Still on the Shelf #11 - Harley Quinn

Originally published June 3rd, 2003 on www.ComiXtreme.com. This work is, of course, © Craig Reade.

Overview

As many of you know, Harley Quinn got her start in the Warner Brothers Batman Animated Series. There she became popular enough to be introduced into the normal comic continuum (with some minor changes) in the 1999 Batman:Harley Quinn one-shot. From there she launched into her own series, where she soon split with the Joker, and struck out on her own.

The Story So Far

Fast-forward to issue #26, to where A.J. Lieberman took up the writer's mantle. The series took a decidedly darker and more serious turn here. Lieberman's work on Harley Quinn has earned him much acclaim, including issue #30 being named Wizard's Book of the Month.

Harley has taken up the alter ego of Jessica Seaborn, and actually resumed practice as a psychiatrist, only moonlighting as Harley Quinn. She takes "freelance" work as a professional criminal (a decidedly different turn for Quinn), and even ponders quitting the "game" and returning to normal life. Lieberman even flirts with a potential romance between Harley and a police detective by the name of Bishop, who ironically is interested in Jessica Seaborn, while he has sworn vengeance against Harley, who he believes killed his partner. Added to the mix is a resurfaced Joker, who has decided to once again involve himself in Harley's life.

Issue #32 begins a new arc in the series, The Year of the Rat. Harley decides to finally go on a date with Bishop, but the Joker horns in. Befuddled as to why Harley would seriously entertain dating a cop, he makes it his business to figure out what angle Harley is running with Bishop. With Bishop in a restaurant, and Joker setting up his own "date" on the roof, Harley bounces back and forth, in an effort to keep Joker from ruining a potential love interest outside of the "cape and cowl" world. Or so we think.

The issue ends with the Joker coming to the conclusion that Harley is not interested in the cop at all, rather, she is interested in the 80 million dollars that were recovered in a drug bust lead by Bishop (as reported at the beginning of the issue).

Thoughts

First off, it is a decent story. While I found Lieberman's first arc, Vengeance Unlimited, to be overly cumbersome and way too complex (a flashback towards the beginning of issue 26 takes four issues to resolve! Talk about confusing!), this current arc has the makings of an interesting drama. Knowing Harley's predisposition for forgiving the Joker's every sin, her seeming dismissal of Bishop's advances in earlier issues, and the timing of the drug bust does make you wonder if she is indeed only interested in a big score.

However, while the story is decent, the characters are all wrong. Lieberman's portrayal of the Joker and Harley are very much skewed- to put it bluntly, they are completely sane. Long gone is the bouncy Harley who is unconcerned with crime for cash, who had a penchant for "unusual" matchmaking and a flair for the dramatic. Gone are the pet Hyenas and the gag weapons, and with them the humor. This Harley is stealthy and calculating, and all too cerebral for my tastes. Lieberman's portrayal of the Joker is similar, instead of a maniacal lunatic with a thirst for a good laugh at the expense of the innocent; we get a crime boss who likes to dress up like a clown. Among the core components of both of these characters is their utter insanity, and Lieberman has completely obliterated any trace of that. This Harley uttering "Hey Puddin'," in any sense, to this Joker just seems wrong.

Lieberman's carefree tampering with Harley's character does not stop there. Her gag-weapons have been replaced by throwing knives. She also now must take regular doses of the potion Poison Ivy gave her to enhance herself or she dies (making her a virtual drug addict). She has also gained some new powers, including a seriously heightened ability to heal (and here I thought only her immune system was enhanced), and the all-to convenient talent of breathing underwater. Also, quite liberally, he has virtually re-written Harley's origin at Arkham, making me wonder if he had even read the one-shot issue where she made her debut.

The art since Lieberman has taken over has been great- dark and gritty. While this, too, is very different fare for Harley Quinn, it definitely fits well with Lieberman's stories. Beyond that, I believe that "dark and gritty" fits perfectly well in a story where the villain is the main character. So no matter which Harley I am reading about, the art in these recent issues has given me nothing to complain about. Mike Huddleston and Troy Nixey, who handled the art for the first four issues of Lieberman's run, are set to return with issue #33. While I had no problems with the work of Fox and Yeowell, who filled in on the two following issues respectively, I think it will be good for the title to have what is amounting to the "regular" art team back on the title. We all like our comic characters drawn consistently, after all!

Bottom Line

Personally, I liked the old Harley better. Lieberman took a very unique character and turned her into a cliché female mercenary. I miss her irrational thought processes and seemingly random schemes that had become such am intricate part of this title. Somehow, I cannot see this version of Harley Quinn developing a romantic (though sadistic to be sure) interest in Jimmy Olsen. Sadly, it was just that sort of zaniness that was so appealing about Harley Quinn before Lieberman took over.

I am completely on the fence regarding Harley Quinn. On one hand, I have read each issue of Harley Quinn, and have developed a loyalty towards the title. On the other hand, I find the changes to be very unsettling. While Lieberman has demonstrated that he can write a compelling story, his mishandling of Harley's character has lead me several times to questioning if I should continue picking up this book. At this point, only time will tell.

Issue #33 is due out tomorrow, June 4th. If you are a new reader to Harley Quinn, and would like to give it a chance, I recommend picking up a copy of issue #32 at the very least. As tight as it is on the wallet, going all the way back to issue #26 might not be a bad idea either. Many of the plot points in the current arc are holdovers from the Vengeance Unlimited arc, and reading that should get you up to speed on those, as well as allowing you to follow the introduction of Doc and Bishop, who have become integral characters in this title.