Review:
Our trio of sirens all originated as villains whose plans and schemes were always foiled by Batman. Each also had a significant romantic love interest in their history. Harley Quinn was the psychotic romantic sidekick of the Joker. Poison Ivy's origin story has been rebooted more than once but for a time it featured her lover Jason Woodrue running experiments on her before leaving her for dead. And Catwoman has almost from her first appearance been characterized by her flirtatious fixation on Batman.
So it should come as no surprise that this ongoing series, teaming together the three of them, would have romantic entanglements and confrontations with Batman. Still, if not surprising, seeing them take center stage in these series of stories was nonetheless disappointing.
This volume, Book 2 reprinting the complete series, collects the entire second half and drawing it to its conclusion. The first story arc comes from the pen of Tony Bedard, before passing the writing duties to Peter Calloway to bring things home and wrap up the run.
In Bedard's arc, Poison Ivy falls in love with an extra-terrestrial plant creature. Can Catwoman and Harley keep her rooted in her humanity enough to stave off the pending invasion her lover seeks to trigger?
Starting with #16, Calloway's first multi-part story brings a couple other strong and independent DC women into the mix. Zatanna and Talia al Ghul land with explosive results in the lives of our sirens. At issue is whether Catwoman knows too much about Batman's secrets and would be too easily captured or kidnapped by someone seeking to extract those secrets. With Zatanna trying to wipe Catwoman's memory and Talia satisfied with just killing her, can Harley and Ivy protect her enough to survive?
The answer then launches straight into the next multi-parter, with Harley Quinn breaking into Arkham Asylum in order to kill the Joker. It is a tale that leans heavily into her education and history as a therapist, and the ability that gives her to manipulate people, while steering away from the silliness and insanity side of her personality.
When Batman must then intervene to restore peace at Arkham it's Catwoman's turn to intercede and protect her sisters in arms.
These tales have often gorgeous art by Andres Guinaldo. He shows a deft hand with different styles, shifting with apparent ease between gritty Arkham scenes on one end to the ethereal dream sequences and again to the leafy and thorny panel borders in an Ivy spotlight. His visuals are filled with life and emotion, a delight to view.
Alas, the stories themselves, with their focus on the male antagonists in the sirens' lives, drifts from the fun adventures of the first half of the series, found in Book 1. They showed that there is so much more story potential in these women. Maybe, by getting these man-focused ones out of the way, it might have opened up new frontiers for future issues.
But no, unfortunately the series ends. By the final issue, Calloway does give us a nice retcon of the earliest issues, casting those first tales in a whole new light. Except even then, he doubles down on the men in their lives again pulling the strings and manipulating them.
Revealing the men in all their power and sway and manipulations is a disappointing way to end a series so focused on three strong, independent women.
Description:
Together, Catwoman, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy are three of Gotham City's most powerful quasi-reformed criminals and together they spark scandal wherever they go.
Poison Ivy has long charmed the men of Gotham City, but now she's the one falling under a spell. Captivated with a plant-based alien inside S.T.A.R. Labs, she weds her cause to his and undertakes a Plantifest Destiny that leaves no room for humans—not even her sisters-in-crime. Catwoman and Harley Quinn try to tear their friend's heart away from the alien menace, but they find out how slowly the threat of love dies.
The excitement continues when an underworld plot to kidnap Catwoman and pluck her beloved Batman's identity from her mind shakes the Sirens. As the sorry enemy of Ivy and Harley' ex the Joker, the Dark Knight will always divide the three, and Catwoman's feelings have barely been tolerated to this point. So when Talia al Ghul and Zatanna rush in to help save Selina, it's not exactly clear who's doing the saving…and who's doing the hurting.
And when Harley stages a riot in Arkham Asylum to the Joker, it could be the beginning of the end of the Gotham City Sirens. As the situation inside Gotham quickly spins out of control, and Harley becomes more and more mired in her obsession with the Clown Prince of Crime, Poison Ivy and Catwoman struggle over how to handle their estranged teammate. The Gotham City Sirens are ready to make their final stand, but will they be fighting each other?
Writers Tony Bedard (SUPERGIRL) and television's Peter Calloway (Brothers & Sisters, Hellcats) team up with artists Andres Guinaldo (NIGHTWING), Jeremy Haun (BATWOMAN), Ramon F. Bachs (BATMAN: STREETS OF GOTHAM) and more, in GOTHAM CITY SIRENS BOOK TWO! Collects issues #14-26.
Collects: Gotham City Sirens (2009) #14-26
Authors: Peter Calloway, Tony Bedard
Artists: Andres Guinaldo
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: May 5, 2015
Parental Rating: Teen
ISBN: 978-1401254124
Pages: 304 pages
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