The Eat. Bang! Kill. Tour picks up right where the second season of “Harley Quinn” leaves off. Harley and Ivy are on the run after Ivy’s failed wedding, Commissioner Gordon in hot pursuit. There’s a very brief recap of the show in general and then Ivy’s not-wedding to Kite Man. It’s well-balanced exposition from Harley to the cops she’s beating up, though I do wish writer Tee Franklin had done a little more about the machinations leading up to the wedding. The ideal time to read the comic is when the show’s fresh in your head, not when you’re gearing up for Season Three.
Occasional confusion aside, though, it’s a great Harley Quinn: The Animated Series half or quarter episode. Harley’s trying to be supportive of Ivy, who’s got lots of feelings about her failed wedding—especially since Kite Man gave her the boot, not the other way around—but also the excitement over being with Harley.
The issue opens with the car chase resolution, with some delightful blowhard jackass Gordon, before the couple ends up back at the lair. Since Harley and Ivy are together almost the entire issue (Ivy gets a scene alone, and Harley does have a conversation in her head with her more responsible, psychiatrist self), it’s all character work. Mostly on Ivy, but there’s a little on Harley too. It’s less rambunctious than the show, less erratic, with Franklin and artist Max Sarin hyper-focused on the new couple and their immediate experiences.
It’s really good, really thoughtful, and sort of strange they’re doing this story in a comic and not on the show. No complaints, however: Franklin’s writing matches the show (and its performances), and while it’s not an exact style match, Sarin’s art is beautifully paced. Eat. Bang! Kill. is a comic, not a TV show turned into a comic.
I am curious if Harley will ever surpass Ivy in terms of character development; it might be Harley’s book, but it’s Ivy’s story. For now, anyway.
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