Hi everyone! I hope you’re well. Today is Wednesday, and it’s time for another post in the Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge hosted by Long and Short Reviews. If you want to participate in the challenge, you can see the topics for 2024 here. If you would like to read what others had to say on this week’s topic, you can do so here.

Villains I’d Root for Instead of the Protagonists

Harley Quinn

Harley Quinn appears in various forms of media set in DC’s Batman universe, with her first appearance being in the episode “Joker’s Favour” of Batman: The Animated Series.

Originally, Harley was a psychiatrist, working with Gotham City’s criminally insane in Arkham Asylum, and it’s here she falls in love with one of her patients, the Joker. The Joker really does a number on her psychologically speaking, causing her to lose her grip on reality. Together, they run amok, terrorizing Gotham’s good (often wealthy) citizens, much to the annoyance of Batman, who, as is always the case in superhero shows and comics, wins the day.

I like Harley Quinn as a character because she isn’t a typical villain. Her character arc is an intricate one if you look a little closer; she has clearly been the victim of coercive control, and depending on which version of her you are spending time with (i.e. the Animated Series vs the myriad comic book depictions), she’s been through a heck of a lot more.

In some stories, she even works on her mental health issues, reverting to being a “goodie”.

 Harley Quinn is a complicated, intricate and fully formed – if sometimes greatly exaggerated – character and long may she exist in the world.

Q

Q is one of the most famous antagonists of the Star Trek universe. He first appears in Star Trek: The Next Generation’s pilot episode, “Encounter at Farpoint”, where he puts Captain Picard and the crew of the starship Enterprise on trial on behalf of all humanity, arguing that the species should be destroyed because of their violent and savage ways.

Appearing sporadically throughout the run of The Next Generation, Q has also appeared in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, a handful of Star Trek: Voyager episodes and an episode of Star Trek: Lowe decks. After a recurring appearance in season two of Star Trek Picard, he was last seen on screen in season three’s series finale, “The Last Generation”, where he appears to Picard and Beverly Crusher’s son Jack and tells him his trial is just beginning.

I love Q as a villain because he isn’t a bad guy per se, at least not on purpose. Most everything he does is from a point of view of curiosity. He is fascinated by humanity, and you could even surmise that he’s obsessed with Picard and possibly Katheryn Janeway. Through his meddling, he brings a lot of humour and, strangely, being that he is an omnipotent alien being, a lot of humanity.

I was happy to see him in the final scene of Star Trek Picard – it gives me hope that he might pop up again somewhere…

Anyway, that’s post 18 down. I’m looking forward to reading all your thoughts on villains and protagonists.

As always, thanks for reading my word!

Until next time,

George

© 2024 GLT

Categories: life, Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge

Tags: Batman, challenge, Harley Quinn, Q, Star Trek, Villain, Villains, Wednesday, Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge