Harley Quinn joined the DCAU as a glorified minion with a unique design but she quickly became her own character. Shifting from villain to anti-hero to hero and everything in between, Harley's perpetually fluid but self-determined sense of self has become her defining characteristic. But that quietly flies in the face of her popularity, and what she's come to mean as a character.
Source:https://www.cbr.com/harley-quinn-popular-trinity-dc-comics/