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An exceptional original production cel and drawing setup from Batman: The Animated Series featuring the Joker and the fake Harley Quinn from "Joker's Millions" (Warner Bros., 1998), complete with a special ink line process reproduction cel demonstrating the animation workflow.
This remarkable three-part setup illustrates the complete journey from animator's drawing to finished animation while capturing a unique moment in the series' history. The fake Harley Quinn, voiced by Maggie Wheeler (Janice from Friends), was hired by the Joker during his brief period of wealth to replace the real Harley while she was imprisoned in Arkham. Wheeler's shrill, incompetent interpretation deliberately contrasted with Arleen Sorkin's beloved original, creating a character so annoying that even the Joker missed his real partner.
"Joker's Millions" explored the Joker's psychology through wealth and deception, with the fake Harley serving as both comic relief and plot catalyst when she notices the counterfeit money, exclaiming "Hey, Mr. G, this money looks weird!" The episode was one of Paul Dini's cleverest scripts, using the fake Harley to demonstrate how irreplaceable the real partnership had become.
This educational setup represents Warner Bros.' effort to preserve and demonstrate their animation heritage during the peak of traditional hand-drawn production. Such process demonstrations were rarely created and never offered to collectors, making this setup virtually unique in the marketplace. The three-stage progression from drawing to ink line to painted cel provides unprecedented insight into the studio's artistic workflow.
The official Warner Bros. seals confirm the studio's direct involvement in creating this special presentation. Having animation art featuring this one-off character voiced by a major television star adds considerable significance to an already extraordinary setup.
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own both a complete animation process demonstration and a piece of television crossover history from the series' final seasons.
Estimate: $1,000 - 2,000