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A review by perilous1
Harley Quinn: Breaking Glass by Mariko Tamaki
2.0
At least one whole star is just for the artwork, which Steve Pugh does a really decent job of--with a striking, moody use of varied duo-chromatics, consistent characterization, and effective emotional conveyance.
The story itself? Sadly did nothing for me. But then again, I'm clearly not the intended audience...
Here we have an alternate-universe variant on the Harley Quinn origin story.
VERY alternate.
So much so, I can't see any pre-existing Harley fans being happy about this reinvention. So I presume the target audience are in the middle grade range, and completely unfamiliar with the Harley/Joker mythos and dynamic. (Which makes some sense, at least. That pair and their famously dysfunctional relationship aren't well suited for the PG crowd.) I don't know if the intention was to re-write and "update" the character to suit the current social climate, or jump on the DC movie bandwagon and act as a gateway to pull the younger generation into other parts of the DC universe. Either way... it smacks of cash-grab.
In this universe, Harley as a 15-year-old is some kind of manic pixie dream girl. (Although, she behaves and sounds a lot younger than 15. Not just verbally, but mentally/internally.) She's perky, erratic, and painfully naïve--daft, even. Which is apparently related to the fact that she grew up in a trailer park? *cringe* In her, readers will find no sign of the makings for the brilliant future psychologist of DC lore. None of the nuanced sometimes-villainess, sometimes-anti-heroine with so much potential. Add to that, the twist is predictable and the Joker's depiction is... weirdly aimless and bland.
What this book seems to spend most of its energy on instead is checking a lot of political and social-issue boxes. It crams in so many, none are really done much justice. You end up with a bunch of stereotype-reinforcement and ham-fisted soap-boxing. Which... to my mind... doesn't give young readers enough credit for intelligence.
I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed. :(
The story itself? Sadly did nothing for me. But then again, I'm clearly not the intended audience...
Here we have an alternate-universe variant on the Harley Quinn origin story.
VERY alternate.
So much so, I can't see any pre-existing Harley fans being happy about this reinvention. So I presume the target audience are in the middle grade range, and completely unfamiliar with the Harley/Joker mythos and dynamic. (Which makes some sense, at least. That pair and their famously dysfunctional relationship aren't well suited for the PG crowd.) I don't know if the intention was to re-write and "update" the character to suit the current social climate, or jump on the DC movie bandwagon and act as a gateway to pull the younger generation into other parts of the DC universe. Either way... it smacks of cash-grab.
In this universe, Harley as a 15-year-old is some kind of manic pixie dream girl. (Although, she behaves and sounds a lot younger than 15. Not just verbally, but mentally/internally.) She's perky, erratic, and painfully naïve--daft, even. Which is apparently related to the fact that she grew up in a trailer park? *cringe* In her, readers will find no sign of the makings for the brilliant future psychologist of DC lore. None of the nuanced sometimes-villainess, sometimes-anti-heroine with so much potential. Add to that, the twist is predictable and the Joker's depiction is... weirdly aimless and bland.
What this book seems to spend most of its energy on instead is checking a lot of political and social-issue boxes. It crams in so many, none are really done much justice. You end up with a bunch of stereotype-reinforcement and ham-fisted soap-boxing. Which... to my mind... doesn't give young readers enough credit for intelligence.
I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed. :(