In this review of Poison Ivy #47, Ivy reaches a breaking point as she feels betrayed by everyone she cares for and wanted to protect. Her solution is truly medieval.
Poison Ivy #47 main cover by Jessica Fong (DC Comic)
POISON IVY #47
Written by G. WILLOW WILSON
Art by LEANDRO FERNANDEZ
Cover by JESSICA FONG
Variant covers by NOOBOVICH, KYUYONG EOM, and MANNY VINCENT CARBONILLA
$3.99 US | 32 pages | Variant $4.99 US (card stock)
ON SALE 8/26/26
This review contains spoilers
Poison Ivy #47 begins as Ivy wakes from a dream of happier times and realizes she is sleeping on The Hill who came to warn her. After Ivy killed Bog Venus, the Parliament of Trees is marching towards Gotham City. Ivy beats feet back to City Hall where former supporters are protesting her recent actions as Mayor. Ivy and Sprout slip inside with shouts from the madding crowd ringing in their ears. Ivy is perplexed at their behavior.
More bad news arrives from a nameless intern who informs Ivy that Janet-From-HR and Juhi have taken a personal day. Ivy demands that the intern summon Peter Undine and retreats to her office. She wants to call Harley Quinn but balks as Sprout knocks and enters. Clearly frustrated, Sprout objects to turning the Order of the Green Knight into a security force and further that the group took a vote and elected Peter Undine (whose arrival infuriates Ivy).
In Throatcutter Hill, Janet and Juhi buzz Harley Quinn’s apartment, but “Harleen” refuses to come down unless Ivy apologizes first. Sometime later, Janet returns to City Hall and talks to Ivy who faces a crisis of confidence.
Poison Ivy #47 ends as Ivy concocts a dangerous plan to pit the Parliament of Trees against Vandal Savage which will result in returning Gotham to its ancient roots. At a nearby power station, giant vines tear through the ground, destroy the grid and plunge Gotham City into darkness.
Analysis
Poison Ivy #47 sets up the “Bad Seeds” multi-part crossover event in the Bat-titles, and the plot pushes Ivy to the limits of her sanity as she actively alienates herself from every remaining ally after feeling disrespected and cornered. Writer G. Willow Wilson crafts Ivy’s tragic doom spiral by mixing in paranoia, pathos, isolation and gallows humor. Ivy’s fatal flaw is her zealous commitment to a cause (or a relationship) to an unhealthy level. The cover art to Poison Ivy #47 is a metaphor of Ivy’s growing sense of betrayal.
Ivy’s attack on the Gotham power station is a physical manifestation of her repressed rage. Ivy tries and fails and tries again to make the right choice (remember, this series started out with her wanting to end all human life on Earth). Throughout this series, Ivy has wavered between her dedication to extreme environmental activism and protecting the few humans she cares for (Ivy, Janet, Peter). In Poison Ivy #47, she chooses the former.
Ivy’s latest rash decision (giving up Gotham to the Parliament of Trees) in an effort to fix all of her previous mistakes as Mayor (with an eager assist from Commissioner Vandal Savage) suggests a gambler’s fallacy approach and Ivy is clearly addicted to the rush. Meanwhile, the intercom exchange between Janet and “Harleen” is both heart-breaking and absurdly amusing in both dialogue and visuals.
Ivy’s emotional instability (is it a chemical imbalance from her transformation or pheromones from The Green?) is pushing her into dangerous territory as she slips back into villain status, not just for attacking the power station, but also for surrendering Gotham City to a primordial fate.
Artist Leandro Fernandez (The Old Guard) evokes series artist Marcio Takara with a comparable minimalist style that still provides necessary cues in body language, facial expression and panel composition. The city hall sequence, particularly that opening full page, is bustling with energy and dozens of characters, setting the stage for the showdown to come. Fernandez’s use of shadow and silhouette amplifies the sense of mood in specific panels.
Final Thoughts
Poison Ivy #47 sets up “Bad Seeds” by chronicling Ivy’s downward spiral that ends up threatening Gotham City, her friends and her sanity. The opening salvo hints at massive ramifications that will impact Ivy deeper than whatever happens top Gotham City. The story and art are fun and tragic.
