Powers is a creator-owned comic book series written by Brian Michael Bendis and illustrated by Michael Avon Oeming. The series' first volume was published by Image Comics from 2000 to 2004, the latter moving to Marvel Comics as a part of its Icon imprint. In 2018 it moved to DC Comics as part of its Jinxworld imprint. The Jinxworld imprint moved in 2021 to Dark Horse Comics. The characters and its creators appear in Crossover by Image Comics.
Combining the genres of superhero fiction, crime noir and the police procedural, the series follows the lives of two homicide detectives, Christian Walker and Deena Pilgrim, assigned to investigate cases involving people with superhuman abilities, who are referred to colloquially as "powers".
Publication history Conception Brian Michael Bendis, Michael Avon Oeming and David W. Mack became friends while all three were working on individual small press projects. Bendis says that he also began to "analyz[e] why it was that I [had] never attempted to write a superhero comic" at the time, while he was writing crime books such as Jinx and Goldfish, despite his love of the genre. Concluding that Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns and Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen had sufficiently explored the genre, Bendis decided to work in other genres.Alex Hamby of herorealm.com interviews BM Bendis, March 27, 2002. Excerpts from: Bendis, Brian Michael and Oeming, Michael Avon, Powers TPB Vol. 3 – Little Deaths (Image, 2002), The series' concept was derived from his love of crime fiction and police procedurals in general, as well as specific works such as Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets, Janis Joplin's biography, Taxi Driver, T-Men, Traffic and Visions Of Light: The Art of Cinematography, and would take the form of a Behind the Music-type look at superheroes. Powers, Oeming says, is "a superhero universe seen through the eyes of the police... [as] observed by the media" and everyday individuals. Bendis' intention was to view the "cliches of the superhero genre through the harder eyes of the cops", but with the added layer that (echoing "Behind the Music") "every arc has some footing in a famous rock star story". Bendis' scripts are often compiled from "a list of scenes", eschewing "the big exploding ending" in favor of a "character-driven or psychological ending". Indeed, in experimenting with plots, the duo swiftly moved beyond 'mere' police procedurals (despite those being both creators' "favorite stories"), constantly pushing each other creatively in new ways. In conceiving plots for the series, Bendis emphasizes the purpose and themes in the narrative over "just being cool", and allowing the theme to dictate the direction of the story.Bendis, Brian Michael and Oeming, Michael Avon, Powers TPB Vol. 5 – Anarchy (Image, 2003),
Bendis would collaborate with Oeming, who had already expressed interest in producing a crime/noir comic with Bendis,Bill Love interviews Michael Oeming for Sketch magazine; reprinted in Bendis, Brian Michael and Oeming, Michael Avon, Powers TPB Vol. 6 – The Sellouts (Icon, 2004), inspired by his attempts to get work on The Batman Adventures to do a book in a style reminiscent of Bruce Timm and Alex Toth. Bendis cites two images produced by Oeming (one for Bendis' Jinx, and one for David Mack's series Kabuki) as originating the then-experimental "Powers' style" and "inspir[ing] everything in [Powers]". Indeed, Bendis and Oeming's first collaboration was "Mall Outing" in Jinx: True Crime Confessions. It is included in Little Deaths "for Powers completists and curiosity's sake". Oeming has noted that, although seen as an overtly "cartoony" style, the artwork does not appeal to children, which helps sidestep the potential problem of the book, which contains mature content, being purchased by customers younger than its intended audience.
Despite both creators only having produced work in black and white before Powers, Bendis envisioned Powers in color, and convinced Oeming that it could work, despite the dramatically higher number of sales required to sustain a color comic."The Definitive Powers Interview" by Ernie Estrella in Bendis, Brian Michael and Oeming, Michael Avon, Powers TPB Vol. 9 – Psychotic (Icon, 2006), Bendis also convinced Oeming that the book should juxtapose both the superhero and crime noir genres, as Oeming initially shied away from the former.Bendis, Brian Michael and Oeming, Michael Avon, Powers TPB Vol. 1 – Who Killed Retro Girl? (Image, 2000), Bendis writes in the 'Sketchbook' section of the Powers: Who Killed Retro Girl? TPB that "one of the rules of film noir is that the city itself should be considered a lead character". To this end, he made Oeming watch Visions of Light, a documentary by the American Cinematographers Institute about the art of lighting in film, which he saw as important to the feel of comics also. According to Oeming, both he and Bendis do copious research for their projects, and that before he began the series, he would do ride-alongs with police, meet police officials, and take extensive photo reference of their equipment.
Launch Powers was initially pitched to DC Comics, after DC inquired of Bendis and Oeming what they were hoping to create. Bendis ultimately retained ownership of his creation, which allows him complete freedom as the writer.
Bendis and Oeming were initially worried, after having produced but not solicited two issues of the series, to learn that writer Alan Moore was preparing what was to become Top 10 for America's Best Comics. Although the creators had been confident that the idea of a book juxtaposing superheroes and the police procedural had not been done previously, the knowledge that Moore was doing something similar nearly led them to abandon the series, before discovering that Top Ten featured superhero police officers and a different enough approach that led them to feel safe in continuing.
Powers was initially previewed in a series of original strips which ran in Cliff Biggers and Ward Batty's Comic Shop News, a comics-industry periodical available from many comic shops. The eight strips were colored and lettered by Bendis (before initial colorist/letterer Pat Garrahy became involved) and complemented the up-coming series as a companion piece in newspaper strip form. The strip was later serialized at the online comics magazine PopImage.com.PI COMICS: Original Online Comics. , Pop Image, accessed July 7, 2011.
Debuting with sales of 12,500 (around the "break even" mark for a color comic, although "like ten thousand more" than Bendis' previous book, Torso), Powers was faced with an uncertain future, as sales of comics tend to dwindle over subsequent issues. Image Comics publisher Jim Valentino and head of marketing Anthony Bozzi, however, both read and enjoyed the first three issues (lettered and laid out by Bendis himself, a hang-over from his earlier fully creator-owned works where he took on the complete roles of several individuals), with Bozzi reportedly saying: "If we can't make a book like POWERS sell we really should stop making comics". Image offered to double-ship the second issue, effectively doubling the orders for that issue as an attempt to boost sales: the gamble worked, and issue #1 was soon reprinted, while according to Bendis, "issues #3–11 saw an upswing" in sales every issue. The reported Diamond pre-order figures show sales climbing above 23,000 by issue #7, and topping 30,000 with issue #14 and stabilizing between 25,000 and 30,000 for the remainder of the titles' Image run.Miller, J. J., Thompson, Maggie, Bickford, Peter & Frankenhoff, Brent, The Comic Buyer's Guide Standard Catalog of Comic Books, 4th Edition (KP Books, 2005) – "Powers", p. 1073 These strong sales allowed Oeming to quit his job as a security guard, while Bendis' launch of Ultimate Spider-Man had a positive effect on Powers sales as readers searched out his comics.
Move to Icon In 2004, Marvel launched a new imprint for creator-owned material, open by invitation only to Marvel creators. Powers was (with Kabuki) the first series to debut under this new line, in large part due to Bendis' preeminent role as a Marvel author. The move worked well for the comic, "gain[ing] new readers" in the move from Image to Icon, with the initial issue garnering pre-orders of over 40,000 (and settling around the 30,000 mark with issues #7–8). In part, the move was precipitated by Jim Valentino stepping down as publisher of Image Comics, after having been the driving force in the launch of Powers (as well as publishing Bendis' earlier works Jinx and Torso). Bendis notes that his relationships with publishers "are always with people, not with logos".
For their anniversary issue (Volume 2, issue #12 from Icon), Bendis and Oeming had planned to swap roles – Oeming writing and Bendis drawing, but Bendis suffered an injury to his cornea stopping him from drawing the full issue, although he did provide a cover for the issue. Powers Volume 3 launched with issue number one in November 2009. After a year-long hiatus, Powers resumed circulation with Volume 3 #8 on February 8, 2012.
Bendis has a "Powers idea-list" and the two have "enough stories left in [them], and... the audience to keep the book going" for a while yet. Both have repeatedly stated that they know the ending, not in terms of time frame or issue number, but as a final act of closure, having "promised to never write or draw Powers beyond the amount of fresh ideas" they have.
Revival at Dark Horse Comics In September 2025, a new 12-issue series titled Powers 25 began, published by Dark Horse Comics.
Inspirations Retro Girl – inspired by Pearl: The Obsessions and Passions of Janis Joplin. The first incarnation of Retro Girl's name is Janis. Olympia – based on Pamela Des Barres' memories, I'm with the Band: Confessions of a Groupie, in which she detailed her many liaisons with musicians. FG-3 – inspired by the Fugees, of which Bendis is an ardent fan, and whose breakup greatly upset him. "Roleplay" – inspired by tribute bands and what Bendis calls "the whole wannabe aspect of life", coupled with the lifestyle of role-playing gamers. "Anarchy" – inspired by punk subculture and the anarchy mindset. "Sellouts" – inspired by Bendis' favorite episodes of Behind the Music, which focus on bands characterized by strife and conflict among its members, who feel like "outsiders in their own bands".
Synopsis Powers is set in a world where superpowers are relatively common but not mundane. It follows the lives of two detectives, Christian Walker and Deena Pilgrim, police officers in a Chicago Homicide department devoted to cases that involve "powers" (people with superpowers). Walker himself used to be a costumed superhero named Diamond, but became a police officer after he lost his abilities.
Who Killed Retro Girl? (Powers Vol. 1, #1–6) The first arc introduces Walker saving a young girl named Calista from a convict with a jetpack. Walker is later introduced to Pilgrim as they investigate their first case, the murder of a popular superhero named Retro Girl, who is found dead outside a school with her throat slit. It was said that she was pregnant with Diamond's baby although he was unaware. As the investigation deepens, Deena discovers Walker's past as Diamond as well as his relationships with Retro Girl and the controversial superhero Zora.
Issue #7 was a stand-alone issue in which Walker was teamed with famous graphic novelist Warren Ellis.
Roleplay (Powers Vol. 1, #8–11) Walker and Pilgrim investigate a series of murders at a college campus. All of the victims belonged to a roleplaying club in which the members dressed up as superheroes. Evidence suggests the killings are being performed by a notorious supervillain.
Little Deaths (Powers Vol. 1, #7, #12–14, and Annual #1)