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This era also establishes her current origin that persists today and was shown in the 2016 Suicide Squad movie. She is a brilliant psychiatrist interested in abnormal psychology who falls in love with the Joker while working at Arkham. After helping him escape, he pushes her into a vat of chemicals at ACE Chemical, bleaching her skin white. It also shows her hair changing into the blue and red color scheme used in this series.

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During the New 52 era, in the Suicide Squad series, Harley donned a distinctive new costume. Her hair is in long ponytails, split down the middle with red on one side and blue on the other. Her costume is a small bodice with alternating red and blue, a short red shoulder cape, short shorts, and thigh highs. She also wears thick black makeup around her eyes reminiscent of classic theatrical clown masks and her skin has been bleached pale white.

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This design and characterization of Harley continued until 2011with the relaunch of all DC's titles during "The New 52" era, with DC moving to publish 52 monthly comic series and restart the numbering of ongoing series at #1. This era saw continuity updated, refreshed, or even reinvented for most major series and characters.

Harley Quinn had a major overhaul that was fully revealed and developing the new Suicide Squad (2011, New 52) series.

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This is also the first time it's introduced that even after her life of crime begins she sometimes funds her mischief by disguising herself and once more moonlighting as a psychiatrist. An inspiration for unhinged therapists everywhere!

During this entire period, she wears her classic costume and has yet to take a plunge into a vat of chemicals for the Joker, so the white on her face is only clown makeup.

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This series not only establishes her fully as a criminal figure in Gotham, but also starts revealing her to be a lot more clever than Dini and Timm originally wrote her to be. This includes retconning how her relationship with her professor played out - as an experiment by her to demonstrate how love operates similar to madness and can drive a person to crime! And then the professor stole her research to make a name for himself after she lost her own sanity.

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The first official Harley Quinn comic series ran from 2000 - 2004, and during this time her character becomes much more fleshed out by Karl Kesel, Terry Dodson, and Rachel Dodson. She leaves Joker, tries being a sidekick to Two-Face, Riddler, and others, impersonates Batgirl, finally becomes a strong, independent villainness, and declares herself the Cupid of Crime - luring two reluctant detectives to fall in love while trying to track her down.

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While this first standalone comic has her getting tricked into getting back with the Joker after she almost kills him, it leads into her first comic series in 2000 where she leaves him to strike out on her own. This includes getting revenge on him and hiring several of his henchmen. During this classic era, Harley's is still largely self-made, designing her own costume and taking initiative to become Harley Quinn. Her skin isn't bleached white yet either.

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This story establishes that Harley actually does have some minor superpowers that are often neglected or unexplained in future versions: super agility, increased strength, and an immunity to poisons. These come from a serum Poison Ivy gives her so she can be immune to her poisons if they are going to be spending more time together. I'm not sure if it was intended, but I can't help but remember that it's Ivy's kiss and touch that can be toxic.

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