In this review of Poison Ivy #18, Poison Ivy, with the assistance of Killer Croc, tries to find a cure for the plant zombie apocalypse she created. Batman reluctantly answers Pamela’s summons while an old foe returns.
Poison Ivy #18
Written by: G. Willow Wilson
Art by: Luana Vecchio
Colors by: Arif Prianto
Main Cover by: Jessica Fong
Variant Covers: Maria Llovet, Yanick Paquette with Dave McCaig, Inhyuk Lee
Page Count: 22 pages
Release Date: January 2nd 2024
This review contains spoilers
Lab Assistant – Killer Croc!
Poison Ivy #18 begins in Slaughter Swamp, Poison Ivy and Killer Croc are trying to ward off the onslaught of an army of plant zombies. With the help of Solomon Grundy, we are treated to the prerequisite action piece of this issue. Luana Vecchio seems incapable of showing any movement lines in the artwork. They fend off these zombie people and there is no emotion attached to their actions. This is inconsistent with previous issues of this series. Two issues ago, Poison Ivy seemed to be trying to come to grips with the lives she destroyed during the initial outbreak she caused. The storyline was drifting into some welcomed, uncharted waters for a Batman “villain”. I don’t want to read about Joker’s redemption. I believe that (though this may run contrary to the public opinion) the Joker is just scary chaos. But, DC had taken several seasons of the Harley Quinn cartoon to enrich and grow the character of Poison Ivy. The comic books she is written into seem sluggish in their portrayal of this character’s sense of responsibility. There will come a breaking point in which she may either become more evil or less. She said it herself in the previous issue that villains are basically selfish.
Grundy wants to wander off, but Poison Ivy talks him into being the watchdog against the plant zombies. It’s an amusing prospect because there have only been four zombies who have shown up. This allows Poison Ivy and Killer Croc to work on getting antidotes made. This entire sequence could have been performed in just a few panels. Pamela doesn’t even make a hundred doses and decides to ask for some help.
Batman lends a reluctant hand
I admit to being a sucker for a Batman cameo. This is made even better when the cover doesn’t announce it. G Willow Wilson is pretty adept in her characterization of the modern uber-jerk Batman. Here, basically Poison Ivy (Pamela Isley) asks for help from The Main Wayne himself. He is condescending and rude and suggests he hand her off to the cops. But, he does offer to help with the antidote.
Vecchio’s Batman might as well have been a statue. There is no vitality to the figure or the form. We are treated to a nifty splash page on page 10 of Batman. But the pose is the same in all the subsequent panels.
Baby Floronic Man!
Poison Ivy comes back to the Slaughter Swamp shack lab. She has another stomach pain on the way which has been happening for the past few issues. There is a panel that might just sum up how I feel about this series. It is the next morning and Solomon Grundy sits alone outside the shack laboratory. Everything is gray and black in the trees surrounding him. The shack itself is brown and miserable. Grundy looks as sad as I was reading this book.
Janet-From-HR shows up with donuts at the Slaughter Swamp laboratory. There is an amusing bit when Killer Croc grabs a donut from Janet. Then Pamela goes into a freaky labor complete with a giant KRACK! Panel. This is pretty gross when you think that it was her breastbone cracking open. Out of the wound comes the Floronic Man.
Overall Thoughts
I don’t think I can say enough about this cover by Jessica Fong. Poison Ivy is shown pregnant with purple and green veins encircling her belly. Huge green clawed hands hover over her as if ready to pounce. My favorite bit is the huge tongue-like vine that is near her neck. It’s long and dripping with a saliva like substance. Jessica even added two droplets of this disturbing substance onto Poison Ivy’s swollen, pregnant stomach. Plus, There is a cute little black and red Harley necklace around Ivy’s neck. I truly wish I liked the issue within as much as I dug this cover. One day, perhaps, we’ll get a fully painted Poison Ivy story by Jessica Fong. Her artwork just brings me joy!
I love, love the cover. But, the actual story of this issue is pretty pointless. Poison Ivy is still making an antidote to atone for catastrophic blunders. This storyline could stretch years at this rate. If G. Willow Wilson wants to lazily write 50 issues of this series, there is no stopping it because of this slow plot. My main wish for DC comics going forth is that they tighten up their plotlines. Do they even converse about some of these storylines with all of their artists? Do they have summits to iron out what everyone is doing? I think not. If you are going to start examining the ramifications of subjecting Gotham City (and the world) with a plant virus that is killing people, then go all the way. Don’t pull back so you can examine the promiscuity of Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn. This comic is insulting to an intelligent comic reader on almost every level. I just hope it ends soon to spare readers from shelling out good money for this unimportant mess of a comic book.
Editor’s Note: DC Comics provided TBU with an advanced copy of this comic for review purposes. You can find this comic and help support TBU in the process by purchasing this issue digitally through Amazon or a physical copy of the title through Things From Another World.
