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

Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #2 of 6could easily have been titled Poison Ivy: Biological Detective Murder Mystery She Wrote.

After her Gotham Botanical Gardens colleague Luisa Cruz is murdered, plant-lady Pamela Isley is on the case. And that’s not all on offer in Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #2 of 6: new animal-plant hybridization techniques mean Ivy can make babies in her own image.

Holy photosynthesis, Batman! POW! SMASH. THUD. STRIKE. INTERFORLA!

Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #2 of 6 is partly about Ivy’s efforts to assimilate better with humans. So, enter Darshan Bapna, lab scientist, humanitarian and extreme pacifist who just wants to be the next “Voice”. Ivy doesn’t want to kill him, which for her is as close to intimacy as she can get.

Clay and Seth Mann’s art in Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #2 of 6 is aided by Jonathan Glapion and Art Thibert, and the collaboration works as it’s generally eye-pleasing. Ulises Arreola’s colouring is nicely detailed and adds depth to the visuals.

Ultimately, Poison Ivy: Circle of Life and Death #2, while largely entertaining, loses points for taking its eye off the ball to some degree. The narrative steps back from exploring Ivy’s psychology to focus on the murder mystery. Ivy and her plants babies have to take second billing, which is a pity as neither the story or the botanical lady ever stop to consider the ramifications of creating a new hybrid life form. And that piece of underused narrative, is more interesting than the mystery presented here.

 

Reviewer: Joe Lovece
Reviews Editor: Steve Hooker