Dr. Harleen Quinzel, also known as Harley Quinn, only has one sentence in the DC Universe encyclopedia – she’s the Joker’s girlfriend. While true, Harley Quinn is much more, spawning her own comic book series and being a villain in her own right.

On September 11, 1992, Joker’s Favor aired, and audiences all caught their first glimpse of everyone’s favorite henchwench, Harley Quinn. She was to only be a one shot character, but somehow was brought back just a few months later in Almost Got ‘im. Soon, the Joker wasn’t seen without at least a passing reference to his girlfriend. Harley had also been seen without the Joker by her side. January 18, 1993 saw the first Harley/Ivy team up with Harley and Ivy, and in 1994 Harley started to see the limelight on her own. She teamed up with Batman and Robin in Harlequinade, and later that year had a Joker-free episode in Harley’s Holiday.

In 1993, Harley’s fan following found her being introduced into the world of comic books, with Batman Adventures #12, Girls Night Out. February 1994 saw Harley’s origin story, Mad Love, released. In this tale, we learn how it is that a former Arkham psychologist could fall in love with one of the most dangerous villains of Gotham City, but this comic revealed more than just that. Harley, in her own right, is just as dangerous as any other of Batman’s Rogue Gallery, if not more so. Her Achilles’ heel is that she loves too much.

Harley Quinn continued to appear in comics and the cartoon series, and was even in a few episodes of the Superman cartoon series. She was even introduced into the mainstream in the comic series in 1999. The year 2000 was a big year for Harley, as she was introduced into her own comic series, Harley Quinn. In this series, Harley has had enough of the Joker and she dumps him, officially. Harley is a free agent, and goes through the adventures of her comic series on her own. The comic series was dark, dramatic, and above all else, funny, and even had crossovers into the Superman universe. It introduced Bizarro Harley, the only Bizarro to date that makes sense – a commentary on how nonsensical Harley herself is. Bizarro Harley was also cold, calculating, and mean, things that Harley is not, no matter how dangerous she is. The series lasted for 38 issues. Harley made numerous other comic appearances in 2000.

Gotham Girls, a flash animated webseries, also debuted in 2000. Harley Quinn was one of the main characters of the series, as was Batgirl, Catwoman, and Poison Ivy. A few years later, Harley Quinn was also a main player in the TV series Birds of Prey.

Over the years, Harley has appeared in every DCU cannon show, including Static Shock, Justice League, and Batman Beyond, has had her origin retold in at least 3 comics and in an episode of The Batman, and has even been in the video game Arkham Asylum. Except for The Batman, she is always voiced by Arleen Sorkin. Harley Quinn also continues to appear in the comics. The only medium Harley Quinn has yet to be portrayed in is movies, and many fans vocalize a want for the former Arkham psychiatrist to appear on the big screen.

Needless to say, it is completely unfair to say that Harley Quinn is just “the Joker’s girlfriend”. After all, she did come the closer to defeating Batman than her Puddin’ ever did.

Sources:

Paul Dini and Bruce Timm. “Mad Love”, February 1994.

Harley Quinn’s character page, IMDB.

Harley’s Appearances, Harley’s Haven.