Harley possesses phenomenal cosmic power, but she also has phenomenal cosmic enemies. Things are about to get weird(er). Your Major Spoilers review of Harley Quinn #37 from DC Comics awaits!
HARLEY QUINN #37
Writer: Tini Howard/Erica Henderson
Artist: Logan Faerber/Sweeney Boo/Kelley Jones/Elena G. Bansh/Stefano Raffaele/Mindy Lee/Marguerite Sauvage/Erica Henderson
Colorist: Logan Faerber/Mindy Lee/Marguerite Sauvage/Jose Villarrubia
Letterer: Steve Wands/Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Editor: Arianna Turturro
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: February 27, 2024
Previously in Harley Quinn: Honka honka! That nogoodnik Brother Eye has soured my reputation across the whole dang multiverse and it’s gonna take me, myself, and I to put things right. Join me, Tini, Sweeney, and a panoply of clown girl artist extraordinaires as we go across the clowniverse! If you don’t buy this comic then my lawyer P.P. Thompson is gonna sue you!!!
THE DC MULTIVERSE IS BROKEN
After gaining the unusual ability to traverse the multiverse, Harley Quinn has been tracked down by The Brothers Eye, a pair of enforcers with their own army of OMACs. And thanks to her jaunts through the various worlds of DC Comics, Harley is multiversal enemy number one. The issue begins with the Eyes trying to discredit her and turn the people against her, which begins to work, until she escapes into the Dark Multiverse. Crossing the dimensions, Harley “possesses” her own alternate selves, but each time the Brothers Eye send their creation, the rogue computer program HARLEY.EXE, to delete her. Each time, though, Harley learns a lesson, but reality breaks and sends her on to the next reality. But when the OMACs address her by name, Harley realizes the truth: She’s being lied to.
AND A BUNCH OF JOKERS FOLLOW
The backup story is also interesting, mostly because of the visual depiction of the various live-action and cartoon Jokers as part of Harley’s hallucinations in a Blair Witch parody, but has an unsatisfying ending. The general tone of this issue is one of charming character interactions and quiet bits of lovely dialogue (including a moment where Harley calls upon her training as a psychiatrist), with a plot that sort of chugs along until it stops. My first time through this issue, I had NO idea what was going on, but by the third pass, things were a bit clearer. This issue’s use of multiple artists works well for me, as the shifts come with shifts in reality, giving each Harley and each “Earth” its own visual style. The story wraps up the multiversal Harley arc, and while it provides closure and sends her back home, it also ends with the proverbial whimper, rather than a bang.
BOTTOM LINE: LIKE ITS PROTAGONIST, FLAWED BUT CHARMING
Even with those concerns, Harley Quinn #37 makes for an interesting variation on stories like Spider-Man: No Way Home and that horrific Flash movie, and even with a few messy parts, it’s a better-than-average read, earning 3 out of 5 stars overall. A book with this many artists shouldn’t be this cohesive, but somehow they pulled it all off.
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HARLEY QUINN #37
A metatextual trip through the multiverse with a very Harley hook and a very Harley ending, making for a very pretty, above-average comic book issue.
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Writing6
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Art7
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Coloring6
Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.