Birds of Prey by Kelley Thompson and Leo Romero

[thwhtGuardian]

So we're going to ignore that she also says that Harley works "Plot reasons" ?

[Triniking1234]

So she confirms Harley is only in the book as a gimmick to boost sales, that doesn’t give any confidence that the character will be written with any nuance. I will probably skip this train wreck I wouldn’t be surprised is she writes Harley pining for Mr J.

I don't like Harley being on the team but y'all need to have some faith in Kelly Thompson. Also, I don't think they've written Harley pining for Joker for ages; we have Punchline for that now.

[Nite-Wing]

https://www.comicsbeat.com/interview...in-sisterhood/

So Harley is just a sales gimmick
Its funny how the most popular characters involved in team books are labelled this but the characters who can't maintain solo books or go into limbo often are never demeaned in such a manner. The gimmick of these unpopular niche characters getting a chance in the first place is also a gimmick after all

Well at least I don't have to go into this book with much expectations

[OBrianTallent]

Is anyone really surprised that Harley is used as a sales gimmick? I mean really. It's just nice to see a writer admit it. Despite how much I dont care for Harley, I think I have liked her once since Mad Love, I am willing to give KT the benefit of the doubt in a) how she writes and uses her and b) that she wont necessarily be sticking around *unless KT just knocks it out of the park with her writing of Harley.

I am very much looking forward to seeing how Kelly writes Canary and the interactions between BC, Cass and Barda. I've never really cared for Zealot (in any kind of negative or positive way.) There really are far more interesting (to me) characters out there that could have been used. However, part of a writer's job is to make you fall in love (or hate) with a character, to move you one way or another. Kelly did a great job of that on Black Widow with Ylena for me.
I'm not crazy about the rotating cast idea and hope we get a solidified cast soon. One of Kelly's greatest abilities as a writer is to build bonds between characters and that's something she can't quite do if the cast is rotating every four to six issues. Obviously I have my preferences for who that should be and it seems like Kelly may be reconsidering one of them (didn't she say she was surprised at how much people liked Huntress as part of BoP?) I do wish we had a different artist on the book. He's an excellent artist, but I dont think Birds of Prey is the right fit for him (again just my opinion.) Sadly my perfect choices are apparently Marvel exclusive. However, I would also like to see her Captain Marvel counterpart Sergio Davilla on the book...or David Lopez or...I can really go on with a list. Again, Romero is a great artist, but not one I would consider perfect for this series.

All that said, I have absolutely faith that Kelly Thompson can make Birds of Prey a great read and if given the opportunity, can make for a nice long run. Can she do what Simone did for her run? Who knows, but I think if anyone can manage it, Kelly can.

[kcekada]

Honestly, if you need a character who really doesn't fit the concept of the book -- then why publish the book at all?

[cranger]

Just because she was honest and did not dance around what what we all know (Harley brings eyes on the book) it does not mean the she did not want to write the character or that the character had no place in the story. She has talked about Harley in numerous posts on Twitter.

[skyvolt2000]

Just because she was honest and did not dance around what what we all know (Harley brings eyes on the book) it does not mean the she did not want to write the character or that the character had no place in the story. She has talked about Harley in numerous posts on Twitter.

Well that is fine if she WANTED to include Harley.

While Harley will bring eyes to the book. She will also chase off folks. The question will be which is the greater evil,

The bigger issue is folks like Harley being shoehorned into book for reasons beyond the plot.

If I have to put someone like her in a book over someone else just to get some stupid store to order the book or some parts of the fandom to look at the book.

That is the issue.

Then you end up with empty shell characters or underdeveloped ones or worst hated ones like Naomi, Duke and Harper Row. Who eventually get used outside of comics like Bumblebee and Vixen. Yet can't sniff the inside of a comic because for reasons BEYOND story parts of the fandom (and some stores) take issue with them.

Then we get all these complaints about why is Harley and Batman in everything lead by the same folks who take issue with folks like Zealot, Big Barda and others.

Full circle of complaining.

[j9ac9k]

Fans acting like fans - A.B.C: A, Always. B, Be. C, Clos- I mean, Complaining. If a popular character is used, then it's a "gimmick," if a non-popular character is used, it's "who asked for this?" We all know editorial always sticks their fingers in the pie - that's almost never not the case, but it doesn't mean the writer isn't going to be able to find a way to make it work. People who hate HQ are going to hate anyway. I would rather she not be there, but she's not a deal-breaker for me. Like anything else, its all in the execution.

[Godlike13]

Here is the thing though, Harley does not sell BOP. A movie with her and BOP just exists. It flopped though, and every BOP comic they launched with her came and went like farts in the wind. So this idea that she helps BOP sell hasn't been true.

[John Venus]

Feels like the point of BOP has been lost on DC since the Nu52 reboot and beyond. It wasn't just 'lets throw these female heroes together and path ourselves on the back for how progressive we are'. The whole point was Babs finding and gathering a group of other women who are lost, troubled, traumatized or been through some **** and giving them a place. Babs is the center and the team is built around her. Unless you center her in the narrative and really commit to building the relationships between characters, none of these relaunches are going to stick.

[OBrianTallent]

Here is the thing though, Harley does not sell BOP. A movie with her and BOP just exists. It flopped though, and every BOP comic they launched with her came and went like farts in the wind. So this idea that she helps BOP sell hasn't been true.

The movie flopped because it was for the most part terrible. It wasn't the Birds of Prey. Canary was the only one who even remotely resembled her comics counterpart. Huntress was a vengeful angry woman who pretty much went around RAWRing at people like a neanderthal. Cass Cain....was she actually even in the movie? Montoya? I saw neither of those I recognized. To be honest, it would have been a great Harley Quinn movie, but as a Birds of Prey movie...not even close. (and that's coming from someone who doesn't really like HQ.)
Likewise, the only BoP comics they released with her were a one shot by Azzerello which I seem to recall was originally announced as a series and then cut...which might have also been because it was likewise just bad (with the exception of the beautiful art by Emma Lupacchino) or if it was changed because the movie flopped by this point and then the four issue series by Palmiotti and Conner. I never picked up the P/C BoP series so I have no idea as to it's quality.
I think the best we can hope for is that Harley is only in Birds of Prey for the first arc and then replaced by someone more interesting to the rest of us.

[OBrianTallent]

Feels like the point of BOP has been lost on DC since the Nu52 reboot and beyond. It wasn't just 'lets throw these female heroes together and path ourselves on the back for how progressive we are'. The whole point was Babs finding and gathering a group of other women who are lost, troubled, traumatized or been through some **** and giving them a place. Babs is the center and the team is built around her. Unless you center her in the narrative and really commit to building the relationships between characters, none of these relaunches are going to stick.

Agree 100% and perhaps KT understands that as well. In one interview she talked about building the relationships between the characters in her books Black Widow and Captain Marvel, basically turning them into team books under the solo disguise. It worked well enough for Captain Marvel it seems lasting fifty issues, sadly Black Widow didn't make it as long despite being an incredible book.

[Godlike13]

The movie flopped because it was for the most part terrible. It wasn't the Birds of Prey. Canary was the only one who even remotely resembled her comics counterpart. Huntress was a vengeful angry woman who pretty much went around RAWRing at people like a neanderthal. Cass Cain....was she actually even in the movie? Montoya? I saw neither of those I recognized. To be honest, it would have been a great Harley Quinn movie, but as a Birds of Prey movie...not even close. (and that's coming from someone who doesn't really like HQ.)
Likewise, the only BoP comics they released with her were a one shot by Azzerello which I seem to recall was originally announced as a series and then cut...which might have also been because it was likewise just bad (with the exception of the beautiful art by Emma Lupacchino) or if it was changed because the movie flopped by this point and then the four issue series by Palmiotti and Conner. I never picked up the P/C BoP series so I have no idea as to it's quality.
I think the best we can hope for is that Harley is only in Birds of Prey for the first arc and then replaced by someone more interesting to the rest of us.

I’m not saying it was the Birds of Prey. I’m just saying this idea that they can just add Harley to BOP to get it to sell has never worked. The movie people of course blamed it on Birds of Prey and changed its title mid release. Which personally makes me think the brand is actually worse off because of that movie as BOP was deemed the failure. BOP insulation Harley and Margo Robbie more then they have helped the brand.

[SiegePerilous02]

Its funny how the most popular characters involved in team books are labelled this but the characters who can't maintain solo books or go into limbo often are never demeaned in such a manner.

Because they are the ones typically chosen for writing/creative purposes, instead of something more cynical (if a necessary evil) in drumming up sales.

It doesn't help that the most significant example we have of Harley being tied to BOP to give it a boost ended up doing the total opposite, and caused more damage to the brand than anything else.

[Hypo]