It only took the second series for us to get our first female in the DC Universe Classics line, but the legacy that was left by current “It Girl,” Harley Quinn, is something that would last for the entirety of the line.
What can I say, Harley Quinn is a VERY popular DC character and that is saying something for someone who cannot even count comics as her origin point. Her current popularity in the comics is at a fever pitch and she shows up in a LOT of books; oh, and she will also be played by current Hollywood “It Girl,” Margot Robbie, in the up-coming Suicide Squad movie. So, I guess it goes without saying that it is a good time to be Harley Quinn.
Thus, it should not be much of a surprise that she was chosen as the first lady of DCUC, even though I personally was not expecting it. For some reason I thought they would go all-in and give us Wonder Woman right out of the blocks, but that was not to be, not that I was at all sad that we got Harley first, because I really do love her as a character. She is a perfect compliment and foil to the Joker all in one and it seems that most writers have a lot of fun with her, even moreso than her Puddin’.
Vital Statistics
Figure: Harley Quinn
Company: Mattel
Design: Four Horsemen Studios
Order: DC Universe Classics Series 2, Figure 3
Release: 2008 (March)
Collect & Connect Piece: HEAD & TORSO of Gorilla Grodd
Accessories: Popgun, Mallet
Scale: 1:12
MSRP: $9.99
Variant: NA
Articulation
- Ball-Joint Head
- Neck Peg
- Ball-Joint Shoulder (x2)
- Biceps Swivel (x2)
- Elbow Hinge (x2)
- Wrist Twist (x2)
- Abdominal Hinge
- Waist Twist
- Hip Hinge (x2)
- Hip Cut (x2)
- Thigh Swivel (x2)
- Knee Hinge (x2)
- Ankle Hinge (x2)
TOTAL: 22 Points of Articulation
Background Information
As the first female figure in the line, Harley not only broke the mold, but she created an all-new one. While we did see some females in the DC Superheroes line with Batgirl and Catwoman, Harley would go on to be the prototype for most of the females that would come after her in the line due to the part re-use strategy. History is the true judge of the success of this strategy, but I am fairly certain that camps are pretty split on the overall success of this figure. The body has all of the articulation you had come to expect from the DCUC males, but it just doesn’t function as well. This might be due to engineering or just the fact that the Horsemen’s female form did not lend itself to movement as well its masculine counter parts. Harley did come with the largest chunk of a Collect & Connect figure thus far and her mallet and pop-gun were great additions for accessories.
After Words
Personally, I was relatively happy with the DCUC Harley Quinn when it was released. It did have that blue shadow over-spray on the face, which, as you can see, I painted over (I should have just waited for the “Mad Love” two-pack), but otherwise, I was pretty good. Looking back now, I really wish this body was more curvaceous and feminine. It seems okay for Harley, but even the newly-debuted DC Icons Harley looks better in the suit, so I might be upgrading early next year. As I said, the body is okay for Harley, but the form does not lend itself as well to later females in the line, which is a product of such heavy re-use. Still, I feel the figure is pretty good overall and Harley was the first in a pretty diverse line-up of females in the DCUC line.
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