself to be a little critical it is a little slight, they meet, have a fight an then go for a costume change (though Supergirl still has her stupid cut out boots), with a sprinkling of the continuing plots about Lex who get a lot of attention on the cover even though he has like a few panels tops!