‘Harley Quinn’ Season 4, Episode 1 Review
by Frank Martin
It’s kind of crazy to think that going on four seasons, Harley Quinn is still able to outdo itself in terms of ridiculous shenanigans. It manages to take some common jokes that run through the DC Comics fandom — things that would never be openly talked about or mentioned in the mainstream comics or shows — and turn them into entire plot lines. The season premiere did it in terms of showcasing Nightwing’s ass in a literal photo shoot. It’s such an absurd scene that for some reason works perfectly in the universe that Harley Quinn created.
Last season left off with Harley (Kaley Cuoco) and Ivy (Lake Bell) on two separate paths. Ivy had just been hired as the new leader of the Legion of Doom, a job she’s having trouble with as the male members of the group struggle to submit to her leadership. Meanwhile, Harley has officially joined the Bat-Family as a hero. Someone in Gotham has been cutting off body parts, which leads Harley to believe that Professor Pyg is behind the crimes. She ultimately uses Nightwing’s (Harvey Guillén) ass as bait to lure the villain into a trap.
The obvious tension this season will be between Harley and Ivy as they try to keep their relationship strong despite their diverging careers as hero and villain. There wasn’t that much conflict in the first episode. It needs to last a whole season, after all. But there was a scene where Harley tried to get Ivy to tell her who was the villain behind the crimes. This is just a sneak peek at how their complicated relationship will get in the way of them doing good and evil. It’s still admirable that they are trying to make it work, and hopefully they do. But odds are that it would eventually hit a breaking point.
Harley Quinn streams Thursdays on Max.
