#at least palmiotti draws him VERY good

[volfoss]

the worst thing about two face's writing actually is back in the 30s-50s, it was really compelling and got into a lot of morality issues as well as treating him like an actual person vs just oh mental illness scary (which seems to be a lot of the pre 2011 appearances so far, but maybe i am just hitting every bad comic author on the face of the planet). its definitely a case where most comic characters do lose a lot of their personality over time and get flanderized pretty bad but this and deadpool have been some of the worst cases i've read. just very frustrating bc i know the potential is there if the writers stopped going to the oh he has DID and is evil trope. all this to say: i am miserable reading his stuff but its ok i will survive

#twist rambles #everyone CANNOT be david mack with good writing and art but good god 90s comics make me wish they were #maybe the newer stuff will be better... worst case scenario i can read smth REALLY bad between issues so it doesnt seem as bad. but i also #know he like. fucking nearly outed someone as gay in a new comic so. i dont really um have much hope we will say. #at least palmiotti draws him VERY good

[qunz1]

please note this is a personal headcanon. it is not based on any true canon, though i take examples from canon for reasoning. please do not steal/sample any part of this for your own canon. i am an individual with borderline personality disorder, so i am acutely aware of the symptoms and stigma surrounding it, and i have done extensive research on this topic. all sources will be linked at the bottom of the post. thank you.

according to the DSM-5, you must meet at least five of the nine criteria (symptoms) listed on this webpage ( click through for full list/explanations. ) below, i will summarize the nine symptoms that i see in harley through various media sources ( i.e. comic books, animated series/films, live action films, etc. ) with the most apparently being bolded for emphasis/further analysis.

affective (emotional) instability including intense, episodic emotional anguish, irritability, and anxiety/panic attacks.

anger that is inappropriate, intense and difficult to control.

self-damaging acts such as excessive spending, unsafe and inappropriate sexual conduct, substance abuse, reckless driving, and binge eating

recurrent suicidal behavior, gestures, threats, or self-injurious behavior such as cutting or hitting yourself.

these behaviors might not always be self-damaging; they can also affect other people and/or property.

a markedly and persistently unstable self-image or sense of yourself

suspiciousness of others thoughts about you, and even paranoid ideation, or transient and stress related dissociative episodes during which you feel that you or your surroundings appear unreal.

split- or “all-or-nothing” thinking, difficulty “pulling” your thoughts together so they make sense, and rational problem solving, especially in social conflicts.

you may engage in frantic efforts to avoid real or imagined abandonment

your relationships may be very intense, unstable, and alternate between the extremes of over idealizing and undervaluing people who are important to you.

as listed above, harley hits… basically all of the criteria for a borderline personality diagnosis. It isn’t hard to see these moment’s in action:

her rocky relationship with her family would have created a solid foundation that was only exacerbated by her relationship, and subsequent abuse, at the hands of the joker. it’s also that foundation that would have made her vulnerable to the joker’s tactic to seduce her in the first place, preying on the unstable self-image as a way to draw her in by making her feel loved and giving her affection she desperately desired.

her inability to stray far from him/constantly returning to a situation she might logically know is not good for her, ties into the desire to avoid abandonment at all costs. we see this time and again as she talks herself into the belief that, no matter what he says or does, she believes he loves her, because the alternative is unthinkable.

even after we see her break free of that cycle of returning to abuse, harley’s mental health doesn’t just magically change. in a comic series by jimmy palmiotti and amanda connor, harley visits the joker in prison and nearly beats him to death, which points to the symptom of anger that causes harm to not only herself, but others. there are repercussions for those actions, but that isn’t what’s on harley’s mind, and as much as the joker might deserve anything coming to him in some minds, this isn’t about that; it’s about harley’s mental health and well-being. actively seeking him out put herself in a dangerous position as well ( reckless, harmful behavior toward herself that could result in imprisonment or backlash at the hands of his allies ).

in many iterations of harley, comic and film alike, she is shown to have strange visions and moments of disturbed reality ( i.e. talking to a stuffed beaver and imagining responses, just as one example ). this dissociation is a way to escape the reality of situations she doesn’t want to confront.

these are only a few examples, and i could probably dig through movies and comics all day to pull resources, but this post would be massive by the end of it, so i’ll leave it on this one final note:

i am not a psychiatrist. i do not study mental health, past trying to understand my own mental health issues. as someone who lives with bpd, i see a lot of my own tendencies and thought processes displayed in harley that have made her a character that is very important to me. this is not a projection, but a connection. it isn’t necessary for you to agree with me on this, but i do ask that if you’re interacting with harley/my blog, you respect my headcanon in this matter.

i will also not accept any hate/backlash about bpd on this post or any other. i am not villainizing harley or others with bpd by suggesting it’s something that harley suffers from. i am humanizing a character, who is still going through the midst of redemption in comics and television. harley quinn is a victim of abuse, and the effects that has had on her mental well-being are numerous. while she might be categorized as a villain by most, that’s not what i’m here to do. please respect that, and keep any negative sentiment toward those with bpd far, far away from here. sources: xxx

#♦ ⋅ ° • ．。— headcanon. #tw abuse #tw child abuse #tw domestic violence #tw self harm #tw hallucinations