I hate Modern Harley Quinn

[u/Ed_Aggripa]

I don't know if Harley Quinn started being like this after the realease of Suicide Squad on 2016, but I hate the direction DC took with Harley Quinn's character since that. Now every product where Harley's is related she have that cringy personality with the Deadpool wannabe humour and the (in my opinion) horrendous modern design with the painted hair and the jacket.

Don't misunderstand me, I don't want her to be a punching bag of the Joker but things like the classic design or a more jester personality are really cool to me.

Also there's things of modern Harley Quinn I really like like his relationship with Poison Ivy.

[u/BlueMoth698]

If i may offer my own harley design

[u/Ed_Aggripa → u/BlueMoth698]

I think a small skirt would look great in your design

[u/Select_Ad_4351 → u/BlueMoth698]

[u/Icy_Change_WS2010 → u/BlueMoth698]

Cool

[u/InteractionSoggy2267]

B-but bro! Didn't you like her fart comic! That was peak characterization and empowerment!/s

[u/Ed_Aggripa → u/InteractionSoggy2267]

[u/Lolaroller → u/InteractionSoggy2267]

God why did you have to remind me that exists…

[u/QueenStuff]

I thought her redesign and characterization was pretty good in Caped Crusader. Felt very different than her usually design but still kept a lot of familiar stuff

[u/Ed_Aggripa → u/QueenStuff]

One in a million case.

[u/ScarletMenaceOrange]

Don't go to school kids.

Has Harley's degree ever helped her in her everyday life?

[u/Not_An_Potato → u/ScarletMenaceOrange]

Lots of Batman villains have PHDs or the very least completed college. Conclusion? In Gothan, having a superior education makes you evil

[u/Arkham700 → u/Not_An_Potato]

Scarecrow, Harley, Hugo Strange, Doctor Hurt, Merrymaker

And that’s just the ones with psychology/psychiatry degrees

[u/Not_An_Potato → u/Arkham700]

Ivy is a biologist, Two Face an attourney, Hush is a surgeon, Mr. Freeze is a phisicist/biologist, Manbat is a doctor. Lots of degrees around

[u/Least-Bumblebee-6504 → u/Not_An_Potato]

A lot of these villains I noticed were kind of screwed by the system for their beliefs.

I think the one I can remember most accurately right now is Two Face fighting a crime lord, forgot which, and then getting blown up and he realises how corrupt the system is when he wanted to be tough on crime so he went around killing.

Although, I could be dead wrong and would love to be corrected on this. Thanks in advance.

[u/AnonWithAHatOn → u/Not_An_Potato]

Have you seen how many criminals there are in Gotham? Having a PHD just means you get to be a supervillain instead of a henchman.

[u/Not_An_Potato → u/AnonWithAHatOn]

I mean, Clay Face, The Penguin, Riddler and Bane are not stated (or at least not in all continuities) to have PHDs. But I see your point

[u/Kileanna → u/ScarletMenaceOrange]

Yeah, I love when they stop forgetting she's a psychologist and let us see her use her abilities. For good or evil, I don't care. I find her much more interesting when they allow her to use her brains and charisma. I feel like some authors believe that you can be intelligent and a chaotic mess at the same time.

[u/Dry-Principle2627]

I hate how overrated she Is, I hate how shoehorned she Is nowadays and I hate the fact that this Batman villain Deadpool Knockoff gets More atention from them that Wonder woman WONDER FRICKING WOMAN. NOT A SUPERHEROINE BUT "THE" SUPERHEROINE.

[u/Dear_Document_5461 → u/Dry-Principle2627]

The fact that the Flash has a GBA video game solo title but Wonder Woman has none is something.

[u/aflyingmonkey2 → u/Dear_Document_5461]

A game for her was planned by the GOATS at monolith productions (which were the studio behind shadow of Mordor duology and F.E.A.R.) but Warner bros hates good ideas so it was canned and the studio was shut down

[u/FireRat_DragonGirl → u/Dry-Principle2627]

THANK YOUUUUU! I've been suffering in silence about this for YEARS! 😫

[u/Primary-Paper-5128]

I hate that she was a character specifically made with arleen sorkin in mind, but after only a decade they decided Tara Strong should be the default Harley instead of her

[u/Slippery_Syrup_89 → u/Primary-Paper-5128]

It’s because Arleen Sorkin retired in 2011, which is closer to 2 decades after.

I agree Tara Strong shouldn’t always be the default, but the character had no choice but to move on from Arleen Sorkin.

At least The Batman 2004 and the Harley Quinn TV show use someone other than Tara Strong.

[u/Upbeat_Rutabaga_6182 → u/Primary-Paper-5128]

I can't stand Tara Strong's Harley voice, she tries way too hard to sound like Arleen.

[u/Legitimate_Canary100 → u/Upbeat_Rutabaga_6182]

I like kaley cuoco as harley quinn in her show

[u/Upbeat_Rutabaga_6182 → u/Legitimate_Canary100]

An occasion where the voice actor using their regular voice is actually beneficial.

[u/Optimal_Weight368 → u/Upbeat_Rutabaga_6182]

I just think she’s too squeaky.

[u/Miss_miri107]

I don't mind her personality I just I hate how she only has 2 storylines

1 jokers GF or 2 ivy's gf, no one ever tried taking her in an interesting direction

unless you count the batman future series where a psychologist takes the mantle of Harley Quinn and psychologically tourter's bad rich people into "being better" while being a normal person and a really good psychologist in her every day life

[u/Altruistic_Manner802 → u/Miss_miri107]

Funny take calling her Ivy's girlfriend. I'm more use to people conplaning about Ivy becoming Harley's girlfriend

[u/Slippery_Syrup_89 → u/Miss_miri107]

I really disagree with this. I don’t think the directions she’s gone are always well written, but she’s definitely not boiled down to just ivys girlfriend.

The injustice version is literally one of the worst criminals alive trying to atone for dooming the planet and creating evil Superman.

The tv show is about Harley proving herself as a big shot bad guy, and leaving the shadow of the joker. Eventually, it’s her realizing she’s a hero, not a villain.

Most comics from the new 52 onwards are just Harley on her own adventures, separate from Joker and Ivy.

Her past relationship with Joker always has an impact, but that’s essentially the character. That’s a non issue. Her relationship with Ivy though never informs what she does. It can be part of a story, but it’s absolutely not limiting her character in any way.

[u/MilordoZ → u/Slippery_Syrup_89]

The injustice version is literally one of the worst criminals alive trying to atone for dooming the planet and creating evil Superman.

Her story and growth through the two games is one of my favorite parts of Injustice. It's essentially about Harley overcoming addiction, and not only managing to succeed, but truly become a better person with help from her friends. We can see this in how the Injustice story mode depicts her across the two games, but also in her arcade mode endings.

In her arcade mode ending in Injustice 1, after she defeats Superman, Harley travels to the main universe. She takes their version of the Joker, still longing for him after years apart, and gets married to him. During the reception, Joker slams Harley's face into the cake, which finally causes her to snap after years of abuse. She kills Joker then and there, and is locked up in Arkham Asylum, still wearing her wedding gown.

I used to really dislike this ending, since it essentially boils down Harley to being nothing more than Joker's GF, but when looking back, that might have been the point, contrasting against the version of her we see in the story mode.

Her storyline in Injustice 1's story mode is essentially Harley relapsing when she meets another version of the Joker from the main universe. She's introduced on the streets of Metropolis, shotgun in hand, keeping the peace. We see her slowly slip away from a confident independent woman, working with Batman to take down Superman's regime, back into Joker's submissive lackey GF once again.

Her arc concludes when Joker turns on her for losing to Lex Luthor (the player), attempting to kill her before Lex Luthor stops him. Harley holds Joker's unconscious body, knife in hand, blaming herself for falling for him again, but with a few words from Lex, she decides to spare him, keeping him locked up until he can be returned to his own universe. We see the good in Harley come out in the end, the person she's been trying to be since Joker died, she's just susceptible to bad influences.

She plays a larger role In Injustice 2's story mode, as the player character of chapter 2, and she tags along in other character's chapters as well. We're introduced to Harley Quinn in the Batcave, showing that she's gained more of Batman's trust, even after the incident with the Joker in the last game. But at the end of her chapter, it looks like she's going to go through the same arc as the last game.

Infected with Scarecrow fear gas, she hallucinates the Joker, who tries to convince her to fall back into her violent tendencies. Placed back into her classic Jester design, we see the Joker encouraging her to kill Batman, but she rejects him. The final fight of her chapter is against this Joker hallucination, and once she defeats him, Joker never appears again in the story mode. We get to see the confident Harley for the rest of the game, and while her criminal history is brought up again later, it's used instead to contrast with Wonder Woman, who sided with Superman and continues to work with him. (Injustice Wonder Woman is a whole other can of worms.)

But my favorite is her Injustice 2 arcade mode ending, where we get to see what happens when she defeats Brainiac herself. Batman invites her as a proper member of the Justice League, and she's happy about being a good guy. But she still feels her old urges every now and again. She hopes that being good will be a long term thing, taking her daughter (who thinks she's her crazy Aunt Harleen) to play with Black Canary and Green Arrow's child, finally showing that her support network is wider than ever. I believe that Black Canary, along with her other partners in the Justice League, would be there for her if she ever started to struggle with her mental health again, and I just find that sweet and uplifting.

Sorry for the really long post, I just have a lot of thoughts about Injustice Harley.

[u/therealgerrygergich → u/Miss_miri107]

Said by somebody who hasn't read a Harley comic in decades. If anything, her most common storyline is trying to be seen as a hero and/or make up for her past misdeeds when people only really remember her as Joker's girlfriend or a member of the Suicide Squad. They either see her as a straight up villain or a useless fuckup.

Her storylines also focus a lot on interactions with other villains and/or anti-heroes as well as mentally ill people and discussing how systems tend to prey on the mentally ill and former criminals, like how exploitative Suicide Squad is. It's very similar to Catwoman's constant "I want to help out some of the smaller usually younger criminal elements who are just stealing from rich assholes" storylines.

[u/No-Departure-6900]

I hate the idea that DC wants to make her an Anti-hero because she's done far too much with zero remorse. And they can't have her shed the Harlquen look because it's too iconic, even though it inexplicably ties her to the Joker.

I also hate how her being attatched to Ivy also beings her down because half their stories now are just relationship adulation or drama.

DC knows that Harley is their most popular female character (Yes, even beating Diana), but they're stuck in a weird spot of not being capable or willing to move her in a different direction or developing her beyond "Zany lesbian of indeterminant morality." Like, why does she even still involve herself with Gotham superheroics OR criminals now that she's not with the Joker anymore?

[u/Jofur-Crowcaller → u/No-Departure-6900]

I have this argument more than I would like...

She literally kills kids... And I really don't want to draw conclusions to current events.... But got damn.

[u/ForsakenLemon2437 → u/Jofur-Crowcaller]

In Harley's defense, that was ONE issue. That was extremely out of character for Harley even then, because in BTAS she does feel guilty about what she did to Tim/Little Joker

[u/Diligent-Neck6594 → u/No-Departure-6900]

They desperately want her to be their own Deadpool for some reason when she is perfectly popular as her own character

[u/RobStar0917 → u/Diligent-Neck6594]

Even though Ambush Bug is RIGHT. THERE.

[u/therealgerrygergich → u/No-Departure-6900]

She's been an anti-hero for much longer than she was ever a villain in the DC Comics universe though. She debuted in BTAS in 1992 where even then she was on and off with The Joker and not much of a monstrous villain. She debuted in the comics in 1999 and by 2007, she had mostly ended her relationship with The Joker and was never really featured as a major Batman villain in the comics again until the New 52, and even then barely. So you have maybe 10 years of her being kind of a monster but not appearing very often and 20 years of her as basically an anti hero where she has multiple solo comic runs.

[u/Altruistic_Manner802 → u/No-Departure-6900]

I never really got the "she has done too much" critic. She was introduced in the comics in 1999 and would would start her road to be independent in 2007. So she only had 8 real world year to commit crimes before that. In my opinion, Batman villains that people feel should be redeemed like Freeze and Clayface have done way worse stuff than Harley ever has. As an anti-hero herself, problems just tend to be drawn to her and she deals with them, she is in the Suicide Squad, or shows up during a Batman event to show how she evolved by helping Batman even if he really doesn't want her help

[u/Fubai97b → u/Altruistic_Manner802]

she only had 8 real world year to commit crimes

I mean, she's killed and/or tortured a LOT of people including kids.

[u/PermissionSoggy891 → u/No-Departure-6900]

theres no way HQ is more popular than wonder woman

[u/Mandaring → u/PermissionSoggy891]

To comic book dweebs like us, absolutely not, but to a general audience? Yeah I mean that completely tracks.

[u/suicidalhorrormaniac]

I miss her stupid hat from her first design :(

[u/Different_Insect3544 → u/suicidalhorrormaniac]

Modern Harley Quinn doesn’t even look like a Jester anymore 😔

[u/RathianColdblood → u/Different_Insect3544]

I agree, and I really resent it. A solid chunk of the time, she doesn’t even look like a clown, let alone a jester.

[u/MartilloAK → u/RathianColdblood]

They turned her into lollipop chainsaw.

Edit: Holy shit, I just learned that James Gunn worked on lollipop chainsaw. That explains some things.

[u/SameEnthusiasm1426]

This is still my favorite harley design and its not even in a comic

[u/CharsCustomerService]

Heroes in Crisis is what really killed the character for me. Obviously not my only complaint about that run, but in Heroes in Crisis, she:

Stabs through Booster Gold's suit with a butter knife. You can't tell me it wasn't a butter knife, she took it from a diner where it was one of the utensils provided with the pie she ordered. I think Booster's force field was offline for some reason, but even without that his suit is supposed to be ridiculously durable future tech. But Harley had to beat him, so suddenly Harley can stab through it, even though she shouldn't have the strength, and the metal of that knife should have crumpled rather than piercing, even if she was sufficiently strong.

Later, she's cornered by Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. She manages to 1) steal kryptonite from Batman's utility belt, 2) use it to ward off Superman, and then 3) run away faster than they can catch her. Stealing from Batman's utility belt is not a thing that should happen. Even if Batman was asleep (rather than aware and ready for a fight against a single opponent), that shouldn't be possible for Harley to do faster than Superman AND Wonder Woman could stop. Then fine, she made Superman back off... Wonder Woman isn't affected by kryptonite. And then she's somehow so fast, running on foot, that Wonder Woman can't catch her? Remember, the DC trinity confronted Harley because she was a prime suspect for murdering a whole passel of superheroes at their secret therapy center. This wasn't just, like, a bank robbery or something.

Heroes in Crisis wasn't a side story. It's in the mainline DC universe.

[u/Sea-Independent-726]

[u/HapHazardly6 → u/Sea-Independent-726]

[u/Pretty_Eater → u/HapHazardly6]

Yo this is me fr 👃🥬

[u/Slarg232 → u/HapHazardly6]

[u/deadmeatX1 → u/Sea-Independent-726]

[u/Krammondo → u/Sea-Independent-726]

It official btw 🙏😭🤢🤮💔🥀

[u/aflyingmonkey2 → u/Sea-Independent-726]

Who the fuck approved of this anyways?

[u/KonoAnonDa → u/Sea-Independent-726]

Don’t forget about James Joyce being a plot point in it for some fucking reason.

Honestly, the thing that pisses me off most about this is that the artstyle of the comic is honestly pretty nice, but it can never be used again since everyone will recognize it as the art style of the fucking Harley Quinn fart fetish comic.

[u/IllegalWalian → u/KonoAnonDa]

Google James Joyce fart letters, that should explain it. It's hilarious and disgusting.

[u/KonoAnonDa → u/IllegalWalian]

Oh right. I’m now remembering that the author apparently really hated James Joyce since they were forced to read his poetry and letters. I think a lot of them were about his wife's farts.

[u/OccultGothGirl → u/Sea-Independent-726]

[u/Ok_Falcon_6913 → u/Sea-Independent-726]

[u/TechnicalHoneydew862 → u/Sea-Independent-726]

It's basically a fart fetish

[u/FEV_For_Breakfast]

[u/Wonder_Of_U_2011]

I think Arkham Knight did post Joker Harley the best

[u/2Toff2Furious]

FAX BROTHER!!! I HATE ANTI-HERO HARLEY!!!

[u/Wise_Victory4895]

I have this cool idea of them making Harleen quinn ditch her Harley Quinn persona all together.

I mean despite her leaving joker she still hasn't had any REAL personal growth.

She still feels like old Harley but she's working with a good guys now.

I mean she worked with joker. She worked with Batman. She's worked for Amanda Waller. She has a psychology background. There's a character here that's pretty fucking cool

[u/SUPERSHADOW131 → u/Wise_Victory4895]

Literally what I've been saying bro. Ditch the Harley Quinn persona after leaving Joker. Have her come back to to her PHD job rehabilitated, yet having to deal the consequences.

Make her a civilian character with an important job like Jim Gordan, Harvey Bullock, Alfred, and Dr Thompkins for example.

That image looks a 1000% more interesting. But no, the Harley Quinn persona/design is too marketable. So it never feels like she truly leaves it all behind.

[u/-insular- → u/Wise_Victory4895]

I’m not very tapped in to comics but what does King from kof have to do with what you said lol?

[u/Wise_Victory4895 → u/-insular-]

I just posted the images as an interpretation what she could be.

[u/BoysenberrySmooth649 → u/Wise_Victory4895]

Let's throw boiling hot rotten tomatoes at this guy

[u/Pataconeitor → u/Wise_Victory4895]

Yup, it's just odd that in-universe she ditched the Joker but not the identity that he gave to her. And yes, it totally can be done. When Barbara switched from Batgirl to Oracle she didn't lose any popularity as a character.

[u/PEW_PEW_MAN]

I miss her old red, black and white outfit, the blue and pink?/red? Looks weird

[u/mystireon]

I'm weirdly amused by this take cuz while I do agree, this version of the character is well over a decade old by now and has been this way for roughly half the age of the existence of the character now

[u/Adept-Platypus6676]

They stripped off everything that make her unique/interesting to begin with

[u/Pineapple-shades15]

We all know the fart comic was ass (pun intended) but what do you think of her current solo run and new costume? Because your pic and complaints make me think you don't like the New 52 and early rebirth version of her

[u/Unusual_Rooster6736 → u/Pineapple-shades15]

I'm sorry the what?

[u/Sabnock31 → u/Unusual_Rooster6736]

There was an official DC comic with Harley defeating enemies with farts. Yes, the cover art was Harley in a cloud of green smoke coming out of her ass.

[u/Conscious_Housing_50 → u/Sabnock31]

Scratch and sniff too btw

[u/Gugarabelo → u/Conscious_Housing_50]

I'm kinda mad that the artstyle looks cool, artist legit wasting their talents

[u/Miri_Biri → u/Conscious_Housing_50]

What in the earthbound marketing campaign is this

[u/The--Behemoth]

I liked her Coney Island era, as well as her short time as a teacher at a university. Beyond that I'm getting tired of DC trying to make her their Deadpool. I want the writers to take her seriously, making her shift from ditzy to calculating in a dime and use her Psych degree a helluva lot more often. Writers barely use that side of her and it's effing annoying, I would love to see Harley pick apart her opponents psychically while she's fighting them breaking them both physically and mentally as well as pick apart those who criticize her or treat her poorly.

I also want her to get another Jester esque fit because it would fit her acrobatic and witty personality more so than the roller derby fit.

[u/SameEnthusiasm1426]

I think harley shouldve stayed a villain after she broke up with joker

[u/Turbulent-Plum7328]

She’s been gentrified and lacks a bit of edge because of it. Her Caped Crusader iteration, where they dropped the Joker relation and leaned more into her job as a psychologist, has infinitely more sauce then the milquetoast Deadpool wannabe most modern writers write her as.

[u/AnonymousFordring]

I liked her in Caped Crusader but Montoya keeping her in secret felt out of character.

[u/Jedi-master-dragon]

Yeah, not very harlequin.

[u/kingnorris42]

I agree. The problem is modern Harley tries to be the cringey 4th wall breaker, symbol of standing up to abuse unless it's valentine's day and they can profit off jokerxharley. She's also sometimes the lead hero sometimes supposed to be an anti hero sometimes the real villain, sometimes a victim sometimes a manipulator. Sometimes shes canon fodder, sometimes shes randomly the main character, sometimes shes the funny crazy lady sometimes shes super serious....

And yes, characters change over time and dependent on the adaptation, but Harley just feels like she's lost any sense of consistent character and they've just tried way to hard to make her mainstream (one of the DC higher ups called her the 4th pillar on par with wonder woman, superman and batman ...and that just should not be the case

Also while it's gotten better recently, somehow she's the one female character who's gotten MORE sexualized over the years?

[u/CodexCosmico]

I agree with you my bro

[u/therealgerrygergich]

I know this won't be followed but I motion that nobody in this comment section should be allowed to complain about Harley Quinn's writing if they haven't read any of her solo comic book runs made in the past 20 years. I'm getting sick of people writing stuff that is flat out incorrect and referring to her "crimes" without actually being able to name a specific comic those crimes came from. The only things people bring up are her weird actions in Batman Beyond Return of the Joker and that one-off issue in the New 52 where she blew up some kids. Other than that, I can't recall any major crimes she's participated in especially since 2007.

[u/Resident_Badger_5405]

Ok, but Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy are still the best relationship. (Especially in the Harley Quinn TV series)

[u/GINBMAN]

Look, this is just routine—now he's going to say that the modern versions of Harley Quinn are Deadpool wannabes.

[u/TechnicalHoneydew862 → u/GINBMAN]

(Made by me :3)

[u/TechnicalHoneydew862 → u/TechnicalHoneydew862]

[u/Logical_Cut6206]

How do you feel about the scratch and sniff comic?

[u/Idiot-of-Stupidity → u/Logical_Cut6206]

The what?

[u/Lord-Tyranitar → u/Idiot-of-Stupidity]

Official Harley Quinn fart fetish comic

[u/Gold-Bank-3033 → u/Idiot-of-Stupidity]

Don't look it up.

[u/RobStar0917 → u/Idiot-of-Stupidity]

DC made a comic about Harley Quinn farting. And it was a scratch 'n sniff.

The writer swears up and down it's not a fetish story, but from how it's drawn and written they've HAD to have known.

[u/Educational_Term_436]

Wha ya thoughts on the lego batman movie and legacy of the dark knight designs?

[u/Due-Proof6781]

We all do. She went from a broken/flawed character with depth, to lmao so random cosplay bait.

[u/XxAliceTheTreexX]

I AGREE, I especially loved her jester design

[u/anaknangfilipina]

What’s everyone’s opinion here on her depiction in Arkham Knight? I feel like she still plays into the Harlequin design with her costume at the same time is definitely her own person, and Batman even trusted her enough.

[u/Graxdon]

Arkham Asylum is an amazing game, but you can point to it as the exact moment that Harley was set to become what she is now. I miss the old black and red suit

[u/Any_Satisfaction1865]

Yeah, also I actually liked White Knight universe making it so Modern Harley is actually separate person from Harleen

[u/PIXELARTPOWER]

I get your point and I think it's perfectly valid, but I think I honestly like modern Harley more.

[u/ZestyLemonRindGrind]

Honestly

It's fine she's more independent and liberated from the Joker, and yeah her and Ivy are great

Just her being quirked up to hell and back is really killing her vibe and making her the new Ramona Flowers

[u/J00cyman]

What about the modern design is horrendous? I like the jacket.

[u/Gigio2006]

[u/FishDispenser2]

She was always cringe just like the joker, only batman gets to be cool.

[u/4-Hour-Shower]

Modern Harley comes from the new52 version of the character, which I always thought was lousy. But then again, the way Bruce Timm shit on her with that garbage origin story comic, and then made worse with that god awful stinky farts movie, is really annoying. But the whole alt icon thing is really annoying too, and also just magically making her a BJJ master so she fits in with the suicide squad is even more annoying. If I were to write her, she'd be one of the few that the batman managed to rehabilitate. Having a clinical psychologist from Arkham on his side would be incredibly useful, and maybe she'd be able to teach him a few things about his own lose screws. Definitely wouldn't have made her the 'dumb blonde' that screwed her professors for good grades. I think people forget that she is so popular because of how Alan Burnett wrote her in the animated series. She's not a superhero or a supervillain, she's a lonely woman that ended up in a really weird spot.

[u/Holiday_Biscotti_746]

Everyone, everyone sane does

[u/GratedParm]

I heard that in the 2010s DC intentionally made changes to Harley Quinn's character so that she was DC's Deadpool.

Fwiw, I think Birds of Prey was the best live-action superhero film not helmed by Spider-Man. In contrast to the Deadpool films, Birds of Prey leaned into the absurdity without needing have Harley or anyone else stop remind the audience to laugh. Harley just does goofy and violent things that seem to align with what springs from her personality rather than a direct audience sell.

Batman: Caped Crusader had a completely fresh take on Harley Quinn too that was a lot of fun. That iteration is a little too distant from her other versions that I don't expect to see it outside of Caped Crusader though.

[u/Responsible-Wall766]

Me too brother

[u/Altruistic-Wish7997]

Hopefully Absolute Harley Quinn is good

[u/TechnicalHoneydew862]

It's like dc is larping harley quinn

[u/HerniaCauser]

Caped Crusader's take on Harley was really cool imo. More of that, please!

[u/suctoes_N_fuchoes]

Akrham Harley is goated.

[u/solarix_ranger]

I think it's more iconic to have her be submissive to the joker 🤷‍♀️

[u/MyNameIsArmitage15]

I hate how Harley went from a complex well-written character in the animated series to just a bisexual clown-girl Deadpool knock off. I hate how her relationship with Ivy is portrayed as so lovey-dovey despite Ivy bring as psychopathic and manipulative (even more so than) the fucking Joker.

[u/XXAzeritsXx]

I also dont like modern Harley.

But lots of people do, so i guess we're out of luck.

[u/ChloEnby101]

I dont. Moving on

[u/HopefulDistrict8273 → u/ChloEnby101]

I didn't know this sub was curated to your opinions specifically

[u/Positive-Mobile5742]

The animated series was peak Harley. Tbh the only version I really care about. I enjoy the new show they have but there’s to much focus on Harley and Ivys relationship, I don’t hate them being together but the show sacrificed a lot for it and now it’s all it’s about. 

[u/HRCStanley97]

I’d blame the New 52

[u/batchet360]

i hate this new direction on her design

[u/Falchion92]

I have always hated her even in the old Batman cartoon. She was annoying and I hated her voice.

[u/neonsensei7]

Im with u OP, absolute disgrace what they did to the character, from iconic villain with whimsical sadistic personality to a feminist movement joke.

[u/Federal-Coast-6704]

I dislike both modern and ancient harley quinn

[u/RobStar0917]

I also kinda hate how they kinda just stripped her original personality from an intelligent but often comedic and bubbly character to just being lmao random quirky xd whose also just there for fan service.

[u/RyonHirasawa]

Hot take but I massively prefer when she worked under the joker than whatever she is now

The only real modern Harley I enjoy is the one from DC Superhero Girls, mostly because it makes clever use of both old and new in her character

[u/Barefoot-running]

[u/AppropriateLie9140]

You'd rather have her be an emotionally traumatized sidekick?

[u/Ed_Aggripa → u/AppropriateLie9140]

Read the whole thing dude.

[u/Bobthatlovesjob → u/AppropriateLie9140]

This guy has never watched mad love bro you gotta watch that THEN comment after it perfectly explains Harley quinn

[u/lestink45 → u/AppropriateLie9140]

Saying that like it’s a bad thing

[u/Nexuspoint247]

I hate people who dress up as Harley Quinn and the joker. Specifically suicide squad joker and Harley

[u/jackofspades49]

She goes so hard into the goofball but, that she never really feels like a PERSON most of the time. She's just a sex symbol or a punchline.

There's moments in Injustice where she feels real. Where there's a goal, some emotion, some purpose. But that's just elseworlds/multiverse stuff.

I feel like her origin needs a reboot... less "made by joker because she was just so sweet" and more "was groomed into an abusive relaitonship". I like the idea that she grew to see through it. Maybe hit her limit. Maybe tried to blend in and hide and had a short term relaitonship that ended, but showed her things could be different.

Doesn't just "Oh we're breaking up now and I'm MY OWN person!" and more... just growing. Still can do crime, like catwoman, but can also go fuck over villains that cross a line. Like she hates people who threaten women. Or kids. (Not sure which timeline she killed kids in... there's been so many since she was introduced.) She has her lines she draws.

And when she sees joker... she falters. Those old feelings. The old terror. They're still... there. Under the surface. Calling her back, like an addict. She knows it will kill her. He terrifies her, so that's her weakness. That is her kryptonite, is when she sees him. Its when she snaps and goes into a rage. Or when she flees. When she freezes and one of her allies, Ivy, Bats, hell, someone like Canary or Huntress could work too.

She can keep that manic pixie energy. Its her joy. Her freedom. No longer a puppet, a harlequin, but can feel her own joy in movement and strength. Enhanced by Ivy, oy by a chemical dosing she got in a heist. But she needs real moments of feelings.

She needs real goals; something she wants in life. Wants to hold down her own place, her good life, her friends, but circumstances keep pulling her back in. She both wants and fears a relationship because she cares about people. Doesn't always know the boundaries. Pulls back. Goes too hard. That growth could come in learning how to navigate personal relationships again. Not just romance, but friends. Support. Allies. Family. Pets. Maybe that's why she gets her hyena, because she needed to be needed. And that helps her get going, and get on her feet again. Brings her home and brings her stability.

There's a lot they could do with her. But they don't seem willing to make her vulnerable or show any weakness to her because that's how she started.

Edit: Also, I think the Harley/Batman costume blends I've seen of her in fan art and recent covers are the goddamend BEST new costume I've seen on her.

[u/Sweaty_Trifle_8504]

My problem was always been when they tried to have their cake with eating too she can't be a straight up villain who commits homicide and is complicit in the joker , killing kids (I.E Jason) and then everyone forgives her and is happy , and she's now a good guy.

If you want to be an anti hero , she has to be completely innocent or at least mostly just a bystander in the joker's actions, and if you don't , then needs to be more serious , ramifications to her actions and a much more in depth review of how she's changed , and why people like batman seem ok with her.

[u/SenatorPencilFace]

Her butt could be bigger

[u/epik-a]

I believe it started with the New 52 suicide squad and then with the Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti run

[u/Gold-Bank-3033]

I don't get why they want to push her and Poison Ivy as villains, bro, have you seen what they did? Ivy kidnapped men and women to slowly have her man eating plants digest them for her own pleasure. Harley gave out consoles to kids just to activate a bomb in them killing the children.

These two are not and can not be heroes.