For International Women’s Day Elle Magazine Celebrated… Harley Quinn?

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Elle’s India branch highlighted five comic book heroines and a villainess whose styles they believe could serve as inspiring examples for this year’s International Women’s Day. However, their selection of Harley Quinn, a character often associated with inappropriate attire, was rather puzzling and unclear in its presentation.

She’s the exuberant character, constantly engaging in conflicts with villains, while donning clown-like makeup. Known for her unique red and black attire, she accessorizes with matching socks. Originally a sidekick who morphed into the Joker’s flame, she fearlessly confronts the bad guys. She embodies a sense of unrestrained liberation. Over the years, Quinn has undergone numerous style transformations – from a jumpsuit to bodice-pants and pigtails, even changing her hair color from blonde to black. No one carries this off more convincingly than Margot Robbie! In ‘Suicide Squad (2016)’, she masterfully makes the edgy character appealing, sporting shorts, spikes, bold tops, heavy makeup, and multi-colored ponytails. Interestingly, Lady Gaga has also adopted Harley Quinn’s eccentric style on several occasions, with her quirky pigtails and leather outfits.

Gee, Lady Gaga took inspiration from Harley Quinn (HQ)? That’s too bad.

Although Harley Quinn has fought adversaries who mirror her own portrayal for over three decades, it’s important to note that, contrary to what might be subtly suggested, she is not a murderous villainess. Instead, her characterization over time has been disrespectful to intelligence and downright offensive. Perhaps if they reworked her into a more authentic character or an antiheroine like Catwoman, they would make progress. At the moment, however, Harley Quinn remains largely stereotyped as a ruthless brute, which is not a positive example for women and girls. If they’re implying this through the movies, I apologize, but it’s no justification. It’s also unacceptable to glamorize cruelty as cool. The notion of “freedom” loses its appeal when Quinn remains a lethal villainess, especially if she’s portrayed taking innocent lives, making this situation even more problematic.

It’s striking that the list excludes any Marvel heroines, such as Invisible Girl or Scarlet Witch, who could have been strong picks. If we disregard the controversial portrayal of Scarlet Witch during the 2000s in Avengers: Disassembled (which was unfortunately adopted for shows like WandaVision and Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness), Storm would also be a fantastic choice. Even the original Ms. Marvel, Carol Danvers, might have been an excellent selection, but I suspect they wouldn’t delve into her early tales to support this claim. Instead, it seems they only consider the Muslim version of Ms. Marvel, Kamala Khan, who was created for political reasons, despite the challenges faced in adapting her character to live action.

Reminded of it now, the Birds of Prey movie starring HQ wasn’t successful either. So, it’s not surprising that HQ isn’t living up to the hype in terms of being a successful franchise as the media suggests. It’s unfortunate though, as a character who is usually portrayed as a villainess is being presented as a good fit for roles where she seems unsuitable, making her appear out of place and disappointing on International Women’s Day.

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2025-03-11 14:45