In this review of Poison Ivy #34, Poison Ivy faces off against the GCPD while Janet tries to get help from several of Ivy’s old friends and acquaintances.
Poison Ivy #34
Writer: G. Willow Wilson
Artist: Marcio Takara
Main Cover: Jessica Fong
Variant Covers: Joshua “Sawy” Swaby, Tran Nguyen, and Helen Mask
Release Date: June 4, 2025
This comic book review contains spoilers
The Story
Following the events of last issue, Poison Ivy #34 opens after Janet from HR has sold Ivy out. She is attacked by GCPD troops and helicopters. Overcome with guilt, Janet joins Peter Undine to search for help. When they get separated in the woods, Janet asks Marshview to take her to Gotham City. In Gotham, she teams up with Killer Croc, while in Seattle Undine teams up with several members of Bella Garten’s Order of the Green Knight including Wendy and Sprout. They battle the GCPD and free Ivy but the PD captures Killer Croc as the Order holds back a screaming Janet.
Analysis
Another month, another issue of G. Willow Wilson slowly trucking forward with this Janet-from-HR betrayal storyline. Janet repeats her concerns that Ivy only uses her when it’s convenient but that’s about as deep as it goes before she makes a complete character reversal. I think the real fun to be had in this issue, if you can call it that, is seeing the return of characters like Croc and Bella Garten although they’re given very little to do beyond brief cameos. Overall, this feels like a filler-issue leading up to a big action climax for this arc. The awesomely designed Bog Venus and Xylon are sadly absent from this issue.
Ivy’s philosophical pontification has begun to wear thin on me. She discusses how humanity is always determined to wipe out those that are weaker and different from them. Then she admits that she has held the same ideas in the past. It feels like Wilson is attempting to explore her own philosophical ideas which frequently contradict what we understand about Ivy’s character. And her constant attempts to reconcile this contradiction read as clunky and discordant. Another odd beat is when Bella Garten accuses Undine of splitting up the Order of the Green Knight in order to profit from this division. I’m not entirely sure how she came to this conclusion beyond having a general disdain towards Undine for past actions. But is there anything in this situation to suggest he’s profiting from helping Ivy?
I genuinely think this series will be remembered because of Marcio Takara’s art. I’ve gone on and on about how much I love it, I don’t think I’ve ever had a single critique of the visuals when he’s drawing. He can do it all, the action is dynamic and exciting, the characters are lush and relatable, the landscapes are stunning, etc. The page where Undine disappears into the blackness of the forest, or the panel that uses a tree silhouette to split between Seattle and Gotham are visual feasts. Arif Prianto paints some beautifully colored sunsets and gives Janet a frazzled-red eyed appearance. And as mentioned earlier, the use of deep blacks, whether it’s to convey isolation in a dense forrest, or just to set Bella Garten apart from the Order, is top notch. It’s all great stuff.
Shoutout to Hassan Otsamne-Elhaou who continues to make creative choices with the lettering, specifically with Wendy’s dialogue alternated between black and purple to emphasize her dual nature. Also the chaotic panel layout in the issue’s opening pages is fantastic and sure to grab readers attention right from the get go.
Final Thoughts
Poison Ivy #34 serves up another confusing and largely unsatisfying story, bolstered by some of the best art in all of comics.
