The Suburbs, Where Nightmares Run Free — Reviewing ‘Knight Terrors: Poison Ivy’ #2

When is a nightmare no longer a nightmare? When it begins to resemble the dream you think you truly want. In that space, fear begins to take control and the power to stop the nightmare is harder to come by. Just ask Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy, as that’s the space she currently finds herself.

Poison Ivy’s leap into the two-month-long Knight Terrors event has reached its conclusion, showcasing how to approach such an event. It’s easy to use these two-issue event tie-ins to just do some random story featuring the character(s) from a series. Stick to the basics of the character and not worry about what the story will mean down the line. The tougher but far more fulfilling route is to find a way to tie the event beats into the continuing journey of the character(s).

It helps when you are the regular writer that tackles this character month after month.

Willow Wilson continues to mine the emotions and growth of Ivy in these two issues. We’ve seen the character come far from the start of the series where she was ready to wipe out all of humanity, including herself. Yet, even having a breakthrough and strong women she cares about, there is still a long road to travel. We see that here as Ivy believes this nightmare prison is what she deserves because of her past and what was done to her. Once again it falls to Janet from HR to help her realize that is not true and that she is a true force of change and one to be reckoned with.

Every aspect of the story leans right into the horror vibe needed, chiefly the art. Horror is no stranger to this series and Atagun Ilhan, Mark Morales, Arif Prianto, and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou play into it beautifully as usual.

Ilhan has a style that is rough around the edges in many respects, with just the right amount of grittiness. This is enhanced by the inking that Morales has done, making it all even deeper and more nightmarish in many regards. It’s not just that darkness and roughness that makes things scary. In fact, that almost 50s-era sitcom tone of the nightmare is played up to great comedy and horror effect. It’s so out of place and over the top that it’s scary more than it’s funny which is what we’re supposed to feel.

Prianto plays into that with the colors that are so vivid and bright, almost saccharine in their brightness, which makes them off-putting. Horror isn’t just about gore or upsetting body-type visuals. Sometimes it’s about playing into things that are ‘normal’ but turned up to an uncomfortable level. Through the art and the chosen colors, we feel that Ivy wants this ‘perfect’ dream but it’s so over the top that the nightmare is beyond clear.

Every bit of that bleeds into the letters because Otsmane-Elhaou is just an utterly fabulous letterer. Every single bit of the letters on the page has personality, depth, a reason to be, and a uniqueness to it. All the energy of the story can be felt in the various boxes and bubbles that shift and change to fit each character or situation. Rough jagged bubbles with off-putting colors and shaky fonts are nightmare fuel all on their own. Pairing that with the art and colors is a perfect recipe for a nightmare.

Truly I love how much Wilson has done to explore this character and that she made sure a slight detour would not derail that story. Using a tie-in to enhance your story is the ultimate boss move when doing these work-for-hire gigs that are likely to be parts of events.

If it’s not clear, I really love the Poison Ivy series, no matter what form it takes.

Knight Terrors: Poison Ivy #2 is now available from DC Comics.