JOKERS ASYLUM HARLEY QUINN #1

Review by: TheNextChampion

What did the
iFanboy
community think?

261
Pulls
Avg Rating: 3.6
 
Users who pulled this comic:
Users who reviewed this comic:
Written by JAMES PATRICK
Art by JOE QUINONES
Cover by CLAUDIO CASTELLINI

Size: 32 pages
Price: 2.99

I love Harley Quinn.

Okay not like that you perverts. I mean I love Harley Quinn as a character. You can almost do no wrong with her. Ever since Paul Dini introduced her in Batman: The Animated Series she has been the wildcard in almost any story she’s been involved in. Maybe it’s her costume, or her personality, or just everything in general that makes the character works for me. With Joker’s Asylum we finally get to see a one-shot focus on the Joker’s ‘girlfriend’. One word comes to mind when it comes to this issue: Nostalgia.

Everything about this issue felt like the Animated Series. James Patrick, who is an indy writer getting his big break here, seems to get everything about the character and then some. This comic never slows down and the plot is pretty good. This is out of continuity Quinn if you are wondering. Since she is still the Joker’s sidekick. But who cares about continuity? You have good humor, great moments, and overall an action packed adventure.

What also makes this feel like an Animated Series episode is the fantastic artwork by Joe Quinones. I’m still sorta new to the world of Mr. Quinones. The last thing I read with his artwork was his Green Lantern strip from Wednesday Comics. That was a bit iffy because the anatomy for characters changed drastically every week. Here though, I can see why a lot of people love him. Great anatomy, amazing faces for the characters (he even made the goons look unique), and fantastic panel layouts. The more we get into the issue the better the issue keeps looking. Towards the end where Harley is stuck in a warehouse, it just looks fantastic. The coloring by Alex Sinclair also makes this look very pretty. Everything is bright and colorful and again it all feels like I’m watching the old cartoon show. Heck; Batman, Joker, and Bullock look like their animated counterparts but just slightly changed. Again it all brings nostalgia back to me in the early days of sitting at home and watching the cartoon.

This was a last minute decision in my part on picking this up. I love Harley Quinn but with a creative team I didn’t know about and in general the Joker Asylum’s being iffy to read I thought this was going to be medicore as well. Instead what I got was an enjoyable, entertaining, and gorgeous looking one-shot. James Patrick first shot into mainstream comics is a hit and Joe Quinones shows he is a talent artist. It might be strange to say, but if we’re comapring all of the Asylum one-shots, I find this to be the best of the bunch. Even more so then Jason Aaron’s brilliant Penguin story.

Story: 5 - Excellent
Art: 5 - Excellent

Comments

  1.  No mention of the story except that it’s action packed adventure with humour?

  2. Certainly can’t argue that Harley is one awesome character.  The Dini minis were lots of fun too.

Leave a Comment