Since first appearing on screens in Batman: The Animated Series Harley Quinn has been an instant hit with fans. Originally the Joker's girlfriend and sidekick, over the years the character was given more depth and chance to grow, and has spent the last few years as her own person away from the abusive relationship she once had with the Joker; and has been so much better because of it.
Harley Quinn The Animated Series was the first time that the character got to headline her own show, an animated series was designed for an adult audience, a decision that allowed the writers to take Harley in fun new directions and explore her character in ways that the comics didn't often do; and all with frequent swearing and gore.
One of the things the show did in its second season was to explore the relationship between Harley and Poison Ivy, two characters that have been together in several versions of DC books, usually in separate universes and timelines than the main continuity. By the end of the second season Ivy's wedding to the costumed villain Kite Man was ruined, and the two women had declared their love for one another, driving off into the sunset like Thelma and Louise.
This is where Harley Quinn The Animated Series: Eat. BANG! Kill. Tour comes in, as the new comic series picks up right where the show left off. Written by Tee Franklin, the first ever Black queer disabled autistic woman to write Harley Quinn, the Franklin manages to capture everything that made the series one of the best shows that DC has ever made, as well as taking the characters in a wonderful new direction.
With the GCPD hot on their trail our two heroines (is that the right word?) spend the first several pages of the book racing around the Harley Quinn Highway, getting the cops off their back. This gives the reader the opportunity to get caught up on events as Harley recaps the events of the show, whilst also allowing for some cool action as she leaps from vehicle to vehicle doing damage to the cops.
Whilst this is all good and fun, and it is a lot of fun, it's the relationship between Harley and Ivy that a lot of us are here for. And it absolutely gets centre stage. There's been a panel of the comic doing the rounds in the build up to the release, of the two of them in their car with Ivy running her hand up Harley's leg to somewhere quite special, with a look of absolute delight on Harley's face. Fans have rightly gotten excited by this, as it's possibly one of the most physically intimate we've ever seen the two of them (Ivy's an inch away from the jackpot).
Well, having been allowed to read the issue before release I can confirm for folks that this is probably the most tame the two of them are, as things get a whole lot more physical between them. It's the queerest I think I've ever seen a DC comic, with the creative team not shying away from the fact that the gays fuck. It's delightful not just in its inclusion, but the sheer joy it brings the characters. I don't mean from a 'sex is fun' way, but because it's two people so deeply in love with each other getting to explore each other and learn about each other in ways they never have before; taking their relationship to an exciting new level.
But it's also treated with a lot of seriousness too, as there's a moment in the book where Ivy contemplates what has led her to this point, and it gets too much for her. We see in this moment that it's not just a physical relationship between Harley and Ivy, but an emotional one too as Harley holds her girlfriend as she cries.
The entire creative team have done brilliantly with this book. Tee Franklin has made sure that this very much feels like part of the show, with the same level of humour and fun. The art team have done similarly, with Max Sarin, Marissa Louise, and Taylor Esposito making the book look like it came out of the TV show. Sarin is able to recreate the characters and locations from the series with staggeringly good effect, and Louise's colours make every panel and scene pop.
In just a single issue this might be one of the best queer relationships DC has put to print, and there's still so much more to come. The issue ends with the promise of some wacky and weird stuff to come, and I'm honestly super excited for it. If anything I'm a little annoyed that we're all going to have to wait a month between each issue. If you were waiting to see how well the digital version of the book did before putting in an order for the physical book you should stop waiting around and make sure that you pre-order this whilst you can, as Harley Quinn The Animated Series: Eat. BANG! Kill. Tour is a comic that's going to sell fast, and be talked about for a long while.
Make sure to check back tomorrow as I get to chat to Tee Franklin about working on this amazing new series.
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