“But fret not, fair reader, our miserable Ferimbian fate would soon begin to change. Because you see, two champions had arrived.”
Last issue of Power Girl saw our namesake hero investigating a new drug trafficking ring in Metropolis along with her doppelgänger Supergirl. When the drug literally transports them to a fairytale dimension called Ferimbia, things start to get medieval, magical, and just the right amount of weird.
What gives Power Girl #7 its legs is how Williams and Sauvage complement one another. Throughout the issue, the strongest aspects of their collaboration are shown through the writing of Paige and Kara as they develop a symbiotic relationship. Williams and Sauvage had teased this happening previously in Power Girl Special #1 with the two feeling a connection between one another, feeling as though they were extensions of each other’s souls.
DC Comics
The comedy throughout the larger world of Ferimbia aids this as Williams leans into the absurdist fantasy to show how the two have grown since their initial rivalry. The comedy also allows for a larger exploration of how the fantasy world functions, and even while the mystical realm itself may not well be used in the Power Girl series moving forward, there is a Keith Giffen-inspired level of world building that comes with the comedy and action throughout the story that makes Ferimbia feel worth revisiting.
An observation to be made about the collaborative process of the two creators is how they work together compared to other artists on the book with each story arc of Power Girl shifting the tone and theme depending on the artist. Sauvage brings a colorful and girly lens to the title that accentuates the comedic and serious moments that fit Williams’ atmosphere and what she wants to bring to the table, and while previous work with series artist Eduardo Pansica made for a strong action-heavy story that pushed the series forward, it didn’t fully correlate with the overall tone that Williams brought to the story with Sauvage in Power Girl Special #1, and now in this issue.
A lot of this can be shown in the design liberties taken between the story’s two heroes, with Sauvage’s Supergirl carrying a more regal and holy feel to her that contrasts with Power Girl’s more messy and hot-headed mannerisms that have followed her since 1976 . While such details are minor, it shows how strong the two are together and how that fits with Williams’ provided scripting.
The story itself, as mentioned above, proves deeply Giffen-inspired as it takes storytelling liberties from the Five Years Later arc of Keith Giffen’s run on the Legion of Super-Heroes. Such inspiration is apparent with Williams and Sauvage adopting the storybook fantasy writing that followed Giffen’s tenure on the Legion.
DC Comics
Giffen’s writing isn’t the only thing Williams takes inspiration from, as throughout the story she takes a Dungeons & Dragons approach to the narrative by giving Kara and Paige class roles as a paladin and rogue respectively, and a bard with horns that may or may not be a Tiefling. To explain the varying inspirations in this installment of Power Girl is to make a bullet point about Keith Giffen, D&D, and even Sam Raimi as she even incorporates comedic aspects borrowed from his iconic ’90s series Xena: Warrior Princess.
Overall, the issue is well worth a read if not just for the collaboration between Leah Williams and Marguerite Sauvage. The two have a creative synergy that pushes all the right ambitions for the series to the max whether its with their knack for absurdist comedy or their drive to craft a stunning story both visually and literary. As we move into House of Brainiac, the first crossover of the series, we can only hope Sauvage continues to grace the series with her work.
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