Harley Quinn’s origin story has been reinterpreted extra instances than maybe some other character in comics in such a short while since she was created. For those that grew up watching Batman: The Animated Series, she was an extension of the Joker, a annoyed however wholly infatuated lover that famously requested her clown boyfriend to “rev up your Harley” in an try and cease him from obsessing over Batman. Throughout DC’s many reboots and the the arrival of DC Comics’ Black Label imprint, the character’s stored to her background in psychiatry because the catalyst that results in her fateful encounter with the Clown Prince, however key particulars have been altered and moved round to construct upon her character to not drive her right into a everlasting Joker-centric existence.
Spotify’s new podcast sequence Harley Quinn and The Joker: Sound Mind affords yet one more origin story of types (although maybe ‘reinterpretation’ is a greater descriptor) that modifications the ability dynamic between the 2 iconic characters for a gritty story that ditches themes of co-dependence and twisted love for a take a look at manipulation and social anxiousness.
The seven-episode sequence sees Harleen Quinzel (performed by Christina Ricci) working at Arkham Asylum and going by means of the same old motions of a sexist office. She’s solid apart, given circumstances nobody desires, and diminished by competing male egos. One day, a possibility arises. The Joker’s up for examination and Harleen desires a shot at him to try to perceive the emergence of recent varieties of villains in Gotham, particularly after the arrival of The Batman (performed by Justin Hartley). Problem is, Harleen’s dad is slowly dying, and any hopes of saving him are tied to a expensive operation that she will’t pay for. Suddenly, The Joker (performed by Billy Magnussen) begins to appear like a possible answer, albeit a really scary and harmful one.
The voice solid as a complete is terrific. Elias Koteas as Harley’s dad, Mary Holland as Magpie, and Fred Melamed as Harley’s very-easy-to-hate boss are just some of the highlights attributable to their means to assist construct the world of Sound Mind as a tough, relentless, and cruel place. They spew sarcasm, resignation, indifference, and anger with an ease that breathes authenticity into the story and its places. Never was there doubt that these characters each lived and had been a product of Gotham City.
Of course, the highlight falls on Ricci, and he or she rises to the event to present followers one of the vital fascinating and multifaceted interpretations of Harley in any medium. Ricci’s Harley isn’t the unhinged and flirty menace we initially noticed in Batman: The Animated Series (performed by Arleen Sorkin), nor the explosive manifestation of gleeful chaos she is in the Suicide Squad motion pictures and Birds of Prey (in which she’s interpreted by Margot Robbie). She retains her composure even when the circumstances surrounding her would drive anybody else insane on the spot. She’s imposing and relatable, traits that Ricci pulls off in ways in which don’t betray the character.
Magnussen’s Joker deserves particular point out for not making an attempt to ape earlier iterations of the long-lasting villain. At instances hints of Mark Hamill’s theatrical snark come by means of, and at others there are situations of Heath Ledger’s Joker giggle sprinkled in to amplify the loopy. The finish outcome, although, goals at holding issues extra lifelike than standard, much less cartoony however nonetheless recognizable.
Much the identical applies to Hartley’s Bruce Wayne/Batman. The wealthy playboy persona comes by means of completely throughout the bits he’s in, which aren’t that many. It’s necessary to notice this isn’t a Batman story. There’s a marked curiosity in sticking as shut as attainable to Harley’s expertise, greater than some other character. In truth, Joker’s title may’ve been struck out of the title so Harley may stand on her personal simply as she does in the story.
This deal with Harley’s internal struggles and life-changing selections helps make the story’s many ethical and moral questions arrive on the scene with violent drive. The story hits on most of the identical notes we’ve seen earlier than in the comics, movies, and animations of the Batman universe. Ruminations on Batman being the explanation why unhealthy individuals dig deeper for brand new varieties of evil regardless of his presence, as an illustration, are a dime a dozen in the comics alone, however it’s Harley’s characterization that helps set it aside.
The choice to not flip Harley right into a lovestruck girl that dives headfirst into the Joker’s gaze provides her a level of company that takes her journey into totally different locations, into one other type of origin. Her defiance in the face of society’s unfairness and excessive injustice results in some disturbing developments with much more severe concerns. There’s one second in explicit between her and The Joker that modifications their total dynamic in a fashion that may shock listeners as soon as they take into account the long-term implications. Ricci and Magnussen carry the very best out of one another right here so as to add one other compound fracture to their already troubled psyches.
Harley Quinn and The Joker: Sound Mind does greater than sufficient to earn a spot in Harley’s legacy as one of the vital complicated interpretations of the character up to now. While among the debates discovered all through the seven episodes aren’t totally new, the solid’s performances elevate them and infuse them with a complete vary of feelings that justify additional exploration. More importantly, although, is the conclusion that Christina Ricci now stands as one of the vital spectacular Harleys we’ve had in the character’s historical past. It’s cause sufficient to flirt with the insanity contained inside Sound Mind.
Discussion about this post