Harley Quinn Pays Homage to a Fan-Favorite Teen Titans Villain

Harley Quinn has built its reputation on finding fresh angles for classic characters and storylines, transforming familiar concepts into something more complex and psychologically nuanced. Season 5 continues this tradition of reimagining beloved elements from DC Comics history by featuring a villain who first appeared in an animated series, just like Harley Quinn herself. The episode proves especially meaningful for fans of DC animation, reaching back to the beloved 2003 series Teen Titans for inspiration. While the original Teen Titans show captivated young audiences with its mix of action and character development, Harley Quinn demonstrates how these same elements can be adapted for mature storytelling without losing their essential appeal.

WARNING: Spoilers below for Harley Quinn Season 5, Episode 5

The fifth episode of Harley Quinn Season 5 revolves around Dick Grayson (voiced by Harvey Guillén), who died in Season 4 at the hands of a sleepwalking Harley (Kaley Cuoco). Resurrected through the powers of the Lazarus’ Pit, Dick assumes a new costumed identity to get revenge on his killer. The costume is all black, adorned with red crosses and a white skull mask. That’s not a look many comic book fans would recognize, but for people who enjoyed Teen Titans, that’s Red X.

Who Is Red X and How Harley Quinn Homages the Villain

Red X first appeared in the 2003 Teen Titans episode “Masks,” where Robin created the identity to infiltrate Slade’s criminal organization. Wearing a black suit powered by unstable xenothium technology and featuring distinctive red x-shaped weapons, Robin operated in secret for weeks, even hiding his activities from his own team. The deception ultimately fails when Slade reveals he knows Red X’s true identity, and the breach of trust severely damages Robin’s relationship with the other Titans. Later, in the 2004 episode “X,” someone stole the Red X suit from Titans Tower and began using it for their own gain. This new Red X appeared in five more episodes throughout the series, operating as an anti-hero who would occasionally help the Titans when it served their interests. The thief’s true identity was never revealed, becoming one of the show’s most discussed mysteries.

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While Harley Quinn quickly jumped from Batman: The Animated Series to mainstream comics in 1999 after her first animated appearance in 1992, Red X remained an animation-exclusive character for nearly two decades before making the leap to DC Comics canon. The character finally debuted in 2021’s Teen Titans Academy #1, where multiple individuals would wear the mask. The first comic version was revealed to be a mysterious figure who recruited a student named Brick Pettirosso to infiltrate the academy while donning his own version of the suit. This adaptation preserved the animated series’ emphasis on mystery while expanding the concept into a legacy identity.

Harley Quinn cleverly inverts the original Teen Titans storyline by having Dick Grayson return to the Red X identity rather than creating a new character to wear the suit. Instead of using the costume to investigate evil, Dick dons it as part of his revenge scheme against Harley and Bruce Wayne (voiced by Diedrich Bader). This allows the show to explore Dick’s complicated feelings about his death and resurrection while paying homage to one of animation’s most enduring mysteries. 

With the Teen Titans soon to appear in the DCU, it’s nice to see other DC properties recognize the importance of the animated series, which was essential for making the team mainstream outside of DC Comics. The Red X subplot in Harleqy Quinn has already been resolved, as Dick mends his relationship with Harley and Bruce, helping them to defeat a fully-villainous Alfred Pennywise (voiced by Tom Hollander). Still, it’s nice to see Harley Quinn keeps throwing deep cuts in our direction and underlining how the series’ creative team truly understands DC’s history.

New episodes of Harley Quinn Season 5 premiere on Max every Thursday. Did you enjoy seeing Red X in Harley Quinn? Let us know in the comments!