Suicide Squad New52 #19

June 2013
"Red Rain"

Wow, a Suicide Squad cover that DOESN'T prominently feature Harley Quinn! This issue came out in June 2013 and I am still deeply shocked to this day.

Nevermind. 

Heroes in Crisis #1

There's been a lot of controversy over this particular comic so let's have a look at the first issue and see what the deal is, shall we?

Now this is only a nine part series so expect a lot of variant covers. This one issue has five, alone.

Some I get... some make sense with the comic and some are just... why is this here?

Anyway, the premise is about a Superhero Therapy Centre and the What Could Possibly Go Wrongs?


Harley Quinn and Booster Gold are the main features here, so hopefully they'll be written good because when done right, these two are good characters. Sadly, it does seem like Harley is just shoved in anywhere because she's making mad money for DC.

What the hell is this supposed to be?

DC Universe Harley Quinn #50

This cover, I don't mind too much even though the effect is probably a bit overdone to death. I don't know why Conner can't draw Classic Harley right - her headpiece looks weird and giving her the new Harley bruise coloured eye shadow is just... why? It doesn't look good on ANYONE.

At least they recognise that she used to have hyenas and it was awesome. Even if they do look more like dogs here. Anyway, New Harley is reading a comic and the cover has Classic Harley, and Classic Harley's cover has Bombshell Harley, and Bombshell Harley's cover goes back to New Harley because they somehow ran out of versions of Harley Quinn somehow?

Eh I dunno. The Cho cover is okay, but Harley's eyes are pointed in different directions and I don't get the ducks. It would have been funnier if Harley had been stuck holding the bomb but was waiting at a duck crossing for them to pass. I think she's just meant to be turning around instead of... going behind them, in front of them or over them? Weird.



This extra sized anniversary issue is written by Sam Humphries but begins like so many Conner/Palmiotti issues before it - a one page spread of Harley looking super elongated and about ten million speech bubbles. Talk about your TL;DR! If you are tempted to check out what they're saying, it's nothing interesting unless you like a mother and daughter talking about contracting Glandular Fever back in high school and said daughter apparently dating the whole school then complaining about double standards.

They walk through a crowd of people with the same face and Harley stuffs hers with like a million hot dogs. Harley also can't wear anything else apart from her battle hot pants even when hanging out with her mom. Mom also has no personality apart from 'my daughter's so AWESOME' so she could literally be swapped with any one of Harley's other hanger on's and no one would know.

Oh yeah, plot wise, Harley reads a comic about her and destroys continuity in DC. 

Joker/Mask #2

June 2000 2/4
Story: Henry Gilroy & Ronnie Del Carmen
Writer: Henry Gilroy
Pencils: Ramon F. Bachs
Cover: Ramon F. Bachs

Back to Bighead.. or The Mask's joint rampage through Gotham with Joker.

The cover certainly gets the theme of the issue across even if I don't get - and probably never will - the logistics of those physiques. Plus.. Bighead's teeth just..

The only teeth to parody other giant, unnatural teeth. 

Last time we saw Joker/Mask and Harley, they were on the lam after 'killing' Batman, but here it picks up three days later where it's apparent that no one realises that Joker is involved.. everyone just thinks it's Edge City villain Bighead with some vague Joker connection. True to her roots, Harley gets miffed at her Puddin's snub but then forgets about it on account of putting one too many fingers in the candy jar.

We've all been there, skintight bodysuit and all. 

Meanwhile, GCPD (looking a little worse for wear) is discussing the matter and introducing Lieutenant Kellaway who is here to help with the situation. Kellaway realises that Joker has the Mask while the GCPD are only just beginning to suspect Joker having a more solid hand in the the game.

Batman... or a sneaky imposter - appears and wreaks havoc.

Top 10 Worst Things that Happened to Harley Quinn

Today I gave in to the click bait and watched this WatchMojo.com video titled "Top 10 Worst Things that Happened to Harley Quinn" so I thought I'd go through it here to see what it was all about, what I agree with, what I don't and what I thought overall.

After all, there are so many different versions of Harley Quinn and they've each had different experiences.. Is it going to be fair? Is it going to be mostly classic Harley, or newer Harley? Are video game versions excluded? What about TV and movies?

Let's dig in.

Gotham City Sirens #8

March 2010
Plot/art: Guillem March
Dialogue: Marc Andreyko
Colours: Tomeu Morey

What better time to get back into Gotham City Sirens - and an Ivy-centric issue to boot - after reading about the lobotomised, bland, green place holder in the last review and the recent dramas I had in the comic store.
Givin' me the heebie jeebies just thinkin' about it. Even more so than opening up to the severely emaciated and shrivelled up form of Poison Ivy.

Jump cut to two weeks prior, showing Pam as beautiful as she is vengeful and deadly. Scorning the humans for doing things in her park. No, not THOSE things.. (that we know of, anyway) but rather children pulling up daisies, dudes thinking about their chances with her, people daring to exercise or sit on a bench.

Just imagine this face looking at you... it'll shave seconds off your run time!

Now as much as this is about Ivy's time in the spotlight, the issue shows us what's really happening within the team as a whole.

This scene for example. One look and you might think, oh that Harley, buying random shit in her name and having it delivered to their hideout?? What a card!

What we're really seeing is Selina not only ticked off at the breach of security.. but Harley's lounging on the couch watching TV, Ivy is nowhere to be seen until the last panel and Selina is picking up the slack in the kitchen. This hideout is a tinder box and it's about to explode.

The spark comes from Ivy strolling in from her saunter about Robinson Park at the same time a plant related murder that happened there is being reported on the news. 

Woe at the Comic Store

So today I went into a comic store with my husband and it was very surreal.

For one thing, he bought several comics... I only got two. Usually I have the most, and he gets one or two. So what happened? Well.....Nothing else appealed to me in that store. What the hell, right?

I did see a couple of annoying things though.

A while ago, Gotham City Sirens was re-released with new covers. That's fine, a lot of series do that. However, I saw an omnibus today and this is what it looked like.

Harley Quinn and the Gotham City Sirens. 

Yeah, I shit you not. If that's not the most blatant cash grab combined with complete lack of understanding of the comic... I don't know what is.

I mean, she's on all of the covers anyway... was it not clear who this trio was comprised of??

How gracious of Harley Quinn - the clear leader of this trio - to allow some 'minor villains of lesser fame' to join her on her adventures! Or rather, use her name to boost sales. Bloody hell, is this how sad we're getting, DC? Just slap Harley's name on anything and it's good to go, right? Especially with Maggot Robbie running around trying to ruin that series AND Birds of Prey at the same time!

I thought Gotham City Sirens did a great job of making sure each character had enough screen time and had everybody play to their strengths and even their character flaws. Hell, Selina being the 'main' ish character and the one who brought them all together.. you'd think she'd be the one in focus but no, everything was equal.

Well, that's what I thought anyway, but apparently I just read another 'Harley Quinn and her bitches' book entirely wrong.