More of the same.
The last time I reviewed this title was with issue 3; back then I gave it 3.5 stars, citing that if certain improvements could be made, World's Finest would meet the high expectations of its readers.
Now, several issues later, I'm sitting here, with issue 6 on my desk, thinking that not much has changed. Hakkou, the radioactive "thing" who was the villain of the first four issues, has been defeated. Thankfully. As I mentioned in the last review, I found him to be a unmotivated, one-dimensional villain. But, even with his eradication, nothing has changed, the plot remains pretty much at a stand-still, the characters underdeveloped and unchanging. Power-Girl is still her sexually (single-) minded self. Huntress, adamant that they should be focused on finding a way back to Earth 2. A goal which appears to be no closer to being accomplished. The two characters are just not interesting in this series. The years of development for both characters leading up to the reboot is only a distant memory. A memory perhaps that many readers (am I the only one?) are holding on to, hoping for a glimpse of the old Huntress/Power-Girl.
But perhaps most annoying of all; this book seems so distant from the goings-on in the DC universe; Power-Girl and Huntress seem like they've been living in a world of their own. Here are two characters who have been quite literally wrenched from their world and thrown into a parallel one. A huge opportunity was largely missed (with the exception of issue 0); Helena has witnessed both her parents die, with a similar situation with Karen. Surely, they would be intrigued with the world they've found themselves in, that the people they thought dead are in fact alive in this world. This was not the case. As readers, we were probably thinking, "oh, awesome, perhaps Power-Girl and Huntress could meet up with so-and-so...." Again, this was apparently not to be.
But finally, finally, this issue sees these two characters interacting with the world around them. Even, if it is with the appearance of the much-loved/much-hated Damien Wayne. His appearance gives hope to the introduction of other characters down the line. I'm dying to see how Helena reacts to seeing this Earth's Catwoman....I mean, seriously! Why hasn't this been done yet? Issue 0 thrived off that, readers love it, implementing it here would give the series a much-needed boost.
Before I go on too much of a rant, this issue isn't all bad. (As much as I make it out to be otherwise....)
Maguire's art is good and consistent. He's great at capturing expressions, though there were a few moments where it looked a little weird. Also, Levitz looks to have pushed the "get back to Earth 2" objective to the side. Which is a good idea- it's a long-term end-goal; instead of it being at the center of every issue, which just made it more evident that they were not getting closer to achieving it.
Now, back onto the bad (briefly). As I was reading, I kept wondering the same questions that have been plaguing me throughout this run so far. The writing is full of holes; questions that will probably never be answered.
For example;
Why, I found myself wondering, does Huntress even need to steal money, if her best-friend happens to own a multi-million dollar company?
Was it ever explained why P-G ever revealed to her assistant that she has powers?
There's also a lack of any real justification of stealing full stop. They're supposed to be super-heroes after all. Good guys to put it simply. More importantly however, Huntress is stealing from this world's variant of her father.
Speaking about the writing: Levitz's work here is some of his weakest. Damien is more annoying than he normally is, Power-Girl resorts to old tired character tropes, which mostly comprise of sexual banter/ponderings. Oh, and just in case you were wondering, her outfit gets ripped/destroyed ......again.
Bad thing two: I still don't like Perez's line work. In the issue 3 review, I mentioned this, and it hasn't improved in the slightest. Splitting the comic by artist did it favours, because I would have probably given this 2 stars if Perez had done all the pencils.
Onto something a little different;
Ok, I have to admit, a part of me seriously enjoyed seeing Damien literally get his butt kicked by Power-Girl. And this is what little the comic still holds for me; the fun factor. Seeing things that we may not see in other titles. I was literally smirking at some of the panels.
Also, the character interaction between Helena and Karen - we can, in some small way, believe that they are good friends.
This is why I keep buying the title. Heck, it has its flaws, huge flaws. (As listed above). But, it does - rarely- have its moments of (bordering on....dare I say it?) brilliance. Now, all we need is a new creative team......
