a DIACHRONIC study of the IMAGE of the POWERFUL FEMALE in POPULAR (and maybe other) CULTURES
Friday, January 24, 2014
YEAR 1948: POWDER POUF
Eisner's fierce femme formidable, Powder Pouf, only appeared in a couple of Will Eisner SPIRIT stories. She's not a great favorite among SPIRIT fans, lacking the tragic dimensions of SILK SATIN or the lovable larceny of P'GELL.
Her most noteworthy quality might be her violence. Whereas most SPIRIT femmes tended to beguile hapless males with their beauty, Powder Pouf is first seen robbing a shopkeeper by punching him, kicking him, and banging his head on pavement. Why she felt this necessary-- given that she was packing heat-- may never be known. When an ex-con named Bleaker Moore happened by, she used her gun to force him to be her accomplice. The Spirit tracked Powder down and kept Bleak from doing any more time.
Since the only other Powder story appeared a few months after the first, and again featured her interaction with sad-sack Bleaker, it would seem that Eisner had little in mind for her but a standard "tough girl." Bleaker, by contrast, appeared in a few more stories, so he may have been the real character Eisner sought to integrate into the Spirit's adventures.
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