DC's Harley Quinn series was a new direction for DC comics. The series gives Harley herself a strong self-discovery arc while lovingly lampooning the publisher's often ultra-serious comics, and then peppers in the kind of deep-cut references that make it clear the writers' room is full of DC-loving dorks like us. Kite-Man, Hell Yeah! looks to do something similar with its titular character, Kite Man. Can lightning strike twice for the Harleyverse? Here's what we thought of Kite Man, Hell Yeah! Season 1, Episodes 1 & 2.
Kite-Man, Hell Yeah! Episodes 1 & 2
Kite Man first appeared in a 1960 issue of Batman, illustrated by Dick Sprang. He next appeared 19 years later, in a 1979 issue. He was a gimmicky villain like so many during that time period. During DC Rebirth, though, Chuck "Kite Man" Brown was given a more tragic backstory involving a double-cross of the Riddler and Joker that ended with the Riddler poisoning Chuck's son. There, he became something of a meme thanks to a simple, four-word catchphrase: Kite Man. Hell Yeah.
Kite Man would next appear as a supporting cast member in the Harley Quinn series, where he would date and nearly marry Poison Ivy, with their Gotham Corn Factory wedding being broken up at the last second when Ivy admitted to her feelings for Harley. But by that time, he'd made an impact on fans as the chronically unlucky and inexplicably confident hero of his own story. Now tied to fellow DC D-lister Golden Glider, Kite Man is literally the hero of his own story in KMHY.
The conceit of the series is that Kite Man isn't very good at being a criminal and, instead, decides to take over Noonan's Bar, the long-time hangout of Gotham City's henchmen. These first two episodes cover the first part of that story, with Kite Man obtaining and then opening the bar, and dealing with all the complications that come up with Gotham's other villains in the meantime.
KMHY is somewhat less dependent on stunt casting compared to Harley Quinn, and a few voices have been recast. The Queen of Fables is voiced not by Wanda Sykes as she was in Harley Quinn, but by Janelle James this time around--though James offers a similar performance. Interestingly, the late Lance Reddick voices Lex Luthor, whereas Giancarlo Esposito provided the voice in Harley Quinn. Darkseid has also been recast, with Keith David voicing him instead of Michael Ironside. The rest of the cast isn't as jam-packed with big comedy names, though What We Do In The Shadows' Natasia Demetriou joins the cast as Malice Vundabar, a member of Jack Kirby's Fourth World.
Tonally, KMHY is similar to Harley Quinn, with the main difference being that Kite Man and his friends are mostly D-listers in the DC universe, instead of headliners like Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. The A-listers pop in for appearances; Lex Luthor and Darkseid both figure into the first two episodes. But Batman is nowhere to be seen, and in fact, Kite Man's season-opening robbery is foiled--or maybe I should say spoiled--by a Bat Family member that looks to be Stephanie Brown, aka The Spoiler.
KMHY is generally funny and incredibly violent, but thus far it isn't hitting quite the same high notes as Harley Quinn. Kite Man himself seems more bumbling and pitiful than ever as he begs his father for attention and continues trying to impress people like Lex Luthor. There are some great bits, though, such as Darkseid showing up at the bar to check in on Malice--the two appear to have a niece/uncle type relationship here--and names a lemon-tea drink after a certain famous golfer. Not the one you're thinking, though.
The root problem here is that Kite Man is still kind of a one-note character. Harley is already a well-established member of the DC universe at almost every level, having starring roles in comics, live-action films, and animation for over 20 years. She's as close to a fourth pillar as DC has after Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. She has a detailed, well-known backstory, and fleshed-out relationships with characters like the Joker and Poison Ivy for the writers to play with. Kite Man is a guy who says Hell Yeah. There's a lot for the writers to work with for Harley, but Kite Man they have to invent almost whole-cloth.
Because of that, I'm willing to give the show some runway to prove to us that Kite Man can be more than his daddy issues; he needs to develop some interesting relationships and have some personal victories. Right now, the show is for fans of Harley Quinn, instead of its own thing. To work for more than a single season, it will have to figure out how to be its own thing, and we hope that it does because Kite Man deserves it. Hell Yeah.
