First Appearance Friday ~ HARLEY QUINN

Just a quick background on what a First Appearance is for all of my new friends who aren’t comic savvy and don’t know the terminology and lingo. A First Appearance is basically what it sounds like. It’s the very first time that a specific character appears in a comic. Depending on the character, these issues can be quite sought after and expensive. There’s a lot of hoopla and arguing in the community about specifics regarding cameo appearances, 1st’s, 1st full Appearances and all that...but that’s an article and battle for another day. So who do I want to discuss today???

Harley Quinn!!!

As with most things in the world of comics, this one is also going to be a little convoluted so I’ll try my best to make some sense of it. Harley Quinn initially appeared in the wonderful cartoon series that I still love, Batman The Animated Series. This series had 85 episodes and ran from September of 1992 through September 1995. It was partially developed by the Paul Dini & Bruce Timm, who did the art on the 2 pieces above. One day I’ll get a piece of Original Art from him for my collection but as of the moment, his rate is out of my range. C’mon Steem!!!

This critically acclaimed series had great production value with Danny Elfman providing the tunes and a fantastic animation style that translated well into toys and other mediums. Kevin Conroy was the perfect Batman and Bruce Wayne. The always versatile Mark Hamill voiced The Joker, and Arleen Sorkin was the actress responsible for bringing the crazed Ex-Doctor, Harley Quinn to life.

This pic has no bearing on this story other than to show off one of my most favorite moments in my 15 years of attending SDCC. Mark Hamill came up to our group of 4 on his own and chilled for about 20 minutes at a private party. We all shared stories, ate & drank, & were merry before snapping some keepsakes! Thx Mark. You made a memory we will all hold near and dear to us forever.

Baaaaaack to the matter at hand. Harley Quinn first appeared in an episode titled Joker’s Favor, before she made the transition to Comics. It was the 22nd episode of the series and first aired on Fox on September 11th, 1992. We will jump into the comic aspect in a moment but I’d first like to give a brief background as to who the hell she is.

The basic background is pretty messed up. Doctor Harleen Frances Quinzel, was a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum...the place that houses all the crazies in the Batman Universe. While there and treating the Joker, she falls head over heels in love with him, helps him escape, and basically becomes not only a sidekick type character...but his girlfriend of sorts. Oh, The Joker also abuses her in many ways but she’s sure of it that he loves her. Cookoo!!!

This brings us to why we are really here which is to discuss her first comic appearance. This happened the following year in September of 1993 in the kids title, Batman Adventures #12. This my friends, is a mega key! I’ll explain why in a moment with some analysis.

There is a little catch to this one though. This is her 1st appearance. No doubt, buuuuuuut this comic series in not in continuity with the DC universe. That’s why there is also extreme importance placed on this book below. Batman:Harley Quinn #1 which hit shelves in October of 1999, features one of the most striking images of Harley and Joker ever produced...all done by the master Alex Ross. This book also had a 1st and 2nd printing which are hard to tell apart at first glance. This book is the first time that Harley was part of an official DC storyline that was considered continuity.

Both of these books are good books to have in your personal collection but the Batman Adventures #12 is a modern grail. Think of it this way...it’s a title geared towards kids mainly meaning a lot of these got absolutely manhandled. Booger fingers galore bending each and every page. Not to mention a 1st of one of the most popular comic characters to come out in the past 25 years.

Look around at any comic convention and you will see a ton of cosplayers. Shit, I’m going to go through my phone right now as I still have cosplay photos of the past few conventions I set up at on it. Let’s see what I can come up with...

These pics were just from last month at the past 2 conventions I set up at. The New York Comic Con & Baltimore Comic Con. These are just the Harley’s that I was able to snap a pic of that walked by my booth. Let alone the ones I was too busy to snap or those that didn’t pass by me. I’m going to stop here as I do a ton of conventions and I probably have over 100 from this year alone. If you are really interested in checking them out, look at some of my older pieces. I post cosplay photos that I’m able to snap from most conventions as some are pretty awesome. Ok one last one just because the Harkey was looking at a Harley comic and it’s a cool shot. 😂

Point is, Harley is a badass. She’s not going anywhere and is only going to grow in popularity. Dudes love her. Chicks love her. She’s insanely marketable and is a cash cow. Get on the Harley Express because it’s leaving the station. I know I have my copies stashed away. I have a CGC 9.4 and 2 copies of a CGC 9.6 tucked away. I probably paid a buck or so for each of them years ago. Let’s see how these are faring.

If you are lucky enough to have a CGC 9.8 copy of Batman Adventures #12, they are commanding between $1700-$2000!!! Hot damn! If you have a 9.6 like I do, those are currently fetching $700-$900 on average. Decent raw copies will bring in $300-$500 depending on the exact shape.

The Batman:Harley Quinn 1 Special is nowhere near that bit still a solid book to own. Raw’s command $75-$100 bucks while a GC 9.8 will run ya $325-$400. Still nothing to scoff at or turn a blind eye to.

This book is on my MUST BUY list for anyone serious about investing into comics that can play the long game. In the past 10 years, 1st of key players like Punisher & Wolverine have mooned to insane amounts. Expect this to follow suit years from now if you can wait.

You also might have noticed that some of the cosplayers looked different from each other and not even like the original Harley. That’s because there have been several costume changes throughout the years on different titles. One you may recognize is the insanely sexy version from the Suicide Squad film in which the lovely Margot Robbie was the shining star of.

One last thing I’ll touch upon is just how much merchandise there is of her. If they can smack her face on a keychain...they are going to do it! She is hands down the most popular female comic character. Nobody else even comes close. It’s apparent when you look at the merchandise. There are hundreds of examples...I’m just showing a few below.

• Statues

• Figures

• Funko Pops

By the way, this piece right here...the Metallic Harley Quinn Funko Pop, was Exclusive to my shop several years ago. There are only 2000 in the world and currently sell for about $50!

My point is...Harley = $$$$$$$$$

Thanks for reading with me.

Blewitt