Harley Quinn: How the Season Finale Sets Up Season 2

DC Universe’s Harley Quinn has taken fans an animated, foul-mouthed, and truly delightful adventure over the past thirteen weeks, culminating in the recently-released season finale. The show has placed Harley Quinn (Kaley Cuoco) and her ragtag crew in an array of different situations, but it’s safe to say that the newest episode completely shook up the status quo. Luckily, with another 13-episode season of the show already in the works, we know that the story could be headed into a very interesting direction. Obviously, major spoilers for the Season 1 finale of Harley Quinn, “The Final Joke”, below! Only look if you want to know!

The episode opens with the immediate fallout of Poison Ivy’s (Lake Bell) apparent death, which happened at the hands of The Joker (Alan Tudyk). Harley channeled her frustration into teaming up with Batman, and they forged a plan to infiltrate Joker’s incredibly-conspicuous secret lair. They ultimately failed, and Joker decided to kidnap and torture the rest of Harley’s crew as a result, while also ruling over Gotham with an iron fist.

Harley learned that Joker was planning to kill her crew, and went to his lair to try to stop it (with a bomb strapped to her chest). Joker tried to force her to wear her old jester costume to ensure her crew’s safety, and she reluctantly agreed, but tried to fight him along the way. Joker and his goons ultimately took Harley to a vat of chemical acid, which would theoretically take away everything that makes her “Harley Quinn”. Just before he was about to push her in, Harley realized that roses were sprouting near the vat — signifying that Ivy was alive and coming to rescue her.

She and Ivy then got the upper hand, and ultimately dropped Joker into the acid. At the same time, a severe earthquake shook Gotham City, destroying the lair, Joker, Batman, and nearly every major thing in the city. Harley and her crew stood over the rubble, as Ivy remarked that the Justice League and the Legion of Doom are now gone, and Gotham is in complete chaos. They remarked at how beautiful it was — just as Joker’s hand, which is no longer pasty white, broke out of rubble nearby.

So, what does the future hold for Harley Quinn? For one thing, the lack of Gotham City and its hero and villain infrastructure certainly gives the show a sort of hard reset going into Season 2. Obviously, there’s always a chance that any of the show’s other established characters – particularly fan-favorites like Bane (James Adomian) and Robin (Jacob Tremblay) – could have survived the ordeal, and would be around for a potential return in Season 2. But even then, whether the show navigates through a destroyed Gotham City or heads to a new locale, there’s plenty of storytelling opportunities in store.

There’s also the nature of Joker’s hand, which could hint that he has been removed of everything that makes him The Joker. Not only does that bring to mind a bizarre mental image, but it could add a whole new complication to Harley’s journey of self-discovery.

Are you excited to see what happens in Harley Quinn‘s second season? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!