A Definitive Ranking of Harley Quinn's Best Costumes

Harley Quinn, pleased to meetcha.

By Nicole Malczan /

The Clown Princess of Crime Harley Quinn started off as merely the Joker's sidekick when she debuted on popular cartoon Batman: The Animated Series in late 1992. Initially, she was only supposed to be used for a single episode, but thankfully, fans took notice though and demanded more Harley. Even more thankfully, creators Bruce Timm and Paul Dini listened and she was added to the show's rogues gallery.

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Her own origin comic would soon follow, done in the art style of The Animated Series. Entitled Mad Love, it told a story that's a core part of Harley's identity. 

As much as the character has changed, she almost always remains a lovesick fool for the Joker. Then just a young woman named Harleen Quinzel who worked as a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum, she treated Joker and fell in love. Mistah J, being the evil manipulator that he is, took Harley in as a sidekick who would put her life on the line for him.

It's impossible to imagine a world without Harley Quinn. Her New 52 reboot proved that she doesn't need the Joker to entertain readers: certainly not when she has Poison Ivy and a whole host of whacky Coney Island comrades to fill up issue after issue. She's also a staple in almost any video game that DC produces. 

And of course the loveable lunatic has shed her black and red harlequin gear that was her namesake and tried on some different looks over the years. But just which is the best? 

10. Batman: Arkham Asylum

When Rocksteady and Eidos Interactive released the Arkham Asylum game in 2009 to anticipative audiences, the two companies would soon redefine all that a superhero video game could be. The story was immersive, the graphics were gorgeous, and the gameplay, which focused on stealth, really made you feel like Batman. 

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The game centred around the Joker's attempts to release all the inmates from Arkham Asylum to possess Titan, a variant of the venom that fuels Bane.

Of course, where Joker is, so too is Harley, this time with a radical new look that was something of a departure. 

Instead of a skintight bodysuit, she was decked out in a nurse-like white top and skirt with a cap that evokes Heath Ledger's Joker in The Dark Night. Her red and purple corset and boots were eye-openers, but of course her white face paint and pigtails do stay true to the character. 

At the time, the look was interesting, but as you'll see, Harley's had much better costumes in the other Arkham games. 

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