Review: Future State - Harley Quinn #1


“Future State: Harley Quinn” – Part One

Writer: Stephanie Phillips
Artist: Simone Di Meo
Color Artist: Tamra Bonvillain
Letterer: ALW’s Troy Peteri
Review by Kendra Hale

Future State: Harley Quinn #1 is everything! I admit to having the highest of hopes for what was to come from the new worlds that Harley Quinn could find herself in, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Batter Up!

We find Harley in a world where Batman’s gone and all masks have been outlawed. Someone, or something, known as The Magistrate has taken control of Gotham City. Harley finds herself face to face with an old friend once captured. It seems Jonathan Crane has found a new life and purpose under The Magistrate, and has taken down the remaining menaces in Gotham.

Quinn has the chance to prove herself, and in doing so earn a semblance of freedom by helping Crane. Little by little she’s able to decipher what Crane’s been missing about why some villains still evade him. Crane isn’t satisfied with these mere morsels as Harley soon finds out. He pushes Harley to help him take down a villain that keeps slipping through his hands. Will Harley be able to succeed where Crane has failed time and time again?

He’s Creating Art

I may gush a bit, but the artwork in this book, by artist Simone Di Meo and colorist Tamra Bonvillain, is spectacular. I love the way the images just feel so alive, like you’re watching an animated feature. I’m living for the futuristic style that you can see, not only in the characters themselves, but also in the architecture and the backgrounds. Harley’s hair is absolutely adorable.

Everything about Future State: Harley Quinn #1 catches your eye, and the story flow is perfect. The villains brought in aren’t your normal ones, either and that’s an extremely nice touch.

Conclusion

My expectations for what was coming have been shaken to their foundations. Crane and Quinn’s rivalry is beautifully played out, and the banter between them was hilarious. I like that you get to see Harley getting under Jonathan’s skin. The only thing that rubbed me wrong was that in this version of the Harley’s world we still have the age old stereotype of Harley being “Joker’s Girl”. We’ve been far past that for years, even before the Joker War/Punchline story line, but then again, this is a completely different arc and story so maybe that can be forgiven. The story isn’t affected, but as it’s brought up several times throughout this issue, it was harder to ignore.

That said I truly look forward to what comes next, and am on the edge of my seat to see how the rest of this tale plays out.

Images Courtesy Of DC Entertainment

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thought Bubble 2024 convention & festival dates announced

Image
Article by Steve J. Ray Thought Bubble  is, without a doubt, the UK’s best entirely comic-based convention and art festival. I’ve been fortunate enough to attend the show for the last three years, and have been anxious to see what’s in store this year. Well, the wait is over, as the team behind the event has announced the Thought Bubble 2024 convention & festival dates. THOUGHT BUBBLE ANNOUNCES 2024 COMIC CONVENTION & FESTIVAL DATES ACCLAIMED COMIC ART CONVENTION AND FESTIVAL TO TAKE PLACE ACROSS YORKSHIRE THIS NOVEMBER THOUGHT BUBBLE FESTIVAL LEEDS & ACROSS YORKSHIRE 11 -17 NOVEMBER 2024 THOUGHT BUBBLE COMIC CONVENTION HARROGATE CONVENTION CENTRE 16 & 17 NOVEMBER 2024   https://www.thoughtbubblefestival.com “Thought Bubble is the place to be. This is the show where everyone feels and is treated like family” –  Dark Knight News “Thought Bubble is the most important comic convention around” –  Popverse Returning to the Harrogate Convention Centre,...
Read more

Mystic Muses: A D&D Podcast

Image
Article by Philip Clark An all queer cast. An all femme ensemble. A non-binary Dungeon Master. Throw in some quality story-telling and role playing too, this sounds like a whole lot of fun! If any of the previously mentioned things has piqued your interests, then I implore you to check out Mystic Muses. You can find this wonderfully crafted podcast where you can find all your other favourites including Spotify. There are currently four episodes out. Episode 0 is the prologue and character introductions, and I have to say it is very well put together! The intro to each episode is cleverly crafted, with the players and DM each sounding off a sentence to bring us into the game space. Speaking of bringing us into the game space, Adam, the talented DM sets the scene for the story very nicely. A descriptive, yet concise introduction to the environment gives both the players and audience a vibe of what we're in for. Then come the delicious character introductions that give vivid descripti...
Read more

Fantastic Universes Interview: Madison, Matthew and Macsen Lintz From 'The Walking Dead'

Image
Interview panel led by Steve J. Ray, with a gathering of Comic/TV Media Journalists. I've spoken to some amazing people over the last couple of years; writers, artists, costume designers, and actors from some of my favorite TV shows. It's no secret that I'm a huge comic-book fan, and one of the TV series that's based on and inspired by a comics title - but has gone on to be so much more - is The Walking Dead . At a recent Comic-Con in London, I had the great opportunity of leading a panel where some fellow journalists and I spoke with Madison, Matthew and Macsen Lintz, three siblings who played Sophia and both iterations of Henry on the show. The eldest, Madison Lintz (born 1999) played Sophia Peletier - Carol's daughter - in the first two seasons. She's also well known for playing Maddie Bosch in the Amazon series Bosch . She started acting at the age of six, filming commercials and voice-overs. Matthew (born 2001) took over the role of Henry from ...
Read more