ComicBook.com’s 2020 Golden Issue Awards now turns to recognize the excellent animated series that premiered on television and on streaming services this past year, and it looks like comedies dominated the discussion. While the final season of Netflix’s She-Ra and the Princesses of Power was nominated, shows like Rick and Morty, Solar Opposites, Harley Quinn, and Star Trek: Lower Decks all had a chance to be recognized for their excellence. We’re likely to see more of these shows in this category in next year’s awards, but for now, there can only be one — and it was a pretty clearcut winner at the end of the day.
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And the winner of the 2020 ComicBook.com Golden Issue Award for Best Animated TV Series is…
The HBO Max and DC Universe animated series featuring Kaley Cuoco as the lead character in her attempt to navigate the Gotham City criminal underworld AND a relationship with Lake Bell’s Poison Ivy proved to be excellent in many aspects.
From the hilarious scripts to the exceptional acting from the voice cast and the impeccable animation, there’s no question that Harley Quinn deserves this distinction. Executive producers Patrick Schumacker, Justin Halpern, and Dean Lorey have carved out a unique corner in the DC universe, proving a raunchy and grotesque superhero cartoon could be one of the most earnest and emotional stories of the entire year.
Halpern and Schumacker expressed gratitude for the recognition, telling ComicBook.com: “We’re honored and absolutely floored by the positive effect the show seems to have had on so many people. It’s sincerely been the highlight of our TV careers! We should quit while we’re ahead, but we’ve foolishly decided to work on a season 3!”
The new season featured Poison Ivy’s failed relationship with Kite-Man, Poison Ivy’s failed attempt to take over Gotham City, and Harley’s failure to bury her feelings and embrace her role as a villain. Who would have thought failure would be so much fun?
We’re ready to see even more of Harley Quinn after HBO Max confirmed the series would return for Season 3. ComicBook.com even hosted a Quarantine Watch Party for the standout episode “There’s No Place to Go but Down,” which set the fandom on fire with the first kiss between Harley and Ivy.
Halpern spoke with ComicBook.com about what fans can expect when the series returns for Season 3.
“I definitely think we are going to see Gordon grapple with his, how should I say it, his low approval in Gotham City and the low approval of the police department in Gotham City,” the showrunner said. “I think we’re going to see… we’re going to dive a little more into Ivy’s life and then history. Origins. I think we’re going to do that. I think those are really the only two things we’ve really kind of hit on so far in our preliminary discussions that were like, ‘Yes, definitely want to do those things.’”
Halpern added, “I know we don’t want to do a ‘Are they going to break up, or are they not going to break up?’ thing. I don’t think we want this to be the stakes of the season. I think we want to see… I mean, there’ll be obviously be conflict and tensions between the two of them when certain things go wrong. But I don’t think we want that to be… we spent two years playing that, or two seasons, I don’t think we want to do that for a third season. So that’s what we don’t want to do.”
Congratulations to the cast and crew of Harley Quinn for their 2020 Golden Issue Award win!
Nominees:
- Harley Quinn — WINNER
- Rick and Morty
- She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
- Solar Opposites
- Star Trek: Lower Decks
