'Harley Quinn' Season 2 Episode 12 Review: Justice League bring in the action while Harley faces another war
Spoilers for 'Harley Quinn' Season 2 Episode 12 'Lovers' Quarrel'
The Doctor Psycho (Tony Hale) arc ramped up the stakes of 'Harley Quinn' and in a not-quite-finale, a released Justice League battles against a Parademon army and the unleashed forces of Harley Quinn's (Kaley Cuoco) crew. Season 2 has definitely been leaning more towards superhero drama than workplace comedy and with this episode, they go all in.
The action that we're treated to this episode is played straight and is every bit as thrilling as one would expect from one of the regular DC Animated movies. Focusing on just the Trinity, Batman (Diedrich Bader), Wonder Woman (Vanessa Marshall) and Superman (James Wolk) gives comics fans all the superheroic action they could want. Doctor Psycho leans in for more traditional villainy and with their ruthlessness unlocked, the brainwashed Poison Ivy (Lake Bell), Clayface (Alan Tudyk) and King Shark (Ron Funches) are all formidable forces in their own right.
Harley is very much in over her head here, leading her to team up with Kite Man (Matt Oberg) to try and figure out an alternate plan. In a surprise turn of events, it's revealed that Sy Borgman (Jason Alexander) isn't actually dead; his mind was uploaded to his cybernetic eye. The side mission shows us a little bit more of the Harley-Kite Man relationship. Despite her love for Ivy, Harley has no compunctions about seeing Kite Man as an ally - she makes a few jokes at his expense, but there is a respect there towards him that wasn't there before - possibly even a sense of friendship.
Through it all, the episode never loses its sense of humor. It's no easy feat, balancing the kind of irreverent humor that 'Harley Quinn' is known for in a way that doesn't undercut the dramatic tension. The climax of the episode feels nearly operatic, but its best moments are still interspersed with Darkseid (Michael Ironside) expressing amusing levels of confusion at Earth references and the complicated situation going on. In a brilliantly written move, Harley manages to save the day with the power of love - only for a last-minute twist from Doctor Psycho to turn that love against her. He outs Harley and Ivy's relationship to the world before they have a chance to deal with it themselves, breaking Kite Man's heart and utterly ruining what should have been the series' most inspiring moment.
Once again, the season's penultimate episode sees a surprise attack from the villain deliver an emotional gut-punch, a stab that tears right through the hearts of Ivy and Harley. This moment isn't quite the same as Ivy's death in season one, but the ending leaves one equally cold, a feeling that's left to linger and grow through the credits. Ivy was on the fence, at best, about pursuing her relationship with Harley - being struck a blow like this might put an end to the relationship for good.
While the superheroic aspect of Season 2 is essentially wrapped up in this episode, there's a lot of emotional fallout for the finale to deal with. That the show left room for the series' emotional arcs to be dealt with in the finale just shows where its priorities are. 'Harley Quinn' may be able to do a superhero show with the best of them, but it's the more human aspects of Harley's life that the show hinges on.
The next episode of 'Harley Quinn' airs June 26, on DC Universe.