Harley Quinn
James Gunn and Peter Safran's DC Universe is officially upon us, and it has arrived with an adult animated streaming series that premiered on Max to rave reviews and intense fan appreciation. While most mostly live-action shared universes would kick off with a live-action movie, the arrival of Creature Commandos is a sign of just how expansive the new DC Studios DC Universe is set to be, reaching across the worlds of TV, film, animation, live-action, and even video games. Yes, the theatrical Superman is coming, but Gunn and Safran are showing us what their universe is capable of.
It's exciting for the future, but it also raises questions about the few remaining remnants of the previous DC leadership's vision. And, well, at this point it's basically just Harley Quinn in the TV department. The show is the last remaining fragment of the short-lived DC Universe streaming service, outliving that platform due to its success and finding a new home on WarnerMedia streamer Max (then HBO Max). It also outlasted the Warner Bros. / Discovery merger, as one of the only DC shows to get renewed for another season, and it managed to do it twice - recently earning a season 5 renewal!
There is no doubt about it that the animated series is extremely popular and successful for Max, but that doesn't change the fact that the DCU has now officially launched with a show that shares quite a lot of similarities. The fact that Harley Quinn is not canon to the DCU, which now includes animated properties, does unfortunately make it a potential target for cancellation. Although DC Studios seemed happy enough to allow a few DC shows to remain on the air when they launched their new shared universe, that doesn't change the fact that they also prematurely ended Superman and Lois to avoid any potential competition with their upcoming Superman movie.
With Harley Quinn one of the only non-canon DC properties left (and not being a lucrative movie franchise like Matt Reeves' The Batman saga, it could find itself getting cancelled to make room for the new DC Universe. And even if it doesn't, five seasons does make the show a veteran series, so it wouldn't be surprising if it ended up concluding its run with that season (or getting a sixth and final season renewal).