‘Harley Quinn’ Gets A New Writer

After a fill-in arc from Jughead: The Hunger writer Frank Tieri, DC’s ongoing Harley Quinn series will get a new writer this summer in the form of Green Lanterns and Nightwing scribe Sam Humphries.

Along the way, Humprhies and fan-favorite Harley Quinn artist John Timms will be taking DC’s Maid of Mischief to Jack Kirby’s Fourth World and back.

“The biggest question, and the biggest challenge for Harley, is defining if she’s a hero or a villain,” Humphries said in a statement. “But why can’t she be both? Or is there a third choice to explore? My vision for the book is ‘What if Bugs Bunny were a chainsaw, hosting Anthony Bourdain’s show, but in the DC Universe?’ In our first three-issue story arc, John Timms and I are going to bring the crazy Kirby Krackle to Harley Quinn — focusing on the manic energy that made us cheer for her and the tragic emotions that made us fall in love with her.”

Beginning July 4 with Harley Quinn #45, Humphries and Timms have Harley kidnapped by two Female Furies from Apokolips, who deliver her to one of Darkseid’s Elite, Granny Goodness, with an offer she can’t refuse: join the Furies, get superpowers and do anything she wants! It’s a sweet deal, and all Harley needs to do in return is hunt down a rogue Fury!

The move mirrors something that Karl Kesel did in the ’90s, introducing the Furies to Superboy (then a character lacking a solid direction in life and inextricably linked to a better-known, more widely-read character.

“Harley Quinn does and says the things we all wish we could get away with,” said Humphries. “She’s the embodiment of wish fulfillment. Harley is a wild card, and she’s a survivor; two things we all want to be at different times of the day. And Apokolips is just the beginning of our plans for Harley. No one in the DCU will be safe from Harley Quinn.”

Harley Quinn #45, written by Sam Humphries, arrives in stores July 4 with art by John Timms and a cover by Guillem March and Romulo Fajardo Jr. Fans can also expect a variant cover by Frank Cho.