Harley Quinn: The Animated Series: The Eat. Bang! Kill. Tour #6 sees Poison Ivy come to the rescue of her one true love, and I’m not talking about Kite Man. Appropriately titled “Journey to Love,” we see Ivy beg for help from the sultry superhero Vixen so she can have back up to face Mephitic, the villain literally made of toxic sludge holding Harley Quinn captive for a reason only known to him. Issue #6 brings this arc of The Eat. Bang! Kill Tour to a close, but not without some adventurous shenanigans that writer Tee Franklin and artist Max Sarin flesh out brilliantly.
By now, if you haven’t watched the Harley Quinn animated series on HBO Max, let me be the first to say that you are missing out on some of the best adult-themed entertainment on television right now. Writer Tee Franklin has brought the same level of energy and potty-mouthed humor in comic book form with this entire series. It’s also noteworthy that Tee Franklin incorporates her experiences as a Black, queer, disabled woman into the storyline. For example, there’s a fantastic panel moment where Ivy, Vixen, and her girlfriend Elle are standing in an elevator. Ivy remarks on the elevator, to which Elle responds, “of course, accessibility matters”.
If you’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting Tee Franklin at a comic convention, you know she’s a huge advocate for equality and accessibility for everyone. Hence, it was both meta and awesome to see that highlighted in a major comic book series like Harley Quinn. Representation matters more than ever, and it was good to see powerful Black women who are intelligent, bold, and help save the day — something we need to see a lot more of in the comic book industry. On top of that, Franklin’s words made each page a load of fun that I couldn’t stop reading.
Max Sarin has an amazing artistic body of work that speaks for itself, including their illustrations on Giant Days. So it is no surprise that Sarin’s pencil work on Harley Quinn: The Animated Series would be just as poetic. Sarin captures the genuine look and feel of the TV show while adding their own natural spin to things that feel so inviting to the page. Adding to that awesomeness is Colorist Marissa Louise, who puts a zesty blend of rich colors that make every page pop. And veteran letter Taylor Esposito does an excellent job of creating word bubbles that aren’t distracting to the action within the panels but place a great deal of emotional emphasis on the dialogue.
Harley Quinn: The Animated Series: The Eat. Bang! Kill. Tour #6 is a fun time all around and gives readers a hint as to where the story could go next in the future. The writing is spot on and the artwork is terrific.
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