Looney psychiatrist (is there another kind?) and the Jokerās on-again off-again paramour, Harley Quinn is probably my favorite comic or cartoon character, ever. The classic Harley, of course, none of this slutty, kid-killing New 52 rubbish around hereā¦
Harleyās unique combination of cuteness, humor and psychopathic violence makes her one of the most interesting, charming, and fascinating of villains in any medium. And it doesnāt hurt that she is also both a ditz and a brain ā not many characters like that around. Much as I love Harley, she seems quite a difficult cosplay subject, probably because itās hard for a girl to look pretty when her face is covered in flour. The gals featured in this piece, however, manage to pull it off. Sometimes itās thanks to great bodies, sometimes itās due to the photographerās judicious choice of angle, sometimes itās just due to good luckā¦
Nota Bene
For picture credits, just pause your cursor over the picture.
PS
I donāt know what Nota Bene means either, but it sure sounds good, doesnāt it?
First one works mostly because the girlās face has such a great shape and her eyes contrast nicely with the white of her face. Nice touch with the little downward spikes on the mask, too. Not sure why she seems to have black feathers on her chest, though ā she looks like a raven has crash landed on her bosom!
This bunch works primarily because the people responsible have been wise enough to make the costume out of some plastic-like material ( most likely plastic ) so it has a very pleasing shine to it as well as some interesting wrinkles. Most Harley cosplayers make the mistake of using cloth costumes, but that just donāt work with this character ā the colors pretty much demand a sheen. Matte may be fine for the comics and the animated series but in real life, if Harl doesnāt look like sheās been swimming in oil, you are really up against it.
In most of the following pictures Harley is just standing there, like sheās trying to get her hands on Mr. Jās gander by looking as cute and winsome as possible. First oneās different, though, she looks like sheās practicing for Halloween by doing her best impression of a mummy. Someone should probably tell her that Halloween has come and gone, but it wonāt be meā¦
This one is based on an Adam Hughes design used for one of the statues DC did a few years ago. Ironically, it looks more like the design than the statue did! She sure looks happy, doesnāt she? No wonder ā if the blood on the mallet is anything to go by she has just convinced her local banker to give her a very large, interest free personal loan! And who doesnāt enjoy beating the crap out of a banker, anyway?
Itās a topsy turvy worldā¦though Harley being Harley she probably has no idea she is upside down. More likely, sheās wondering why everyone looks so weird today!
Harleyās friends will tell you that one of her many fine qualities is that she is a good listener. Here she is listening to a wall.
And this is what Harley does when sheās bored and thereās no Mr. J doll for her to play with ā she sits there making goofy faces! And then she wonders why she has so much trouble getting certified out of Arkham.
To further prove the point, this is Harley during her last psychiatric review.
And here she is with a triumphant smirk on her face after finally being allowed out ā apparently Harl isnāt the only shrink in Arkham who has a few goldfish missing from her fish tankā¦
A mere five minutes later, and our girl has broken into a local museum where she is trying to steal a, er, statueā¦
Oh dear, looks like weāre heading right back to Arkham again, doesnāt it?
And this is the Xmas costume Harley wore in the classic story āOy to the world!ā in which she and Bratgirl team up to rescue Poison Ivy from a gang of villainous femmes threatening her with weed killerā¦
For those wondering what my favorite clown girl looks like when she isnāt being a criminal, here she is sporting her classic casual look from the Batman : The Animated Series episode Harleyās Holidayā¦
Pictured here is Harley in her work clothes from her days as one of Arkham Asylumās top loony inspectors.
Donāt let that look fool you, sheās nowhere near that dumb. Not all of the time anywayā¦
And since I keep going on about Arkham, I guess I have to include the obligatory shot of Harley with The Jack of All Evils, though I donāt know what she sees in that guy. Maybe the resemblance to a college boyfriend explains it. Or maybe sheās just crazy about the boyā¦
I like to call this one Fifty Shades of American Gothicā¦
This one is one of the cutest cosplay Harleyās Iāve seen. Unfortunately I have no idea who this girl is and could find no other photos of her ā Tineye was not helpful. Maybe the real Harl was envious and had her whackedā¦
Now we come to a set which, by a veeeery wide margin, wins the prize for looking the most like the Animated Series Harley. Itās mostly the face that does it, though her proportions are also very closeā¦
And this one gets the prize for the most psycho look. Also, biggest gunā¦
Snapped at a convention, this pic depicts a steampunk Harley Quinn and Catwoman hanging out with what I can only assume is a gigantic leprechaun ā¦
This one works for two reasons. The first is the cute face, the second is — you guessed it — the shiny costume. I like the mallet too…
Hereās Harley hanging out with the other Gotham City Sirens, quite literally falling all over themselves to get in front of the cameraā¦
Now just Harley and her favorite gal-pal and the woman responsible for her super-powers, psycho plant-person Poison Ivyā¦
AmeComi Harley meets Steampunk Poison Ivy, and to everyoneās disappointment chaos does not ensueā¦
And hereās Harley playing with, er, a candy cane. Iāll get back to you when I can come up with a suitably dirty double entendre for this oneā¦
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