Comic Vine Review

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Harley Quinn Annual #1 - Scratch and Snuff

4

Get ready to do some rubbing and smelling while you read this issue. Just make sure you're rubbing and smelling the COMIC.

The Good

A Rub 'N Smell comic. It'd be easy to think this was DC's next big idea for their yearly comics event but that happens in September. The real story is this idea came up during a conversation between Jimmy Palmiotti and Dan DiDio. What better comic to have a Rub 'N Smell feature than HARLEY QUINN? This is clearly a one-time thing and it works. It's funny and gross. And we get to see little Harley Quinns drawn by Amanda Conner telling us when and where to sniff.

If you've been reading the regular HARLEY QUINN series, you know that Jimmy and Amanda are having fun working on the comic. That comes across in their writing. The idea of a rub 'n smell comic these days is pretty absurd but they make it work in the comic. It does add to the reading experience, in a way. You will discover a new level of fear and dread with each new scent you have to smell. As you can imagine, some can be a little nasty. I'm glad there wasn't anyone around watching me as I was rubbing and reading the comic. I know I was making some...interesting faces after sniffing.

The scents do play into the story a little. Some moments, like sniffing Harley's jacket, aren't crucial to the experience. But when it comes to Poison Ivy and a chemical concoction, the smell is actually part of the story. In a way, you get to experience what they are.

With this being a full-length annual-sized story, there are some different artists contributing to the art. Because of a certain smell, there is a moment where things get a little bizarre. This allows a slightly smoother transition from artist to artist for the different scenes. It's pretty cool seeing what some of the artist bring to the issue. We get the chance to see some interesting interpretations.

The Bad

It was an interesting idea but some of the smells were pretty bad. I honestly was scared to smell some of them. Some were repeated. I felt the dilemma of whether or not I should subject myself to smelling them again when I could still remember what it was like before. Skipping them would almost be like skipping a panel. The point of this feature was to get a comic where you had to rub and smell. Thinking of some, I still get shivers.

I understand that with this being an annual, there are more pages in the comic. Sometimes we've seen annuals with a couple different stories to account for the pages. That usually bothers me a little but having the story here take up the entire issue felt like it dragged a little. The moments with the scene/situation changes felt a little like there were just to fill up the pages. A pet peeve of mine is having the art drastically change within the same story. You can justify it a little because of the scene shifts. It just felt like the overall story could have been condensed a little.

I wonder how the experience is for those reading the issue digitally. Seeing the little Harleys instructing them to smell would be weird, but at least they can pay a dollar less.

The Verdict

Every once in a while, comic publishers try something different. With the different cover enhancements and themes DC has done in the past, it's fitting that we'd get a Rub 'N Smell comic. It's even more fitting that it comes from Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner. The rubbing "technology" used here works. You will smell different scents. Some will haunt you and linger in your nose after you've smelled. The story felt like it went on a little too long and having five different artists can be a bit much. But like the regular HARLEY QUINN series, the idea of a Rub 'N Smell gimmick is a welcomed one. Just as long as we don't have to do this again anytime soon.