When it comes to crime-fighting super teams, few put the “POW” in “girl power” quite like DC’s Birds of Prey. First conceived by Jordan B. Gorfinkel and Chuck Dixon in Black Canary/Oracle: Birds of Prey #1 in 1996, the female-led comic book series gained much of its popularity when legendary writer Gail Simone took over the series in issue #56.
Though their roster has expanded and changed over the years (even adding in male superhero, Hawk) the core team is almost always comprised of founding members Barbara Gordon (AKA Oracle, AKA the first Batgirl) and Dinah Lance (AKA Black Canary). The crossbow toting vigilante Helena Bertinelli (AKA Huntress) is also a longtime member and typically a key character in the comics, her brutal methodology often clashing with her fellow teammates.
But despite having a rather long roster of former and current members, including Gotham femme-fatales Poison Ivy and Catwoman, Harley Quinn has never officially been a member of the Birds of Prey. This has led many casual fans to beg the question how different is Birds of Prey:and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn from the source material? Spoilers ahead.
The biggest difference between the comics and the film, now simply called Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey, is the absence of Barbara Gordon, something many of her fans have criticized. However, the film does introduce a version of Batgirl (sort of). Rather than include Commissioner Gordon’s daughter, the film instead introduces the second heroine to take on the role of Batgirl, Cassandra Cain. However, Birds of Prey’s Cass is quite different than her comic book counterpart, as many have already pointed out. Created in 1999 by Kelley Puckett and Damion Scott, Cassandra Cain has one of the most fascinating origins of all of Batman’s allies. Her introduction into comic book lore in Batman #567 depicted her as mute, illiterate, and under-socialized–a psychological experiment in early combat training by her own parents, who are world-renowned assassins. Though she struggles to communicate, her fighting abilities are so great they even rival that of the Dark Knight.
She may not be a founding member of the Birds of Prey, but Cassandra Cain nonetheless is a character worthy of cinematic adaptation. She was the first Batgirl to star in her own series, and her 73 issue run was especially noteworthy for a comic book woman of color at the time. That’s not to say there weren’t some spotty moments in the characters publication history, as several writers have been accused by fans of mistreating the character over her 20 year history. Birds of Prey doesn’t mistreat the character of Cassandra Cain as much as it simply ignores the source material and gives viewers someone completely unique. Not only does the film version of the character talk, she’s actually quite sassy and street smart. Gone are her mad martial arts skills, replaced with pickpocket abilities so sharp they would make Catwoman jealous. And her parents may not be assassins, but they still seem like questionable people.
To be clear, Ella Jay Basco’s Cassandra Cain is a fun character. The young actor easily keeps pace with Oscar nominee Margot Robbie whenever they share screen time together. She enchantingly plays one of Gotham’s lost youths, a (not entirely) innocent bystander stuck in the crossfire between mob bosses and madcaps. The only real issue with the character is she’s named Cassandra Cain. Basco could have simply played an original character, and thus added another interesting character of color in a mythology that many say still lacks diversity.
That said, the film does manage to depict founding member Dinah Lance very accurately to her comic book counterpart. In fact, her portrayal in Birds of Prey is arguably the most accurate live-action adaptation than any previous Canary. The short-lived Birds of Prey TV series from 2002 portrayed a Black Canary even less like the comic book source material than Cass Cain in the Birds of Prey film. Smallville’s Alaina Huffman and Arrow’s Katie Cassidy both portrayed significantly more accurate versions of the character, but still took many liberties that fans weren’t happy with.
Jurnee Smollett-Bell, however, plays a Black Canary true to her source material. The film first depicts Dinah working for a crime syndicate similar to her origin in 1947, but she’s also a professional singer like in her more recent comic book exploits. Smollett-Bell’s Black Canary is essentially a “greatest hits” of her most popular adventures in comics. Dinah’s mother is also portrayed accurately to her literary roots. Though not much is known about her in the film, what is revealed is that she used to work alongside Gotham PD and was gifted with the Metahuman ability to emit a loud sonic scream—the “canary cry.” Though DC’s comic book lore changes so often it would make a Time Lord dizzy, Black Canary has generally been portrayed as a legacy character since 1985–the moniker first belonging to Dinah Drake, and then passed on to her daughter Dinah Laurel Lance. This was established shortly after the DC continuity relaunching series Crisis On Infinite Earths in order to explain how Black Canary was around during the era of pinup while also being a young woman in the modern era.
The only real disappointment in regards to Black Canary in Birds of Prey is she could stand to have more screen time. Unlike her teammates Huntress and Harley Quinn, Dinah isn’t given a substantial backstory besides some dialogue between her and Renee Montoya (played by Rosie Perez). It’s established that she inherited the canary cry from her mother, but beyond that we only get to see it in action once–though to be fair it is a pretty exciting sight to behold. And like her comic book counterpart, Dinah in this film can only use it once as it takes quite a toll on her physically.
Huntress is another character Birds of Prey gets right. Though her original backstory was as Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle’s daughter, the more generally accepted canon is that she’s Helena Bertinelli, the last surviving daughter of the Bertinelli crime family. Like Batman, her story is so simple it’s timeless—she’s driven by vengeance. It’s a hard backstory to get wrong, and Birds of Prey doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel with her character. She’s brutal. She’s relentless. She loves crossbows. What the film does do with Huntress is add a quirky level of humor to Helena. While by no means the comic relief, Mary Elizabeth Winstead adds a relatable self-awareness to the character that’s not too unlike her comic book counterpart. She practices her badass one-liners in the mirror before missions. She boldly declares “they call me Huntress” even though literally no one ever does. She even gets super peeved when a character refers to her weapon as a “bow and arrow.”
But quirkiness aside, Winstead does a great job selling herself as a thrill-seeking vigilante with a vendetta. In the comics, her eagerness to play judge, jury, and executioner typically conflicts with the no-kill policy of Gotham’s other defender Batman (or Green Arrow if you’re a fan of the Arrowverse), so it’s unfortunate that in Birds of Prey that dynamic isn’t explored with her and Barbara Gordon (whom we still know nothing about in this universe). However, it’s still fun to see Helena and Harley commit gratuitous acts of violence together.
And though not a member of the Birds of Prey in the comics, detective Renee Montoya is a character worthy of discussion. Aside from aging the character up a bit, Birds of Prey gets Montoya right in all the ways that matter. She slings insults as fast as they come at her, she talks like an 80s TV cop, and she’s openly gay. She’s also an alcoholic, something the film touches on but never really resolves. In the comics Montoya eventually hits rock bottom and makes her journey towards sobriety. If a sequel should happen, this could potentially be a major character arc for her. It’s worth mentioning that while Montoya has never been an official member, she did work alongside the Birds of Prey in Gotham Underground #2. Also worth noting is one of her ex-girlfriend’s is a current member of the Birds of Prey—Kate Kane (AKA Batwoman). Their past relationship has mostly been depicted as rocky at best, with both women enabling the other’s addictions. Ultimately, Birds of Prey never mentions any past relationship between Montoya and Kane, but she does have a rather awkward and borderline hostile relationship with her ex-girlfriend in the DA’s office.
That leaves the film with its title character, Harley Quinn. As previously mentioned, Harley is the only member of the Gotham City Sirens to have never served on the team’s roster. That said, her character can be considered comic book faithful in Birds of Prey as long as you consider Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti’s critically acclaimed Harley Quinn series as legitimate source material (which you absolutely should).
Margot Robbie still plays the same zany character who starred in Suicide Squad, but minus her Puddin’. Though you never see Joker in this movie, his presence is felt deeply throughout the plot. Much like post-breakup Harley in the comics, the former psychiatrist wants nothing more than to escape her ex’s shadow, but her past refuses to give up on haunting her. It’s hard to start a new life when everyone you’ve ever pissed off in your old one wants to murder you.
Is Birds of Prey a comic book accurate cinematic origin story for the vigilante squad? No. Does it do the characters in it justice? Absolutely. Arguably, the only character who’s significantly different than her comic book source material is Cassandra Cain, but Basco’s performance is strong enough that it’s an easy sin to overlook. And if the film needs any further endorsement, Gail Simone herself has even given glowing praise for the movie. It’s not a perfect movie, but it’s a lot of fun to watch.
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