Publisher: DC
Writer: Amy Chu
Artists: Clay Mann, Seth Mann
Colourist: Ulises Arreola
Editor: Paul Kaminski
Release Date: OUT NOW!
Price: $2.99

Someone should tell DC that they don’t have to inject Harley Quinn into everything. Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #1 does a good job delving into Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy’s psychology of isolation and loneliness but Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #1 doesn’t need to take up nearly half the comic with the Joker’s main squeeze as a foil to make the point.

In Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #1 of 6, Isley has joined the plant sciences department at Gotham Botanical Gardens. “It’s stimulating to be around humans interested in the same field and with the same level of intellect,” she tells Harley, who takes offense. Yes, the lady clown may be Ivy’s only friend, but to see the plant lady interacting with new people to make new friends would be more interesting.

Poison Ivy talks about her solitude and how “I never fit into the human world anyway.” Watching her trying to fit in while staying separate from humanity is the nut which gives the series psychological tension and meaning. And when she finds her new employer Luisa Cruz murdered we can see the plant-human hybrid misfit Ivy still has some human feelings.

The art in Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #1 of 6 by Clay Mann and Seth Mann is stunning, realistic and well-crafted. Ulises Arreola’s colouring keeps things a bit lighter than most Gotham City-related stories, and it’s a nice change of pace. After all, plants are all about the light, not the darkness. Right?

As long as the story focuses on Poison Ivy’s emotional gymnastics Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #1 of 6 promises to reveal a depth of character normally missing from her appearances. But it is also worth hoping in Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #1 of 6  that going forward it does not depend on Harley Quinn as a crutch to get there.

 

Reviewer: Joe Lovece
Reviews Editor: Steve Hooker