Harley Quinn And Poison Ivy #3 Review

Harley Quinn And Poison Ivy #3 Review

"Down the rabbit hole and through the looking glass, and what did Harley and Ivy find there? A tea party with some very unexpected and uninvited guests! It turns out the Mad Hatter has a game of his own to play, and Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn must decide between fight and flight. And is that gift Lex Luthor dropped off for Ivy actually of any use, or is it just a steaming pile of manure?"

Written by Jody Houser
Art by Adriana Melo
Inks by Mark Morales
Colors by Hi-Fi
Letters by Gabriela Downie

Cover by Mikel Janin

The story

It's tea time and relaxation for our fav gals but can you trust Mad Hatter as the host?

This series is getting better and better with each issue and it's a shame it's a mini series and not an ongoing. Poison Ivy's mind is fractured and Harley suggests to let Mad Hatter help her girlfriend with finding her old self. Of course he has his own plans for them (that include some Cronenberg-ian creatures - no spoilers) and he definitely can't be trusted. 

There is action, fun, emotion and the book seems to find it's own internal pacing. There's something symbolic here and the Thelma and Louise reference in the end solidifies it. This is more than a road trip, it's a trip for Harley and Ivy to find who they are and where they stand in a post Heroes In Crisis era. 

I had some complains about #1 and #2. It felt that the book was more a Harley Quinn book instead of a Harley and Ivy one because of the focus on her but #3 starts showing us us the Ivy side of things. We see how Pammy is slowly getting better, learning to control her powers and her new connection to the Green. There are a lot of questions to be answered. Remember that Ivy literally knows every secret in the world (Everyone Loves Ivy) and we still don't know what the new Parliament of Flowers wants from her.

Jody's dialogue is to the point. These are two women in love. These are two women attempting a fresh start. Trying to fix mistakes of the past. It works brilliantly!

The art. OMG the art.

Adriana, Mark and Hi-Fi give us a colorful, detailed book filled a lot of awesome Harley and Ivy panels. Every book that Ivy appears is a test for the artists involved because of the vine-y, flower-y details they have to draw and color. 

It's a feast for the eyes. Both girls looks stunning and Mad Hatter and his ... plan ... look threatening and disturbing. We get a lot of emotions and detailed facial expressions that are integral to the story and a couple of smartly placed visual easter eggs (Hi Floronic Man).

But most importantly: Poison Ivy looks absolutely gorgeous. Healthy, beautiful, goddess-like. Her powers, her costume changes, her action scenes ... Adriana if you are reading this, you must not stop drawing Pammy. 

Gabriela Downie has a distinct and playful lettering style that fits the tone of the story and love the almost Swamp Thing style in Ivy's word balloons.

Mikel Janin's covers are fantastic. I loved his work in Justice League Dark and have been bothering him since back then for more Poison Ivy and now my wish has come true!

If you like well written, fun comics by a talented team of creators, buy this.

If you are a Poison Ivy fan, buy this.

If you are a Harley Quinn fan, buy this.

If you are a Harley and Ivy fan, buy this. 

I'd like to see more of Poison Ivy's story explained and play a slightly bigger part in the story but this is just a personal opinion. This is one of the best comics currently out there, definitely an excellent value for money. If only it lasted longer.

5/5