Why you should love Harley Quinn:

I'm sure we all know this lovely gal.

Harley Quinn, significant other and partner- yes, partner- to none other than the Clown Prince of Crime. She doesn't get too much credit. She's seen as dense, loony, spastic, and well- like not much of a threat at all. But how much do you really know about her?

Dr. Harleen Frances Quinzel

When we first meet Harley, she's a psychiatrist who manages to get in good at Arkham Asylum. It's where she meets the Joker. Some people think she's stupid, and she most definitely acts that way at times, but they forget this little tidbit- Arkham's written as the prison housing the most dangerous, psychotic criminals in the country. At such a young age, she shouldn't have qualified to work there, let alone to work with the Joker, but with her exceptional intellect, she got in easily. So, folks, she's a damn genius. She just likes to make you think she's stupid.

She gives it her all.

I mean, really. This chick bends over backwards to try to impress her Puddin', and her jokes sometimes- or oftentimes- fall through, it's true, but you can see that she really tries. And she's adorable when she does it.

She reminds us that Joker is human.

Okay, so maybe he's died multiple times and come back from the dead, and that's a bit strange, but comic book logic. He's still human. Anyone who doubts that he has a tenderness for Harley hasn't seen much of their relationship. The moments are small, but they're there- in the beginning, she was a plaything, but she's become a woman he completely formed to be his perfect other half.

She's always been determined and brave.

Joker is known, in the DC verse, as one of the most psychotic and dangerous criminals out there. He ranks above even Bane and Killer Croc, and he is Batman's worst enemy. The man can psychologically break people with ease, and it's completely canon that he did so to multiple psychiatrists at Arkham Asylum before and after Dr. Quinzel- but she didn't care, and she demanded she be given her chance.

She was originally meant to only be a minor, temporary character.

Yep! She was so well-loved in that short time frame that she was brought back, and she's evolved quite a bit over time. She's one of the villains you get to see from the very start of her career of villainy, and you get to see her truly find her niche, her place in the evil hierarchy - as the harlequin princess to her clown prince of crime. She's top-of-the-line, even if it's not immediately evident.

Her changing costumes actually tell a story.

Not a lot of villains change in costumes as drastically as Harley Quinn has. Originally, she had the one-piece suit stolen from a costume shop, and she kept it for quite some time, but it was only the beginning. In Arkham Asylum, the game, she dons this nurse's uniform- and it's not to look slutty, but to catch the attention of her Puddin', and it's obvious in the game. She's desperately trying to recapture his attention, which is fully trained on Batman in that game.

This one? Arkham City. She's finally found her balance. She looks good for her lover- which, every girl's gotta do- and this getup gives her freedom of movement to fight. She's traded in her mallet for a baseball bat, which makes me a bit sad, but by this point, she's found what makes her happy. She can kick ass AND look good doing it.

But even before the nurse's outfit, she was hot.

Harley wasn't crafted to be a character to catch attention. With a small chest, a costume covering all but her face and her face covered by a mask and makeup, she isn't your normal comic book chick. Still, her spunk, her energy, her preserverence and her attitude earned her a spot in the hearts of many, and she's never needed to show a single inch of skin to be hot. It's not what she looks like, it's who she is. And that, my friends, is a rarity.

Batman has never scared her.

Girl has got some sass in her arsenal, and in every encounter with Batman, she shows it. Though she's still got vestiges of good within her, it only strengthens her hatred of the caped crusader. She believes him to be an egotistical, self-entitled prick who has no right to pass judgement on anyone. And though he outweighs and outmuscles her by far, she's got no issues going toe-to-toe with him.

She is, surprisingly, an alpha personality.

Not many know the story behind her beloved hyenas. They were gifts from the Joker- gifts meant to eat her, terrorize her, but they were instantly quelled by a single command from the woman, and have been loyal to her alone ever since. Sure, Joker's the dominant one in their relationship, but it's because she willingly submits to him- and him alone. Anyone else can screw off.

Joker pushes... and she shoves back.

The Joker is the Clown Prince of Crime. Nearly everyone in Gotham is absolutely terrified of him- including other big Batman villains. But despite the blatantly obvious way he asserts dominance over Harley and how he's shoved her around, she's not afraid to kick his ass in return. And guess what?

She is Joker's equal.

Doesn't seem like it, but the Joker actually knows that she can match him- he molded her to be the perfect other half, but I guess he never considered the consequences. I wouldn't say he's afraid of her, but he knows she's dangerous, and he knows when to not cross certain lines with her. Like here, where he's outed to have betrayed her and gotten her thrown in jail- whoops. She's not happy, and he actually looks guilty. Joker? Showing guilt?

Joker's actually protective of her.

A sign of that human nature I spoke of- if she dies, it has to be by his doing. Though he's 'tried to kill her' many times, they were always situations he knew she'd get out of. She's his pet project, his little harlequin, and he's pulled her out of danger more than once. She is the only character to date to ever bring out warmth in the Joker like this.

She was once a gymnast on her way to the Olympics.

She broke a bone in practice when she purposefully screwed up a landing, because it wasn't what she wanted, and thusly ended her budding career as a gymnast, but she was- and is- damn good. It comes in handy, especially when stealing or going up against hulking opponents bigger than her. They have muscle, but she has flexibility, speed, and reach.

She is one of the very fucking few who can successfully capture Batman.

On her own. Don't believe me? In the animated series, she could have killed Batman with ease. She had him in chains, hanging above a tank of piranhas- upside down, so that they were 'smiling' at him. The only thing that stopped her was him pointing out that Joker wouldn't be happy if she killed him. But, kiddos, she had him in that spot. It had been easy for her, and this was in the start of her career! Has she lost the talent?

Not. At. All. Arkham City has a DLC entitled "Harley Quinn's Revenge" in which Harley easily recaptures control of Arkham Asylum and traps Batman once more. Now, if she weren't hell-bent on stalling to ensure someone who cared about Bats would see him die, she could have killed him. Once again, with ease, he was in her clutches, and killing him would have been simple. She would've done it, too, but stupid Robin had to interfere. Damnit, Robin. No, but really- that's twice, twice that she has captured the caped crusader easily and had his life firmly and fully in her hands. Why hasn't it happened more often? Because Joker doesn't want him dead. But she's got the ability- which is a hell of a lot more than 99.999% of Batman villains can boast.

And come on guys, let's face it. She's fucking adorable.