#poisonivyleague

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Please share it/reblog it as much as you can This Sunday we #SavePoisonIvy

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Inktober 2019 Prompt no.14 - “Overgrown”

A day late, but here it is! Three years in a row I’ve drawn Poison Ivy for Inktober. I was pleasantly surprised to see a lot of support going around for Ivy as of late. Which made me all the more enthusiastic to go back to one of my favourite characters. I love you, Ivy. 

🌿☘️🌱🌴🌳🌾🍃🌷🌹💚🍄👄

One good thing about drawing the same subject each year, is that it’s easier to keep track on how things have improved. As per, I hope to get better. #PoisonIvyLeague #PoisonIvyIsMyHero #SavePoisonIvy

Please Reblog but do not Repost.

[elizzabethcomstock]

Injustice 2 + Favourite Female Characters: Poison Ivy

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Please share Sunday Jan 13 we tweet at @DCComics our favorite Poison Ivy moments and ask them to #SavePoisonIvy Use the #SavePoisonIvy so others can retweet you Thank you in advance

[wearepoisonivyleague]

I made an autstereoscopic (no glasses needed) 3D Poison Ivy based on @duss005 art

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I made a cute Poison Ivy animation based on @duss005 wonderful art.

[wearepoisonivyleague]

Silent Screams Review and Thoughts  (New Talent Showcase 2017).

This is a Poison Ivy story by Owl Goingback, Matt Merhoff, Dave McCaig. Since it’s a short one and part of an anthology I’ll stick to the bare essentials of the plot so I won’t spoil anything.

So in short: Poison Ivy is battling an ancient vampiric demon who poses a threat to every living creature, from plants to animals. Most of you probably know mr Goingback from his horror novels. His stories combine mythology, the occult, folk history, myths and legends with classic horror themes. And this is exactly what he delivers here, in his first step into the superhero genre.

Silent Screams is a moody, dark horror tale that brings back memories of “Warren Comics”. I enjoyed how mr Goingback incorporates the story of Nahemah into the superhero genre. After you read the story I suggest reading a bit more about who Nahemah is and what she is capable of, as well as her position in the Gnostic universe. It gives an extra depth to the story if you make the connection: early in her history, Poison Ivy could be a  Nahemah-like character. This detail makes the story a lot more interesting and I think mr Goingback choosing her as the antagonist was deliberate.

Matt Merhoff and Dave McCaig do an excellent work with the art. They create a constant rise in tension by starting the story in big, open spaces and climaxing it in a tight, claustrophobic cadence. The color palette intensifies this claustrophobic feeling. Woods are scary, dark and mysterious, a place where everything is possible and where evil things could be hidden. The art also feels like a homage or a nod to classic horror comics and I’m definitely looking forward to more of their work.

I’m a sucker for stories that use elements of religion, occult and mythology in new and creative ways. I think there is a lot of untapped potential in them as source material and it’s a shame we don’t see more of them. This story also answers the question of “If Poison Ivy becomes a hero, who are her enemies?”. I would definitely buy an ongoing series with Poison Ivy doing detective work and fighting ancient demons and evil entities inspired by religion and mythology. Combine it with a modern twist and how these stories reflect today’s problems and you have pure gold.

The only two things that I didn’t like are:

a) The price. Since this is an introductory anthology it should have had a lower price so that new readers could affordably sample the work of the creators featured. I understand that anthologies are often pricier because a lot more people are involved but DC could ie offer individual stories as digital downloads/chapters.

b) Poison Ivy repeatedly saying that she doesn’t care about the children felt out of character. Her love for kids is something that’s been well established and is part of who she is. Perhaps in the past Ivy didn’t care about humanity but this is not who she is now. Mr Goingback explained to me that Ivy knows that it’s too late about the children (so she needs to remove her sentiments in order to fight the demon) and that it was the plants who called her. I think that if this point was a bit more clear, it would have elevated this story from an excellent to a perfect one.

(Also I felt that the Harley Quinn references were a bit forced. This is a personal disagreement with how DC handles Poison Ivy. I’d like to see an Ivy story where Harley is not referenced.)

I’m looking forward to more Poison Ivy stories by this team. Comic readers and especially Poison Ivy fans should check it out. This story shows that Poison Ivy has a lot of potential as a hero.  Owl Goingback, Matt Merhoff and Dave McCaig put a lot of love into this and it shows. So please suppor this book, support the creators and ask from DC for more solo heroic Poison Ivy stories.

For those interested in the score, I give it a 9/10.

[wearepoisonivyleague]

Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #15 Review

“If you want something said, ask a man. But If you want something done, ask a woman.” Never in my life I thought I’d start a review with a Margaret Thatcher quote. I disagreed with her, her beliefs, her actions and the results they brought. But this quote works in the context of this review. And I choose that specific quote by that specific person because of Batgirl and the Birds of Prey #15. You see it works on two levels: 1. It describes perfectly the issue in just two sentences. 2. It works as a commentary for the alliance between “good” and “bad” girls, characters that some may say are incompatible that we see in this issue. The solicits reads: “MANSLAUGHTER” part one! It’s flu season in Gotham City, but something odd is happening...only the men are getting sick, including those closest to the Birds of Prey! With Commissioner Gordon on his deathbed and Batman fighting a foe even he can’t beat, only the Birds of Prey have the strength to stand up to what’s happening and keep the city from spiraling into chaos! The issue starts with the men of Gotham slowly succumbing into a mysterious sickness. Heroes, villains and citizens all start showing symptoms of the flu. Things escalate quickly and it seems that this weird virus could be something else, something bigger and more sinister. Catwoman and harley join the BoP to help with the investigation each one for their own reasons. The prime suspect for this is of course Poison Ivy who is currently working for Batgirl but (small spoiler) she’s not and she agrees to help them find a cure. I don’t want to go further down the plot so you can fully enjoy the book but more beloved characters do appear and things get complicated both because of the situation and the women the Birds allied with. The art by Roge Antonio and Marcelo Maiolo is a bit darker than usual with a gritty fight scene involving Professor Pyg (yikes) setting the tone. High color contrasts, great use of shadows and some cool dramatic eye close ups create a sense of intimacy. These women care about what’s happening, it’s important, you can see it not just in their actions but their expressions too. And Josh Reeds lettering cleverly accents the (not so) underlying tension of this situation. This is a new arc and an excellent starting point for anyone who wants to check this book. And you should. Julie and Shawna Benson know their characters and understand how to surprise readers by creating little tidbits of complexity in simple actions. I.e look closely at the reason Harley is involved. These extra layers add depth to the story. It is something that I’m always saying: Batman can beat the Joker but a virus (or global warming, or pollution, war, famine) could kill us all. So the true enemies could be something as small as a virus or as abstract as environmental threats. What makes a hero? And now it’s time to talk about Poison Ivy. The Benson sisters get her. They understand who she is, what she does and why. “Humanity will destroy itself, it doesn’t need my help” she says when she is asked whether she is responsible for the virus. And she is right. Unfortunately most writers don’t get a simple thing: Ivy’s environmental activism is human based and not plant based. Plants existed and will exist for millions of years after humanity vanishes. Plants grow in places humans have destroyed, in nuked cities and polluted areas. Environmentalists don’t want to save the rainforest because plants are pretty. They want o save it because if it dies, we die. And Poison Ivy, Pamela Isley as a scientist understands that. I’m not an environmentalist because I love rare, stinky plants or beetles or butterflies. I am an environmentalist because I want to survive more than the cockroach that lives in the sewer. And I know that through saving the environment, I’m saving myself. And I just love how the connection between Pamela and Barbara is strong. Pam needs her and Babs need to learn to trust people. And Pam is making some genuine steps towards being heroic. Towards redemption and trust. Which leads to my conclusion. Yesterday I had a discussion with Dan DiDio who said that since Rebirth is about returning characters to their core, Ivy has no place with the heroes. Julie and Shawna, please don’t let this happen. Please keep her in the book. Make her a full team member if you can. It will be disappointing if after everything that Ivy went through, all the people she saved, all you girls as well as the other DC writers did the last years, all this progress to be erased because a couple of DC people want her as sexy plant Hitler. There is so much to explore with her. I trust you, you can do this. You are given a chance to do wonders with a character that represents the ideas that are endangered in these dark days. Don’t let her go away. A great starting point both for old and new Birds of Prey fans. An exciting, fun story with a huge cast of characters. 10/10