Ah, Joker & Harley, one of the greatest love stories in comics! The tale of this offbeat (if not one-sided) romance has been depicted by some of the most talented writers and artists in the field. But leave it to mad genius Jonathan Wayshak to give us this very disturbing AND hilarious peek of what goes on behind closed doors for these two lovebirds. Only Jon would think of taking us into the bedroom (or sleazy motel room) for his take on this bizarre pair. And to be honest, after seeing THIS, it’s probably about as much as I want to know about their sex life! LOL!

Anyway, I’ve been a fan of Jonathan’s work since I first saw it in San Diego a couple of years ago. I can’t believe he’s been drawing for as long as he has and I am only now discovering his incredible talent. I also can’t believe it’s taken him this long to break out of the Small Press world and into more mainstream work. I haven’t been this excited about an artist since I first started noticing Mike Mignola’s work in the mid 80’s. I tried telling all my collector friends about him, but since I was a new kid on the block (well, new to collecting anyway), no one really took me seriously. And look where Mignola is today! I’m not saying that’s necessarily going to happen with Jonathan, but he certainly has the potential to hit it big. He’s just a PHENOMENAL illustrator!

One of the best things to come out of discovering Jonathan’s work is meeting him in person. He’s such a cool and mellow guy. When you look at his work, you might picture someone who looks like Rob Zombie or something, but that’s not Jon at all. He’s as nice as he is talented, and if you ever stop by to say hello to him at a con, you’ll know exactly what I mean. It’s a real privilege to be considered one of his friends.

Okay, the piece itself was one of my acquisitions from WonderCon 2010 last weekend. I first noticed it featured on the home page of Jon’s website Scrapbook Manifesto (definitely worth checking out). When I stopped by his table to say hello that Saturday, I was very pleasantly surprised to see it framed and displayed there, as I had always wondered what it looked like in person. Of course I just assumed that it wasn’t for sale, since Jon doesn’t really sell very much of his personal work. When I asked, and he actually quoted me a price, there was no hesitation. I left it with him so he could display it for the rest of the weekend, but there was no doubt it was going home with me!

Oh, a couple of funny stories about this one. While I was standing there at Jon's table staring at this piece, the one thing that kept going through my head was that the title of the piece should be Pop Goes The Weasel. Sometimes, when I buy unpublished pieces, I sort of take it upon myself to make up a title (if the artist hasn't designated one for it). I was already smiling to myself with the idea of posting this with that title. But after I paid for it and was walking away from his table, I happen to flip the frame over and there written on the back was "Pop Goes The Weasel." LOL! I guess great minds think alike!

The other funny thing that Jon told me was that after I had agreed to buy it, he was approached by the owner of a local strip club (with one of his girls no less) with an offer to buy it also. The only reason he didn't sell it to the guy was that he kept trying to lowball him on the price. Lucky for me the guy was a cheapskate. I guess the girls weren't bringing in the lap dances like they used to,what with the recession and all. LOL!

So THANKS Jon! Thanks for this fabulous piece, and thanks for the great scan you sent along for me to share with the folks! It saved me from having to remove this beauty from the frame. And of course thanks for being a part of such a fun weekend at WonderCon 2010. Here’s to the next show, the next meeting, and the next piece of great art. Can’t wait buddy!

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