[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writers: Jimmy Palmiotti & Amanda Conner
Artists: Khari Evans, John Timms, & Alex Sinclair
Summary
Vampires, giant ants, and assassins, oh my! Amidst figuring out how to get the bills paid and selling off the plunders of previous adventures, Harley’s day gets thrown for a loop! Giant ants suddenly burst through a window and are carrying a giant rock of some sort. Not to mention that they electrocute her when she tries to ask them what’s going on. From there the day only gets weirder and weirder. Meanwhile, vampires are being armed for war and Harley Sinn is being moved to a new facility. Just as I thought that I had begun to wrap my head around the world of Harley Quinn, I find giant ants crawling around.
Positives
Palmiotti and Conner are wonderfully eccentric writers and at the same time show just how well thought out their run on Harley is and will continue to be. They are tying in story elements that they had established long ago in the earlier issues of this run and it all feels in place. I also found it quite charming that Quinn kept bringing up one of the characters’ groins (you’ll have to read the issue).
The art of Khari Evans is also a refreshing touch. The proportions of the characters faces as well as their bodies are a little more realistic then previous artists. This drawing style adds a slightly more realistic look to the insane world. It also adds a real creepiness to the villains by detailing the grotesqueness of their faces.
Negatives
The stories in this issue feel as though they are entirely disconnected. In most cases, using multiple story lines is workable and quite exciting but there feels to be a definite end to the newest story while others which have been teased before are clearly going to be continuing on. While fun and certainly entertaining, these stories feel a little too staggered and would have been better told sequentially instead of simultaneously.
Verdict
Harley #14 is a curious and complex mess that tears up the city with colorful characters in both the literal and figurative sense, not to mention crotch shots!
