Batman and Harley Quinn

Had this movie been properly advertized, I would have seen it in theaters. I have been a fan of the DC Animated Universe since “Superman: The Animated Series” in the 1990’s. Marvel may have supremacy on the big screen recently but when it comes to animated television shows, DC is still king. Bruce Timm and Paul Dini’s take on DC comic book characters is still sentimental for a lot of people who are now grown. I was impressed by how that style of animation was honored in “Batman and Harley Quinn” and the story had potential. The biggest flaw however with this animated film was multiple conflicting and contrasting genres.

The show starts out very nostalgic. The opening scene feels like we are watching our favourite Batman animated TV show. The opening credits however snap us out of the genre we are used to. It felt like the opening of a campier film staring the late Adam West. Another allusion to campy Batman happens during the fight at the henchmen hangout. It appears the filmmakers were trying to adapt some characteristics of campy Batman to their style but I don’t think it worked. There was too much contrast for me to fully accept it. While the film for the most part was true to its 90's TV origins, it was funnier than I was expecting. Batman and Harley have had to associate in the TV show before but throwing Nightwing into the mix did wonders for making me laugh. My favourite scene in the whole film was our heroes talking to Booster Gold and the use of subtitles. Another surprise was just how edgy this film was but in hindsight, that shouldn’t have been a surprise. Those who watched “Batman: The Animated Series” on TV as kids in the 90’s are now adults. It makes perfect sense to use the same animation style while adding an edge but as for myself, there was more mature content than I was comfortable with. “Batman and Harley Quinn” is not for kids. Had the film concluded with “The Nuclear Option”, it would have made a perfect ending but Swamp Thing and Harley’s solution to Floronic Man ruined the conclusion of the film. The resolution was delivered too quick and felt too easy. I also was bothered by the political message introduced in the middle of the plot and reprised at the end. It seems nothing is safe these days from political agendas. The kiss was also out of character for Batman.

Kevin Conroy and Loren Lester reprise their roles thankfully and I felt Melissa Rauch did a good job of replicating Arleen Sorkin’s original performance. I also feel that Paget Brewster deserves a shout out. Bruce Timm acts as a co-writer and executive producer for this movie and I felt that helped with the nostalgia factor. The biggest problem I saw with “Batman and Harley Quinn” was the contrast between the nostalgic, the campy, the mature and the political. I am partial to the nostalgic obviously and thankfully, there was enough of that to somewhat satisfy me. This show was made for the Quinn fans but less for the animated Batman fans.

3.5 Stars out of 5