Writer Ann Nocenti is perhaps best known for her work on Marvel's Daredevil, and as the creator of Typhoid Mary, one of DD's most popular and unusual villains. Typhoid Mary, Longshot and Someplace Strange (an original graphic novel illustratedby John Bolton) demonstrate clearly that among the writer's favored themes are madness, altered perceptions and a flair for the surreal. That certainly holds true in this new effort. It's a pleasure to see Nocenti return to comics, as she not only brings those strengths to the equation here, but her flair for strong and grounded characterization, as well as some social commentary, just for good measure.
Pamela Isley, better known to Gotham City as the eco-terrorist Poison Ivy, is making progress with her denial therapy, and her psychiatrist has arranged for her to have access to plants as part of her rehabilitation. For plants to thrive, they need light, but an industrial's efforts to build an immense tower in the middle of the city has blocked out the sun over a wide area of the city. Elsewhere, seemingly random wealthy citizens are going mad and destroying their own lives, and the Batman discovers it's all connected with some form of plant life. He recruits an apparently reformed Ivy to help him prevent tragedy, but his instincts and various clues tell him not to trust his one-time enemy.
John Van Fleet's painted artwork is mesmerizing. His work reminds me of the styles of Dusty Abell and Tony Harris, but there's an interesting mix of realism and surrealism at play. The figures are realistic and the movement appears natural. But he presents light and shadow as living things as well. I'm particularly pleased that he's able to convey Ivy's sexual side without resorting to a large cup size to do it for him. I also enjoyed the eerie greens and yellows he employs to reinforce the supernatural and surreal qualities of the story. The figures in the latter part of the book seem a bit crude at times, though, giving the impression that he rushed to complete the assignment.
My favorite part of this book is how Nocenti presents Ivy has a tender person, a sick woman who has managed to reclaim some of her humanity. I get a sense of Ivy as a person here, not just a character. There's an interesting role reversal by the end of the book, in which Ivy is the savior and the Batman is the villain.
I'm also pleased to discover that the plot isn't a predictable, formulaic one. Nocenti leads hre readers to believe at first that this is a typical story about a villain putting on airs to achieve freedom and revenge, and that misdirection makes for an interesting twist by the end of the issue. Nocenti's ability to bring insanity to life is impressive as well. She introduces a new Arkham inmate in the opening pages, and his odd obsession is disturbing yet unnervingly human.
