February was a pretty big month for one Harley Quinn. Harley made her glorious return to the big screen with the Birds Of Prey movie, and in TV land season one of her DC Universe show recently wrapped, with season two coming in April. With Harley's popularity surging to even greater heights than ever before, is one universe enough to contain her?
If Harley Quinn were ever to make her way over to the Marvel Universe, it wouldn't take her long to get herself into trouble. Here's a look at five Marvel heroes that Harley would be able to defeat and five that she would lose to.
10 COULD DEFEAT: JESSICA JONES
Detective extraordinaire Jessica Jones shares some similarities with Harley Quinn. Both have starred in their own streaming service TV show, both have been reluctant participants in superhero teams, and both have had an unhealthy relationship with a guy in purple. And you definitely wouldn't want to be on either of their bad sides!
At the risk of making Jessica Jones (and her fans) upset, Harley would come out the victor in a fight between the two. While Jones would have an advantage in the strength department, Harley's no slouch there, having her strength and durability enhanced following an injection from Poison Ivy. Jones also relies more on her strength when she fights, which works out for her most of the time, but against the more agile Harley, she'd find it difficult to land a shot against her. Eventually, Harley would wear her out.
9 WOULD LOSE TO: ELEKTRA
Despite being a former assassin of The Kingpin and a former member of The Hand, Elektra generally finds herself on the side of the angels. Which is a good thing, because she is one of the deadliest people in the Marvel Universe!
While Harley does possess formidable hand-to-hand combat skills, Elektra's far surpass hers. Were Elektra to find herself struggling with Harley's impressive arsenal of weapons, Elektra has demonstrated the ability to mesmerize her opponents, causing them to see illusions. Preying on the mental instability of Harley would give Elektra an extra edge, with just one momentary distraction being the opening Elektra would need to put an end to the contest.
8 COULD DEFEAT: TIGRA
A former member of both the Avengers and the West Coast Avengers, as well as part of the founding faculty of Avengers Academy, Tigra has been a fan favorite in the Marvel Universe since 1972. She even has a victory on her belt over one of Marvel's most powerful villains, The Molecule Man!
On paper, Harley and Tigra are evenly matched. Both possess enhanced strength and agility, with Tigra possessing retractable claws and enhanced senses due to her feline physiology. Harley's advantage comes in the form of her hyenas, Bud and Lou. Harley could sic them on Tigra, who would be reluctant to fight animals being part feline herself, putting Tigra in a lose-lose situation. If Tigra doesn't fight back, Bud and Lou go to town, and if she does Harley takes advantage of the distraction. Either way, Harley wins.
7 WOULD LOSE TO: SQUIRREL GIRL
Doreen Green isn't just Squirrel Girl, she's the UNBEATABLE Squirrel Girl! What major Marvel villain HASN'T she beat? Dr. Doom? Check! Galactus? Check! Heck, she's even beaten up the entire Marvel Universe! So what chance would Harley Quinn have?
The two are pretty evenly matched, with the hand-to-hand advantage going to Harley. So why would Squirrel Girl win? Because she doesn't rely on brawn alone. Squirrel Girl would break out her most powerful weapon in a fight against Harley - friendship! The two could bond over any number of things (Squirrel Girl once dated a Sentinel for example), and once they got to talking they would never stop! Bud and Lou would even pick up on Harley's friendship vibes and make friends with Squirrel Girl's BSF (best squirrel friend) Tippy-Toe!
6 COULD DEFEAT: THE PUNISHER
Frank Castle has a lethal, no-nonsense approach to fighting crime. If Harley Quinn ever popped up in the Marvel Universe, her nonsense-filled checkered past would quickly put her in The Punisher's deadly sights.
The Punisher is a weapons master and has used many unique ones in his day. Of course, Harley is no stranger to weapons either. As good a shot as Punisher is, he'd have trouble hitting the agile Harley, who gets shot at ten times before breakfast. In the end, it would come down to fisticuffs. While Punisher is certainly no slouch in the hand-to-hand department, ultimately Harley's quickness would win her the day.
5 WOULD LOSE TO: SPIDER-MAN
Spider-Man, Spider-Man! You know the drill - does whatever a spider can, catches thieves just like flies, with great power comes great responsibility, etc. None of that though would be enough to deter Harley from picking a fight with the Wall-Crawler!
While Harley could certainly hold her own for a bit against Spidey, she would definitely come out on the losing end. Arguably Harley's biggest fighting asset is her agility, but as agile as she is Spider-Man is even more so. Spider-Man also has a significant strength advantage, not to mention the extra advantages he gets from his Spider-Sense and his webbing. Though a fight between the two would be heavily favored towards Spider-Man, the two are evenly matched in the quip department!
4 COULD DEFEAT: GAMBIT
The former thief turned X-Men member, Gambit shares more than a few similarities with Harley. They've both done some bad things in their pasts but are trying to do better now, and both are masters of the on-again/off-again relationship.
On paper, Gambit's powers give him a distinct advantage. Like Punisher though, Gambit would have trouble connecting with one of his signature kinetically-charged cards. Unlike Punisher, Gambit can match Harley's speed, and may even be faster than her. Gambit's downfall would come if he tried to use his hypnotic charm. Gambit can subtly influence sentient minds, but there's too much going on in Harley's head for that to work on her. Plus with her psychiatry background, she may just flip that on Gambit and lull him into a false sense of security.
3 WOULD LOSE TO: GAMORA
Harley may have dated The Joker, but Gamora was raised by Thanos. While Harley may arguably be the deadliest woman in Gotham City, Gamora is known as the most dangerous woman in the universe. See where this is going?
As formidable as Harley is, anything she can do Gamora can do better. Harley would be wise to avoid a fight with Gamora if she knows what's good for her - unfortunately she usually doesn't.
2 COULD DEFEAT: GWENPOOL
Of all the people on this list, Gwenpool may be the most excited to fight Harley. Hailing from "the real world," Gwenpool would know it's been ages since the last Marvel/DC crossover and would be chomping at the bit to make that happen in the 2020s.
Unfortunately for Gwenpool, the fight wouldn't go the way she'd like. Having been trained by Batroc The Leaper, Gwenpool could hold her own for a bit against Harley. However, Gwenpool's greatest asset is her fourth-wall knowledge, which generally saves her butt a lot. In this case, that ability would be hindered by the crossover. With DC weighing in editorially along with Marvel on the fight, the say Gwenpool's used to getting in her stories would be reduced, ultimately hanging her out to dry against Harley.
1 WOULD LOSE TO: DEADPOOL
This just has to happen. The two are equally beloved R-rated movie stars and this is arguably the most fun crossover imaginable. But per Comics 101, were the two to meet they'd be required by law to fight. So why would Harley lose?
It comes down to Deadpool's healing factor. Anything Harley could do to Deadpool he'd be able to come back from. Even the most severe damage Deadpool would eventually recover from, so he'd end up outlasting Harley. Hopefully though, if they do ever cross paths, they'll go the Squirrel Girl route and become BFFs.