Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey  ★★★

“IT’S the bottom of the ninth in the World Series match between Marvel and DC films.

“So far we’ve seen a pretty lopsided contest with Marvel having a steady stream of home runs and late base hits while DC has struggled throughout.

“There doesn’t seem to be a lot of clear thought in the DC playbook with its main strikers pretty much told to just try smacking it out of the park, resulting in a lot of wild swings and misses.

“Joining me here in the commentary box today is Mick’s Choice. What do you think of this effort?”

“Well, a couple of innings ago Suicide Squad in particular got way ahead of itself and crashed and burned, striking out repeatedly.

“But, as luck would have it, new batting partner has been a surprise late inclusion and is now safely at third with the real chance of getting home.

“The eighth film in the DC Extended Universe and a follow-up to Suicide Squad (2016), Harley Quinn has a much more cohesive structure and more entertaining style.”

“Yes Mick, the team’s manager, producer and star Margot Robbie, coach and director Cathy Yan and assistant coach/writer Christina Hodson seem to share a common vision and the results are obvious.”

“For sure, the style of play is not traditional, with multiple time-frames at work, but it’s always possible to follow what’s going on and Robbie shines as the lead batter.

“A couple of the other players, Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Ewan McGregor, have been a little shaky when it’s their turn on the mound, but the encouragement from their on-screen team-mates means the faults can be largely forgiven.

“The Harley Quinn team is big on theatrics with gaudy colourful uniforms and striking musical accompaniment and they’re not afraid to show plenty of aggression out there.”

“So we’re agreed. They’re not the best performer DC has in its arsenal – Batman retains that mantle – but, like Wonder Woman, it’s the women who have been DC’s most recent star players.”