Currently one of the most popular comic book characters in pop culture is none other than Harley Quinn. In my opinion her rise to popularity began when Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti took on her solo series in November of 2013. But as most people know her origins do not come from the pages of a comic book, but the beloved Batman: The Animated Series. She was created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm and her first appearance was in one of my favorite episodes titled “Joker’s Favor”.
During a round table interview LRMOnline had to opportunity to sit with Tara Strong, who was the voice of Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl in Batman: The Animated Series. She also took over as the voice of Harley Quinn after Arleen Sorkin had originally brought the character to life. Strong was asked about her thoughts on Harley Quinn’s rise to popularity.
“Well, I think people really feel in love with Harley and Arleen Sorkin made that happen. She is such an extraordinary talent and her vocal range was Harley”, said Strong. “It was just so adorable and endearing and I think a lot of people identified with someone just crazy love, that she would just put up with such insanity for her man. And I think people feel in love with her then and then getting to play her myself later was a huge honor.”
Even though it is one of the most toxic and unhealthy examples that one can look up to, without a doubt the Joker and Harley Quinn’s relationship has captivated many people. But it’s her post Joker life that has been a huge reason for her rise in popularity from her solo comic book, her role in Suicide Squad team in both comics and film. This has elevated her to what some would call a feminist icon. Strong commented about what she though has attracted so many women to her.
“Well, I think that there is such a vulnerability to her but there is also a really strong kick-ass side to her. I think most women can find little pieces of themselves in that, not to that degree, lets say or they should be hospitalized. At some degree where you’ve known that you’ve done dumb things for love but you could also kick some ass. I think particularly right now in this political climate, to give women a strong, female character that’s going to go out and kick some ass is definitely a good thing.”
Harley Quinn has definitely come a long from being under the spell of the Joker. This is something that unfortunately a lot of men and women deal with in relationships, and it’s not until they finally get out that they realize they “could also kick some ass”, which why it is easy to see one reason why she is so relatable. It will be interesting to see how long she continues to be so popular. Next up to voice Harley Quin will be Big Bang Theory‘s Kaley Cuoco in her DC Universe’s self-titled animated series Harley Quinn set to debut sometime in 2019.
REALTED: HARLEY QUINN: BIG BANG THEORY’S KALEY CUOCO IS HARLEY QUINN IN NEW ANIMATED TEASER
What do you think about Harley Quinn’s popularity? Let us know in the comment section below.
You can watch Batman: The Animated series now on the DC Universe’s streaming service.