Harley Quinn #17 - DC Comics

HARLEY QUINN No. 17, September 2022

Supposedly promising “the moment we’ve been building toward for months”, Stephanie Phillips’ narrative for Issue Sixteen of “Harley Quinn” certainly should have sated most of this comic’s audience with its succinct conclusion to the American author’s five-part long storyline concerning the Verdict. Yet whilst this twenty-two-page periodical undeniably brings the “violent vigilante” to justice, courtesy of the titular character teaming up with Batwoman once again, its sickly-sweet nature and somewhat illogical set-up, rather ruin the moment; “I think you’re going to make someone really happy one day. But more importantly… We’ve got each other. And we’ve got this entire city.”

For starters, having only given “your hyper-verbal, semi-reformed former villain” a flesh wound with her close-range gunshot, Sam Payne suddenly decides to end it all by blowing up Gotham’s City Hall and all its innocent inhabitants with her still inside it. This suicide mission admittedly demonstrates just how deranged the former cop has become following her realisation as to the deep-rooted corruption infesting her metropolis’ justice system. However, it seems somewhat at odds for Kevin’s girlfriend to go ‘off the rails’ quite so dramatically that instead of continuing to target just the corrupt judges and council workers individually, she instead decides to just wipe the municipal building, complete with any innocent employees and unfortunate visitors, en masse.

In addition, it’s perhaps not as clear as it could be just how Quinn actually manages to save the day..? Batwoman is clearly busy desperately trying to deactivate all the Verdict’s explosive devices before the homicidal maniac detonates them. But just how Harley is subsequently still throwing Muhammad Ali-style haymakers with the same injured shoulder she could barely move an hour earlier is anybody’s guess, especially when Payne has literally just given the colourfully costumed trained psychiatrist a serious smackdown of her own.

Providing this publication with their swansong as its interior artist is Riley Rossmo, who arguably adds a lot of much-needed energy to this comic’s storytelling. Of note is the Canadian artist’s dynamic depiction of Quinzel’s delirious dream sequence boxing the Verdict. The pencilled punches are ferocious and readers will surely be able to hear both the sound of leather upon flesh, as well as the squeak of trainers upon canvas, as they enthusiastically peruse the scintillating sparring taking place in the squared circle before them.

The regular cover art of "HARLEY QUINN" #17 by Riley Rossmo