Wizard Cover: Ross Superman & Power Girl

[Super Monkey]

here is a much better realistic drawing of Power Girl:

[Klar Ken T5477]

They still look like Kryptonian implants.....uh...basketballs. 

Earth 1's Kara is so much better proportioned and cuter.

[Criadoman]

I understand we have Wally Wood to thank for her, ahem, "attributes".  The story goes he was ticked at DC for some reason, or was trying to make a point that no one paid attention to the book.  In any case, the game was to see how big he could "endow" her til some editor noticed.  Apparently - none have.  But I ain't complaining.

However, Ross' Wonder Woman bordered.  It makes sense for a muscular Wonder Woman (not too much though, I've always liked her more fitness model like than body builder like) - and sometimes he went bulgy and sometimes not so much.  But, she's Amazon warrior type, therefore I'd expect her to be cut.

I don't see why a Kryptonian would need to be anymore than fit, particularly a Kryptonian woman.  Their strength isn't so much the muscle as it is the lighter earth gravity/yellow sun thing.  There'd have to be some serious isometrics being done to create that kind of bulk.  (Or maybe the yellow sun is actually steroids to E2 Kryptonians?)

[MatterEaterLad]

Here's the weird thing to me (remember, a guy who stopped reading comics in 1972).

I really liked the idea of Earth 2 being a planet where Superman was Golden Age and for all we know "the last survivor of Krypton".  It seemed like a best of all world's scenario. Who needs Power Girl?

I can sort of endorse Earth Prime, but then a superhero comes to that "real" earth (and other deviating plotlines come in) and later Superboy Prime and its just another super hero universe. DC really needed to reign in the writers to make the multiverse really interesting.

[Aldous]

Wizard Cover: Ross Superman & Power Girl

Yes, aside from the puffy face and bad skin, the breasts are bizarre. The lady's breasts in the picture posted by Super Monkey are also quite bizarre.

What is it with current American comic book artists? Why can't they draw a female breast? I suspect they haven't seen one since babyhood. I have never seen real-life breasts shaped like grapefruit, yet that is how most American artists draw them, especially for the covers. Of course, American men are obsessed with breasts, and we can probably put it down to momism and the apron strings, or something.

[Klar Ken T5477]

Or an obsession with plastic enhancement that bear no resemblance to a feminine reality.

[Criadoman]

Of course, American men are obsessed with breasts, and we can probably put it down to momism and the apron strings, or something.

As opposed to what?  A "European" or "Canadian" male?  "Momism", "apron strings"?

Try this one (hope I can get away with this on this board)...
Americian advertising is a very interesting thing.  Whereas a nude female form seems a more acceptable, common and apparently inoffensive outside the US, my observation indicates that our advertisting leans very heavily toward positioning the female anatomy as "taboo", for lack of a better term.  Seems to be much money to be made keeping it that way.  I don't think this is the same for European cultures - at least if commercials and programming on TV are any indication.  It certainly doesn't seem as offensive there as it appears here in the US.

I do however, believe that it is Madison Avenue that is primarily responsible for defining the subconscious responses, interpretations and "over-attention" to this particular asset.

I personally have found that in some of my own art, when I draw a female form - and consciously attempt to downplay this, I find that I'm still critiqued for the size as too large.  Therefore, I can immediately determine that there is some constant reinforcement I'm exposed to regarding size that constantly shifts my scale as to small-medium and large.  Advertisting was the source I discovered - then reinforced in other mediums (e.g. push-up bras that produce cleavage that makes them appear larger, etc.)

Ultimately I found if you're going to be skilled at this aspect of anatomy, you need to constantly retrain your eyes to stay more anatomically correct.  However, puritan hypocritical mores we are sometimes a little too guilty of in the US tends to make this natural attribute a very unpopular subject to study.  However, I can see where an artist in this field would be rather compelled to follow suit as to what seems is appropriate in print, television and movie mediums, i.e. "hey - they all got 'em", and there very well could be some marketing/editorial pressure to ensure that is the case.  I mean where would good girl art be without Vampirella?  I'm fairly certain part of PG's genesis had visions of Vampi floating around.

In short, "momism" and "apron strings" have very little to do with anything.

[Michel Weisnor]

I don't remember where I read Power Girl was based off Jayne Mansfield. Any help would be appreciated. Was the Wally Wood story just a false urban legend?

I still don't understand artistic fascination with extremes. Check out both cover to Justice League of America 10.

http://comics.org/coverview.lasso?id=352717&zoom=4

The top cover, rendered by Michael Turner, is blatantly misproportioned and very Rob Liefeld. Bottom Cover, by Phil Jimenez, portrays Power Girl as a square jaw bodybuilder boxom woman. Understand, I am not saying Power Girl should be drawn without her original look, just at least with some anatomical correctness.

Another question, why does Power Girl not wear a Kryptonian symbol?