I saw Batman & Harley Quinn ...

In popularity, Harley Quinn has grown increasingly hotter, and whether the snobs wish to admit it, it all comes down to a little, roughhouse flick called “Suicide Squad” and of course, Margot Robbie, the woman who redefined our perception of the character.

DC/WB Animation was wise to capitalize on such, even if Robbie's version is but a spectral impression within its latest offering. “Batman and Harley Quinn”, directed by the ever diligent Sam Liu and scripted by Quinn's creators, Paul Dini and Bruce Tim, is a rollicking extrapolation that keeps its roots in Batman '90s cartoonery, but remains ever mindful of Quinn's blossoming, sex-symbol status. 

The film is also a departure from DC/WB's "Son of Batman" submissions, downplaying the dark and cynical. That's not to say that “Batman/Quinn” lacks its sullen moments, for it does cover a controversial, beaten-into-the ground, current-affairs topic, but predominately it's just plain fun, perhaps because Quinn is just that. (And wait till you see the colorful opening credits and nightclub sequence! Somewhere up there, Adam West is smiling.)

The plot concerns Poison Ivy (Paget Brewster) and Floronic Man (Kevin Michael Richardson) daring to change Earth's populations into animal-plant hybrids. (I must confess, Floronic Man is a character I was unfamiliar with, but whom I like: a villainous Swamp Thing, if one will.) Ivy and Florinic's "go green" zeal is contemptuously self-serving and even more so, ironically apocalyptic, leaving Batman/Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) and Nightwing/Dick Grayson (Loren Lester, formerly "Batman: the Animated Series'" Robin) no choice but to yank it.

Alas, our crusaders require help in the matter and reluctantly recruit Ivy's ol' pal, Quinn (Melissa Rauch) to track the vegetated fiends. However, as witnessed in "Suicide Squad" and "Assault on Arkham", enlisting any baddie for any good cause can often lead to more trouble than it's worth. Quinn, therefore, remains predictably unpredictable, driving Batman and Nightwing batty throughout their arduous cause. 

BTW: As one may have heard, Quinn and Grayson do engage in a lovely, S&M tryst. It's the sort of thing that would have once had parents in an uproar, but since today's timid tots don't watch these sorts of things, any discussion of the featured physicality has shifted solely to us approving, dirty, old men. (For the record, Quinn had a sultry romp with Deadshot in "Assault", so for those in the know, the Quinn/Nightwing coupling isn't all that shocking.)

One could easily argue, though, that Quinn's oozing sexuality makes her the movie's constant concentration. And how could it be otherwise? She's no longer merely the Joker's cute sidekick, but a crass, hot vixen who more than holds her own and contrary to what one might expect, hits the moral, high road in the end, even if such sadly slips during the after-credits tag-on. 

On the whole, “Batman/Quinn” is a neat way to spend seventy minutes. Still, for Quinn's pop-cultural impact to grow, we need Robbie back in the role, whether it’s in the proposed “Joker vs Harley” movie, a straight-forward “Suicide Squad” sequel, or any upcoming Batman, Nightwing, Wonder Woman and/or Justice League entries. 

Whatever the format or intent, with the living, breathing embodiment of Quinn at one's disposal, it only makes sense to exploit her for all it's worth. For now, this latest, contagious endeavor must suffice, but if there's anything "Batman/Quinn" confirms, more of our clownish cutie is unequivocally guaranteed.