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Harley Quinn

Credits

Cast

Network

Reviewer

Kennedy Unthank

TV Series Review

Harley Quinn’s been caught once more while buying time for the Joker to escape. That’s the cost of love, though: sacrificing for the one you love. She’d do anything for the Joker. Besides, Harley’s not worried about spending time at Arkham Asylum.

“I know my man will break me out of Arkham before I spend a single night,” she confidently tells Batman and Commissioner Gordon.

Well, Harley did, in fact, spend a night in Arkham. In fact, she spent 365 nights there, and the Joker never showed up. That’s when fellow female felon Poison Ivy plants a toxic seed in Harley’s mind: What if the love Harley and Joker shared was actually just one-way?

Harley refuses to believe it, of course. But when Poison Ivy breaks them all out of prison, the Joker doesn’t bother to come to see her. When the Riddler soon captures both Harley and Batman, he dangles them both over a large vat of acid. He asks the Joker to choose which of the two he wants to save, and which of the two he wants to dissolve.

As Harley fell into that vat of acid because the Joker saved Batman, she began to ponder the possibility that perhaps Poison Ivy was right.

Fortunately, that “acid” was actually just a big ol’ vat of margarita mix. So while it was still a sticky situation, she was otherwise just fine. But instead of acid burning away her skin, she felt a fire, stoked by betrayal, burning inside of her. She was done being played for a fool. She would show Gotham just how powerful she was—without the Joker.

A City Filled with Crime and Filth

Since Harley Quinn dumped the Joker and struck out on her own, a lot has happened. For instance, she’s gotten into a committed relationship with fellow villain Poison Ivy; she’s logged time with the Legion of Doom; and she’s both saved and destroyed large sections of Gotham.

You might think that HBO Max’s animated take on this famous DC villainous might somehow pull its content punches, but it really doesn’t. Instead, it reminds us not to take our moral lessons from villains. Harley Quinn is full off blood-and-bone-filled violence, sex (including the aforementioned lesbian relationship that becomes the narrative centerpiece of the later seasons) and lots of foul mouths.

To be more specific, the violence is quite graphic. We see people melting in acid, having their shins broken, being eaten and more—animated gore included. In terms of nudity, expect pixelated genitalia, an orgy scene and a Valentine’s Day special that includes Harley and Ivy’s sensual night causing the whole city to start having sex with strangers. And as for swearing, well, don’t think that heavy cursing is where the show will draw the line—come to think of it, there really isn’t a line to be found here. We’d turn on the Bat signal for help with this one, but we’re a bit too afraid to bring any more opportunities for a crude joke onto the screen.

Episode Reviews

Nov. 29, 2019 – S1, Ep1: “Till Death Do Us Part”

Harley desperately wants to believe that the Joker still loves her, while Poison Ivy tries to nudge her out of that abusive relationship.

The Joker enters a scene by ripping a mask made of someone’s skin off his face, and blood drips from the mask. A man’s shin is broken, and we see blood and bone. Other victims of violence are graphically dissolved in acid, while others still are set on fire. Some men are stabbed, and others are blown up in explosions. One guy has a chunk of his throat bitten off by Harley. And there’s still more; A child and his parents are found dissolved to the bone by a talking plant. Other people are shot. Not everyone dies, but it’s all very bloody, and viewers can expect to see organs and bones.

Harley is called the “porn clown.” We hear a reference to menstruation. Harley and the Joker passionately kiss, and they talk about sex.

Someone smokes a cigar. We’re told a vat of acid is actually margarita mix. The Joker calls a group of white people “my fellow whites.”

The f-word is used 20 times, including one instance preceded by “mother.” The s-word is used 10 times. We also hear single uses of “b–ch,” “d-ck,” “h—” and “pr-ck,” respectively, as well as two uses of “a–” and “p-ss.” God’s name is abused six times, including one pairing with “d–n.” Jesus’ name is used in vain twice.

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Kennedy Unthank

Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He doesn’t think the ending of Lost was “that bad.”

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