What Harley Quinn's renewal on HBO Max means for Season 3

Rejoice, Harley Quinn fans, we have incredible news. Season 3 of the cult, adult DC animated series is on the way, this time to the HBO Max streaming service platform. The season does not yet have a release date, but it's definitely happening!

Although this means the end of the DC Universe streaming platform, which is transforming into a comics-only e-reader service, the platform's exclusive shows will continue on HBO Max. This includes Harley Quinn, one of the best TV shows in the superhero landscape and the most thoughtful and emotionally piercing animated shows since BoJack Horseman.

What Happened? — On September 18, WarnerMedia announced the rebranding of the DC Universe streaming platform into DC Universe Infinite, a comics-only service that will continue to provide subscribers Netflix-style access to a library of DC Comics. The change will take place on January 21, 2021.

In its original form, DC Universe featured both comics and the DC TV shows and movies. Now, a majority of the DC video library will migrate to HBO Max, including new seasons premiering exclusively on the HBO Max platform.

The announcement of DC Universe's change into DC Universe Infinite also included the news that Harley Quinn will return for a third season. The popular series, which stars Kaley Cuoco as the voice of Harley Quinn, concluded its acclaimed second season in June 2020. Uncertainty in the pandemic cast doubt whether Harley Quinn would be renewed for another season. Even the showrunners were kept in the dark, and often tweeted on behalf of the show to encourage fans to make noise.

After a summer of silence, no one is in the dark any longer. More Harley Quinn is on the way.

What will happen in Season 3? — So, we're still kind of in the dark. Plot details are heavily under wraps. Sources tell Inverse the producers only learned the show was renewed for Season 3 two days before the Friday announcement.

However, the producers have said hope to explore the new romantic relationship between Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy (voiced by Lake Bell) in Season 3. The Season 2 finale ended with Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy escaping Ivy's wedding on a getaway car in an explosive chase that paid homage to movies like Thelma & Louise and The Graduate.

At DC FanDome, co-showrunner Justin Halpern said, "We want to focus on Harley and Ivy’s relationship. I’m less interested in if the Joker gets a new girlfriend or not than I am in [exploring] this relationship that we’ve spent two years building.”

Cuoco and Bell further joked about their own relationship as co-stars. “It’s so funny not seeing her and working with her, but when I see her in-person I’m like, ‘Hey babe,'" said Cuoco. “We’re dating, we’re definitely dating," said Bell in a joking tone.

Is Harley Quinn really that good? — Oh yes. Developed by showrunners Justin Halpern, Patrick Schumacker, and Dean Lorey, Harley Quinn is both a loving tribute to and an off-the-wall parody of popular superhero stories. It is gloriously potty-mouthed, but also emotionally intelligent and full of tender heart. While characters like Batman, Superman, the Justice League, and their respective enemies make appearances, the focus is all on Harley Quinn and her gang of misfit villains.

Set in its own continuity of the DC Universe, Harley Quinn follows its title anti-hero on a quest to gain respect as a supervillain after her break-up with the Joker. With the help of best friend Poison Ivy, she forms her own group of bad guys, who work together to squash the Justice League and take over Gotham for themselves.

The show is bold and fearless in a way most superhero shows are not. The very first gag roasts the billionaire class, in which the Joker reveals he cut off the face of a certain coastal elite media mogul named "Rupert." Other gags include riffs on brunches, in-laws, gun control, bar mitzvahs, social media, competing for wedding venues, office politics, misogyny, and cancel culture.

There is no release date for Harley Quinn Season 3 on HBO Max.