Harley Quinn #16 Review

Written by: Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti
Art by: Chad Hardin and John Timms
Cover Price: $2.99
Release Date: April 1, 2015

The Gangs All Here

Harley Quinn is one of those books where you just sit back and enjoy the ride.  Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti have made it a habit of being unpredictably hilarious so you never know what Harley will do next and I wouldn't want it any other way.  Chad Hardin and John Timms get into the act as well, throwing Easter Eggs on almost every page, turning every read into a warped version of Where's Waldo.  Again, I wouldn't want it any other way.  Better yet, when you couple all that zaniness with a good story, you can't beat this book.  So, when last issue ended with Harley putting out an ad to form her "Gang of Harleys", I couldn't wait.  However, it seems that the whole move to California and Covergence Event put a bit of a wrench in Harley's plan.  How?  Let's find out...



Before we get a gang of any sort, the issue starts with Harley and Poison Ivy catching a movie.  It seems like this is a bit in the future because they are watching the Mad Max remake and Harley is being awful.  You know the person who sits and talks (loudly) during the movie?  That's Harley. While this opening really doesn't do anything at all, it's full of jokes...50 Shades of Grey, possibly Identity Theft (awful movie) and best of all, the DC movie variant covers are all here.

The issue continues with Harley and Big Tony purchasing a building that will be HQ for the Gang and then gets to the meat of the issue...Harley picking the members.  It's about this time that I realized what this issue was...filler.  I guess that DC wanted one more issue of Harley before the Convergence Event and so we get to see page after page of awful applicants.  There are drug addicts, fashion models, and a pregnant lady.  Sure, it's all good fun, but it's also ridiculous and tedious.  We already know some of them from last issue (guess what?  They make the cut) and some of the new gals (and guy) are pretty cool, but it just comes off as unnecessary.

I will give props to Jimmy and Amanda, though, because it still is a very funny issue.  Any comic that pushes a Village People joke nowadays is okay in my book.  Unfortunately, the jokes aren't enough on their own to recommend this issue.  I don't think that anyone skipping this issue would be at all confused come June.  In fact, I bet they recap this issue a bit when #17 hits the shelves.

Chad Hardin and John Timms continue making this book look great.  They compliment the humor and add their own with every page.  If you want proof of how great it all looks, check out the final page and I'm sure you will be convinced.

Bits and Pieces:

This issue of Harley id big on jokes and small on substance.  I hate to use the term "filler", but this issue seems to be treading water until June when the story can kick off uninterrupted.  It still has great art and some real laughs, but if you skip it, you won't be confused when the book comes back in two months.

6.5/10