A nurturing relationship that weeds out bad influences, and other plant metaphors for how much Ivy loves Harley Quinn
‘Harley Quinn’ isn’t the first look at the Harley Quinn/Poison Ivy dynamic - it’s not even the first animated series to do so. Ivy’s attempts to give Harley a safe place and support system away from the Joker goes all the way back to Harley’s first home in ‘Batman: The Animated Series.’ What makes the relationship between Kaley Cuoco’s Harley and Lake Bell’s Ivy stand out, however, is how much vulnerability in the two characters the show portrays, and how they’re both stronger for it.
Lake Bell’s Poison Ivy has no time for people and their nonsense. Content to surround herself with plans over people, Ivy was a complete misanthropist until the intervention of one Dr. Harleen Quinzel, without whom it would be impossible for Ivy to be around people at all. We’ve seen countless iterations of the help that Ivy offers Harley - both as a more confident character as well as one with actual superpowers - but we’ve rarely seen Ivy in a position of vulnerability being helped up by Harley.
Harley is Ivy’s only friend, and as Ivy says in ‘Being Harley Quinn’, “that’s by design.” Almost every word out of Ivy’s mouth drips with cynicism, but her admiration of Harley is unhesitant, earnest, and unflickering. She is aware of (and frequently exasperated by) Harley’s failings, but is equally aware of her strengths. Peeking into the depths of Harley’s unstable nature doesn’t worry Ivy, as it does the rest of Ivy’s crew, but reassures Ivy that she understands her closest friends. Ivy has always seen Harley more honestly than Harley is able to see herself, and is the perfect companion for Harley on Harley’s journey of self-discovery.
Superhero shows, by necessity, limit the personal shortcomings their protagonists can have, as they’re meant to be aspirational, but villain-centric shows have no such obligation. Poison Ivy’s love for Harley Quinn shining bright through her misanthropy, with its clear view of Harley’s trengths and failings, is a stronger endorsement of Harley than any Justice Leaguer could ever give her - and stronger by far than any validation Harley might get from the Legion of Doom. It’s not something Harley yet recognizes, but with Poison Ivy in Harley’s corner, it’s hopefully only just a matter of time.
The next episode of 'Harley Quinn' airs January 2, on DC Universe
