WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Batman #89 by James Tynion IV, Carlo Pagulayan, Guillem March, Danny Miki, Tomey Morey, and VC's Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
The relationship between the Joker and Harley Quinn has always been a tumultuous one. It literally began with the former driving the latter to madness. But since Harley has become a more central figure within the DC Universe, their relationship has become much more destructive. Now, it seems that Harley is prepared to try and end it once and for all.
In Batman #89, Harley reveals that she's back in Gotham City for a very specific goal -- killing the Joker once and for all.
LIFE GOALS
After being surrounded by Joker henchmen, Catwoman received some surprising help from Harley Quinn. Harley helps bring down the henchmen and reveals the corpse Catwoman had found doesn't belong to the Joker. Instead, it's a former henchman who has been left as a trap. Harley also tells Catwoman that Joker has been targeting people across the East Coast, seemingly clearing the board before the coming Joker War storyline.
When Catwoman brings up why Harley has finally come back to Gotham City after a solid amount of time away from the city, Harley casually reveals that she's come back after all this time with one single goal: finding the Joker and finally killing him. This isn't the first time that she's decided to try and kill the Joker but it is the first time she's reached a point where she could really could. It might have come at the best possible time, too, given his seeming plans to try and bring down Batman once and for all.
HISTORY OF HOMICIDE
After being introduced as the Joker's girlfriend in Batman: The Animated Series, Harley Quinn's popularity soared and she joined the core DC Universe. As she became more popular and less openly villainous, Harley's relationship with the vile antics of the Joker waned and ebbed over time, making her more of a solo character. She eventually turned on him in the pages of Gotham City Sirens, breaking into Arkham in an apparent effort to kill him once and for all. But instead, she unleashed the Joker and the pair went on a killing spree throughout the hospital. By the time of the New 52, Harley and the Joker's relationship had fallen by the wayside, with her spending time away from him as a major character in Suicide Squad. She was still very much a villain, but Joker had left her.
As Harley has become more and more of a protagonist across various forms of DC media and lost some of her purely villainous edge, her distaste for the Joker has become far more prevalent. Some versions of Harley have even tried to take the fight to the Joker. In the build-up to Batman and Catwoman's wedding, Harley tried to bring down the Joker as a wedding present for the couple. Versions of Harley from the Injustice: Gods Amongst Us storyline to the animated Harley Quinn series have also seen her try to bring down her villainous ex after coming to terms with just how terrible he is. She actually even succeeded in DCeased, killing the Anti-Life Virus infected Joker after he attacked her.
Maybe she'll be able to use the chaos of the Joker War to take a real shot at her ex. But accomplishing that goal might be tougher than even Harley is aware. The Joker has been out of sight recently, with the final page of the issue revealing that he's targeting the other members of the Bat-Family before he makes his move on Batman himself. Joker also has some new backup in the form of his new "girlfriend" Punchline, who is poised to be a new asset for the Clown Prince of Crime. If Harley wants a real shot at the Joker, she'll need to overcome her "replacement" first. But being in Gotham City should give her plenty of opportunities to do just that.