In this review of Harley Quinn #39, Harley’s project to help the criminally insane in crime as well as provide some mental therapy finds Maxie Zeus. Unfortunately this new project draws the attention of Gotham PD and Robin.
This review contains spoilers
Harley Quinn main cover by Sweeney Boo (Images courtesy of DC Comics)
Harley Quinn #39
Writer: Tini Howard
Artist: Natasha Bustos
Color Artist: Nick Filardi
Main Cover: Sweeney Boo
Variant Cover: Jenny Friton, Logan Faeber, Maria Wolf, Adam Warren, Mindy Lee
Release Date: April 23, 2024
God Complex
We pick up where the last issue left off Harley face to face with Mr Freeze. The negotiations do not pan out and the two take their separate paths.
Later that night, Harley and Ivy talk over breakfast. This gives Harley the energy to go out later that night in search of a new patient. She runs into the perfect client. Maxie Zeus is being approached by GCPD Officers with tasers in hand. The cops subdue him with pepper spray and tasers. This is when Harley intervenes. She attacks the cops and draws a gun on the lead detective. Fortunately it is a trick gun but this gives Harley the chance to get Zeus out of the area with the cops in pursuit. The two hide in a dumpster. Infuriated Zeus storms off with Harley hopping onto his shoulders. She convinces him to go get something to eat.
Zeus tells Harley his origin story. Harley then convinced Zeus to allow her to get to know what makes him tick and tell him about it. She will also get a cut of the spoils. Zeus agrees.
Later Harley is teaching her class. She is interrupted at the end of class by the detective from the previous scenes. She tells Harley that she knows it was her that night and Harley tries to joke it off. The detective leaves but this encounter visibly shakes the professor.
That night, Harley and Zeus meet up at the theater. Zeus is skeptical about the plan but Harley convinces him. Zeus interrupts the play and attacks the lead actor. Robin, Tim Drake shows up and engages Zeus. Harley takes to the rafters. Harley arrives to distract Robin while he gets the actor out of the area. Zeus takes this opportunity to attack Robin. Zeus uses his lighting bolt to take out a column and he runs off with Harley on his back.
Later on the rooftops Harley checks her notes. She tells Zeus that they did great but there is still work to do. The two decide to meet up next week. On leaving, Zeus tells Harley about his wife who he has not spoken of for a long time. Harley is interested to learn more about her.
The next night is date night. Harley and Ivy decide to go “shopping” at the local mall after hours. Their reverie is interrupted by a building imploding. Harley sees that it is the only gothcorp building, the old school Victor Freeze used to teach at. She realizes that Freeze is training new sidekicks. Harley decides to infiltrate to train them herself. Next issue is the comedy of Harley Quinn, the tragedy of Maxie Zeus.
Analysis
The art as usual in a Harley Quinn book is fun, dark and colorful. It is dark because as with most Batman Universe books, the action occurs in the night but with Harley, her costumes, her actions and the world around her are colorful. That creates the fun. In reading this book. The art is considerably different and the cartoony style matches the mania of Harley.
The story is as manic as the art. Harley is taking up a position similar to Catwoman when she and Batman fought in the Gotham War. She wants to train people to be criminals but in the process she wants to provide mental health services in hopes of keeping these people out of Arkham. Strangely this is very altruistic and matches the psychological background of Harley. She wants to help people but in her own mania she goes about it in a completely insane way. Searching out the craziest crooks and helping them in their crazy schemes while psychoanalyzing them and hopefully giving them perspective to find sanity so they will not have to go to an asylum.
This story also introduces the true foil to Harley, the Detective Pulaski. Pulaski is not the typical idiot cop we find in Gotham. She is smart and maybe a little crazy herself. She seems to be treating this rivalry as more of a cat and mouse game. She has a strange smile on her face when she confronts Harley in her classroom. Despite Harley’s best attempts to hide it, she is clearly disturbed by this encounter. The art is very clear at the conclusion of their encounter the detective leaves waving buy and Harley is turned and in the shadows with a worried look on her face. She may be a very dangerous adversary.
The part of this story I would find a little lacking is the attack on the theater. I do not understand what the purpose of this was. There is no real criminal target but Zeus showing up interrupting a play set in Ancient Greece.This draws out Robin to lead to a pointless confrontation. A confrontation that Zeus actually gets out of. My question about the point of this scene persists even after several re readings. It might have made more sense if Pulaski showed up as she was the cop who first tried to apprehend Zeus, instead it seems that including Robin is an unnecessary addition of the Bat Family to this story.
Final Thoughts
The art and colors are fantastic and fits in with the story. Trini Howard is becoming one of my more favorite contemporary writers. Her range is notable when comparing her work on Catwoman and Harley Quinn. Two very distinctive types of stories with two very distinct artists.
Unfortunately there is no perfection here as some scenes just do not seem to fit in as perfectly as I would have liked as well as character placement could have been wiser.
Overall a very enjoyable read.
Editor’s Note: DC Comics provided TBU with an advanced of this comic for review purposes. You can find this comic and help support TBU in the process by purchasing this issue digitally on Amazon or a physical copy of the title through Things From Another World.
