Family Tree are quite complicated in the world of Comic Books, and Power Girl will not tell you the contrary! Created by Gerry Conway and Ric Estrada, our superheroine made her first appearance in All-Star Comics #58 (1976) as Superman’s Kryptonian cousin.
But wait, I hear you say, isn’t Supergirl Superman’s cousin? Yes, that is the case! Power Girl, real name Kara Zor-L (also known as Karen Starr), is the Earth-Two counterpart of Supergirl and the first cousin of Kal-L, Superman of the pre-Crisis Earth-Two. Her origins story have been revisited several times since her creation, from her introduction to Supergirl’s Earth-2 doppelganger to being reimagined as an Atlantean after Crisis on Infinite Earths, then becoming a Kryptonian again after Infinite Crisis.
Outside of the world of comics, Power Girl is maybe more famous for her costume (and cleavage), though don’t let that distract you too much. She is genuinely an interesting character, maybe one of the most flawed Kryptonians out there, doted with a rash personality, her own fighting skills and good leadership capabilities. She fought alongside many heroes of DC Comics, has been the first chairwoman of the Justice Society of America, part of Justice League Europe, the Sovereign Seven, and many more teams.
Unfortunately for Power Girl’s readers, DC Comics hasn’t well collected her past stories, and it can be quite difficult to track her appearances. She had a few solo adventures, but is more a guest star/team member character! So here’s our Power Girl Reading Guide!
Best Power Girl Comics to Read
Let’s start this guide with a selection of Power Girl comics to discover the best the character has to offer. First, DC collected in a trade the essential issues to read for the Post-Crisis era:
- Power Girl (Collects JSA Classified #1-4, Showcase #97-99 and Secret Origins #11)
Then, it’s time to dive into what is considered the best stories with Power Girl – Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner’s run – collected in two trade paperbacks:
- Power Girl: A New Beginning (Collects Power Girl #1–6)
- Power Girl: Aliens and Apes (Power Girl #7–12)
After that, writer Judd Winick took over as the main writer, with Sami Basri as the artist, so the title continues with Power Girl: Bomb Squad.
As a team member, Power Girl was great in Justice League Europe, but was not well treated by other team members. So, we advise you to turn your attention toward Geoff Johns’ JSA, even though she was never at the center of a story arc:
Finally, a version of the character starred with The Huntress during the New 52 era for a worthy team-up:
- Worlds’ Finest Vol. 1: The Lost Daughters of Earth 2
- Worlds’ Finest Vol. 2: Hunt and Be Hunted
- Worlds’ Finest Vol. 3: Control Issues
- Worlds’ Finest Vol. 4: First Contact
Power Girl Comics, the Reading Order
Credits where credits are due, this reading order wouldn’t have been possible without the works of Hulk-Revolver and LilyTheFoxMechanic on Reddit!
Power Girl Comics in the Pre-Crisis Era
After being introduced in All-Star Comics, Power Girl quickly became a member of the Justice Society of America during the rest of the 1970s and 1980s and was a founding member of Infinity Inc.
- All-Star Comics #58-67, collected in All-Star Comics Only Legends Live Forever
- Justice League of America #147-148, collected in Justice League of America: The Bronze Age Omnibus Vol. 3 and Crisis on Multiple Earths Book 2: Crisis Crossed
- All-Star Comics #68-71, collected in All-Star Comics Only Legends Live Forever
- Showcase #97-99, collected in Power Girl
- All-Star Comics #72-74, collected in All-Star Comics Only Legends Live Forever
- Adventure Comics #461-466, collected in All-Star Comics Only Legends Live Forever
- Justice League of America #171-172, collected in Justice League of America: The Bronze Age Omnibus Vol. 3 and Crisis on Multiple Earths Book 3: Countdown to Crisis
- Justice League of America #183-185, collected in Crisis on Multiple Earths Book 3: Countdown to Crisis
- Wonder Woman #274-276, collected in The Huntress: Origins.
- Wonder Woman #291-293
- Power Girl is part of the Crisis On Earth-Prime event, collected in Crisis on Multiple Earths Book 3: Countdown to Crisis
The event took place in the following issues:- Justice League of America #207, All-Star Squadron #14, Justice League of America #208, All-Star Squadron #15, Justice League of America #209
- DC Comics Present #56
- Justice League of America #219-220, collected in Crisis on Multiple Earths Book 3: Countdown to Crisis
- Infinity Inc. #1-14, the first issues have been collected in Infinity Inc. Vol. 1
- America vs. the Justice Society #1-4, collected in America vs. the Justice Society
This period is concluded with the DC event Crisis on Infinite Earths (crossover event), resulting in the entire DCU being rebooted. Power Girl appears throughout the event, followed by the last hurrah of the Justice Society.
- Crisis On Infinite Earths 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition
Collects Crisis on Infinite Earths #1-12.- Power Girl is also present in the Infinity Inc. #24-25 tie-ins.
- Last Days of the Justice Society of America
Collects Last Days of the Justice Society of America Special and more. - Infinity, Inc. #30
Power Girl in the Modern Age
Following the Crisis, Power Girl’s origin story was revised and she is now the granddaughter of the Atlantean sorcerer Arion who had been frozen in suspended animation for millennia until the present day. This story is explained in Secret Origins (Vol. 2) #11, collected in the following trade:
- Power Girl
Collects JSA Classified #1-4, Showcase #97-99 and Secret Origins #11
Power Girl’s quest for her origins will lead to her appearances in The Warlord, then to her short self-title and a few guest appearances:
- The Warlord #116, 118-122, 124, Annual 6
- Infinity, Inc. #50
- Power Girl (1988) #1-4
- Doom Patrol #13-14, collected in Doom Patrol: The Bronze Age Omnibus
- Starman (1988) #5-6
- Firestorm, the Nuclear Man #80
Power Girl became a featured member of the Justice League Europe, the spin-off of Justice League International, and stayed in the team for the run of the series. For more information about the series, see our Justice League International Comics Guide.
- Justice League International Omnibus Vol. 1
Collects Justice League #1-6, Justice League International #7-25, Justice League America #26-30, Justice League Annual #1, Justice League International Annual #2-3, Justice League Europe #1-6 and Suicide Squad #13. - Starman (1988) 17-18, set before Justice League Europe #7
- Justice League International Omnibus Vol. 2
Collects Justice League America #31-50, Justice League Europe #7-25, Justice League America Annual #4, Justice League Europe Annual #1, Justice League Quarterly #1, and Justice League International Special #1. - Justice League International Omnibus Vol. 3
Collects Stories From Justice League America #51-60, Secret Origins #33-35, Justice League America Annual #5, Green Lantern #18, Justice League Quarterly #2-5, Jla 80-Page Giant #1, Formerly Known As The Justice League #1-6, Jla: Classified #4-9, Justice League Europe #26-36, Dc Retroactive: Jla –The ’90s #1, Justice League Europe Annual #2, And Justice League International Special #2.- Justice League Europe Annual #2 is part of Armageddon 2001 (Power Girl appears in issue #2)
- Justice League Europe #31 is part of Wonder Woman: War of the Gods.
- Justice League Quarterly #6-9
- Flash (1987) #59-60
- Starman (1988) #45
- Armageddon: Inferno #1-4
- Justice League Spectacular # 1, collected in Superman and the Justice League America Volume 1
- Justice League America #67, collected in Superman and the Justice League America Volume 1
- Arion the Immortal # 6
- Justice League Task Force #1, collected in Justice League Task Force: Purification Plague
- Justice League Quarterly #11
- Justice League Europe #37-50
- Peter Cannon – Thunderbolt (1992) #8-12
- Green Lantern Corps Quarterly # 6
- Green Lantern: Mosaic # 16-17
- Justice League Quarterly #13
- Bloodbath #1-2
Power Girl discovered she is pregnant in Justice League International #52, with the baby born during Zero Hour and the fallout of this terrible storyline dealt in the following issues of Justice League America, concluding in issue #108.
- Justice League International #51-64
- Justice League America #88-81, collected in Wonder Woman & Justice League America Vol. 2
- Justice League International #65-66, collected in Wonder Woman & Justice League America Vol. 2
- Justice League Task Force #13-14, collected in Wonder Woman & Justice League America Vol. 2
- Justice League International Annual #5
- Justice League Task Force #15
And then came the Zero Hour: A Crisis in Time event (see reading order here). All of reality comes under attack when a mysterious force of entropy begins slowly erasing time itself—making its way from both the past and future toward the present!
- Zero Hour: A Crisis in Time
Collects Zero Hour #0-4, stories from Showcase ’94 #8-9 and the Zero Month sampler. For the complete event (with tie-ins), see the Zero Hour: Crisis in Time Omnibus - Justice League America #93-97
- Justice League America #105-108
- Justice League America #111-113
Following the end of her time in the Justice League, Power Girl makes a few guest starring appearances written by Peter David in Aquaman and Supergirl, then joins the Sovereign Seven for their last issues, and appears in several issues of Birds of Prey.
- Aquaman (1994) #23-25
- Supergirl (1996) #15-16, collected in Supergirl By Peter David Book Two
- Aquaman (1994) #41-42
- Sovereign Seven #31-36
- Body Doubles # 1-4, with Power Girl in issues #3-4
- Birds of Prey #12-17, collected in Birds of Prey Vol. 3: The Hunt for Oracle
- Justice Leagues #1
- Justice Leagues: Justice League of Amazons #1
- Justice Leagues: Justice League of Atlantis #1
- Birds of Prey #33-35
- Birds of Prey #41, collected in Bruce Wayne: Murderer?
- Superman/Batman #24-25, collected in Superman/Batman Omnibus Vol. 1
When Black Canary quits the JSA, she recommends Kara to take her place, who joined the team in issue #31.
- JSA Omnibus Vol. 2
Collects JSA #26-81. For a more detailed version:- JSA, vol. 4: Fair Play
Collects JSA #26–31; JSA Secret Files #2 - JSA, vol. 5: Stealing Thunder
Collects JSA #32–38 - JLA/JSA: Virtue and Vice
- JSA, vol. 6: Savage Times
Collects JSA #39–45 - JSA, vol. 7: Princes of Darkness
Collects JSA #46–55 - JSA, vol. 8: Black Reign
Collects JSA #56–58; Hawkman vol. 4 #23–25. - JSA, vol. 9: Lost
Collects JSA #59–67. Shazam left the JSA with #59. - Day of Vengeance
Collects Day of Vengeance #1-6, Action Comics #826, The Adventures of Superman #639, and Superman #216. - JSA, vol. 10: Black Vengeance
Collects JSA #68–75. JSA #73-75 are Day of Vengeance tie-in issues.
- JSA, vol. 4: Fair Play
- Supergirl Vol. 1: Power
Collects Supergirl Vol. 5 #0-5. Supergirl meets Power Girl in the first issue. - Power Girl
Collects JSA #32, #39; JSA: Classified #1–4; Showcase #97–99; Secret Origins vol. 2 #11
Big event with Infinite Crisis (see reading order) in which Power Girl plays a significant role and her origin story is revisited. OMAC robots are rampaging, magic is dying, villains are uniting, and a war is raging in space. During this event, some of the surviving Golden Age characters are transported to the new “Earth-Two” created by Alexander Luthor Jr.
- Infinite Crisis
Collects Infinite Crisis #1–7. - JSA Omnibus Vol. 3
Collects JSA #76-87, Justice Society of America #1-28, Justice League of America #8-10, Justice Society of America Annual #1, JSA Kingdom Come Special: Superman #1, JSA Kingdom Come Special: Magog #1, JSA Kingdom Come Special: The Kingdom #1.- JSA, vol. 11: Mixed Signals
Collects JSA #76–81. - JSA Classified: Honor Among Thieves
Collects JSA: Classified #5–9 - JSA: Ghost Stories
Collects JSA #82–87.
- JSA, vol. 11: Mixed Signals
- Supergirl Vol. 2 #6-8
Collected in Supergirl: The Girl of Steel - Superman/Batman #27
Collected in Superman/Batman Omnibus Vol. 1
Jay Garrick, Alan Scott, and Ted Grant decide to revive the Justice Society.
- Justice Society of America: The Next Age
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #1–4. - The Brave and the Bold #7
Collected in Brave and the Bold Vol. 2: The Book of Destiny - JLA: The Lightning Saga
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #5–6; Justice League of America vol. 2 #0, 8–12 - Supergirl Vol 5 #19
Collected in Supergirl: Breaking the Chain - Tales of the Sinestro Corps: Superman-Prime #1
Part of the “Sinestro Corps War” event. Collected in Green Lantern: Tales of the Sinestro Corps - Justice Society of America: Thy Kingdom Come, vol. 1
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #7–12 - Justice Society of America: Thy Kingdom Come, vol. 2
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #13–18, Annual #1 - Justice Society of America: Thy Kingdom Come, vol. 3
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #19–22; Justice Society Kingdom Come Special: Superman; the Justice Society Kingdom Come Special: Magog; Justice Society Kingdom Come Special: The Kingdom - Justice Society of America: Black Adam and Isis
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #23–28. - Terra
Collects Terra #1-4, Supergirl #12
Following are eventful years for the superhero community, including Power Gril. It starts with the Final Crisis (see reading order), a event in which Power Girl briefly appears. Not long after, Power Girl is finally the star of her own series under the creative team of Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner. While she work to rebuild her life and continuing solo superheroics, things are naturally interrupted by massive events. In that particular case, we’re talking about the Blackest Night/Brightest Day Saga which will lead to Power Girl returning working with the Justice League.
- Final Crisis
collects DC Universe #0, Final Crisis #1-7, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #1-2, Final Crisis: Submit #1, Batman #682-683 - JSA vs Kobra
Collects JSA vs. Kobra #1–6. - Wonder Woman (2006) #34
Collected in Wonder Woman: Warkiller - Wonder Woman (2006) #40-41
Collected in Wonder Woman: Contagion - Power Girl: A New Beginning
Collects Power Girl #1–6 - Blackest Night Saga (DC Essential Edition)
Collects Blackest Night #0-8. - Blackest Night: Black Lantern Corps Vol. 2
Collects Blackest Night: Wonder Woman #1-3, Blackest Night: JSA #1-3, and Blackest Night: The Flash #1-3. - Justice Society of America: The Bad Seed
Justice Society of America vol. 3 #29–33. - Brightest Day Vol. 1
Collects Brightest Day #0-7. - Justice Society of America: Axis of Evil
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #34–40- JSA All-Stars: Constellations
Collects JSA All-Stars vol. 2 #1–6. Set during Blackest Night. - JSA All-Stars: Glory Days
Collects JSA All-Stars vol. 2 #7–13. - JSA All-Stars: The Puzzle Men collecting JSA All-Stars vol. 2 #14–18 was canceled.
- JSA All-Stars: Constellations
- Power Girl: Aliens and Apes
Collects Power Girl #7–12 - Justice League of America: Dark Things
Collects JLA #44-48 and JSA #41-42. (ties in to Brightest Day) - Justice Society of America: Supertown
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #44–49. - Justice Society of America: Monument Point
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #50–54, Annual #2. - Wonder Woman #600
Collected in Wonder Woman: Odyssey Vol. 1 - Justice League: Generation Lost Vol. 1
Collects Justice League: Generation Lost #1-12. - Power Girl: Bomb Squad
Collects Power Girl #13–18 - Justice League of America: The Rise of Eclipso
Collects Justice Society of America vol. 3 #43; Justice League of America vol. 2 #54–60. - Brightest Day Vol. 2
Collects Brightest Day #8-16. - Justice League: Generation Lost Vol. 2
Collects Justice League: Generation Lost #13-24. - Power Girl: Old Friends
Collects Power Girl #19–27. - Brightest Day Vol. 3
Collects Brightest Day #17-24. - Superman/Batman 78
Collected in Superman/Batman Volume 12: Sorcerer Kings
New 52, a different Power Girl
Following the actions of Barry Allen in Flashpoint, the DC Universe was rebooted and a new era called New 52 started. Here, Power Girl appears as a refugee from Earth 2 along with Huntress (aka Helena Wayne). She is a different version of the character, a friend of Mister Terrific, still the head of Starr Entreprises and co-starring in the ongoing series, Worlds’ Finest.
- Mister Terrific #1-2 & #7
Collected in Mister Terrific Vol. 1: Mind Games - Huntress #6
Collected in Huntress: Crossbow at the Crossroads - Earth 2 #1
Collected Earth 2, Vol. 1: The Gathering - Worlds’ Finest Vol. 1: The Lost Daughters of Earth 2
Collects Worlds’ Finest #0-5 - Worlds’ Finest Vol. 2: Hunt and Be Hunted
Collects Worlds’ Finest #6-12. - Supergirl #18-20
Collected in Supergirl Vol. 3: Sanctuary - Worlds’ Finest Vol. 3: Control Issues
Collects Worlds’ Finest #13-18. - Worlds’ Finest Vol. 4: First Contact
Collects Worlds’ Finest #18-21, World’s Finest Annual #1 And Batman/Superman #8-9. - Worlds’ Finest Vol. 5: Homeward Bound
Collects Worlds’ Finest #22-26 and Worlds’ Finest: Futures End #1.- Tanya Spears is introduced in Worlds’ Finest #26, an befriends Karen Starr. It will led to her taking the name Power Girl.
- Earth 2: World’s End Vol. 1
Collects Earth 2: World’s End #1–11. Daniel H. Wilson is the main writer of the series. - Earth 2: World’s End Vol. 2
Collects Earth 2: World’s End #12–26. - Worlds’ Finest #30-32
Collected in Worlds’ Finest Vol. 6: The Secret History of Superman and Batman. Flashback issues. - Earth 2: Society, vol. 1: Planetfall
Collects Earth 2: Society #1-7. - Earth 2: Society, vol. 2: Indivisible
Collects Earth 2: Society #8-12. Dan Abnett took over the title. - Earth 2: Society, vol. 3: Whole New World
Collects Earth 2: Society #13-16, Earth 2: Society Annual #1. - Earth 2: Society, vol. 4: Life After Death
Collects Earth 2: Society #17-22.
An Harley Quinn Interlude! During New 52, a temporarily amnesiac Power Girl from a seemingly alternative reality (not Earth-2) crashes in Harley Quinn’s reality. The series has no attachment to anything happening in the DC Universe at the time. You can read those stories independently from the rest:
- Harley Quinn Vol. 2: Power Outage
Collects Harley Quinn vol. 2 #9–13, Harley Quinn Futures End #1, Harley Quinn Invades Comic-Con International San Diego and material from Secret Origin #4. - Harley Quinn and Power Girl
Collects Harley Quinn and Power Girl #1-6. series takes place in between the pages of Harley Quinn #12 - Harley Quinn Vol. 3: Kiss Kiss Bang Stab
Collects Harley Quinn vol. 2 #14–16, Annual #1, Harley Quinn Holiday Special #1 and Harley Quinn Valentine’s Special #1. Power Girl is present in issues #15-17
Worlds Collide in Convergence, an Earth 2 event! The evil alien intelligence known as Brainiac has stolen 50 doomed cities from throughout time and space and brought them to a place beyond the Multiverse—a sentient planet of his own design, a world with the power of a god. As heroes and villains from dozens of worlds battle each other for their very existence, it’s up to a ragtag band of warriors from a slain Earth to put an end to this threat that bends the Multiverse to its will. Reality itself hangs in the balance…
- Convergence
Collects Convergence #0-8- Power Girl stars in Convergence: Action Comics #1-2, collected in Convergence: Infinite Earths Book One and set after Convergence #4.
Power Girl’s Return in the DC Universe
DC Comics relaunched its entire line with a soft reboot called Rebirth in 2016, though Power Girl didn’t reappear immediately. When we reconnect with the character, she seems to be trapped in some sort of interdimensional void between earths. The situation changes for Power Girl with Doomsday Clock, Watchmen’s sequel which reintroduces the Pre-New 52 Power Girl following the actions of Dr Manhattan.
- Deathstroke (vol. 4) Annual #1 (New 52 Power Girl)
Collected in Deathstroke Vol. 5: The Fall of Slade - Doomsday Clock
Collects Doomsday Clock #1-12.
Power Girl made her return with the Lazarus Planet event! The Lazarus rains gave her new powers, specifically new psychic abilities and she found herself bound to fellow psychic Omen. This situation is explored in Action Comics and Power Girl Special. Then she is naturally with the Justice Society of America who just made a comeback and is right now headlining her own series written by Leah Williams!
- Power Girl Returns
Collects stories from Lazarus Planet: Assault on Krypton, Action Comics #1051-1053 and Power Girl Special. - Justice Society of America Vol. 1: The New Golden Age
Collects The New Golden Age, Justice Society of America #1-7. - Power Girl Vol. 1: Electric Dreams
Collects Power Girl (2023) #1-7 - Power Girl (2023) #8-10 are tie-ins to House of Brainiac. You don’t need to read the event for Power Girl.
Not collected yet. - The story continues!