DC's Very Merry Multiverse

Joy to all 52 worlds-it’s time to celebrate the holiday season across the DC Multiverse! In ten stories that will light your yule log and spike your eggnog, Batman decks the gaslit halls, Lobo goes Old Testament in space, Ragman learns the true meaning of Saturnalia, President Superman attempts to figure out how Bizarro stole Christmas, and Harley Quinn tries her hand at interdimensional caroling. These seasonal sagas are sure to help you have yourself a very merry Multiverse!



Another year, another DC holiday edition!  

Harley is first up so let's see what she's up to. Aaaand.. ok. Hmm. Our little Jewish Christmas enthusiast is horribly depressed and plans to kill herself. Well, that takes the cheer out of things. 

What's going wrong? Let's see..

Standing over a grave, presumably her mother's? Fair enough, that's sad. Sy not being able to visit due to Scarecrow Fear Virus lockdown? Yes, the real life equivalent of the Fear Virus has caused a spike in depression, anxiety and social isolation so this is understandable. She bitches at a bound and gagged Commissioner. Well, this one's a bit specific and I'm guessing she bound and gagged him so that's kinda making your own sadness.. - oh, that wasn't meant to be an example. I'm not the Suicide Police or anything but that doesn't seem like enough to bring down Harley. There she is though, about to become street pizza. 

DC Universe: Batman #89

Straight up, not a fan of the cover!

The concept is fine but the character design doesn't grab me. Penguin and Riddler look about right but Joker is like the skinny jeans version of himself.

Harley - ooh where to start? Right - face bandaid? Gross. Could be a racing stripe but you're either playing derby or you're not, and she's not so it's a plaster until further notice. Looks as if she's wearing a quarterback's armour with the flimsiest shirt underneath. Crazy skinny to the point where's it's distracting and you wonder why she had her arms surgically replaced with that of as young child's. Are these arms going to snap the moment she lifts that mallet? Her shorts look like a Warner Brother's cartoon ran headlong into her butt and saw stars so hard it left an imprint of their delusion - the only thing missing is the tweeting birds. How are her tatty thigh highs even staying up? The only part I really approve of is the sturdy boots. 

Then there is Catwoman - fine I guess, if you like vinyl chafing in your armpits. 

Anyway, comic opens with some hospital staff discussing how everyone's basically doomed because of dust and Joker toxins. I mean, this is a great point. Coincidence this issue came out when it did? Curious now if the vast majority of anti-maskers during COVID19 would wear a mask if they lived anywhere near the Joker or if they would continue their protest, albeit with big, new smiles?

The hospital chit chat gets cut short when Penguin gets unceremoniously dumped in their lap with a stab wound. Speaking of extreme Americano, Batman fights a dude in stars and stripes. It does not end well for stars and stripes man. 

I would like to point out that I haven't read the issues proceeding this so not 100% on what's going on, but I am going to question why if all of these people are in Gotham - why is it only raining in the cemetery? I would also question why the ER of Gotham's Mercy Hospital was so quiet and clean but eh. 

Right, so Harley is back in Gotham and is helping Selina take out a bunch of Joker... gas.. robot things?

I probably should read the preceding issues. Oh well. 

DC Universe: Harley Quinn #64

 

The first thing that drew my attention on this cover was the tiny top banner with classic Harley shoving current Harley. It's cute, and in character. I don't know how I didn't look at the main picture first because YE GADS what on Earth is that? Did the nineties comic scene throw up again? I mean, it's not that baaaad... I guess but it also... doesn't make sense? 

Why is her arm a box? Is her hair made out of pom-poms? I was confused about her foot being a demented roller blade but then I realised that's meant to be her arm, not the box... her foot is that faux Japanese mask and cybergoth fluffies. So... what IS the box doing there? Is it part of her outfit, or is it the background? What's the other thing floating around her? Where are her eyeballs? Is this the revenge of Suicide Squad New52? Her pigtails trailing so long and being around all these mechanical parts makes me hella anxious too. 

Moving on with the comic itself - Harley is still reading her own comic book to escape the realities of her mom's hospital trip and-OH okay, inside is another picture from the cover and as it turns out, the star and box (diamond?) are SHOULDER PADS. 

.....Eh, still more in true to her origins than what she has been seen wearing, even if she's got a reject Dazzler from the future/Jem and the Holo-hell no's/Ziggy Star-Don't feel to her.  

Still weird though. 

Side note, I don't know a thing about Year of the Villain so if everyone's gonna be in these extreme cosplayer gladiator outfits I - well, actually I'm in two minds about reading it. 

Harley Quinn: fake news and rant about Screenrant

 So - spoiler alert - ScreenRant isn't exactly the headquarters of factual information but they do a lot of clickbait and are allllways at the top of any search for general pop culturey stuff, which I know because I make an effort to avoid clicking on their articles. Today though, they got me. 

I was curious about the tattoo on Harley's back so I read this article by a Thomas Bacon (1/9/2020) in which he states it says property of no-one, which is a throwback to her 'property of Joker' jacket from the first Suicide Squad movie. While I wish we could see this relationship actually play out on the silver screen, Mr. Bacon portrays these tattoos like they're a full relationship run-down and all we need to know. 

But attentive viewers will have noticed a subtle change in Harley Quinn; specifically, her tattoos. Most of these were supposed to have been made by Harley herself, while she was languishing in prison, bored out of her mind. But there are a couple of exceptions, ones in places even the uber-flexible Harley couldn't reach. And all of these conveyed a sense of ownership, suggesting the Joker had branded Harley. One on Harley Quinn's back literally identifies her as "property of Joker." It's easy to miss, but this has actually changed in the behind-the-scenes footage from The Suicide Squad, suggesting Harley has had someone paid to alter the tat. It now reads, "property of no one.
It's a subtle detail, but a great visual way of reminding viewers of Harley's character arc. It suggests Harley Quinn is following the same journey she did in the comics, where she learns to define herself as an individual rather than by her relationships. While she no doubt won't stay single - Birds of Prey subtly set up the romance between Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy - she will never again allow herself to be drawn into the kind of unhealthy, obsessive and abusive relationship she had with the Joker.
All this means Harley Quinn is more than a Joker abuse victim. Rather, she is recovering from her time with the Clown Prince of Crime, getting on with her life, and in so doing presenting a brilliant example to viewers. Superhero franchises rarely explore this theme, tending to show healthy relationships and present idealised views of love and romance. But Harley Quinn is far more real, meaning she has one of the best arcs in the DCEU to date. This tattoo confirms that arc will continue in James Gunn's The Suicide Squad.

I was curious about the 'subtly set up romance' thing because if there's one thing DC doesn't do well in it's films it's.... ok, well, one thing among many is that they ain't subtle. 

The link is in the paragraph if you wish to read it yourself but be warned, it's nothing to do with the movie Birds of Prey.

Retro Review: Harley Quinn #21 Hell and Highwater!

August 2002
Writer: Karl Kesel
Cover: Terry & Rachel Dodson
Art: Brandon Badeaux
Inks: Dan Davis
Colours: Guy Major

When we last left off, Harley found out she was literally in Hell alongside some former partners and after a few failed attempts of reasoning with the powers of the underworld, decided to bust out.

This issue brings a new card into play - Ulysses Highwater - a damned bounty hunter, who we see chasing down a bank robber seemingly intent on not just getting his man, but also finding out information on a certain Nathan Drumm. His current prey can't help him but when Ulysses is summoned to see Etrigan - rhyming demon of hell - in order to capture Harley Quinn and her gang... Ulysses wonders if she might know.

Without a doubt one of the best wanted posters I've ever seen!

Speak of the devil - Harley and her gang isn't doing too bad - stealing a tank, and running down Pettit (no doubt revenge for the knee capping from earlier!) with a satisfying 'sklonjtch' noise.
Eventually they get cornered, but keep going and smash through a gate and into a hidden metahuman containment facility.

DC Universe Harley Quinn #63

July 2019
Writer: Sam Humphries
Art: Otto Schmidt
Cover: Guillem March
"Death becomes Harley"

The final trials of Harley Quinn have begun…and the stakes have never been higher! Will Harley succeed in becoming the Angel of Retribution? Or will she fall short, only to suffer the same fate as all those before her?
Plus, a mysterious new comic by M. Clatterbuck appears…in which Lex Luthor makes Harley an exciting offer!
This cover is advertising the tie in for the "year of the villain" event, which is fine I guess, but I mean... going with a cross eyed Harley isn't the image I would have chosen. Plus, I thought the series was pushing the agenda that Harley is no longer a villain? Eh, who can keep up anymore? Especially when she either has hyenas or doesn't or only does when it's convenient like when she needs to sass an anthropomorphic personification of death.

The variant cover artist is Frank Cho who I have criticised before for being
kinda stuck in his ways. Here he's gone a bit different and done an oil painting.. or two. Which, yeah is hard and does take some skill but also.. I don't know if I like these. The first one is okay - but then he changed it to the final cover of just Harley doing her Maggot-Miley impersonation, which then apparently got super pasty white for production and now looks worse. I reckon he should have stuck with the peace sign/Vogue-ing one.





This issue opens with some random hero guy called The Coney Champion - who has sworn to take down Harley for her reign of terror - getting absolutely nerfed by Death. And not the fun Death, like Discworld, but some lazy skeleton who just throws this dude into a truck and kills him.
Which probably the worst part about is not the laziness, not the new character introduced and killed off because he posed a slight threat to Harley, the fact that it had nothing really to do with the story but probably the fact that this guy driving said truck appears to have vehicular manslaughtered before.. and assumes he's at fault even though this other guy hit the SIDE of his truck. What the heck sort of intro is this?

DC Universe: Suicide Squad #2

Writer: Tom Taylor
Art/cover: Bruno Redondo

Let me start by saying I enjoy Tom Taylor's take on Harley from Injustice so I'm actively looking forward to a much less cringe version of her in this series than usual. 

The artist is good too - only the cover is a bit distracting for me because all through my post-high school education I would buy these cheap notebooks for classes from the campus store, and they ALL had this swirly design on them, in various colours but including this exact scheme. So it's a little flash backy for me, like I suddenly remember I have an assignment due tomorrow when I look at this! Also... there are a lot of characters winking at me here... and this concerns me. 

Did I miss an in-joke? Are they cracking onto me? Is the background too bright for them too?

Now this issue opens with the ending, which is cool so we'll come back to that at the end - fittingly.
Besides, I like this part better. Yes, I know Scale and Fin annoyed me in the first issue, but Fin suffering without Scale - more interesting. Bit of character development. Looking at him sitting there in his solitary tank, mourning his brother not just for the fact that he was a relative, but because of their telepathic connection - I felt sorry for him. I want him to get revenge. I want him to grow from this. All these feelings intensify when King Shark appears and reveals he can both hear Fin and cause more devastation by what he wants to show him.

I don't really get the next part, either Fin has the fist bump power of ten men, his glowing torso is his power level or he psychically enhanced his tackle attack but he smashes said five inch glass to have a go at Shark - which, you know, fair enough. Both of them get tasered before much can happen, but still. Looked cool.

Then we go from this dark, aquatic revenge flick to a super bright, super close up of Harley yelling about how insane everything is as Deadshot and herself walk alongside Lok. This I could deal with  (after my eyes adjust of course) but damn, she just had to get one more jab in at poor Cavalier, who was clearly too beautiful for this cruel world.
She does get psychically shut up though, so that helps. Should be noted that not only Lok was annoyed with Harley's yapping but Deadshot also seems a bit bothered by what happened last issue.

Anyway, Lok's taking the current Squad walkies to see the Revolutionaries who are currently enjoying their glass cubes.