On the surface, an animated Harley Quinn show isn't really going to grab my attention. But throw in a foul-mouthed Kaley Cuoco and romance sub-plot with Poison Ivy and my interest is piqued. I thoroughly enjoyed both seasons of the show and wish there were more. There's so many great moments let alone entire episode. But if I had to pick one episode in particular to be my favorite it would be:
Season 2; episode 8. Inner (Para) Demons
In this episode, Harley travels to the planet Apokolips and gains control over Darkseid's army of parademons. She then returns to Earth and uses the army to ravage Gotham city, only stopping after Poison Ivy convinces her that she was wrong.
From a purely plot perspective, this episode is nuts. Harley completely goes crazy and full on evil by unleashing the parademons to slaughter and maim hundreds (thousands?) of people. But underneath it all, Harley is experiencing a very powerful character moment. She's coming to terms with an emotion that has been a central tenet of storytelling since the beginning of time: love. For eons, people have told countless stories about one character professing their love to another. But this episode is something different. Something darker, yet all the more relatable.
To me, what's even more human than telling someone you love them is trying to convince yourself that you don't. That's the dilemma Harley is struggling with. She's in love with Ivy, who is engaged to be married to someone else. It's painful for Harley to see them together, and she would give or do anything to rid herself of that feeling, including invading her own planet with a pack of ravenous creatures. In the end, Harley realizes she's only running from the way she feels and sends the army home. But you can't convince yourself you're not in love when you are. It's a situation Harley is going to have to confront one way or another.
Not bad for a cartoon filled with vagina jokes.
Comments