Set in a stunningly depicted 1931 Harlem, writer/artist Mikaël’s third entry in his “New York Triptych” dives headfirst 
into the harmful ways racism intersects with capitalism, while still delivering an intense crime drama. Harlem follows Stéphanie St. Clair (also known as Queenie), a Caribbean, French-speaking crime boss who runs a highly profitable and highly illegal street lottery that provides a source of hope for desperate Harlemites as much as it drains their pockets. Complicating her situation is rival gangster Dutch Schultz and a corrupt police force that is in league with the white mafia. Queenie does everything to support her struggling community while staying one step ahead of the law, but as you might expect, that’s far easier said than done.
Queenie, a fictionalized version of historical figure Stephanie St. Clair, becomes increasingly fascinating and nuanced over the course of the story because Mikaël isn’t afraid to look beyond stereotypes and portray her as a surprisingly sympathetic figure. Although she is embroiled in the world of crime, her charitable acts and history of providing financial opportunities to poor, disenfranchised African Americans highlights the institutional inequality that she and her associates must deal with every day. Notably, she creates jobs and gives loans to those excluded from the white-dominated economy, and in the process demonstrates that sometimes, seemingly shady activities come about out of necessity. As a self-made immigrant woman of color, Queenie is as much a model for the American Dream as she is a powerful racketeer, and to be honest, it’s hard not to root for her.
Although Queenie’s journey is at the center of Harlem, some of the most impactful moments come when Mikaël offers wordless panels depicting New York, allowing the reader to truly linger in the setting. Mikaël’s New York is not glorified, though. It’s rainy, grimy, and lived-in. This certainly brings to mind the works of Will Eisner (especially A Contract with God and New York: Life in the Big City), in which the city is its own character and just as important as the people in the story. While many of these images lack accompanying text, their intricacy forces the reader to slow down and really take in all the little details. These contrast with the brighter, more expressionistic depictions of dancing and live music that are sprinkled throughout.
Mikaël is very deliberate in his color choices, filling his panels with drab browns and grays, making the splashes of color during joyful moments or dreamlike flashback scenes even more resonant. This seems to reflect a consciousness of the fact that while brilliant, uplifting achievements were occurring as the result of the Harlem Renaissance, it’s important not to gloss over the suffering that was happening concurrently.
While Harlem is technically part of a loose trilogy that also includes the graphic novels Giant and Bootblack, it can be easily enjoyed on its own (but if you like Harlem, definitely go back and read the other two). It is suggested for mature readers, which seems appropriate for its rather intense depictions of sex and hard drug use, although the violence is not particularly over-the-top. Overall, Harlem is an engaging mix of historical fiction, crime drama, celebration of Black accomplishment, and astute critique of how racism impacts the lives of actual human beings in ways both overt and subtle. Fans of beautifully detailed cityscapes, discussions about the complexities of race and capitalism in America, or comics that have a 1930s crime/noir vibe (like Sandman Mystery Theatre or The Good Asian) will find plenty to like about Harlem.
Harlem Vol. 3
By Mikaël
NBM Graphic Novels, 2024
ISBN: 9781681123288
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+)
Creator Representation: French-Canadian,
Character Representation: Black,
