The curtain closes on the latest miniseries in the Batman: White Knight universe, starring its new leading lady.
Batman: White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn 6
Written by Katana Collins
Pencils and Inks by Mateo Scalera
Colors by Dave Stewart
When writer/artist Sean Murphy introduced the BATMAN: WHITE KNIGHT universe back in 2017, he managed to do something that I thought was unfathomable: he made Harley Quinn into a character that I found vastly interesting. I was so enthralled with the character in this corner of the multiverse that I actually found myself excited for the WHITE KNIGHT: HARLEY QUINN miniseries when it was announced last year.
The title delivered in spades with every issue. The expansion of the White Knight universe from writer Katana Collins brought us deep into a Gotham City where the Joker was no longer a threat and Batman was unmasked and in prison for threatening the safety of the city’s denizens. With most of the old guard of heroes and villains gone, the new GCPD task force turns to criminal profiler Harleen Quinzel to help solve a series of murders targeting the stars of Gotham’s golden age of movies.
Of course, old habits die hard, and Dr. Quinzel’s set of skills goes beyond her psychiatric training. She’s pretty good with a giant hammer as well. As it turns out, the GCPD needs all of Harley’s skills to bring down Gotham’s latest supervillain – The Producer and the Starlet.
The sixth issue of the miniseries brings us the final showdown between the GCPD’s task force and the villain Starlet, looking for revenge on the movie star who she felt ruined her life. While Harley takes the attacks personally – especially after one of her hyenas were killed – she’s really just caught in the middle of a personal battle being fought among a broken family.
Using Bruce Wayne for counsel and moral and financial support, Harley Quinn finally manages to find a level of self-actualization away from the identity she had as Joker’s girlfriend. As a bonus, she got a brand new costume from Wayne to help her be more stealthy when she’s out fighting crime, even if she’s not doing it as part of the GCPD.
Harley Quinn was already a popular character within the DC Universe when Sean Murphy began the White Knight universe, but Murphy turned her into more than just a wise-cracking female Deadpool. Katana Collins does a great job fleshing her out further, making her an even more compelling character with much more depth than I had ever expected over the character’s 30 years of existence.
Hopefully, there are many more stories to tell within the White Knight universe. I’d even be happy if they star more Harley Quinn.