Alright, so Suicide Squad was a flop yes. It had a decent cast, a great soundtrack, but somewhere between the writing and the directing something went horribly wrong and it sunk like a ship. That being said, I can move onto my real issue with the movie. Harley Quinn.
I know people had their gripes with Margo Robbie and Jared Leto. I agree with some, others I don't.
(Seriously, when Quinn screams at Diablo to own up to killing those kids I have no idea what leg she has to stand on, she's killed people and I'm sure some of them are kids also. I don't feel as though there's really enough available footage of the Joker to make a true judgment on Leto's performance. Don't even get me started on how impossible it was to even try to reduce the Joker to a side character. It's like if JK Rowling wrote a whole book about just the Deatheaters while Voldemort was opening killing muggles and wizards alike. If you don't get that reference, shame on you.)
But that's not what I plan on complaining about today. What I plan on complaining about today is Harley Quinn. And how Harley Quinn is not someone to make a role model out of.
Sure she's an interestingly complex character with a compelling back story. I'm not saying it's bad to find her alluring or fascinating. There's nothing wrong with cosplaying her or hanging posters of her up. But I do find an issue with setting her on a pedestal.
Harley Quinn is not an independent strong woman. She's chosen to be Joker's sidekick. She was smart, she was a doctor hired by Arkham Asylum, remember? Then she fell in love, or was manipulated (let's face it, there was a little bit of both), by the Joker and Harley Quinzel the doctor became Harley Quinn the clown/henchmen, I'm sure her parents are very proud.
The relationship she has with the Joker isn't a good one. This can be seen pretty clearly in the comics and cartoons. Jared Leto has said that Suicide Squad had enough cut footage of him to make another movie, and we can assume that some of this unhealthy relationship can be seen there. But he abuses her, mentally and physically.
Let's not forget that in 'Batman: The Animated Series' there's a point in time when Poison Ivy, another villain in the DC universe, tries to convince Harley Quinn that she needs to get out of this horrible relationship with the Joker. Everyone can see it, even the other bad guys.
There are so many times in Batman animated series that Harley is reduced to what resembles a 50's housewife and seems purposefully stupid to please her man.
In the comics, the Joker has tried, and successfully, shot Harley Quinn several times and once faked an illness so he wouldn't have to be around her. That's real nice.
Even in her own comics, when she realized that she's in too deep and tries to kill the Joker, she's just beguiled by him again and is tricked into loving him again. She's actually sick and needs real help.
So, the Joker parts not so nice, there's also the fact that she's killed, people. Sure there are times when she felt bad about it, but again and again, she has to make the choice between letting someone live and pleasing her beau and it seems that the Joker nearly always wins. Like I said, she needs some serious help.
You might as well hold Bellatrix Lestrange up and say she's the new standard for how people should act. (For those who didn't get that, it's another Harry Potter reference)
Like I said, Harley Quinn is not a bad character, she's a great character and she's fascinating and her history is long and notable. While it's alright to be interested in her, she's not a role model.
Let's not romanticize serious mental health issues, they're not cute and the people who have them are more than their illnesses.
At the end of the day, she's the exact opposite of a role model, she's a warning. She's a warning in bright neon letters saying what not to look for in a man.
At the end of the day, why in the world would we tell each other it's a good idea to throw away our intelligence and bright futures because we love a psychopath and we'd rather tear the world to pieces.
If you're looking for a good role model from the DC universe I suggest you wait for the new Wonder Woman movie.