Highlights
- Suicide Squad Isekai anime balances Harley Quinn and Joker well, resisting Joker-centric focus despite DC’s suggestions.
- Harley Quinn’s rising popularity challenges Joker’s spotlight in Suicide Squad series, preserving overall relevance.
- While some fans may crave more Joker, Suicide Squad Isekai is praised as a solid adaptation with existing fan favorites.
DC’s Suicide Squad Isekai anime has been quite highly anticipated since before it was released back in June, but one particular character won’t be taking on as big a role in the rest of the season as some fans might have hoped.
The Suicide Squad has become a mainstay in recent times, starting from relatively obscure comic book origins to becoming the star of several movies in the highly acclaimed DC animated film catalog. The story of a ragtag team of felons working off their sentences in service of the shadowy Amanda Waller was always a great premise, but it wouldn’t take off for mainstream audiences until the team featured in these animated adventures. More importantly, the rise to prominence benefited greatly from the rise of Harley Quinn, a fan favorite and constant presence on the team. As such, it was little surprise when a Suicide Squad Isekai anime was announced featuring major DC characters.
While Harley Quinn has seen a massive rise in fan appreciation in recent years, she’s still solidly second fiddle to the Joker, her canon love interest and the most iconic villain in DC. Featured heavily in the marketing for the series, some fans expected him to be more prominently featured than he’s been so far. In a retrospective interview with CBR, series director Eri Osada revealed that the powers that be actually did request for a more prominent role for the Joker, an idea that Osada himself had to shut down to maintain the sanctity of the show’s plotline. “I was told to feature the Joker a bit more,” Osada explained when asked about DC’s suggestions for the project. “But I had to explain that it’s impossible due to the story’s constraints. Featuring the Joker too prominently might make it seem like the Joker-centric anime.” The story instead features a balance of both characters, with Osada pointing out what makes them fit to be co-leads on the show.
Harley has an image of fearlessness, and wherever she goes, she maintains her character without losing herself. Similarly, the Joker seems to be able to do what he wants wherever he is.
The tendency for the Joker, for better or worse, to outshine other characters is nothing new and even serves as a reflection of the Batman and his own struggle to stand amongst equals. Similar to this anime version, David Ayer’s failed Suicide Squad film also had the task of keeping the Joker from taking up the limelight, leading to a wealth of unused footage and story points featuring Jared Leto’s Joker falling by the wayside. Batman also often brings this problem about, with showrunners on the iconic Justice League and Justice League Unlimited being given a mandate to limit the Caped Crusader’s appearances on the show, giving other characters sufficient time to shine and leading to a lot of these characters becoming fan favorites where otherwise they would’ve been relegated to supporting characters in another Batman show. The Suicide Squad and Harley herself would never have made it to the level of relevance they occupy now if the Joker’s shadow was allowed to cloud them along the way. As a matter of fact, this idea is part of the inspiration for at least one Harley Quinn story.
All in all, while some fans might be disappointed that the Joker won’t be running the show solo, Suicide Squad Isekai still hits the mark as an anime adaptation of the DC team, even being favorably compared to some existing fan favorites in the bargain. Whether or not you’re a Joker megafan, you’ll probably still enjoy what the rest of the season has to offer.
Suicide Squad: Isekai is currently available to stream on Max and Hulu in the US.
Source: CBR
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