It’s the climax of the two part story arc that started on a distant planet, but ends up with Power Girl and Vartox getting hot and sweaty together, only then do they dine on a fine sausage before impregnating an entire planet. All in a day’s work…
Power Girl #8
Written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray
Art and Cover by Amanda Conner
Turns out, Vartox, while he does come off as a sleazy d-bag, is actually quite a noble fellow, and only wants the best for his people. Which explains why he is so keen on mating with Power Girl – and really, who wouldn’t? But before the snoo-snoo can begin, the duo must defeat a whole herd of Ix Negaspikes. Fortunately, Vartox has powers so similar to Kryptonians that the two are able to turn the invulnerable monsters into brainless slugs that can be sent into space where they will cause no harm to anyone.
In celebration, Vartox wants the mating to begin, but not before treating Kara to a fine meal. I’ve seen some fine comedy writing, but Palmiotti and Gray brought their A-game to this issue as the “date†goes from bad to worse and every page is filled with a gag that will bring a smile to even the most frigid of people. Whether it is Vartox’s discovery of pepperoni, or Power Girl getting drunk on golden wine, the eventual realization that Kara has no idea how the Valeron act of mating actually works is classic comedy. Throughout the issue, Kara continues to get more and more tipsy, and had Vartox actually wanted to make mad love down by the fire, Power Girl is right on the edge of accepting the offer. It’s an interesting take on the non-heroic Power Girl and I continue to enjoy the moments in this series where Power Girl is not punching and fighting.
Complementing the excellent writing is Amanda Conner’s art. I continue to find myself picking my jaw off the floor after seeing each and every page Conner delivers. Stunning doesn’t begin to describe how incredibly wonderful her art is to the comic book world. She’s able to bring so much to her characters that she doesn’t need intricate pen work, and everything can remain clean and cartoony.  If I had one issue with the art this time around, it would be Power Girl’s breasts look larger than normal. Not really a big deal, but a few panels did stand out.
But before everything gets a big Adult Tag stuck everywhere, readers (and P.G.) find out the Valerons don’t do the “physical… sticky stuffâ€, but rather the two touching a sphere together will automatically impregnate every male and female on Vartox’s home planet. It’s a nice gesture by Power Girl, and in the end she always does the right thing.
Meanwhile…
There is an interesting side story that will have Satanna and Dr. Sivana teaming for some Ultra-Humanite revenge.
Oh yes, events in this series keep building in a way that continues to develop the Power Girl universe and the characters that live in it. Each month Power Girl reaffirms my belief that Gray and Palmiotti are the best writing team in the industry, and that I wish I had enough money to purchase all the original pages of Conner’s work. Power Girl #8 is a great ending to a story that started off strong, and earns a solid 5 out of 5 Stars.
9 Comments
The Zardoz references (many of which weren’t quite so pronounced in any of his previous appearances) made Vartox even funnier here. I looooved the bit with his “formal wear” and found Kara’s slow warming to him as a person (though not boyfriend material, by any means) to be a lovely explanation of both his AND her character.
Is this not consistently the best, most accessible book DC has put out in the past year?
I was real iffy on the whole angle with Vartox prior to this issue, but it really just fell into place and worked. Great, great book! Palmiotti, Gray and Conner are , in my opinion, the best creative team to grace the industry in a long time.
I’d argue that they’re still hanging just below Dini and Nguyen (Batman, Detective Comics, Streets of Gotham) and Simone and Benes (Birds of Prey). But, yes, they’re definitely good.
(And, oddly enough, all of the best writing and art combinations seem to be within DC and, yet, somehow Marvel still routinely sells more books. No accounting for taste, I guess.)
DC does not sell as many titles as Marvel in a given month.
“Quantity, not quality”. ;)
The Badger stole the book in my opinion, he was so darn funny!
I’m on the verge of going Mwha-ha-ha crazy myself… :D
I literaly go “Mwha-ha-ha-ha!” at random intervals them go back to what I was going and pretend nothing has happen to freak people out ;p
Fertilizor.
I just love saying that.