REVIEW: ‘Sirens: Love Hurts’ Issue 1

Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 is published by DC Comics, written by Tini Howard, art by Babs Tarr, colors by Miquel Muerto, and letters by Becca Carey.

Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 is published through DC’s Black Label imprint. The Sirens, teaming up with Black Canary, investigate a brutal serial killer targeting women.

This is an issue that’s a lot of fun, but also has a dark side. From the first pages, the energy within Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 is high and intense. It’s beyond the mood of a typical Siren’s book, focusing on the somewhat dubious morals of the heroes. The trio of Harley Quinn, Catwoman, and Poison Ivy is written as villainous, or at least with a criminal element. They like stealing, but they’re stealing from characters with questionable intent.

And at the heart of Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 is a violent crime story with young women being slaughtered. It makes the tone intriguing and inquisitive, bouncing from comedy and carefree attitudes to serious investigation. There’s a fantastic pace to the story, making the most of the longer page count Black Label books are afforded. It means the scenes are longer, allowing the dialogue to build and giving more time to spend with such a fun group of characters. There is genuine peril, too, for there are very vulnerable victims who are gruesomely slaughtered in ritualistic killings.

Howard writes the three Sirens terrifically, but it’s the inclusion of a fourth that makes this new series so fascinating. Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 brings Black Canary into the mix, crafting something of a divide between the main cast. It pits Dinah against the Sirens much of the time, especially in such early stages of the book. It also brings the Sirens together rather than having them bicker. They’re on the same side, or at least from the perspective of the Canary.

All three have similar morals and ideas, while still maintaining their incredibly iconic personalities. They can poke fun at and irritate Dinah, but the hero also finds time to enjoy their company as fellow women. The adversarial attitude is more one of annoyance than true anger, but it creates friction in the dialogue.

Love is a profound aspect of this series; it’s evident already. Black Canary is deeply in love with Green Arrow, wrapped in the throes of a recent engagement. And the Sirens are all captivated by love in some way, with Howard making much of the script romantic and charming.

Interestingly, both Harley and Ivy’s queerness hasn’t been removed, but they aren’t together—close friends and perhaps roommates, but not a couple. Harley is still flirty and adventurous, finding other women to have fun with. The dialogue highlights the intelligence of each of the ladies while also having a lot of fun, with boisterous humor.

Tarr on art is a superb decision, as she brings out the best of the Sirens. Tarr’s art has a brilliant charisma, and the nature of a Black Label book allows her to play with their designs. The signature elements of each look are accentuated, with new features added as well. Ivy’s hair is incredible, a long braid that would make Rapunzel proud.

Harley’s diamonds, her most iconic symbol, are added in creative ways. Each has its own body shape and proportions. Tarr depicts beautiful, glamorous women, but the art isn’t overly excessive or gratuitously sexual. Their faces have large eyes, hinting at a cartoonish quality to the art. Black Canary’s hair is big, which gives her smaller frame more presence, and her large legs indicate her strength.

The ladies also change outfits frequently, switching from casual to superhero costumes to nightclub finery. It beautifully brings out each Siren’s personality. But there is a brutality to Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 as well. The crime scenes are particularly bloody and visceral, with facial expressions that are haunting and immense pain. It snaps the bouncing story to attention.

The colors are stunningly vibrant. In the daytime, when the characters are first introduced, the shades are intensely friendly. Ivy’s orange-and-green tones invite this, as do the hair colors of Harley and Black Canary. An interesting choice Muerto makes is to alter Harley Quinn’s hair color. Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 takes a step away from the platinum blonde with the blue and pink tops that have become so entwined with Harley, and instead turns her hair all pastel pink.

This change blends well with Ivy’s hair, and the fact that pink also appears on her face as makeup makes her look more romantic, which fits one of the book’s themes. Even when the pages turn darker, the colors of Harley and Ivy become more neon and fluorescent.

Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 is a lively and loving start. It’s both a raucous adventure comic and a murder mystery. The Sirens already bent energy and youthful exuberance, especially Harley, but the inclusion of the Canary adds venom and loudness. It transforms a tenacious trio into a fearsome foursome. Howard’s dialogue and Tarr’s terrific make the whole comic fizz.

Sirens: Love Hurts Issue 1 is available now wherever comics are sold.