Can Harley Quinn Make it as a Hero?

Or, more to the point, can Harley Quinn hold her own title as a hero, rather than the madcap sorta-villain with muddled romantic mixup between Joker and Poison Ivy? That's what we will find out, as Stephanie Phillips and Riley Rossmo open a brand new chapter in Gotham's most unpredictable character.

Fresh from the pages of Joker War, Harley is turning over a new leaf -- and has the reluctant support of Batman. We've seen Batman try to redeem Harley in the past, such as in the "Harley's Holiday" episode of Batman: The Animated Series, but he is much less hopeful here about her capabilities to walk the straight and narrow.

Eager to prove herself to her new "boss," Harley follows Batman into a riot where angry Gotham citizens take out their resentments on the Joker via proxy, violently confronting any of the people who associated with him as his "clowns" -- and that includes Harley Quinn! This city is a dangerous place to be a clown these days, but Harley is determined to make amends to everyone (a long list) she's wronged and reform herself -- and, potentially, others who found themselves manipulated by the Joker into being his pawns.

Harley maintains her non sequitur style of conversation, and the dialogue between her and Batman would slip comfortably into the animated series -- right down to the "Aw, he really does care" moment at the close of this chapter. Phillips has the patter down pat, but Rossmo's pencils may be a little too frenetic for my taste, at least for an in-universe series. The setup has potential, but it's potential we've seen ignited in the past, only to lose momentum. Perhaps this time might be the charm, or perhaps the character is simply better suited to being the bad girl. Only time -- and sales -- will tell.