Harley Quinn #10 Review

A Double Date Gone Wrong

Written by: Stephanie Phillips

Art by: Laura Braga

Colors by: Arif Prianto

Letters by: Deron Bennett

Cover price: $3.99

Release date: December 28, 2021

Harley Quinn #10 takes Harley and Ivy on a double date with Kevin and Sam to find out where they're headed in this grand adventure called Life. But, when old temptations present themselves, Harley is reminded that change doesn't come fast or easy.

Was It Good?

Harley Quinn #10 is two pages of plot development, two pages of character development, and a whole lot of nothing in between. That's not an exaggeration. Almost nothing happens in this issue. So let's get into specifics.

[Spoilers Ahead]

Coming out of the events of Fear State, Harley is getting her life in order, starting with a date night with the recently "restored" Poison Ivy (or just Ivy, if you prefer). They had a double date with Kevin and his potential girlfriend, Sam, for an after-hours museum exhibit.

During the museum tour, Ivy spies a rare diamond and tries to tempt Harley into stealing with her when they're surprised and attack a pair of museum guards. Unfortunately, Harley accidentally gets scratched by one of Ivy's thorny vines and walks out on the robbery in progress in front of a museum full of people. 

"Wait, wait, wait. Hold up!" you might say. "Ivy tried to steal a diamond and attacked a couple of guards in front of a museum full of witnesses. What did Batman do? What did the GCPD do? Did Harley get arrested? Doesn't this throw a monkey wrench in Harley's plans to go straight?"

All good questions, my fine reader. The answer to all of them is "Nothing." Nothing happens to Ivy or Harley or anyone else. Even the museum attendees act as if nothing is going on. The museum guards do nothing but stand there helplessly while Ivy attacks them. Nothing happens.

Later, Ivy catches up to Harley moping on a dock down by the waterfront. Harley effectively says they need to go on a "break" so that Ivy can figure out what she wants. In other words, the entire double date and Ivy's robbery attempt were a nothing burger excuse to give Harley a reason to separate from Ivy.

A quick word on the art, Rossmo is off the internal pages (again) in this issue, replaced by Braga. It's a pleasant visual change from Rossmo's funhouse mirror style, but Braga has a distinct difficulty with action and character placement. For example, in one panel, Harley is behind Sam, and in the next, Harley is in front of Sam and somehow bumps Sam's drink out of her hand while looking in the opposite direction. Again, Braga is less visually offputting than Rossmo, but it's as if she doesn't understand movement, making for some very confusing panels.

Bits and Pieces

Harley Quinn #10 is a bit nonsensical to matter much and feels like an excuse for Stephanie Phillips to force the issue's ending.  Laura Braga's art is very different from Rossmo's bewildering funhouse mirror style for a more relatable visual experience. Still, there are issues with movement throughout, making for some confusing panel sequences.

5/10