Since her introduction into the DC Universe Harley Quinn irrepressibly warmed her way into the hearts and minds of comic book fans everywhere and across the world! The Clown Prince of Crime’s paramour immediately emerged as one of the newest anti-heroes to resonate with her audience — much to the Joker’s chagrin — and as she continued to increase in popularity, Harley Quinn evolved from the one of Gotham’s most glamorous gals, to a lethal femme fatale as a full-blown member of the Suicide Squad.
It wouldn’t be long before her madcap merriment would move her into the spotlight of her own headlining monthly book. The creative team of Jimmy Palmiotti and Amanda Conner have elevated Harley Quinn to all-new heights of adventure storytelling. A new creative team will be taking over with Issue #35 of the title, and new series artist Inaki Miranda insists that he’s having the best time bringing Harley to life on the page, and along with Frank Tieri who will be taking over as the new writer, Harley Quinn’s adventures will be taking on an all new scope!
Miranda describes in an interview with newsarama.com the innovative challenges with depicting Harley Quinn and keeping faithful to the whimsy of the character. “I think, for me,” Miranda told the online publication, “the key is to see her as a free spirit that can reach the whole spectrum of emotions and go from one end to the opposite in seconds.” Miranda describes how the premise of illustrating Quinn comes capturing her instant reactions. “She is very transparent with her facial impressions and can’t hide her thoughts.”
The illustrator admits that he finds himself “laughing out loud” while working on breakdowns thanks to his collaborator Frank Tieri’s scripts, as he approaches accurately capturing Harley Quinn’s facial expressions and unique physicality which will be on full display when the creative team launch with Harley Quinn #35. The pair have promised that the tone of the book will continue to be comical, but it will also work to expand Harley’s influence across the DC Comics Universe.
Describing the popularity and why the character has resonated with so many contemporary comic book readers (56% of which are female, a statistic we learned from this weekend’s DC in D.C. Event) Miranda suggests that its Harley Quinn’s youthful exuberance that is so appealing. “She can represent the freedom to be whoever we feel like being, anytime. Much like a child, she will do whatever she feels like doing without worrying about what people think about her — that is liberating.”
Undoubtedly the anti-hero’s appeal has continued to rise especially after her lively interpretation in 2016’s Suicide Squad feature film which starred Margot Robbie as the loose canon rebel. Harley Quinn remains the most attractive personality cosplayers gravitate to, and you can see almost every version of the character from her expansive 25 year history on full display at cons across the country. “She wears whatever she feels like wearing,” Miranda added, “walks however she feels like, carries a bat, shotgun cartridges on her belt. It’s a world with its own rules.”
Has drawing Harley Quinn changed the way the artist works? “What I did try to upgrade particularly were my facial expressions,” Miranda said. “I felt that for Harley I needed to work beyond the subtleness — I worked in pushing her expressions and body language just enough to make her act her words or thoughts out. I imagined I was drawing a woman with Bugs Bunny’s mind.” There’s no telling what Harley Quinn will be up to but you can bet she’s never looked better and Frank Tieri and Inaki Miranda will be taking Harley Quinn to all new heights!