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Harley Quinn, real name Harleen Quinzel, was the sidekick and pseudo-girlfriend of the Joker. She occasionally struck out on her own, and often served as a roommate/accomplice to Poison Ivy.
History
Origins
A once sane Harleen Quinzel.
Harleen Quinzel was once a career-oriented psychiatrist[7] whose life took a radical turn when she chose to spend a semester interning at Arkham Asylum. Upon meeting Dr. Joan Leland for the first time, the more senior doctor warned the eager and vastly inexperienced Harleen to be careful around the inmates. Originally drawn to the "glamor" of the inmates, she was unexpectedly intrigued by the Joker.
Joker shows Harleen Quinzel an unknown side.
She organized regular therapy sessions with him, during which the Joker manipulated the inexperienced Harleen by telling her tales of a cruel father and an abusive childhood, mixed in with his early attempts at comedy. He made her laugh as much as he made her cry, and she fell hopelessly in love with him largely based on sympathy.
After Joker's latest escape and re-capture by Batman, Quinzel went insane and adopted the clownish persona of Harley Quinn; her first act was to break Joker out again.[1] Thereafter she was his semi-constant companion and lover. She occasionally broke away from him, but always ended up going back to him in the end. For the Joker's part, while he had found her to be an annoyance some of the time, he was able to skillfully manipulate her to serve his needs.
Criminal career
Harley's first act was to assist Joker in attempting to assassinate James Gordon, by planting a bomb at his testimonial dinner. Batman subdued her after a brief fight. After that, she was an accomplice in virtually all of Joker's criminal schemes.[8]
Sometimes, she would be kicked out of the gang when Joker's temper got the better of him. On one of these occasions, she teamed up with Poison Ivy, and the two became close friends and a successful crime duo.[6]
During one of her solitary stints in Arkham, Batman offered her a pardon if she would help him track down Joker, who had stolen a nuclear bomb. She did so, though in a crazy, roundabout way that ended up being almost as dangerous to Batman and Robin.[7]
After being pronounced rehabilitated by the doctors at Arkham, Harley was paroled, but her hyperactive personality and unfamiliarity with the "real" world led to an avalanche of trouble that led to her unintentionally kidnapping Veronica Vreeland and being simultaneously pursued by Batman, Gotham gangsters, and the U.S. Army. She was returned to Arkham yet again, though Batman was more sympathetic to her, understanding how bad a day gone wrong could be.[9]
Unfortunately, Harley did not have much luck at being rehabilitated again and eventually returned to being the Joker's girl. However, after an incident involving Commissioner Gordon was botched, Harley began to re-examine her life. Realizing in a crazed manner that Batman was the cause of Joker's obsession and insanity, Harley devised a plan to capture him. Much to the surprise of Batman and the Joker, her plan not only worked, but according to Batman was more likely to kill him than anything the Joker had ever devised before. However, Batman managed to escape by convincing Harley to call the Joker for approval, knowing the Joker would be furious at the idea of anyone other than him killing that Dark Knight.
As expected, Joker was furious and threw Harley out of a window, nearly killing her and released Batman. Recovering in Arkham, Harley at last realized the Joker would never truly love her and was nothing more than an insane killer. However, she returned to her hapless devotion to him, upon seeing a single rose in a vase from him by her bedside table with a note wishing her well and a speedy recovery.
Harley later claimed that she and Joker had been to couples counseling. It didn't seem to help much, however, as it didn't take long for Batman to convince her that Joker was replacing her with Ace as his new sidekick. Enraged, Harley went to confront her "puddin'", who of course, immediately sweet-talked her back over to his side. Then he viciously backhanded her because she unwittingly led Batman right to his lair, which was the Dark Knight's plan all along.[10]
Later life
Harley's final act assisting Joker was in capturing and torturing Robin into insanity, then adopting him as their "son", J.J. While Batman pursued Joker, Harley fought with Batgirl in the ruins of Arkham. In the fight, both women toppled into a deep pit. Batgirl managed to grab hold of a ledge, and tried to pull Harley up, but her sleeve tore, and Harley seemingly fell to her death.[4]
"Break a grandmother's heart! I hope they throw the book at you!"
With no body ever recovered, Barbara Gordon suspected that Harley may have survived, but she never resurfaced again. Without the Joker around, she apparently gave up her criminal career and, at some point, mothered or adopted at least one child, who in turn gave her at least two grandchildren, the Dee Dee twins, Delia and Deirdre Dennis. After getting arrested for assisting the returned Joker in his plan to control a weapons satellite, the twins were chastised for what disappointments they were by their "Nana Harley."[4]
Personality
Despite being a villain, Harley Quinn had a surprisingly likeable personality. Bubbly and energetic, with a childlike sense of enthusiasm and a tendency to crack bad jokes, she could easily cause people, including Batman and the Joker, to underestimate her as she acted like she was far less intelligent than she really was. Harley also had a very strong sense of loyalty to her "Puddin" but her blind devotion to him made her ignore how evil the Joker truly was, thinking that everything he did was "just a joke". No matter how much the Joker abused and insulted her, even nearly killing her by hurling her out of a window, Harley kept going back to him, being the only person who didn't seem to realize how unhealthy her obsession with the Joker really was as she ignored Batman and Poison Ivy's attempts to point out that the clown didn't deserve her.
At times however, Harley did stand up to the Joker and on some occasions she even intimidated him, even beating him up after he hired another woman to replace her. Unfortunately, Harley suffered from Stockholm Syndrome, devoting her life to getting just scraps of approval from the Joker despite the horrible way he treated her. Whenever she did manage to break away from him though, she was very capable, even coming closer to killing Batman than the Joker ever did. She also had a close relationship with Poison Ivy, who treated her like a little sister. Harley was the only person Ivy showed genuine affection for thanks to her ability to charm people with her child-like personality.
Harley was also an extremely capable actress and was sometimes sent on undercover missions by the Joker due to her ability to blend in with normal people. She could hide her true nature flawlessly, which was not only evident in her ability to walk in and out of jail to free Sid the Squid but also in how serious and professional she was as a psychiatrist before the Joker broke through her façade.
Harley also possessed a surprisingly high amount of empathy, feeling genuinely sorry for the Joker when he told her about his abusive father (a story that Batman later claimed was one of "a million" lies the Joker came up with to earn sympathy). Although she was crazy, Harley wasn't evil and at times she made genuine attempts to change and make herself better. She even went out of her way to protect Veronica Vreeland after accidentally kidnapping her, even refusing to go along with the Gotham gangster's plan to ransom her. Harley also admitted that she felt responsible for a lot of the trouble she caused, showing that she did have a conscience but it was often buried beneath her blind devotion to the Joker, who tried to define who she was. After the Joker's death, Harley finally managed to let go of her obsession and get rehabilitated, mothering at least one child who gave her two grandchildren, both of whom she tried to stop from making the same mistakes that she had.
Relationships
Relationship with the Joker
Harley's relationship with Joker was perhaps one of the strangest in the whole character universe. At various times, she explained her feelings for him as sympathy for his abusive childhood (a story Batman dismissed as a lie), tender feelings based on their therapy sessions, or simply that he made her life fun, after a stressful career as a psychiatrist.
Her devotion was inexplicable because Joker didn't seem to return her feelings at all, and frequently insulted and abused her. Occasionally she would break away from him, but these moments of clarity never lasted very long, and but a moment's kindness from Joker was enough to bring her back.[6][1][7]
Yet at the same time, Joker found her a useful accomplice at times, and was often surprised by the depth of her devotion. At one point, he actually seemed to feel affection for her, after she demonstrated that she had enough "guts" to try to shoot him.[7]
Relationship with others
Harley and Ivy, out to have a little fun.
Harley had an on-again, off-again friendship/partnership with Poison Ivy, with whom she worked well. Poison Ivy has always had a soft-spot for Harley, often stating that that Quinn has no need for Joker. However, Harley never seemed to accept that Ivy was right, and would often obsess over him. This along, with her flaky personality would often cause Ivy great annoyance, but never to the point that she would sever ties with Harley.
Harley's feelings toward Batman were similarly conflicted. Most of the time, he was her enemy, which was natural, given that he was Joker's enemy. Sometimes, she even blamed Batman for Joker's abusiveness toward her, feeling that Batman's interference was what kept them from living a "normal" life.
Yet on one occasion, she recognized that Batman was one of the few people who didn't think she was hopelessly insane, and who had done his best to help her.[9] Ironically, Harley was able to do the one thing Joker never could: Make Batman laugh.[1]
Harley was the primary caretaker for Bud and Lou, the pair of hyenas the Joker owned, whom she affectionately referred to as her "babies".
Abilities and equipment
Harley Quinn possessed above-average agility and fighting skills. She was an Olympic-level gymnast and acrobat.
Harley also carried an assortment of clown-themed tools, although they rarely proved effective.[7] One of her signature weapons is an oversized, wooden mallet which she swings around with surprising skill despite its unwieldy appearance. Another weapon in her arsenal is an oversized revolver with a cork in the barrel. The cork usually contains ropes to tie people up or knockout gas.
Unlike the Joker, Harley could also act sane long enough to appear in disguise as a "normal" person. (She even got paroled from Arkham Asylum once.) Harley's impersonations included a security guard[8] and a lawyer.[11] A different security guard disguise was actually enough to get approval to guard the Joker alone during a police transport.[12] Due to Harley's charisma and psychiatric training, she is also adept at psychologically manipulating others.
Early in their partnership, Poison Ivy injected Harley with a toxin antidote, which rendered her immune to certain chemicals and diseases,[6] and had the side effect of enhancing her strength and stamina, allowing her to survive normally fatal accidents.[1][4]
Background information
Harley Quinn was created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini, based on (and created for) Dini's friend Arleen Sorkin, who provided the character's voice.[13] "Remarkably", Dini jokes, "she still speaks to me".
The character was so popular that she was eventually incorporated into the DC Comics universe.
There is some conflicting continuity about Harley's origins. Some episodes of Batman: The Animated Series such as "Harlequinade" describe her as a serious clinical psychiatrist who was "rescued" from her boring life by Joker. However "Mad Love", the first full exploration of Harley's origins, portray her as more flaky, whose career as a psychiatrist was still undeveloped when she fell for Joker. Some details of "Mad Love" are fleshed out in the comic the episode is based on, also written by Dini and Timm.
Of Harley's relationship with the Joker, Dini writes:
| “ | Bruce, Eric, Alan and I agreed that while we never wanted to delve too deeply into the rotting offal that passes as the Joker's soul, we did want to broaden the character a bit. One way we humanized the least human of Batman's enemies was to put him in a relationship with a woman who, for whatever reasons, adores him. | ” |
Mark Hamill added:
| “ | Expressing emotion in any way that's real and meaningful is alien to the Joker, but he's learning those parts of himself, however unconsciously, through Harley. On a physical level they're dynamite together. A lot of relationships are defined by that. Two people may be really horrible for each other, but physically they push each other's buttons so clearly they can't get enough of that person. | ” |
Says Arleen Sorkin:
| “ | Everyone else sees the Joker laugh, only Harley has ever seen him cry. It's the only reason she stays with him. | ” |
The producers have confirmed that it was Poison Ivy's stamina inducer that allowed Harley to survive the falls in "Mad Love" and Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker and to survive into old age.
Film director Kevin Smith (Clerks, Chasing Amy, Dogma) was so taken with the character that he named his newborn daughter Harley Quinn Smith.
Appearances
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Dini, Paul (writer) & Dini, Paul, Timm, Bruce (story) & Lukic, Butch (director) (January 16, 1999). "Mad Love". The New Batman Adventures. Episode 11 (airdate). Episode 21 (production). Season 2. Kids WB!.
- ↑ Uncredited writer & Uncredited director (June 19, 2001). "Miss Un-Congeniality". Gotham Girls. Season 2. Episode 13 (airdate). Episode 13 (production). WB Network.
- ↑ Dini, Paul (writer) & Uncredited director (January 25, 2003). "Hard as Nails". Static Shock. Season 3. Episode 1 (airdate). Episode 27 (production). Kids WB!.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Burnett, A., Dini, P., Timm, B., Murakami, G. (Producers), & Geda, C. (Director). (2000). Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. United States: Warner Bros. Animation.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/Paul_Dini/status/811963837414920192
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Dini, Paul (writer) & Kirkland, Boyd (director) (January 18, 1993). "Harley and Ivy". Batman: The Animated Series. Season 1. Episode 47 (airdate). Episode 56 (production). FOX Kids.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 Dini, Paul (writer) & Altieri, Kevin (director) (May 23, 1994). "Harlequinade". Batman: The Animated Series. Season 2. Episode 10 (airdate). Episode 72 (production). FOX Kids.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Dini, Paul (writer) & Kirkland, Boyd (director) (September 11, 1992). "Joker's Favor". Batman: The Animated Series. Season 1. Episode 7 (airdate). Episode 22 (production). FOX Kids.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Dini, Paul (writer) & Altieri, Kevin (director) (October 15, 1994). "Harley's Holiday". The Adventures of Batman & Robin. Season 3. Episode 6 (airdate). Episode 81 (production). FOX Kids.
- ↑ Justice League, "Wild Cards"
- ↑ Dini, Paul (writer) & Timm, Bruce W. (director) (February 1, 1993). "The Man Who Killed Batman". Batman: The Animated Series. Season 1. Episode 49 (airdate). Episode 51 (production). FOX Kids.
- ↑ Dini, Paul (writer) & Riba, Dan (director) (February 21, 1998). "Joker's Millions". The New Batman Adventures. Episode 7 (airdate). Episode 7 (production). Season 1. Kids WB!.
- ↑ http://imdb.com/name/nm0815071/
External links
- Harley Quinn at Wikipedia
- Harley Quinn at the DC Database
- Harley Quinn's Haven — the most comprehensive Harley Quinn website on the net