Who is Kite-Man? A closer look at Gotham's high-flying villain from Batman's campier days
There aren’t many Batman villains who can be defeated by a rainy day but out of that very specific category, Kite Man reigns supreme. This mostly forgotten villain is a leftover from Batman’s campier days, joining the ranks of villains like Polka Dot Man, Condiment King, the Calculator, and Crazy Quilt. He has recently risen to prominence in the pages of Tom King’s run on ‘Batman’ - and now, he’s found a home on the DC animated series ‘Harley Quinn.’
He actually gave Batman quite a run for his money in his first appearance in ‘Batman #133’, despite the fact that his every attack featured a paper children’s toy. The only way Batman was able to win the day was to turn Kite Man’s kites against him. Kites are apparently more dangerous than anyone thought. It wasn’t long, though, before Kite Man was returned to the status of joke villain, right where he belongs - his most humiliating defeat delivered to him by a tree that happened to be in the way.
His more recent appearance in Batman continued the joke, at first, though Kite Man was seen to be brimming with confidence, coining a new catchphrase - “Hell yeah.” It’s...not a great catchphrase, but like his kite gimmick, he dedicates himself to it entirely. He became a running joke in between the more serious Batman story arcs, but in a prequel, Tom King gave the character the most serious story of all.
Years ago, before he became Kite Man, he was just Charlie Brown, an aerodynamics graduate and divorcee. He flies kites with his son on the weekends he gets custody but also gets caught up in the ‘War of Jokes and Riddles,’ which saw the Joker and the Riddler enlist Gotham’s villains in all-out war with each other. Charlie Brown, as a low-level criminal, is used as a pawn by Batman against the villains. Ultimately, this leads to the Riddler poisoning Brown’s son, via kite, leading Kite-Man to don a costume in honor of his son and join the Joker’s side of the war as Kite-Man. He turns out, surprisingly, to be a key player in ending the war.
The show doesn’t go into his origins, but his confusingly high levels of confidence remain intact, as does his catchphrase. When forced to confront his shortcomings, however, he reveals an endearing amount of humility. There are hints of a romance sparking between him and Poison Ivy through the episode, and fans can expect to see more of him as the series progresses.
The next episode of ‘Harley Quinn’ airs December 13 on DC Universe.
