Harley Quinn: Black + White + Redder #1

Harley Quinn: Black + White + Redder #1 kicks off a new black, white, and red anthology series for Harley Quinn. The first issue is a nice mix focusing on the humor, tragedy, and wackiness of the character. In “The Man of Steal!” Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy travel up north to break into the Fortress of Solitude only to be surprised by first a Bat-Butler, leading to some aspersions being tossed at the Man of Steel, and then running into the Justice League’s game night

“Push Through the Pain” tone shifts drastically in the second story which takes us back to Harleen Quinzel’s junior gymnastic days and a cruel coach who brings out the crazy and viciousness in Harleen long before she met the Joker. And in the final story, “Get Gaggy,” we get Harley in the police station explaining to an exasperated Harvey Bullock how she ended up in a museum heist with some of the Joker’s former minions including Gaggy who, of course, inevitably double-crosses here. Great fun here, and the best use of an series like this to show off different aspects of the character with each story.

[DC, $4.99]