Episode 48 Review
Harley Quinn
Harley and Ivy have leveled up in their move to Metropolis and they're moving forward to a new phase of their unbreakable relationship but outside forces lead both to go through a bit of a back to basics Harley Quinn on Max approach. As she continues to work on Lena's green initiative, Ivy's past resurfaces and sends her into a spiral but she chooses to move forward with sweet revenge but is it? Harley's used to dealing with Joker's henchmen but when King Shark drops his eight children off at their condo, Harley has a surprise parenting day and like with most things, there will be maiming. We'll see if family and children will still have a place in the Harlivy equation. The best, if not of the best, episodes of Harley Quinn, "Back to School" is full of heart, humor, and hell no, that was her waving arm!
For the length of this animated series, we've had just little minuscule breadcrumbs when it comes to Poison Ivy's origin story. Awful rich parents. No friends much of her early life. Went to Sarah Lawrence College. Got her powers in a lab accident. Or should I saw "lab accident." Second episode of the fifth season of Harley Quinn, we got the full origin story of how Pamela Isley became Poison Ivy. And as a bonus, Frank The Plant's origin story. Just the whole mythology of their stories being intertwined at this pivotal point, they were the way they were because of the same serum in them. Frank is outright confirmed to be a half-plant, half-human hybrid. Makes sense. Look, I've got a heart of stone but c'mon, Frank was the cutest baby. And when Pamela catches him and he hugs her. Goddammit, pulled at my heartstrings. If you're any kind of comic book buff or you know, used Google then Jason Woodrue had to be involved in this story. No surprise, Woodrue was just another chauvinist jerk who wanted to take advantage of the student he was banging on the down low because he ran out of good ideas and got desperate and greedy.
Coming off of Harley and Ivy meeting their daughter in a I guess now alternate future last season, this episode presented an development with Harlivy entering the 'practice-being-a-parent' phase of their relationship. The whole episode was really. Frank for all intent and purpose is her own son but Woodrue, the 'absent father' only wanted to exploit him for money. King Shark moved to Metropolis so his children would have a better life but as single dad, had to do the unholiest of things a parent can do: rely on his children's godparents to watch them. Harley has to be a mom for a day. Bane and Betty adopted Goldilocks between Kite Man: Hell Yeah! and this season of Harley Quinn and came to Metropolis to give her a better life like King did with his. Compare Harley season 1 to Harley season 5. Harley season 1 thought a dead mall was the place to be. Harley season 5 decked out a Wayne condo for Ivy. Harley season 1 ruined how many expensive coffee tables of Ivy's? Harley season 5 made coasters so their drinks don't stain the expensive coffee table. And Harley, despite her promises, didn't kill or facilitate the death of any of King's children. Well, some got tranquilized but they all made it through the episode.
And in contrast that all, the mentor figures. In Ivy's story, the brilliant charming Professor Jason Woodrue was just a facade for a greedy, selfish, desperate man who profited off of others. And in that 20 years or so, hadn't changed much. But thanks to Ivy making the fatal mistake of trying to kill him with karma rather than squeezing and popping his head off, in a way the truth of who Woodrue is is completed. The monster within is now visual if the last fleeting seconds of the episode and your Google search is telling you. Lena Luthor, somehow the most well-adjusted nicest person who seems to have all the answers and sage advice despite being a rich elitist, single woman with no children or worries who should have no empathy for their plight is always there for both Ivy and Harley like one big convenient safety net. I still don't trust her. And it always ends with, 'hey, you should join this. Join that' First, she places Ivy in her green initiative then inserts Harley into the private club she's donated a lot to. I don't want to think they're being conned by another Luthor and despite the less-than-flattering portrayal of rich people this show does on an almost routine basis I want to think there's finally a good one. But man, up against Woodrue - it feels like Lena is up to something and she's does it a hell of a lot more masterfully than Woodrue. But yes, there have been some glimmers of something like she doesn't like being interrupted. And whatever is going on, are Lena and Brainiac in on it together?
It was a welcome sight to see more developments from the recent Kite Man: Hell Yeah! spin-off series bleed over into this season of Harley Quinn aside from Brainiac. That show wasn't just some insular one-off stand alone thing. It mattered and it comes into play in the main show. This week, we learned that Bane has been in a stable relationship with Betty after they rekindled things in Kite Man's show and they've become a family, adopting Goldilocks as their daughter. Bane even alludes to Goldilocks leaving the Book of Fables in "Just Right, Hell Yeah!" Though the property taxes are murder. Hopefully, Betty's accounting skills are balancing things out. Another cool bit of canon was a blink-or-miss cameo at the 4:46 mark, to the left of the student looking up at Lena as she talks to Harley on the phone is a can of Kraka Thoom Energy Boost energy drink. The product previously appeared in season two's "Bachelorette" and season four's "Il Buffone". In addition to the animated debut of Jason Woodrue, we also got the debut of a minor Superman villain from the comics Vincent Edge. Some are more familiar with his son Morgan Edge who has been tied to heavy hitters like Intergang and Apokolips.
It ends on a definite grit-your-teeth moment when Ivy doesn't tell Harley about Woodrue. Like c'mon gurl, it's season five. You supposed to be past this and telling her everything. I get why they support each other in their endeavors, but it surprising they haven't yet voiced suspicion about Lena or bringing up how this is like when Lex made Ivy the leader of the Legion of Doom or her plan to make Gotham go green failed. Despite all that, it was still a strong and compelling episode and we're only two weeks into the new season! We got Harley, Ivy, Bruce, King Shark, and Bane in Gotham. Who's coming to town next? Clayface, Doctor Psycho, and Frank? We also still have the whole ordeal with Nightwing, Robin, and Talia left from last season to address as well. Harley and Ivy are teflon but they're still problem magnets and the problems are stacking up. "Back to School" is no different, and while they may have changed and grown over the years they're still the same lovable and entertaining Harlivy.
Rating: 9.9 out of 10