History ComicBook / Powergirl

In 2015's ''Harley Quinn & Power Girl'' series, Harley finds and teams up with an older and amnesiac Power Girl with the two having various misadventures and fighting various D-list villains and Vartox, who still tries to seduce Power Girl in order to repopulate his race. It's later revealed that this Power Girl is from the ''Pre-Flastpoint'' Prime Earth (the same one from the 2009's comic series) with the second Terra; Atlee, also reappearing. However, both ends up disappearing from the [[PutOnABus universe]] and only reappears after the ''Comicbook/DarkNightsMetal'' event following the fall of the source wall keeping the universe separated, but kept in the background.

* GivingSomeoneThePointerFinger: Karen does this... ''a lot'' when she is making a dramatic entrance or someone (usually a villain or Vartox) is annoying her.

* UnderwearOfPower: Her normal costume is a pretty standard superheroine outfit, but Terra has not yet grasped the importance of [[DressedInLayers always having your costume handy]] and one time she was forced to go into battle wearing nothing but adorable lady-bug underwear when she and Power Girl were attacked while out at the movies.

* WallOfText: One of Karen's employees gives two in as many panels when she is introduced exiting the elevator; the first of which before it was fully opened.

* (1994) ''ComicBook/ZeroHour''

In 2015's ''Harley Quinn & Power Girl'' series, Harley finds and teams up with an older and amnesiac Power Girl with the two having various misadventures and fighting various D-list villains and Vartox, who still tries to seduce Power Girl in order to repopulate his race. It's later revealed that this Power Girl is from the ''Pre-Flastpoint'' Prime Earth (the same one from the 2009's comic series) with the second Terra; Atlee, also reappearing. However, both ends up disappearing from the [[PutOnABus universe]] and only reappears after the ''Comicbook/DarkNightsMetal'' event following the fall of the source wall keeping the universe separated.

* MostCommonSuperpower: Power Girl is the owner of the biggest bust in the entire [[Creator/DCComics DC Multiverse]]. And, as seen in the page quote, she's very aware of the fact.

* MostCommonSuperpower: Power Girl is the proud owner of the biggest buxom in the entire [[Creator/DCComics DC Multiverse]]. And, as seen in the page quote, she's very aware of the fact.

* DependingOnTheWriter: The most consistent part of Power Girl’s character is that she must be an empowered woman with her own unique identity, a grown up Supergirl that doesn’t want to take her cousin’s symbol and legacy, she is her own woman; anything beyond that, however, varies from writer to writer - such as how serious Karen is, from full blown put off by anything she considers nonsense to more a approachable fun girl; to what extent her female empowerment must be part of her character, from little moments where Karen asserts herself as a woman put off by slimy men, and won’t tolerate women being taken advantage of, to a more constant and very outspoken person to point out many faults men have, including her superhero colleagues.

* (1988-1988) '''''''[[Comicbook/PowerGirl1988 Power Girl]]''''' Vol 1

* (1988-1988) '''''Power Girl''''' Vol 1

* GeniusBruiser: Karen says that she's not just superpowered, but super smart and she shows it. When faced with a SadisticChoice between saving the Leaning Tower of Pisa, rescuing Cyclone , or rescuing a Vietnamese girl held hostage by Typhoon with a time limit, PG buys herself time by setting up a tidal wave in the middle of the ocean timed to knock out Typhoon in Vietnam. She also frees Cyclone as backup to either stop him or help her stop the wave from causing collateral damage. While flying around the world doing this she uses her super hearing to triangulate the location the villain is talking to her from, using only the delay between her speaking and hearing it echo from the other end as reference. The only thing that kept her from capturing the Calculator is the fact that he was broadcasting by proxy.

* FireForgedFriends: She is more or less friends with ''ComicBook/HarleyQuinn'', although the first time they met she was (understandably) pissed that [[ItMakesSenseInContext Harley decieved her when she had amnesia, once she got her memory back.]] Much later they have to team up again against an EldritchAbomination that's way out of Harley's league, and it's clear Power Girl does care about Harley, as she even saves her life a couple times.

->''"Atlee, I fought ComicBook/SuperboyPrime, Black Lanterns, mad ComicBook/NewGods and survived multiple Crises. I think I understand more about evil than you probably ever--"''

In 2015's ''Harley Quinn & Power Girl'' series, Harley finds and teams up with an older and amnesiac Power Girl with the two having various misadventures and fighting various D-list villains and Vartox, who still tries to seduce Power Girl in order to repopulate his race. It's later revealed that this Power Girl is from the ''Pre-Flastpoint'' Prime Earth with the second Terra; Atlee, also reappearing. However, both ends up disappearing from the [[PutOnABus universe]] and only reappears after the ''Comicbook/DarkNightsMetal'' event following the fall of the source wall keeping the universe separated.

In the ''Harley Quinn & Power Girl'' series, Harley finds and teams up with an older and amnesiac Power Girl with the two having various misadventures and fighting various D-list villains and Vartox, who still tries to seduce Power Girl in order to repopulate his race. It's later revealed that this Power Girl is from the ''Pre-Flastpoint'' Prime Earth with the second Terra; Atlee, also reappearing. However, both ends up disappearing from the [[PutOnABus universe]] and only reappears after the ''Comicbook/DarkNightsMetal'' event following the fall of the source wall keeping the universe separated.

* {{Faceship}}: Vartox's spaceship loooks like a human head... with an impressive mustache.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar:
** In a flashback Satanna can be seen wearing a shirt that reads "[[CountryMatters CU Next Tues]]".
** Karen says to a potential employee that was playing with her snow globes to "Please, stop messing with my globes." [[http://36.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l4t7r1Y9Lg1qbn0qxo1_400.jpg The visual joke is evident]]. To really hammer it in, the next panel has the guy say "sorry, force of habit."

* AmnesiacDissonance: After his final defeat, [[spoiler: Ultra-Humanite]] had his memory erased and was reintroduced into society. He does not seem happy with the plan, but he is accepting of the future...until Power Girl turns her back and he swears that it will ''never'' be over between them. It is unknown how much of his original nature will remain after his mind wipe.

* DayInTheLife: Volume 12 of ComicBook/PowerGirl's ongoing series is largely this. As it turns out, her daily life involves bathing in an empathic bikini, bonding with Terra and stopping a fight between an alien monster and [[RecycledInSpace Space]] [[Film/{{Zardoz}} Sean Connery]].

* ''WesternAnimation/SupermanBatmanPublicEnemies'': Her animated debut, where she is voiced by Allison Mack from ''Series/{{Smallville}}'' fame.

* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'': While Power Girl herself doesn't appear, a character inspired by her called Galatea is introduced in ''Unlimited''. She is a evil clone of Supergirl created by Cadmus to act as [[TheDragon their enforcer]], and despite resembling Power Girl very closely down to her looks and the uniform, she is [[AdaptationalVillainy a villain]]. Much like Supergirl, Galatea was voiced by Creator/NicholleTom.

!!Power Girl has examples of these tropes:

[[AC: Let's put these [[JustForPun right up front]], shall we?]]
* BigBraToFill: Presumably the reason she has never appeared in live-action before is that it would be tough to find an actress that accurately reflects her, um... ''physique''.
* BoobsOfSteel: As you may have noticed, Karen is rather buxom. And being a Kryptonian she's one of the strongest heroes DC has to offer.
* BuxomIsBetter: Even the girls envy her. In ''ComicBook/WonderWoman #34'', Dinah Lance, the Black Canary, mentions Power Girl as having the top bosom of DCU comparing her assets with a "national treasure".
* CleavageWindow: Nearly 2 years after her first appearance, when it stopped simply being a slightly lower neckline, she's had the hole in her uniform's chest, exposing a fair amount of cleavage.
* GagBoobs: She's never been depicted as being even "average" in size - or even average in comparison to her superheroine compatriots, having universally been shown as having breasts noticeably larger than her peers. Jokes, comments, whole issues, have been literally built around her breasts InUniverse. Interestingly, the author of Fanfic/OriginStory called the offices of DC Comics to get PG's cup size, and they ''actually'' replied, saying that ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9801437/21/Origin-Story her official bust size is 40-H]].''
* IHaveBoobsYouMustObey: She tried to use this a time or two with varying levels of success.
* MostCommonSuperpower: Superhero and big boobs. As said in the description she is the incarnation of this trope.
* MsFanservice: The most buxom superheroine of all the DCU who wears a white LeotardOfPower with her famous CleavageWindow. No surprise that she provides the [[MsFanservice/ComicBooks MsFanservice/ComicBooks]] trope image!
* MyEyesAreUpHere: Given her CleavageWindow, this happens a lot.

A popular UrbanLegend states that all of this was the result of an in-joke by her original artist, Wally Wood, who [[FanServicePack drew her breasts bigger every issue]] just to see how far he could get away with it. However, [[http://ragnell.blogspot.com/2006/05/power-girl-you-be-judge.html examination of her original issues shows a consistent portrayal]], and no source has been presented to give authenticity to this legend, so it has been effectively debunked.\\
\\
All of the above, for the most part, apply to her so called "classic" costume, an attempt to create a new costume without the CleavageWindow was made when the DCU was rebooted in the New 52, but that lasted for about a year before she got a variant of her classic costume back. DC previously attempted to downplay her assets with a more modest costume in the late 1980s, which likewise didn't last long.

[[AC:And now for the rest:]]


[[folder: General Tropes]]
* AbhorrentAdmirer: Vartox of Valerian towards our heroine. He first interacts with her he asks her help to repopulate his planet after they were hit with a depopulation bomb. Though she was repulsed by him and his proposal, she did help save it by curing their sterility instead of taking such monumental task. While he claims to be grieving for his wife, he is still very much infatuated with Karen and went as far as marrying an [[ReplacementGoldfish alternate version of her]] in ''Harley Quinn and Power Girl''.
* ActionGirl: Karen has trained with several notable teachers including her teammate Wildcat, who is a world renowned boxer and hand to hand combatant. She was also trained in Karate by martial arts instructor Mongo Krebs.
* AlternateSelf: Of Kara Zor-'''E'''l (Supergirl) though how closely connected they are [[DependingOnThewriter varies.]] In the New 52 they are quite explicitly the same person from different universes ("We... are ''me''.") [[DependingOnTheWriter Usually]] Power Girl is said to be Supergirl as an adult, which is why they don't typically look exactly alike in terms of height and body shape, besides the different hairstyles.
* AlternateUniverseReedRichardsIsAwesome: She ''is'' an alternate universe Comicbook/{{Supergirl}}. Not that the real one ''isn't'', but still...
* AmazonianBeauty: She is oftentimes drawn with muscular arms and the physique of a bodybuilder, and is almost always drawn larger (height-wise) than other female characters except the likes of Franchise/WonderWoman. She is depicted at her beefiest in ''ComicBook/KingdomCome'' where she grew even StrongerWithAge. Regardless, she is still considered quite the beauty in-universe, but that is mostly due to [[BuxomIsBetter her softer features]]. This also applies to Supergirl, since (even though they're the same person, a few dimensions removed) Karen is 10-15 years older than Kara.
* {{Anti Hero}}ine: A Type II in the "ComicBook/New52" series, where she seems to have no qualms whatsoever about stealing equipment and money so long as it is in a good cause.
* BackToBackBadasses: Both Karas did this in New 52 Supergirl issue 19 when they fought Lex's forces.
* BadassCape: She wears a red cape.
* BashBrothers: Supergirl and she have fought together several times.
* BigDamnHeroes: Her debut consisted in her showing up all of sudden and saving the Justice Society from a volcano.
* BlueIsHeroic: She wears blue gloves and boots. Some of her less famous costumes were partially blue. In the New 52 continuity, she started out as Supergirl and wore a leotard version of her mainstream counterpart's blue outfit.
* {{Brainwashed}}: Max Lord hits Power Girl with a mental suggestion to go kill the Justice League International. She sees everyone on the team as another hero (ComicBook/CaptainAtom as Franchise/{{Superman}}, Fire as [[Comicbook/TeenTitans Starfire]], Ice as ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}, Rocket Red as ComicBook/GreenLantern Hal Jordan and Booster Gold as Franchise/{{Batman}}) and hears all their dialogue as plans to conquer and rule humanity.
* BreathWeapon: Comes with the Kryptonian power set.
* BroughtToYouByTheLetterS: Her ComicBook/New52 version's first costume has a stylized P on the left side of her chest.
* CharacterDevelopment: Kind of a boring character in the '80s, she became a one-note bitch "Girl Power!" archetype by the mid-'90s, and was generally unlikable. Creator/GeoffJohns brought into the ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica and fashioned a personality that had portions of her prior bitchiness, but added some sadness about her lack of past and good friendships. She eventually became its Superman equivalent (until Earth-22 Superman arrived) and, later, the team's first chairwoman.
* CharacterisationMarchesOn: In her very earliest appearances in ''All Star Comics'' Power Girl was presented as kind of a brash young hot head with a serious chip on her shoulder. She lacked a civilian identity entirely and while she was never depicted as DumbMuscle she wasn't shown to be particularly brilliant either - her GeniusBruiser traits came later thanks to a 'memory teacher' borrowed from Wonder Woman implanting vast knowlege of computers into her mind.
** Terra in her own mini series meanwhile, was an AloofDarkHairedGirl who actually threatened Power Girl just because she put her hand on her.
* ChestInsignia: Classically, a notable ''lack'' of one, she has what is termed a "boob window." Because of her [[ContinuitySnarl long and complicated history]] there have been numerous explanations as to why, exactly, she has this window. The current story behind it is kind of sad - she could not think of a symbol, so she left it blank and never filled it and is actually undergoing a minor identity crisis as she tries to figure out where she fits in the world. Though not all reasons have been as poignant, they are all intentional and rational. Previously, one of her explanations was that the window gave a clear indication of who and what she was: Strong, feminine and yes, big-breasted. If people were overly preoccupied or distracted by the last part that was their problem, not hers, she would not be bound by what they thought of her.
** Even when she temporarily switched to a [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/power-girl-gold2_6363.jpg full bodysuit]] sans boob window for a time in the late 1980s (as seen in ''ComicBook/JusticeLeagueInternational''), she chose not to use a symbol.
** The ComicBook/New52 version has a stylized P on the left side of her chest on the costume she wore before she switched over to the variant of her pre-New 52 version's "boob window" costume.
** Since returning to Earth-2, her costume has regained the "S" insignia.
* ClarkKenting: Her disguise as Karen Starr for most of her existence has been tying her hair back. That is it. She herself explains that her large breasts actually help keep her identity secret, especially considering the CleavageWindow, [[DistractedByTheSexy since they draw attention away from her face.]] In issue #22, Superman himself advises her to make Karen Starr a real person, not just a costume. She gets a makeover to make Karen appear more different from Power Girl, involving a business suit, red hair, and, of course, glasses. [[LampshadeHanging The reveal alternates panels between her and Clark Kent to highlight their similar disguises]].
* ClothingDamage: She suffers from this a suspiciously large amount. Her costume is often portrayed as being hardly more resilient than ComicBook/{{Empowered}}'s. She never lets it slow her down, though.
* ComboPlatterPowers: She has the full Kryptonian package: she's a flying brick with super senses, heat vision, hurricane breath and freezing breath.
* ContinuitySnarl: Power Girl's origin is unusual in that it lampshades the utter failure of past writers to come up with a legitimate way of maintaining her character's existence in the face of endless rewrites of the DC universe's history. There is no way the character can exist in the currently "valid" history- and her character development directly involves her attempts to deal with that fact. She is the cousin of Earth-2 Superman, but it is explicitly the pre-Crisis Earth 2. The new similar Earth-2 created following the 52 event has its own Power Girl cementing our Power Girl's status as an orphan of the old Multiverse.
* CostumeEvolution: Power Girl has gone through a number of different costumes during her run. Her most well-known and original costume consists of a white leotard, blue boots and gloves, and a red cape. She's also worn outfits that either had no cape or changed the amount of blue fabric, as well as several full-body suits with white and gold. Only two of them lack her infamous CleavageWindow, however.
* CrystalPrison: Was cast into one by her ComicBook/PostCrisis grandfather Arion to protect her from being possessed by her granduncle Garn Daanuth, which then turned into the symbio-ship that carried her from the past to the present while she only ages twenty years in the process.
* CuteKitten: Karen's pet cat, Stinky.
* DeadpanSnarker: Putting up with people focusing on her cleavage has given Karen a very dry sense of wit.
* DemonicPossession: In her 1986 ''ComicBook/SecretOrigins'' Post-Crisis origin story, Karen as an infant was being threatened with possession by the spirit of her granduncle Garn Daanuth, who attempted to reenter the realm of the living through her. Her grandfather Arion prevented this from happening by placing Karen in a magic crystal and sending her through time and space to the present-day world, selecting Superman as the one who she would be connected to upon her arrival.
* DumbBlonde: The ultimate "first impression" trope, especially for readers coming into the pre-New 52 series cold. In truth, the trope has been subverted and averted and occasionally lampshaded constantly since the character was first introduced. Karen is a very intelligent, smart person, but their enemies assume that she's stupid because she's a super-strong blonde. It doesn't matter how many times she outwits them, they keep treating her as a blonde bimbo.
* EvenTheGirlsWantHer: In ''JSA Classified'', she mentions that even some women have been impressed by her bust. She once caught Crimson Fox starring at her chest once or twice.
* EveryoneLovesBlondes: Karen's beauty does not go unnoticed.
* FetusTerrible: Prior to the ''ComicBook/ZeroHour'' CrisisCrossover, Power Girl became mysteriously pregnant, and during the crossover, she gave birth to a son named Equinox, who managed to defeat the BigBad, Scarabus, in an issue of ''Justice League America'' and [[CanonDiscontinuity was never seen nor mentioned again]]. And the father is... [[spoiler:Arion, who was [[ParentalIncest her grandfather]] at the time this was published.]] Like many things from the Gerard Jones JLA run, this has been one of those things quietly allowed to fade from DCU history and fan memories. Letter column remarks back in the day seemed to unofficially indicate that such stories were definitely not going to be touched again.
* FireForgedFriends: She is more or less friends with ''ComicBook/HarleyQuinn'', although the first time they met she was (understandably) pissed that [[ItMakesSenseInContext Harley decieved her when she had amnesia, once she got her memory back.]] Much later they have to team up again against an EldritchAbomination that's way out of Harley's league, and it's clear Power Girl does care about Harley, as she even saves her life a couple times.
* {{Flanderization}}: Karen in the ComicBook/New52 had a slightly mischievous, flirty side. In ''World's' Finest'' she has little characterization other than "extremely lewd and man-hungry".
* FlyingBrick: After finally being established ([[ContinuitySnarl again]]) as Superman's cousin she gets most of his powers as well, including heat vision and ice breath.
* GeniusBruiser: On top of being a Kryptonian Karen is highly intelligent, regarded as a first rate scientist by Mr Terrific.
* HappilyAdopted: Earth-2 Superman and Lois Lane took his cousin Karen in when she arrived on Earth, and they treated her like their daughter.
-->'''Power Girl:''' [tearfully] You took me in! You treated me like I was your daughter!\\
'''Earth 2 Lois Lane:''' Oh, honey... as far as we were concerned, you ''were'' our daughter.
* HeadbuttingHeroes: She and Wildcat got into a lot of arguments in the early days. It didn't help that he could be a bit sexist sometimes, and she was ''not'' having it.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Helena Wayne alias ComicBook/{{Huntress}} in the original Earth-Two.
** In the pre-Crisis universe they were best friends but her friendship came to an end when ''[[Comicbook/CrisisOnInfiniteEarths the Anti-Monitor destroyed Earth-2]]''.
** In post-Flashpoint DC universe, Karen met Helena when she saved her life. Since then they became "Best Friends. Forever". When they got stranded in the main Earth, they lived together. Helena called Karen her "oldest and dearest friend".
* HomeworldEvacuation: She left Krypton at the same time as her cousin Kal-L, but her ship kept her in suspended animation for 60 years while she aged only 20 years during her travel to Earth.
* IHatePastMe:
** In the Post-Crisis universe, Karen and Kara don't get along well because Kara was being written like a jerk in the first issues of her book. Kara apologized to Karen after getting her head together, but Karen turned her down.
** In ''Comicbook/{{Supergirl}} Vol 6 #20'', Power Girl gets mad with the eponymous heroine because Kara called her "old". Supergirl apologizes, explaining she didn't meant anything by it, but she is prone to say stupid things when she gets upset. Power Girl admits that she used to be like that, too.
* InASingleBound: Pre-Crisis, she, like Earth-2 Superman, could not fly and so jumped huge distances to get where she was going.
* KindheartedCatLover: Karen owns a cat called "Stinky". It must be genetic, because her Earth-One and New Earth counterparts also like cats.
* KryptoniteFactor: Karen possesses the same potential weaknesses as an average Kryptonian like the vulnerability to Kryptonite and magic.
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: In ''JSA Classified'' #3, Mister Terrific asks D.E.O. Director Bones why he's interested in Power Girl. Bones says, "Let's just say the bosses on high are working on completing some ''files''... and Power Girl's is ''far'' from complete, Mr. Terrific. We can't even get a proper reading on her abilities." The whole point of that storyline was that people like Dan [=DiDio=] and Geoff Johns realized how badly Power Girl's backstory and powers needed to be stabilized and clarified.
* LegacyCharacter: Karen officially dubbed Tanya Spears as the new Power Girl after the former was able to return to Earth-2, essentially allowing the name to continue to exist in works set in [[http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Prime_Earth the Prime Earth universe.]]
* LeotardOfPower: Her most common outfit is a leg-baring, figure-hugging, long-sleeved white leotard with an opening in the chest.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: Pre-New 52 reboot Kara was also very close to Superman, even during the time they thought that she was not his AlternateUniverse cousin.
* LotusEaterMachine: In her original origin, way back in ''Showcase'' #98, she was placed in a rocket on Krypton as a baby, and as she travelled through space, she grew physically and also experienced a virtual reality that gave her the experiences she would have had if she had grown up on Krypton.
* LovelyAngels:
** Karen and Terra fought together in Power Girl's book. [[ShortRangeGuyLongRangeGuy Usually Kara fights at the forefront as Terra handles group control and attacks from afar with her geokinesis.]]
** Huntress and Power Girl have this dynamic in the New 52 series Worlds' Finest. Which is a throwback to their original team-ups on pre-Crisis Earth-2. Batman's daughter, Superman's female cousin — what could be more obvious than that they'd become a team?
** Also forms this dynamic with Harley Quinn whenever they two interact, specially in their team-up ''Harley Quinn and Power Girl''.
* MamaBear: Acted this way, in the JSA, to Stargirl at least once, warning Captain Marvel to leave her alone when his presence was upsetting the young girl.
** She's also super protective of Atlee.
* ManOfSteelWomanOfKleenex: Karen has this trouble due to being a super-strong Kryptonian.
* MistakenForProstitute: In ''Harley Quinn and Power Girl'', she was caught by an alien magistrate who suspected her of being a hooker because of the way she was dressed.
* MultipleChoicePast: Until it was cleared up in ''ComicBook/InfiniteCrisis''.
* MusclesAreMeaningless: Zig-zagged. Karen is typically portrayed as being one of the physically strongest women on the planet, especially in comparison to her younger, less-developed alternate self, Comicbook/{{Supergirl}}. And yet, some characters, like Franchise/WonderWoman, are often portrayed as equal, or ''superior'', to her in strength, despite not being anywhere as buff.
* TheNeedless: She doesn't need to eat, breathe or sleep. Justified because she's sun-powered.
* NeverASelfMadeWoman: In the Silver Age Karen was constantly trying to prove she didn't need her cousin's mentoring anymore, going so far to tell him she ''couldn't'' listen to his well-meaning advice because she needed to follow her own path.
* NeverGetsDrunk: Karen ''cannot'' get drunk due to her Kryptonian metabolism... although bizarre alien drinks can get her tipsy.
-->'''Power Girl:''' Not that I've done either. Ridden mass transit or gotten drunk... y'know, with the ability to fly and the Kryptonian metabolism. But I did once get tipsy when Guy Gardner got me this Eltarian rice whiskey. It was mostly rocket fuel, but--
* NewPowersAsThePlotDemands: During the 90's when no one was sure whether she was Kryptonian or Atlantian, or even what to do with her, she was frequently shown to have a different power set in every issue she appeared in, at one point even displaying telekinesis.
* OddFriendship: With Harley Queen in the New 52 and DC Rebirth.
* {{Otaku}}: There are some hints that Power Girl may be a closet anime and manga fan, especially given her preoccupation with "manga monsters".
* ParentalSubstitute:
** Pre-''ComicBook/New52'' Power Girl was already an adult woman when she arrived on Earth, but Superman and Lois Lane treated her as their daughter anyway.
--->'''Power Girl:''' [tearfully] You took me in! You treated me like I was your daughter!\\
'''Earth-2 Lois Lane:''' Oh, honey... as far as we were concerned, you were our daughter.
** Post-New 52 Power Girl was a little child when her rocket landed on Earth. Pa and Ma Kent volunteered to raise her, and Superman took her in when she was a teenager.
* PietaPlagiarism:
** The seventh issue of ''Comicbook/InfiniteCrisis'' inverts the iconic "Superman carrying Supergirl'' image when [[spoiler:Power Girl holds her cousin's body while Earth-2 Superman dies]].
** [[http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/supermanrebirth/images/2/2d/Supergirl_Vol_6-20_Cover-1.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20130517131559 In the cover]] of ''Comicbook/{{Supergirl}}'' vol. 6 #20, Power Girl is holding the body of a dying Kara.
** And in the cover of "[[http://comicboxcommentary.blogspot.com.es/2017/01/back-issue-review-dc-comics-presents-56.html DC Comics Presents issue #56]]", Superman holds Karen's body... two years prior to the Crisis.
* PleaseDontLeaveMe: In the seventh issue of ''Comicbook/InfiniteCrisis'', as [[spoiler:her cousin is dying]], Power Girl cries out "please, don't leave me alone".
-->'''Power Girl:''' No. Don't leave me alone, Kal. Please, don't leave me alone again.
* PrimaryColorChampion: Karen has blonde hair and her most iconic costume is a white bodysuit with blue gloves and boots and a red cape.
* PutOnTheBus: Both characters, Karen and Tanya, are trapped in an interdimensional void between worlds. In ''Deathstroke Annual'' #1 (March 2018), Tanya tried to rescue Karen, who was already seemingly trapped since post-ComicBook/DCRebirth, but her plan ended in disaster.
* RedIsHeroic: She wears a red cape.
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: Averted with Karen Starr and Starrware, who have managed to create some really cool technology, sometimes by reverse engineering alien tech. This includes [[{{Nanotechnology}} nanotech]] that can create a [[CoolCar 1966 Pontiac GTO]] from what appears to be a pile of rubber, scrap metal and rope. With a vanity plate already installed ("Starr"). Say what you will, Power Girl has ''style''.
* RiddleForTheAges: Pretty much everyone, both fans and creators, have collectively said "fuck it" in regards to trying to explain exactly how and why Power Girl exclusively survived the original ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'', as well as the myriad of irreconcilable [[ContinuitySnarl Continuity Snarls]] that cropped up in wake of that. Even the [[TheWikiRule DC Database]] offers nothing.
* RunningGag: A running gag throughout Power Girl's history has seen [[DoesNotKnowHerOwnStrength her destroy things by accident]], usually as a result of losing her temper.
* SecretIdentity: Karen Starr. At the beginning of her solo series PG even says that she ''misses'' having one.
* TheSleepless: In an interesting twist, Kryptonian bodies don't need to sleep -- yellow sunlight gives them so much energy as they need, as well as quick cellular regeneration and healing -- but their minds ''have'' to. Karen's mental health deteriorates if she doesn't sleep and dream.
* StatuesqueStunner: She is every bit as tall as Franchise/WonderWoman.
* StrawFeminist: By the ''Justice League Europe'' days of the late '80s, she was portrayed as an obnoxiously outspoken feminist. She has mellowed out since then and her past behavior was retconned as a ''diet soda allergy.''
* {{Stripperiffic}}: Despite the notoriety of her costume, it is actually rather tame by modern standards (it more or less looks like a swimsuit), and the lack of protection is somewhat justified considering she is bulletproof.
* SuperPowerLottery: Since she's a Kryptonian, she hit the jackpot: she has super-strength, super-speed, invulnerability, super-senses, heat vision, hurricane breath, freezing breath, she can fly and she doesn't need to eat, breathe or sleep.
* SweaterGirl: It's not like she can help it.
* ThinkingTic: Back in the Silver Age, Karen [[https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lzJeXzGVd9o/V-64zyE7eSI/AAAAAAAAr6k/7mlNgilKJY0vrOQ_YYV5KsHA_iOh6Z9KgCLcB/s1600/showcase%2B99-03.jpg put her finger to her mouth as she pondered something]] much like her main universe counterpart did.
* ThisIsGonnaSuck: Her mouth may say OhCrap, but her eyes say this trope.
* TrappedInAnotherWorld: After the Crisis, Earth-2 didn't exist anymore, and Karen was trapped in the single surviving universe.
-->'''Power Girl:''' I'm from a distant planet called Krypton. I first landed on a parallel Earth similar to this one where I was a member of the Justice Society. There was a Crisis and somehow I wound up here, cut off from everything I knew and everyone I loved.
* TookALevelInSmartass: In the original continuity her [[GeniusBruiser scientific skills]] came from a 'memory teacher' borrowed from Wonder Woman. Before that she came across as reasonably smart, but not the brilliant woman she later became.
* {{Tsundere}}: Power Girl herself during the ''Justice League Europe'' arcs in a non-romantic example with Captain Atom. Considering the one who got her ''dere'' side was the only one who didn't spend all his time ogling her, probably justified.
* UnderestimatingBadassery: Power Girl gets this the whole time. People see her and think: "Blonde, buxom and muscled equal dumb". Ultrahumanite calls her brainless and quips that her brain is her less used body part... even though she always, always, ''always'' outsmarts him. It irks Power Girl, but she admits that it's good being underestimated.
-->'''Power Girl:''' He thinks he's already won. He thinks I'm stupid. It's okay. I like being underestimated.
* UngratefulBastard: Averted with the citizens of New York. They are nothing less than extremely grateful and friendly to Power Girl.
* UpgradeArtifact: Pre-Crisis, when she decided to set up a secret identity, Wonder Woman brought a "Memory Teacher" from Paradise Island that taught her all about computers.
* UrbanLegend: In RealLife, there is a long-lasting myth that Power Girl has such [[MostCommonSuperpower impressive powers]] because Wally Wood, one of her original artists, was playing a joke on/testing his editors. The story goes that he drew her steadily larger from issue to issue after her first appearance, trying to see how far he could go before he was stopped. However, examination of her first five issues shows a very consistent portrayal, and no sources have come forward to verify this rumor, [[http://ragnell.blogspot.com/2006/05/power-girl-you-be-judge.html so it has been effectively debunked]].
* WeaksauceWeakness: The aforementioned "diet soda" allergy to explain her attitude in the Giffen/[=DeMatteis=] ''Justice League Europe'' issues after they left the series, and her vulnerability to "raw, natural, unprocessed materials".
* TheWorfEffect: Since she's one of the most physically powerful members of the JSA, she sometimes gets beaten to show how serious the situation is. For example, it looks like she and Wild Cat won't have any trouble with the [[KnightTemplar Crimson Avenger]], but then we see that the Avenger's bullets can even break her skin. Again, when the team goes to Kahndaq the first time around, Black Adam takes her out with one hit in the climactic fight.
** Lampshaded in her own series "Why, oh why do I keep getting my ass kicked?!"
* WorldsStrongestWoman: A contender for strongest woman in the DCU, being, powerwise, a female Superman.
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[[folder: Power Girl series]]

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