Harley Quinn Season 1 (2020) Review

So in the UK the first season of the DC Animated Show Harley Quinn finished today and I have now watched all of it and here is my review for the show. The premise of the show sees a newly single Harley Quinn set off to become the biggest supervillain in all of Gotham. 

Main Character

Kaley Cuoco best known for her role on The Big Bang Theory voices Harley Quinn here and she is fantastic. She nails the character in every way, Harley isn't an evil person its just she is really damaged and Cuoco does a great job in showing this, Harley is likeable but also does some terrible things which makes her a great character to watch. But the show also does a great job in showing a vulnerable side to her especially with her relationships with The Joker & Poison Ivy which show her in a really interesting unique way. 

Supporting Characters

As I said Poison Ivy has a large role here and I thought she was great, her dynamic and friendship with Harley is really the main thing to get invested in in this show and their chemistry together is a huge part of that. It's nice seeing some lesser known characters get the shine here Clayface, King Shark & Dr Psycho are parts of Harley's crew and they are really fun characters and provide some great laughs. Alan Tudyk voices The Joker here and he does a great job here, the dynamic between the two characters is great and Tudyk really brings his own blend to the role which is difficult when we have seen so many people take on the role. There are plenty of established comic book characters on show here such as Batman, Gordon & Lex Luthor but my favourite was easily Bane, I thought he was so funny and his voice in itself was one of the best jokes of the show. 

Story

The story, is a fun story of the underdogs trying to get noticed by the bigger villains which builds some hilarious moments. Seeing this crew of misfits interact is really entertaining and fun, also there is some depth to some of the stories as I mentioned earlier which is done well. Though I did have a bit of an issue with some of the supporting storylines, they weren't particularly interesting and it felt like an excuse to try and flesh out some of the other characters that didn't feel necessary.

Script

The script has some really funny dialogue, if you like pop culture references and DC references then this is a show right up your ally just like it is for me. Also there is some really well done drama here in the relationships of Harley Quinn. Just because this show is animated, don't believe that this show is for kids, there is some crude language here and most of the time it works. Though this show suffers sometimes of lacking clever writing so throws in swears and it feels too much at times but this is a small gripe. 

Style

This show has a really distinct style, the animation looks great and provides some great action sequences. It is super violent though which here I thought really worked and was a great choice. Also with the episodes only being 20 minutes it flows very nicely and is an easy watch. 

Overall

Overall, this is a great animated show, it is for adults and fans of DC films so is for a specific audience but I feel like this is such an entertaining watch that I have to recommend it.

Rating - 8/10 

Birds Of Prey (2020) Review

Birds Of Prey (2020) Review

 After many months of anticipation Birds Of Prey is finally with us and I have seen it and this is my review for the film. The premise of the film sees Harley Quinn break up with The Joker which alerts a criminal head honcho who aims to take advantage of her and a group of other women in Gotham City.

Main Character

Even though this film is called Birds Of Prey it should really just be called a Harley Quinn film and Margot Robbie is fantastic in this film. It is clear that they are trying to make her the DC version of Deadpool and she is very charismatic in the role and has some really good lines in the film, I feel like she has a real good grip on this character and it feels like she really enjoys playing the role of Harley Quinn. 

Supporting Characters

Ewan McGregor plays Roman Sionis AKA The Black Mask in this film and it is clear that he is having a blast in this role, his character is very charismatic and a bit off the wall but that works because of the film that he is in and he is definitley an entertaining villain in this film. Now we get to the rest of the Birds Of Prey - Rosie Perez as Renee Montoya, Mary Elizabeth Winestead as The Huntress & Jurnee Smollet-Bell, they all do their best in their roles especially in the action scenes but they just aren't given enough to do in the film. I didn't really care about their characters and I think this was because there backstories are choppily presented and not given as much screen time as Harley Quinn is clearly presented as the most important character in the film.

Story

This film has an interesting story when it comes to Harley's story, it deals with how she is dealing with her situation with The Joker and dealing with being a bit of a better person and I thought that was handled pretty well. But as mentioned before all the other characters stories and motivations aren't really explored enough to make you care and give them a real reason for being a part of this group. 

Script 

This film has some funny lines and dialogue in the film especially when the film is doing its best to break the fourth wall and be a bit more interesting then many comic book films. Some of the drama is okay but it doesn't really hit the levels that I think it was going for and as mentioned previously it doesn't elevate any of the supporting characters above being okay characters. 

Style

This film has a really unique style. the action scenes are fantastic, really fun and unique. The film does a great job of showcasing the characters different fighting styles to create some meorable and really fun action sequences. However, the pacing of the film is a bit messy, the film jumps all over the place which I get was a stylistic choice but it becomes a bit jarring as you are interested to new characters often and the film isn't in order so it can make it a bit hard to follow. 

Overall 

Overall this film reminds me quite a bit of Suicide Squad which is why it gets the same rating, an above average film that could have done with focusing up a bit more and showed the group together more and interacting. But this is a fun time at the movies and if you don't take this film too seriously then it can be an enjoyable watch for sure. 

Rating - 6/10 

Batman & Harley Quinn (2017) Review

Batman & Harley Quinn (2017) Review 

 So with Birds Of Prey finally with us tomorrow I decided to do some late revision and watch the Animated Film Batman & Harley Quinn from a few years ago and this is my review for it. The premise of the film sees Batman & Nightwing forced into teaming up Harley Quinn in order to stop Poison Ivy and The Floronic Man from turning everyone in the world into nature. 

Main Character

For me possibly the most iconic portrayal of Batman has to be this one, Kevin Conroy as the voice of Batman takes me back to my childhood and to the excellent Arkham games that have come out over the last decade. He has the perfect voice for the caped crusader and for me this is one of the best versions of the character ever, he nails the brooding nature of Batman but has a little bit of fun in the role to allow a more complete performance as Batman. Melissa Rauch voices Harley Quinn in this film and she does a really good job, this was the only time that she voiced the character but I thought she delivered a fun take on the Harley Quinn character, there is some depth there and she has some really funny lines in the film that make you like her as she isn't the most evil version of the character and is a pretty easy character to root for given the circumstances. 

Supporting Characters

Paget Brewster voices Poison Ivy in the film and I have always liked the animated version of Ivy as I feel like it is given some real depth and even though she clearly isn't the most likeable of characters the film does a good job of selling her point of view and making you kind of understand why she does the things that she does. Kevin Michael Richardson plays The Floronic Man and I have to admit this is a character I know nothing about from the comics but he played the role well as the hulking henchman but he also had some depth to his motivations and I thought him and Ivy were a good pairing as the antagonists in this film. It is a bit unfair that this film isn't called Batman, Nightwing & Harley Quinn as Loren Lester & Nightwing is along for the journey the entire film and he fills his role well, I thought the trio bounced off each other very well and were fun to watch. 

Story

I thought as mentioned the concept of Batman & Nightwing having to work with Harley Quinn is an interesting one and I thought they did a good job of really showing the difference between the two heroes and Quinn. Also as mentioned I felt the villains had decent motivations and I liked how they fit in the history between Harley & Ivy in the film. However, my biggest negative of this film is the ending, the last 5 minutes are utter nonsense and include an incredibly pointless cameo that seems to be just there as a bit of fan service. Also it is just how abrupt the ending is, I felt like I was expecting at least another 10 minutes but no the film just ended and I really wasn't satisfied with the ending. 

Script

This film has some good drama in it, especially between Harley & Ivy to make you care about their friendship and relationship and also some good lines from Batman. The humour is a bit of a mixed bag for me, some of it worked and did make me laugh but they also resorted with some childish humour which makes no sense as this film is definitley not aimed for kids.

Style

I thought that the more mature tone taken for this film was a good decision, with a character like Harley Quinn as one of the leads it made sense for this film to have a bit more adult content in it, also all the action scenes were well handled and felt exciting to watch. But I can't stop thinking about the pacing of the film and how it just ends abruptly and doesn't really answer any of the questions from the film.

Overall

Overall this is a fun easy to watch film that is just over an hour long so won't take up too much of your time. If you are a fan of Batman The Animated Series then you will probably like this film, just be prepared that it doesn't provide the payoff like that epic show did.

Rating - 7/10

Suicide Squad (2016) Review

Suicide Squad (2016) Review

 In preparation for the upcoming DC Film Birds Of Prey I decided to rewatch the first DC team up film starring Harley Quinn, Suicide Squad. This is my review for this film and what my opinion of the film was. 

Main Character

Will Smith plays Floyd Lawton AKA Deadshot in this film and he is really good in this film. Smith has lots of charisma in this role and he is actually one of the characters that you will care about in this film due to his emotional relationship with his daughter. He is also great in the action scenes and totally sells the character of Deadshot and I can't imagine anybody else in this role. Margot Robbie plays Harley Quinn in the film and if you could look at perfect casting then this one would be in there. She sells the craziness of the character and is full of charisma. Her and Smith have really good chemistry in the film and they do a really good job of sharing the lead roles in the film and it is the highlight of the film.

Supporting Characters

I will admit I am not a huge fan of Jai Courtenay's work but there is an exception to very rule and I really liked his performance in this film as Digger Harkness AKA Captain Boomerang. He is just very funny in this film and I liked how sarcastic he is in his role, also the boomerangs are a unique weapon that are used to a good effect in the film. Jay Hernandez as El Diablo was probably the surprise of the film, he was the character I knew the least about in the film but was possibly the character I cared about the most. He is given an emotional arc in the film and it works as he is the least well known character in the movie. Though some of the characters didn't work at all, Joel Kinnamon plays Rick Flagg in the film and he is just really bland in the film, when you have all these larger personalities having this average soldier as the leader of the team just really didn't work for me. Cara Delevingne plays The Enchantress in the film and wow this is one of the worst performances in a comic book film I have ever seen, she is just cheesy as hell and an absolute shambles of a character in the film. Jared Leto plays The Joker in this film and similarly he goes well over the top and it comes across as really cheesy, plus he was really underused in this film and it makes him feel like a wasted aspect of this film.

Story

Some of the characters in this film such as Deadshot and El Diablo have really good emotional arcs in this film to make you actually care about their characters in the situation that they are in. But this film could have really done with being a smaller scaled story, it makes no sense that this group of individuals are literally tasked to save the world. Also the first act of the film sets up The Joker as the villain of the film but then suddenly changes direction to focus on the more supernatural aspects of the film and it just really didn't work for me.

Script

This script has some decent humour and drama that gets these characters by and for the most part makes them feel unique and very different as you have very different personalities from a hitman to half human half crocodile and that works. However, I felt like it was inconsistent between the amount of drama and humour and when this is used by the characters, sometimes there were points when it should have been full drama or full humour. 

Style

This film has some entertaining action scenes in it and as mentioned it is fun seeing the different characters use their different weapons in these action scenes. But there isn't really any tension in the action scenes as it is just a bunch of faceless henchman attacking the group in which you don't think any of the team are in trouble. Also there is some really terrible CGI in this film and one in particular towards the end of the film that is just terrible.

Overall

Overall this is no doubt that this is an entertaining film, it is very loud and exciting but there just isn't that much to it and it is just an above average action film that if you aren't are a big fan of comic book films then this isn't going to win you over.

Rating - 6/10