Harley Quinn: Season 3 Review - IGN

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Harlivy world domination, commence.

By Alex StedmanPosted: Jul 21, 2022 5:00pm UTC93 comments

Harley Quinn Season 3 debuts on HBO Max with three episodes on July 28, 2022, followed by one episode weekly on Thursdays. Below is a spoiler-free review.

For two seasons, Harley Quinn, mirroring the delightfully chaotic energy of its title character, gleefully and hilariously skewered every self-serious corner of the DC universe with abandon, while also sneaking in some of the best character development available in superhero streaming. Season 3 is no different, refusing to lose any of its signature satirical bite even as its heart gets a little softer due to Harley and Ivy’s finally-canon romance. It may sag a little in its various subplots, but when its focus is on our new favorite Gotham couple, it, like Harley herself, is hard not to love.

The first episode of Season 3 ends with the typical title card, but with a twist, reading “Harley Quinn & Poison Ivy.” That doesn’t seem to be a permanent name change (the subsequent title cards go back to just name-checking Harley), but it sets the tone for the season: this installment is very much a co-starring effort. It already started to look this way in Season 2, but by this batch of episodes, it’s clear that Ivy is just as much a headliner for the series as Harley, and it’s all the better for it. Just as they’re compatible as a couple, they continue to make for a great duo on-screen, with Harley bringing the unpredictability with all her smishy-smashy impulses and Ivy in more of a straight-man role, albeit with a good bit of complexity.

What We Said About the Season 2 Premiere

IGN's Jesse Schedeen gave the first episode of Harley Quinn Season 2 an 8/10, writing, "If you weren't sold on the first season of Harley Quinn, the Season 2 premiere probably won't change your mind. However, the series looks to be even stronger in its sophomore outing." Read the full review here.

And shippers, rejoice: we finally get a show where Harley and Ivy are unabashedly a loving, romantic couple, as Season 2 ended with them quite literally riding into the sunset and Season 3 picks up just a couple weeks into their honeymoon – er, rather, their “eat, bang, kill tour,” as Harley insists on calling it. But we quickly learn that it’s not all rainbows and butterflies (or maybe in Harlivy’s case, photosynthesis and baseball bats), as the two have plenty of new struggles to face that their previously platonic relationship didn’t.

That’s not surprising if you’ve been keeping up with these characters: Harley loves all the time in the world with her significant other, and Ivy’s a little more independent, to say the least. These may be predictable – some may even say mundane – issues, but the way they play out is incredibly relatable and realistic, with each character believably growing a lot throughout the season. The writers tackle this new challenge with aplomb, being true to what incompatibilities they may face while never losing sight of the loving bond we’ve seen grow between them, which is what holds Season 3 together.

It also achieves something very important with Harley and Ivy: it reminds us that, in case you forgot, they’re still supervillains, particularly the latter. Ivy may balk at being called an eco-terrorist, but Season 3 leans into that aspect of her character, giving us an incredibly intriguing good vs. evil play that makes the end of the season feel very high stakes, especially for such a gonzo half-hour comedy.

Before you start to worry that Season 3 is all couple’s therapy and morality struggles, rest assured: it’s just as cartoonishly violent, crass, and riotous as before. You still get your Suicide Squad parodies, bloody beat ‘em ups, and even a well-placed orgy (and I’ve got to point it out: between an episode in this show and The Boys’ recent Herogasm, this is a banner year for superhero orgies). Harley Quinn has always been, and continues to be, deft in balancing all of this.

There are some nice Batman/Harley scenes, harkening to some of the two's best moments in Batman: The Animated Series.“

It’s the subplots of Season 3 that lead to more mixed results. Let’s start off with the positive: just about everything done with the Bat family is a welcome addition, since Harley Quinn is especially skilled at poking fun at DC’s most serious characters. Its kinda pathetic take on Batman/Bruce Wayne isn’t only funny, particularly in his relationship this season with Selina Kyle, but it also somehow manages to tread some new ground in this character’s incredibly well-worn trauma. There are some nice Batman/Harley scenes too, harkening to some of the two's best moments in Batman: The Animated Series. And Nightwing, though a tad underutilized, is always funny is his desperate quest for Batman’s approval.

The other secondary characters don’t fare as well. The Joker standalone episode is a low point of the season; it has its moments, but the “hey, Joker goes to PTA meetings now” bit gets tiresome when stretched across even a short 22 minutes. The same goes for James Gordon’s storyline about running for mayor. Like the aforementioned Joker bit, his is one that works in small doses, but doesn’t earn nearly as much screentime as it gets, especially since Gordon has shown far less growth than other characters in the series (and maybe that’s the joke, but it’s not one worth dwelling on). And Clayface’s acting subplot earns a few chuckles – it is fun to watch James Gunn mock himself – but the many inside-baseball jokes will probably mostly be funny only to those entrenched in the entertainment industry.

The DC Movies in (Chronological) Order

Wonder Woman (2017)<p> Where to Watch: Max<br> Despite being the fourth installment of the DCEU, 2017’s Wonder Woman takes place earliest in the timeline. This film marks the second appearance of Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman and follows her introduction in 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.<br> Primarily a period piece set during the first World War, the film introduces audiences and Diana to US pilot Steve Trevor after he crashes on Themyscira, the hidden island of the Amazons. Soon after, German soldiers invade Themyscira, and certain other events that follow lead Diana and Steve to leave the island and travel to London.

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Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)<p> Where to Watch: Max<br> As with Wonder Woman, its 2018 sequel is a period piece, this time primarily set in the year 1984. The events of this film bring Wonder Woman to face off against Cheetah (Kristen Wiig) and Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal). Wonder Woman 1984 takes place before all other DCEU films besides the original, and doesn’t feature too many tie-ins to other characters or movies.

Man of Steel (2013)<p> Where to Watch: Max<br> Man of Steel is the movie that kicked off the DCEU and introduced the world to Henry Cavill’s Superman. The film begins by showing audiences the destruction of Kal-El’s home planet of Krypton before depicting Earth in roughly the year 2013. Clark Kent grows up and becomes the legendary Superman (spoilers, in case you hadn’t heard by now), and is accompanied by some familiar faces along the way, including Lois Lane (Amy Adams), General Zod (Michael Shannon), Martha Kent (Diane Lane), Jonathan Kent (Kevin Costner), and more.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)<p> Where to Watch: Max<br> Very loosely based on a pivotal fight in the classic DC comic The Dark Knight Returns, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice takes place eighteen months after the events of Man of Steel, and tells the story of how Batman (Ben Affleck) reacts to the idea of an alien as powerful as Superman having free reign. <br> This film marks the first time Batman and Superman have starred in a live-action film together, and it also introduced audiences to modern film versions of Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Flash (Ezra Miller), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), Cyborg (Ray Fisher), Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg), Alfred Pennyworth (Jeremy Irons), and more.<br> DC fans were also treated to a live-action version of the Superman villain Doomsday as well as a tease of DC Comics’ ultimate baddie, Darkseid.

Suicide Squad (2016)<p> Where to Watch: Max<br> The first of the Suicide Squad films takes place about a year after Batman v Superman and even features a quick cameo by Ben Affleck’s Dark Knight. Unlike the classic superheroes featured in that film, however, Suicide Squad stars a group of imprisoned criminals and supervillains who are recruited by government agent Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) to join what is officially known as Task Force X. The group is tasked with completing a seemingly impossible mission in exchange for a reduction of their prison sentences. However, if they stray from the mission, nanite bombs implanted into their necks will explode.<br> A divisive film, Suicide Squad nonetheless features an all-star cast. Will Smith stars as Deadshot, Margot Robbie gets her debut performance as Harley Quinn, and certain other recurring characters get their first bit of screen time, including Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman) and Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney). Oh, and this is the film that introduced the world to Jared Leto’s take on Joker.

There are some other sidequest highlights, though: Kite Man’s appearance this season is brief (and probably mostly just there to tee up his spinoff series), but it gives us some closure on what he went through at the end of Season 2, and Harley Quinn’s take on the Court of Owls is appropriately ridiculous in the best way. But let’s face it: we’re here for Harlivy, and Season 3 ultimately does them justice. And hey, as a lifelong fan of the character of Harley Quinn, it’s just kinda nice to see the gal happy.

Verdict

Love is in the air, but that doesn’t mean Harley Quinn isn’t as insane, blood-soaked, and hilarious as it’s always been. Season 3’s take on Harley and Ivy’s newly romantic relationship is still unsurprisingly the highlight, tackling all their highs and lows in ways that are incredibly true to each character. It also manages to pack in a few surprises regarding the Bat family, especially Batman himself, although other subplots, like Joker and James Gordon’s, don’t have the same staying power. Still, if you’re here Harlivy and all the raunch and violence you’ve come to expect from this delightfully biting little corner of superhero streaming, you won’t be disappointed.

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