DC Pride 2024 #1: Poison Ivy & Janet From HR’s Space Adventure in Marasmtus

In Marasmtus, Poison Ivy and Janet from HR travel to the deep space trading hub or Portworld in search of the Dreamer’s Mushroom, which has been long extinct on Earth.

This intergalctic trip is a first for Janet, who finds things not quite like she believes that would be, in other words, more like Earth and less like Star Trek. As the two walk through the city to meet Ivy’s supplier they see a diverse society, but also run into the Heritage Militia, humans who are preaching that the planet shouldn’t poison itself with homosexuality and transgenderism, like Earth has, and the citizens should free themselves from “blindness” and “cultural rot.”

As the group begins to target Ivy and Janet, Ivy gives one of the people a really bad case of athlete’s foot that covers his entire body.  After touring the cultural aspects of the city, Ivy and Janet arrive at the dealer who has the mushroom they came for, however, the alien dealer double-crosses them and turns them over to the Heritage Militia. Poison Ivy takes advantage of the situation and megadoses the members of the Heritage Milita causing them to have hallucinations that will eventually kill them.

If this story featured any other character besides Ivy, it could come off as mean and hateful, not celebrating Pride, but more so driving the wedge further between acceptance and tolerance. However, because it’s Ivy, the story and her actions therein, fall in line with what her character would do, being one who walks the thin line between villain and anti-hero.  Janet from HR is the perfect companion for Ivy on this journey and story as she is the one who is the most grounded about everything happening.