Harley Quinn Black + White + Red #5: Harley Knew How to Get Things Done

Harley Quinn Black + White + Red #5 has arrived, from Riley Rossmo with letters by Deron Bennett, the issue takes a look at the particularly eventful life and death of Harley Quinn. While the story isn’t particularly all that exciting, the distinctive artwork will prove more than worth the cost for this digital first.

To start, pulling double duties on both writing and artwork for a book is no small task. Rossmo excels at this with a truly memorable style and brings all the range of emotion and dynamics to Harley Quinn in a really fresh way. The visuals capture a vision of Harley that stands apart from anything else I’ve really ever seen for her. Exploring her lifespan allows for some really spectacular opportunities that make every page feel like a new experience.

While this incredibly fast pace works wonders for the visuals, it doesn’t really allow for much room for nuance or even all that many twists. It’s a clever idea, but it puts the issue on such confined rails that it loses some of the unpredictable whimsy that elevates some of the best Harley stories. Most of the issue is a basic recap of her most well known origin moments and the ending doesn’t really stick as much as I would have liked. It’s still a fun time, but there just isn’t as much substance as some of the other issues in the series thus far.

Bennett does some really interesting work with the letters in this issue, however. It once more emphasizes the artistic execution in Harley Quinn Black + White + Red #5, but I would say these are among the best letters since Sharpe in the ongoing run. I would love to see Bennett take on a full series for Harley Quinn and bring that flair to a more mainstream title.

With every page being a lot of fun to look at, it’s difficult not to have a great time with Harley Quinn Black + White + Red #5. However, it just doesn’t deliver the depth of character promised from such a strong premise. It’s certainly worth your money though and the series still remains one of the most intriguing at DC right now.