This halloween, the streets with be flooded with two month old Harley Quinn fans. People will spout half pink, half blue hair as they express their alleged "long-time" fascination with the beloved villainess. Perhaps even the true die hard "Quinzelites" will join in with those who ride express on the red and black bandwagon, both parties promising a true connection with Harley despite having never read a single comic in their lives...
Following the premier of the Suicide Squad film (2016), Harley Quinn has grown exponentially popular! This time last year her name could only have been known by geeks of Batman. Now, she sits amongst the "cool kids," thus drowning out her bad-girl counterparts. Not many people realize DC Comics has more to offer as far as vilenesses go, but here's your chance to learn more.
Surprise! Harley Quinn isn't the only "bad bitch" of DC.
1. ROSE WILSON "THE RAVAGER"
Talk about a girl with daddy issues!
Rose Wilson's father hadn't entered her life until he ordered an assassin to slaughter her adoptive family. He introduced her to the killer, and encouraged her to murder him (which she did) before welcoming her as his "true spawn" and accomplice. Grant Wilson, also known as Slade or Deathstroke, trained Rose until she became a fighting machine. She also trained with Dick Grayson (former Robin/Boy Wonder), also known as Nightwing. This made her pa nervous because Nightwing was a good guy; he didn't want his little girl spoiled with sugar, spice, and everything nice. To prove herself, Rose stabbed herself in the eye to match the missing-eye look of her father. This pleased him and he prompted her to replace her eye with a stone called kryptonite -- Superman's weakness -- and go on to kill the Kryptonian hero of Metropolis. Nightwing warned Rose that the stone was actually lethal to humans if they were exposed to it for too long... her father was willing to let her die a slow, painful death. What a jerk!
After this, Rose Wilson leaves her father's side and becomes "the Ravager."
GALATEA "POWER GIRL"
She knows all about identity crises! Galatea just can't escape the shadow of her "sister," Super Girl.
Hardly referred to as "Power Girl" in the universe in which she's portrayed as an ultra powerful meta-human bad guy, Galatea was introduced twelve years ago during episode six of Justice League Unlimited. It's revealed that Galatea is not actually human or kryptonian; she's a clone of Kara In-Ze, also known as Super Girl, and she was created by Emil Hamilton, a scientist of Cadmus. Cadmus is the same laboratory where Super Boy, the clone of Superman, was created. But unlike Super Boy, Galatea enjoyed her stay at Cadmus and became a super battle machine in its name.
It's clear that Galateais more powerful than Super Girl, but she can't shake the truth: she is the clone and Super Girl is the original, and in that sense, Galatea will never truly match Super Girl.
SUPERWOMAN
Superman's wife, Lois Lane, gets a whole new makeover when she's introduced to the power of Amazonian instruments.
Due to DC writers' inability to decide on one plot and storyline, there are several relevant universes in which every hero and villain resides. In "Earth Three," an alternate world, there lives Lois Lane, Superman's lover. But unlike the Lane we're used to, Earth Three's Lois Lane does not spend her time writing up news articles on alien heroes saving the world every now and again. This Lane is an Amazon (like Wonder Woman), and uses her lasso of submission to make others do her bidding. She also does some explicit modeling on the side... but that's part of a whole other story!
Superwoman has got to be the ultimate femme fatal of DC Comics! She's well known for having been in a relationship with Ultraman (Earth Three's version of Superman), but even more so for reclaiming her sexuality and gladly searching for more excitement in bed.
FATALITY
There's never been a space princess as beautiful as Yrra Cynril, also known as Starfire or Fatality.
As the eldest daughter of a royal family on planet Xanshi, Yrra Cynrill had everything going for her. Everything was perfect until one of the members of the Green Lantern Corps mistakenly destroyed her home planet while she was studying off-world. Following the death of her motherland, Yrra trained until she was a great fighter, then vowed to avenge her planet by destroying the Green Lanterns.
It's not long after her first battle with the Lanterns when she's apprehended by a group called the Starfires, and she's "cleansed" of her vengeful rage. Yrra is good until she's reminded of the Green Lanterns' unforgivable action, she she pursues revenge once more, embracing the name "Fatality."
JINX
No, not the lame Teen Titans animated Jinx with lethal cotton candy hair... let's talk the original Jinx of Fearsome Five! Now there's a knowledgeable woman men should really fear!
Jinx is an Indian woman who trained as a sorceress in her homeland. She trained for years learning all the secrets to know about magic and mystical powers. Once she's harnessed the powers she gained from her years of study, she "did away" with the competition... her fellow classmates and teachers killed, she moved on to discover more of what the world of witchery had to offer. However, she was captured and sent to the United States, but later escaped and joined several bad-guy-clubs over the years. No one seemed to be able to last long though. Her teammates would always be defeated eventually, leaving her the last one standing. She was truly too good for her allies!
POISON IVY
She's the wonderful product of a woman who's prevailed over the trifles of men. A truly inspiring character!
Poison Ivy's real name is Pamela Isely, and she starts out as a doctor who works as a talented botanist, fascinated with the magic of plant life. After her former high school teacher persuades her to help him steal Egyptian herbs from an ancient artifact, he turns on her and attempts to kill her by dosing her with the lethal, untraceable herbs she helped him acquire.
She doesn't die. Instead, she is "reborn" with metahuman abilities in which she can manipulate plants, communicate with plants, and spread deadly toxins in the air. Often times, she'll use the plants' pheromones to hypnotize people into doing her bidding.
A true Harley fan should also know that Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy have a romantic relationship that prevails over the relationship between Harley and the Joker. Cute, considering Poison Ivy's touch is allegedly lethal to all, yet Harley seems to be immune to this flower's poison.
KILLER FROST
Talk about a stone called woman; Killer Frost is Elsa of Airedale meets your worst nightmare!
We begin with Caitlin Snow, a scientist of S.T.A.R. labs who's curiosity of the work of deceased Dr. Louise Lincoln -- inventor of the Self-Sustaining Thermodynamic Ultraconductor Engine -- put a target on her back. A felonious organization called the H.I.V.E. ordered their agents and Snow's coworkers to kill her, so they locked her in the S.S.T.U.E. and left her for dead. Desperate to survive, Caitlin Snow ripped some wires apart within the engine. She survived alright! But she emerged a new person with a hankering for heat.
CAT WOMAN
A scuffle with this one is more than just a cat-fight. She not only packs a punch, she's got quite the scratch as well.
With many origin stories, it's hard to tell where to start with such a mysterious woman! Silena Kyle started off as a kid with a damaged past who joined the circus and eventually left to pursue the life of a pick-pocketer. Nowadays, however, it's told that Silena becomes a sex-worker employed by an abusive pimp named Stan. When a detective witnesses Stan's violent behavior, he offers to teach Silena how to fight. She uses her newfound skills to kill Stan and runaway. Later on she gets the chance to see Batman in the act of crime fighting, inspiring her to dress and act just as mysteriously as the dark knight.
Batman is, of course, annoyed by her similar attire because people mistake her for him constantly. He had the same problem with Bat Woman, who also clearly copied Batman's style. (Not sure how... who could mistake those curves? But it's whatever, we'll just go with it.) He's just that awesome. But Cat Woman is arguably even cooler!
"HARLEQUIN" / "THE JOKER'S DAUGHTER"
Time to toss aside those Daddy's Lil' Monster crops tops, because here comes Daddy's Grrrl, the alleged offspring of the Joker, and Harley Quinn's least favorite broad.
To be honest, it's unlikely Duela Dent is actually the Joker's daughter. She's claimed to be so many villains' daughter, that no one really knows what's really in her DNA. It used to be considered fact that Duela was the daughter of Two-Face, but that was disproved when Nightwing pointed out the timing of her birth simply didn't match with that theory. Still, she's most commonly known as "Joker's Daughter," "Harlequin," or "Card Queen."
Duela Dent moves between hero and villain as she struggles to stay a loyal member of the Teen Titans and a loyal "daughter" of so many of DC's most popular villains. It's said that she suffers from at least two mental illnesses due to frequent time travel with the Teen Titans, which may contribute to her wavering stories and identity crises. Either way, she's become an icon in the eyes of true fans of the Joker and Harley Quinn (even though Harley hates Duela for pretending she truly deserves the attention of Puddin' more than Harley herself does).
THE GANG OF HARLEYS
If you're stuck on the idea that Harley Quinn still dominates the world of DC felonious females, but you refuse to be anything but original this Hallow's Eve, consider cosplaying a member of Harley Quinn's gang of Harleys!
Though each character stands out in their own way, they all have something in common with Harley Quinn that "the princess of mayhem" herself decided was special and familiar. Decide who you like and go with it! No one will see that coming.
Now that you're aware of all the fellow awesome bad belles of the ball, spread the word to relieve the pressure brought on by the rush of generic Suicide Squad (2016) Harley Quinns expected this Halloween, and comment below your favorite villain listed above.
Happy Halloween!
