Comic Review: Gotham City Sirens #1

Gotham City Sirens

Writer: Paul Dini

Artist: Guillem March

Colors: Jose Villarrubia

Letters: Steve Wands

Assistand Editor: Janelle Siegel

Editor: Mike Marts

Covers by: Guillem March and JG Jones

Publisher: DC

Cover Price: $2.99

This all-new series features the bad girls of Gotham City! Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn are tired of playing by other people's rules regardless of which side of the law they're on. These tough ladies have a new agenda that's all their own, and they'll use any means necessary to pursue it. But can they get along and work as a team? And who will get hurt along the way? DETECTIVE COMICS and STREETS OF GOTHAM writer Paul Dini kicks off this brand-new ongoing series with amazing artwork by Guillem March (JOKER'S ASYLUM: POISON IVY, GOTHAM GAZETTE).

Characters: Poison Ivy, Catwoman, Harley Quinn, Boneblaster, Riddler, and the Broker.

The cast is kind of a hit or miss. I love Harley Quinn and glad to find a title where I'll be able to see her regularly. Poison Ivy I find to be tolerable...though I certainly enjoy looking at her. She's got a whole red-headed Orion Slave Girl thing going. Catwoman I've never much liked and she seems to be the focal point. She clearly is here and hopefully she'll share panel time with the others more as things go along. Especially Harley.

Our villain was a throw away, intentionally lame, but still kind of cool. Boneblaster, with his localized somic gloves that can shatter bone, was uninteresting until you got his whole fan-boy personality. It'd be cool if Riddler didn't kill him and he returned. Speaking of the Riddler, I've always thought the question marked rogue was cool. ANyone think a showdown between the Riddler and the Question would be cool? All right Greg Rucka, get on that in Detective Comics...

The Broker was a cool, if limited, character selling secret lairs to Gotham villains.

A Poison Ivy question...she loves plants and defends them to the end. But isn't she vegetarian? It'd be cool if she ate only meat because she hates animals. Or since she's green does she survive via photosynthesis?

Character Rating: 1/2 Worm...Too much Catwoman. Not enough Harley.

Plot:

Catwoman's been healed from almost having her heart cut out (she needs to have a heart-to-heart worth Batwoman, pun intended), but she's not at full steam, still. She gets beaten and almost killed by newbie Boneblaster, but luckily Poison Ivy rescues her.

Joining Ivy at her apartment, which is really Edward Nigma's, and discovering Harley Quinn was moving in, Catwoman suggests the three join together.

Before Harley and Ivy can agree, Ivy contacts Zatanna to make sure she didn't pull some hocus pocus when healing Selina's heart. It's determined that Catwoman's problem is psychological, and assured Zatanna hadn't boobytrapped Selina's heart, Ivy and Harley agree to join Catwoman under one condition...

Then Boneblaster smashes in the door...He heard Ivy mention where she lived and all he had to do was find the room with the plants growing out of the window...Secret hideout fail, Ivy...They trio easily handles Boneblaster, during which Riddler snaps out of his plant induced trance and pummels Boneblaster for bringing a fight into the apartment.

Catwoman buys a new hideout, an abandoned animal shelter, from the Broker, and the girls begin to set up shop...but not before the condition gets addressed. Ivy demands to learn the secret identity of Batman.

Dini's plot is fun and well paced, tugging us along leaving little hints of stuff to come. Immediately the girls are fighting...kind of...I mean, Ivy using her trance plants on Catwoman to learn Batman's secret ID...Selina's not going to be too happy.

Plot Rating: 2 Worms. Lighthearted dialogue, gripping action, and Zatanna being up ended in the bath tub. It doesn't get any better.

Art: Guillem March's art is nice. There's a softness to his lines that seem to evoke the feminity. His details with Boneblaster's costume...the silly skeleton nose over his bug nose, his big ears obscured by the black sides of his mask but still noticable, help to characterize the villain fanboy out to make a name for himself. And the last panel close up of Ivy, both intimidating and alluring...Good stuff all around.

Art Rating: 2 Worms

Overall Rating: 4 1/2 Worms. Recommended for fans of Catwoman, Batman villains, or just fans who like to look at sexy woman in tights...oh, and one in a bath robe...

And for your Orion Slave Girl viewing pleasure...

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