Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?
- Harley Quinn
Hi guys,
I hope you will allow me to start by wishing you all a Happy New Year!
Let's make it a good one guys!
Some time ago I bought this statue of two of the most iconic characters in the DC Universe and I felt it would be a good start of the year to start off with a review of this very peculiar statue.
Now, please do not get me wrong: there is absolutely nothing wrong with the design, sculpt or paintjob of the statue.
Not at all and as I will try to point out in my review below, this statue is as good as they come and then some.
No, I say peculiar since everytime I look at this statue I am reminded that love can survive and flourish even when it enters the Kingdom of the Madness. Or can it?
Is it possible that two people who are obviously '
insane in the brain' as rap group Cypress Hill would put it, really know what love is?
Does real love exist between the Joker and Harley Quinn or do we see a very strange and twisted version of it?
I think Harley Quinn has devoted herself to Mr. J. but is it true, innocent love which opened her heart for him?
And what about the Joker? Does he love Harley or is she nothing more than endurable company, an obedient follower and a dispensable warm body to cling to at night?
On the other hand Harley is no innocent damsel in distress either. No disrespect meant but to put it gently: if the Joker is crazy than Harley is insane.
Mr. J. may be her whole world but does she really love him in the same way that we love our husbands or wives?
Or is their relationship more based on a crazy, creepy attraction between two people who realize they have finally found someone who is just as twisted as they are?
Is it love or has love nothing to do with the complicated relationship between Harley and the Joker?
Omnia vincit amor but if your view on life, other people and moral values is so different than the values which we deem normal,
I wonder if you are really capable of loving someone else?
Harley once said that due to her relationship with the Joker she has grown accustomed to pain and sorrow yet still she seems to love the man and believes that he loves her too.
We have seen tJoker hit Harley and scream at her but at other times he also seemed to care for her and even took her out dancing.
Looking at this statue at first sight you might think you are looking at a couple deeply in love happily dancing the night away together.
At second thought realizing that you are looking at two of the most dangerous and deranged people of Gotham City, you might ask yourself if it is really love and tenderness what you see
or some dark, scary version of it.
The complicated relationship between Harley and Mr. J. is what makes this statue so interesting to look at since it not only pleases the eye of the fan and collector,
but also makes you think about what love means to you and the way you show it everyday to the people dear to you.
Perhaps the truth is that love can take on many forms and can mean many different things to many different people.
Harley and her beloved puddin' have found their version of love or so it seems; I hope that you will find yours in this New Year which has just started!
I will try to elaborate a bit more on my view of the statue in my comments below. In case you are not so much interested in my comments but simply
would like to have a look at the pictures of the statue please feel free to do so; I hope you will enjoy the pictures I took.
Otherwise please check out my full review and kindly do not hesitate to let me in case you have any questions or comments.
Have fun and enjoy!
My verdict
Oh what's love got to do, got to do with it
What's love but a second hand emotion
What's love got to do, got to do with it
Who needs a heart
When a heart can be broken
- Tina Turner: What's Love Got To Do With It
Manufacturer: DC Collectibles
Edition Size: 5,200
Sculptor: Tim Bruckner
Statue Size: The statue is approximately 12.5 inches tall
Design: the design of the statue is inspired by the iconic cover Batman: Harley Quinn #1
Sculpt:
10 – Perfect
Claiming a statue is sculpted perfectly sure raises expectations just like it raises the bar for any other bust or statue which I will review next.
The sculpt has to be really, really good and then some to deserve such high marks.
But this sculpt simply deserves it. It is near perfect from whatever angle I look at it.
The perfecly sculpted pose of Harley and Mr. J. in which he leads and supports her on the dancefloor is so realistic it’s almost lifelike.
The sculpt has a sexy undertone with Joker’s right hand placed on Harley’s belly and Harley pressing her body against the Joker ready to follow his every move.
That being said the sculpt is anything but vulgar or crude though.
The statue shows us the attraction and tenderness in whatever strange form they may have manifested themselves in the complicated relationship between Joker and Harley.
Harley devotes her beloved puddin’ and when I look at the happy look on her face she is ready to accept and approve every move Mr. J. makes and every breath he takes.
Harley is dancing with Joker and looking at her happy and excited pose it’s clear to see that she enjoys it immensely and is totally his.
Looking at Joker I am not sure if he feels the same way.
Sure the Joker is smiling but I am not sure if he smiles because he enjoys dancing with Harley or because he believes that now that he has granted Harley this little pleasure,
she will even more do anything he says or wishes.
Or it could be that Joker is smiling to show the world that he too can come to a costumed ball accompanied by a beautiful and attractive woman.
He is not the disfigured loser who would never ever get a girlfriend or a prom date; no he is here with Harley and he will show those nay-sayers that she likes nothing better than
to be with him and dance with him.
The sculpt is so good that by looking only at the pose and faces of Harley and Joker all these thoughts raced through my mind.
But there are more goodies sculptingwise: the incredibly sculpted costumes of Harley and Joker are simply amazing.
Joker is wearing an impressive dress suit and the details on the suit are awesome: the buttons on his jacket, the wrinkles in his pants, the form of his jacket slips following his movement,
the white flower in the buttonhole of his jacket and the delicately sculpted cufflinks are all convincing and make up for a homerun.
Compared to Joker, Harley’s costume is much simpler but it is impressive in its very own right.
Harley is wearing a tight bodysuit which follows the soft curves and slender form of her body perfectly.
Harley has the body and looks of a topmodel and her appearance shows us why the Joker might have noticed her (if the Joker would be interested in that sort of thing of course).
The statue was based on the cover of a comic book and I believe this sculpt is a worthy tribute to two of the most notorious villains in the DCU.
I believe a perfect score should not be given easily but even after thinking about it for a couple of days I simply could not think of anything which could be improved sculpting wise.
The sculpt is so good that it proves that comic book characters can almost come to life when handled by a truly talented sculptor like Mr. Bruckner.
Nothing says "l'Chaim" like a girl dressed in a stripper clown outfit wielding a hundred-pound mallet.
- Harley Quinn
Paint & Mixed Media:
10 – Perfect
I can be very short here: there is no mixed media used on the statue and the paintjob is absolutely superb; no matter how I looked I could not find any flaw here.
Look for example at the red and black shoes of Harley: not only are they painted very well but there is also no paint smear on the borderline where the black and red shoe meet
the red and black of Harley’s costume. The paintjob is neat and as such very impressive.
There is a black line visible where the back of Harley’s right thigh and buttock is pressed against Joker’s leg but I think there was no way this could be avoided.
Joker is wearing black trousers which means there will be a colour barrier between the black of his trousers and the red of Harley’s costume.
I love the metallic, shiny paint used on Harley’s costume since it contrasts nicely with the matte paint used for Joker’s costume.
Last but not least high marks were earned by the way Harley’s make up and blue eyes were painted. The contrast with her show white skin color is beautiful.
The same goes for the Joker: his red lips, yellowish teeth and green hair are expertly painted and make his face really come to life.
Design:
9.5 – Outstanding
The design of the statue was based on a comic book cover as stated before and I have to say that DC Collectibles really di dan outstanding job here.
A 2D comic book cover has been successfully transformed into a 3D sculpted statue and it’s done in such a way that if you turn the music on, you can almost see Joker and Harley waltzing through your room.
What I found very special is the fact that little felt pads are placed beneath the soles of Joker and Harley to protect the base when you place Joker and Harley on the dancefloor.
That is a level of perfection which I have seldom seen and for which DC Collectibles really deserves a round of applause.
The base is relative simple but I like the layered design with the red middle ring (a real eye-cather!) and the upper layer showing the tile motive of a fancy dance floor.
The design is top-notch and IMHO that sums it up nicely.
I'm not mad at all. I'm just differently sane.
- The Joker
Production & Build Quality:
9.0 – Excellent
The statue is well made and solid enough to last you a lifetime if you treat it with the normal TLC.
The statue is not very heavy but it feels substantial enough to effortlessly withstand the test of time.
Make sure though that if you are going to move the statue to hold not only the base but also the statue firmly.
My statue wobbles a tiny bit when I lift it up and even though I do not think the statue would fall off the base, I would advise you not to take any risk to damage the statue or the base.
Always lift and move the statue with one hand holding the base and your other hand to support the statue (or if you have a zero tolerance attitude towards risk:
remove the statue from the base before you lift or move it)
Overall rating:
9.5 – Outstanding
This statue delivers the goods in spades and is as such a true asset tot he collection of any fan and collector.
My advice to you: get it while you can; I am certain you will not be sorry!
Background Information
Harley Quinn
I know what you think of me.
You think I’m just a doll.
A doll that’s pink and light.
A doll you can arrange any way you like.
You’re wrong. Very wrong.
What you think of me is only a ghost of time.
I am dangerous.
And I will show you just how dark I can be.
- Harley Quinn
Love makes us do crazy things.
And for the bubbly and psychotic Harley Quinn, that includes dressing in costume, becoming a super-villain, carrying gag-themed weaponry,
and murdering countless civilians - all just to put a smile on her puddin's face.
Before her descent into madness, Dr. Harleen Quinzel was a promising psychiatrist assigned to Arkham Asylum, Gotham's home for the criminally insane.
But after meeting the Joker, the young doctor became obsessed with the crazed criminal's warped mind.
Sensing opportunity, the Joker manipulated her, driving his therapist so mad that he was able to control her.
Harleen fell in love with the villain, broke him out of Arkham and devoted her life to making him happy and spreading his bloody brand of mayhem.
Athletic, agile and dangerously unpredictable in a fight, Harley Quinn is a formidable opponent in her own right.
She is willing to do anything in order to further the Clown Prince of Crime's goals—no matter the cost to anyone else or even herself.
Her energetic, affable and animated personality is enough to make almost anyone drop their guard—a mistake that could easily cost them their life.
Deranged and psychotic, Harley Quinn is the poster girl for chaos' terrifying allure.
Real Name: Harleen Quinzel
Powers: superhuman agility, enhanced strength, intelligence
Occupation: Former psychiatrist
-----------------------------------------------------
The Joker
Why be a disfigured outcast when I can be a notorious Crime God?
- The Joker
Whether by way of award-winning films like "The Dark Knight," Emmy-winning animated programs like "Batman: The Animated Series,"
video game appearances such as the record-breaking "Batman: Arkham Asylum," or the countless comics stacking comic book shelves and digital libraries,
the Joker stands unquestionably as the most recognizable and popular comic book villain in pop culture history.
Unpredictable, violent and incredibly dangerous, he is chaos personified and has taken on everyone from his archenemy Batman to even the Man of Steel.
But Gotham remains his primary home and Batman his biggest adversary, and no hero is perhaps better suited as in many ways,
the Joker is the polar opposite of the Dark Knight.
Both were created by a great tragedy, but Batman has since vowed to do whatever it takes to prevent similar incidents,
the Joker revels in creating chaos and destroying lives, believing that life’s a big joke and psychotically demonstrating that in a moment, it can all change.
Not much is known about his past, but his acts during the present are what define the Joker as one of the greatest threats to our heroes and the people they've sworn to protect.
He's killed a Robin, crippled Batgirl, and tortured and murdered countless people throughout the DC Universe—all just for a laugh.
Powers: complete unpredictability, intelligence
I found The Joker’s psyche disturbing,
his dementia alarming - and his charm irrisistible!
What can I tell ya?
The guy just did it for me.
- Harley Quinn
Rainer
