Harley Quinn

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Before Amanda Conner’s and Jim Palmiotti’s Harley Quinn, Harley had a short—well, short for a comic book character—and successful career, appearing in television shows, Batman comics, her own lead comic, and as a lead in two different team comics. On September 11, 1992, Harley Quinn debuted as the Joker’s “hench-wench” on Batman: The Animated Series, created under the direction of Paul Dini and Bruce Timm. Arleen Sorkin, a main contributor to her continuation on the series, voiced the character. Originally, Sorkin “appeared in a dream sequence on [Days of Our Lives] in which she wore a jester costume; Dini used this scene as inspiration for Quinn. Having been friends with Sorkin since college, he incorporated aspects of her personality …show more content…

During Batman Animated and Mad Love, Harley’s story is entwined with the Joker’s. There are instances of her individuality, but he is her primary concern. In Harley Quinn Volume1 (2001-2004) , Harley breaks free of the Joker and enjoys numerous story lines of her own volition. However, she is still obsessed with the idea of the Joker even though they are broken up. In Gotham City Sirens (2009-2011), Harley is, once again, broken up with the Joker. While she appears much more childlike and ditzy in this incarnation, she is seen less as the Joker’s girlfriend and more as a friend to Catwoman and Poison …show more content…

With the Joker’s presence, Harley would still be subjugated to the gendered violence described by Taylor. Even in moments of seeming independence in the past, all readers knew it would never last because she always had the opportunity to return to the cycle of abuse. By removing the cycle completely with the death of the Joker, Harley is now forced to discover who she is as a character without the Joker. In doing so, she is able to embody the classic feminine qualities of submissive, gullible, naïve, clingy, possessive, possessed, innocent, and ornamental. She is also able to embody the classic masculine characteristics of strong, confident, protective, powerful, and

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