Harley Quinn #61 is written by Elliott Kalan and published by DC Comics. Artwork is by Carlos Olivares, colours by Marissa Louise and letters by Lucas Gattoni. Main cover art (left) is by Brandt&Stein.
Harley Quinn (2021-) #61 is available now, in comic book stores and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold. Grab your physical copy from Forbidden Planet or digitally from Amazon Comixology UK.
Synopsis
Okay, so I mayyyy have left a little something out of that last description. I ain’t the only Quinn in town these days. Ya see, my rational, non-fun-loving brain parts have taken a body of their own, and she’s claiming my doctorate as her own. You can’t do that! I created Facebook! What do you mean she’s wired in?! This is a real Dr. Jackass and Ms. Hyde situation, except we both got so tired of each other that we moved out and got our own bodies!
Review
If you needed a single image to summarise the current state of Harley Quinn, it is this: she is on the news, terrorising Gotham in what reporters are generously describing as “an off-the-rack Batman mask.” Harley is, it is fair to say, going through it. Somewhere above the city, Colonel Blimp, one of Batman’s more wonderfully obscure villains, is plotting revenge from the comfort of his own blimp. Yes, the blimp. And inside Harley’s head, the Quinntellect (or Quintelligence) is staging what can only be described as a full revolt. Crisis of Self is an apt subtitle.
The source of all this spectacular unravelling? A breakup. If you have been keeping up with G. Willow Wilson’s Poison Ivy run, you will already know that Ivy has recently been appointed Mayor of the city, and that the power has done some genuinely strange things to her. One of the most recent issues opens mid-argument between Harley and Ivy, ending in what looks very much like the end of their relationship. This issue picks up directly in the wreckage of that scene, and it stings.
What is particularly satisfying is the way these two comics can exist independently of one another and still knock on so beautifully. It is really fun to have two series that are separate but carry a genuine knock-on effect on each other’s storylines. It keeps the excitement alive across both runs, enriches the world, and gives you every reason to stay current on both.
The fallout from Harley’s heartbreak eventually takes a turn that can only be described as very The Substance coded. The Quinntellect physically separates from Harley’s body, manifesting as a bright pink, fully animate version of her, entirely distinct from the original. Two Harleys, at polar opposite ends of her character, with the chaos only deepening from here. This is surely going to go well. Right?
Verdict
Batquinn vs Harleen: Crisis of Self picks up in spectacular fashion, delivering the kind of gleefully unhinged storytelling that makes this series such a joy. With Harley reeling from her breakup with Ivy (as explored in G. Willow Wilson’s Poison Ivy run), the Quinntellect takes matters into its own hands quite literally, splitting from Harley’s body entirely. Two versions of one woman, standing at opposite ends of who she is. What could possibly go wrong?
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