A new villain has arrived on the Gotham scene, and he’s got his sights set on Harley. As Kevin and Grundy work to help free her from his clutches, learn the origin story of Keepsake – and find out whether or not he’s a villain worth keeping around. Harley Quinn Annual 2021 is written by Stephanie Phillips, drawn by David Lafuente, Marco Failla and Jon Sommariva, colored by Miquel Muerto and lettered by AndWorld Design.
More often than not in superhero comics, how good a story is all comes down to its villain. I mean, these comics don’t really have a lot to do without ‘em. This annual features the reveal of Keepsake’s identity, origin and Harley’s first confrontation with him. As first impressions go, it leaves a lot to be desired.
In case you haven’t read the issue, it’s a tale of new Harley Quinn supporting character and former Joker clown Kevin trying to rescue Harley from Keepsake’s clutches. As Kevin makes his way through Gotham’s villains, he learns more and more about Keepsake’s story: a man named Eli Kaufman, who’s desperate to make his mark on Gotham City, who has served as a henchman for nearly every villain Gotham has, and has stolen from them all. That’s his gimmick – he has trademark gadgets from famous Batvillains, he painted them orange and now uses them as his own.
It’s a silly concept that’s intentionally played for laughs, but much like most of the jokes in this annual, it falls flat. Missed humor aside, though, there’s something intensely uncomfortable about tying Harley Quinn to another villain who is obsessed with defining her, controlling her and projecting his every insecurity onto her to make himself feel better. We’ve had enough of that with the Joker; seeing this sort of tale rehashed with a less interesting villain really doesn’t add anything new to the telling.
It’s a shame, because the idea of Keepsake has legs. Gotham’s underworld has always been fertile ground for tales of not just its most colorful, but also its more everyday folk. I am fascinated with Gotham’s henchmen: What leads them to a life of crime? What’s it like doing the legwork for the Batvillains’ elaborate plans? And in what ways are people broken by joining what they hoped was the winning side?
Stephanie Phillips’ run has put a lot of focus on this. It’s not just a story of Harley Quinn’s redemptive path, there are a lot of people seeking redemption after “Joker War” – Kevin in particular, who’s arguably the star of this annual more than Harley herself. Keepsake was half right – former henchmen may not be the most relatable characters, but their tales are definitely compelling. There’s an interesting story in all this.
It’s just badly told.
I’m not faulting the art here – though I continue to count the days until Riley Rossmo and Ivan Plascencia return to the title, there’s a lot to enjoy in the art here. Lafuente’s art is more polished and adorable, while still giving each characters’ personality the space to shine. Failla and Sommariva’s pages are a little sharper, but sell the chaos Kevin finds himself in entertainingly. The colors soften and simplify the pages – it feels almost like I’m reading a children’s storybook in places, and that’s a plus.
The problem is the words. There are just…far too many of them getting in the way. Early in the issue, Freeze asks for a Sparknotes version of the tale. While it’s a cringeworthy joke coming from the ordinarily stoic villain, it would have been good advice for the issue. In broad strokes, this could have been an entertaining annual, but it’s so crammed with narration, exposition and poorly written one-off jokes that it takes some real work to be able to sift the good from the bad.
It feels like there’s a real lack of confidence in the strength of the core story here, with everything that’s been stuffed in, with hope that more works than doesn’t. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Phillips’ writing is shaky, but tends to improve with each issue of Harley Quinn that comes out. This issue, unfortunately, is definitely a step back, and its main villain? Decidedly not worth keeping around.
