Harley Quinn: Black + White + Redder #1 – Chip Zdarsky, Leah Williams, Paul Scheer/Nick Giovanetti, Writers; Kevin Maguire, Natacha Bustos, Tom Reilly, Artists
Ray – 9/10
Ray: This oversized anthology gives us a trio of tales from the clown princess of crime—all by elite creative teams. How does the first issue shake out?
“The Man of Steal” by Zdarsky and Maguire is the shortest of the three stories, but packs quite a hilarious punch in its ten pages. It finds Harley and Ivy in the Arctic, attempting to break into the Fortress of Solitude. Is any of this remotely accurate to the Fortress? Not likely—I don’t think the Fortress has a giant keypad for entry that Harley could blast the code into, nor so I think it has a strange Bat-Butler to greet anyone who enters. Maguire’s art style is always a blast to watch, with some of the most expressive faces in the industry, and the punchline of what exactly is going on in the Fortress is note-perfect. It does feel distinctly set at an earlier place in Harley’s life, but that works for these criminal antics.
“Push Through the Pain” by Williams and Bustos, turns back the clock even further to Harley’s youth when she was a gymnastics champ. As we’ve found out very clearly in recent years, youth gymnastics is a nightmare field, filled with starvation, abuse, injuries, and in Harley’s case, one particularly sadistic coach. While the “mean girls” in the field are the first challenge she faces, the coach proves to be the mastermind behind the abuse and only brings out the worst in everyone—taking some to the point of self-destruction. However, Williams definitely seems to subscribe to the theory that Harley was messed up before she was Joker’s partner, and the much-deserved ending to this issue is highly satisfying.
“Get Gaggy” by the comedy team of Scheer and Giovanetti and artist Tom Reilly finds Harley getting back into the old game, as Joker’s minion Gaggy recruits her for a heist at the museum. With Joker’s other minions looking to strike out on their own, Harley see an opportunity to recapture her criminal glory—but it winds up with her in a box, being interrogated by Bullock. Gaggy has never been a particularly interesting character, but the Bullock segments are far stronger, and this story does a good job of blending the different timelines into a tale that feels noir-inspired but with an extra dose of absurdity.
Overall, very strong first issue with no real weak links.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
