'Harley Quinn' Episode 4: 'Finding Mr. Right' gives us the supervillain celebrity talk show we never knew we wanted
'Harley Quinn' continues its streak of portraying supervillains as celebrities, and Harley (Kaley Cuoco) has a long way to go before her solo career really takes off. With her new crew, she's robbing banks with the best of them, but all the attention is being soaked up by the Joker (Alan Tudyk).
Like any celebrity, Harley decides that she needs someone to help her generate a little buzz. Someone who's going to be there for her, through thick and thin, someone devoted, loyal, and hopefully impressively buff. Yes, Harley Quinn is on the search for a brand new nemesis.
In a villainous society, as in life, who you're dating isn't quite so important as who you're fighting against. The more dangerous your nemesis, the more impressive you look for fighting with them.
The very best heroes seem to be taken, though, and Harley's search for a new nemesis gets her entangled with Robin, the Boy Wonder (Jacob Tremblay). This Robin appears to be based on Damian Wayne, who in the comics is both the darkest and the youngest of Batman's many proteges.
The show focuses on the latter quality. It's rare that the sound of a voice itself is the subject of a gag, but from the very first moment Jacob Tremblay's babyish voice is heard, it brings attention straight to that most of the Robins are actually pretty young to be fighting crime.
Why does Batman keep enlisting 10-year-olds to fight supervillains? Nobody knows, but the way Robin says he's been raised by a league of assassins is adorable.
Harley's constant struggle for respect makes for great comedy. It sees her capture Lois Lane (Natalie Morales) for better press, though Lois hardly has anything to worry about when Superman (James Wolk) has her back.
The show has great takes on every classic DC character who has a chance to make an appearance, and the friendly dynamic between Lois and Superman is no exception.
The show's most hilarious scene, though, is undoubtedly Harley's appearance on Tawny's (Tisha Campbell) talk show.
It starts off with a shark-induced confession from Robin and ends in a four-way brawl between Batman (Diedrich Bader), Joker (Alan Tudyk), Poison Ivy (Lake Bell) and Harley in the tradition of trashy, Jerry-Springer-esque shows everywhere.
The idea of celebrity couples is really played up here, as a nemesis-triangle quickly expands into a full-blown mess of just who is nemesis-ing who. Clayface (Alan Tudyk) speaks for us all every time he rises to applaud the dramatic proceedings.
With all the press, it's hard to say whether Harley is in a better or worse place than she started in, but she's at least rounded out her crew.
This episode rounds the crew out with the appearance of delightfully cheery King Shark (Ron Funches), whose cuddly attitude works well in breaking down harmful shark stereotypes... before he tries to eat Robin alive at the smell of blood.
This episode may have started a little slow, but was worth it for the brawl it led to at the end. It makes a strong case for a celebrity gossip talk show starring DC's favorite characters — does anyone else sense a spinoff potential? Let us know in the comments!
The next episode of 'Harley Quinn' airs on December 27 on DC Universe.
