Retro Review - Harley Quinn #2

HARLEY QUINN #2 - A HEART BROKEN IN TWO

WRITER: Karl Kesel 

PENCILER(s): Terry Dodson 

INKER(s): Rachel Dodson 

COLORS: Alex Sinclair 

LETTERS: Ken Lopez 

EDITOR(s): Matt Idelson 

COVER: Rachel Dodson; Terry Dodson

Our second issue opens with Harley loading personalised bullets into her gun and pulling the trigger, extremely upset. Fortunately for the continuation of the series she only shoots a bust of the Joker. She is coming to terms with losing her partner and contemplating being alone as a criminal. She images what Ivy would say to her, and promptly shuts down her own cartoony imaginative construct with weed killer. 

In an act of normality, she goes to watch TV but has the worst timing ever as the channel she turns to is discussing 'men who don't love their women' and she bursts into distraught tears. An angel (Harleen Quinzel - psychiatrist) appears on her shoulder along with a devil (mini-Joker in a fetching red suit). They argue about how to motivate Harley into pulling herself together. In this case, Harley dries her tears and agrees with the Devil-Joker. 

She bursts into a criminal bar called the Stacked Deck with dramatic flair - impressing Kenny - a crook who's henched for nearly every villain in Gotham and attracting the attention of his brother Nixon. She's not impressed with his advances, and easily takes him out in two blows. This only attracts further attention, causing Harley to have to take out everyone in the bar who took offence to her felling Nixon. 

I really like the entrance of Mr. Able and Mr. Zed - two henchmen for Two-Face who really get into their role. Harley assesses the situation - Nixon and Kenny are about to become new gang members for Two-Face as well - so basically there have been three pages in a role with double the puns per page.... but it's not as bad as it sounds. It just shows how deep Two-Face's fixation is and what the gang member's must acquiesce to. They hear an intruder and... Harley Quinn appears and she's after a job. 

She makes the cut and Two-Face lays down the next job - a socialite doing the rounds with a married man.. the gang intends to kidnap him and collect two ransoms - one from his wife and once from his mistress. The gang get the drop on the mistress and Mr. Cartwright when they leave the Iceberg Lounge, leaving the security team to give chase. They pull up at a theatre and it's discovered that the mistress is also the wife... she has a split personality which isn't being treated. Harley finds this romantic, that Oscar Cartwright accepts his wife the way she is. She takes their side, and attacks Two-Face. 

Two-Face has the upper hand, or so he thinks but he has no chance against Harley playing dirty. Mrs. Cartwright is then politely blackmailed by Harley as she needs the cash. Later on, the Cartwright's come clean to the world, admitting their 'game' and the security guards they used are contemplating their role in all this and how it will affect their business. The news and the police don't believe it was likely that Harley Quinn was involved but Jack Happi (theme park investor) heard she's responsible for the capture of Two-Face and wants to hire them. 

Harley is heading back to her hideout with the loot when she has a brief flashback to happier times with the Joker. Realising that Poison Ivy would be pleased to hear it's over, she decides to let more people know by having a slumber party. 

A good follow up to the first issue. Harley started out her criminal career as a sidekick to the Joker - instead of breaking out solo she has teamed up with the best person to give her a second chance - Two-Face! They get along fairly well, her humour doesn't mesh with him and he resents her attempting to be the "bad cop" when interacting with the Cartwrights. Harley's decision to turn on him was concreted as soon as she was made aware the couple had a twisted yet healthy relationship. She's a hopeless romantic who would do anything to help love find it's way. Which is good, as many people who have just left a relationship may not be inclined to help anyone else with their love. I feel it reiterates how Harley - though a criminal - by continuing to help people and cleverly blackmailing instead of outright robbing her victim - is not completely evil or irredeemable. She's still struggling with the separation but is finding ways to cope.