Harley Quinn Season 5, Episode 3 Review: I Was Disappointed By A Character Death That Shouldn't Have Happened So Soon

Episode 3 is not the strongest we have seen from Harley Quinn season 5, but the DC series continues to be entertaining every week, which is perfect for such a long-running show. The first few season 5 episodes did a great job of setting the stage for where the season could go. While Brainiac and Metropolis are the biggest elements of the season, Harley Quinn still takes the time to keep the same hilarious hijinks fans have been used to seeing in the show.

Harley Quinn

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Harley Quinn is a 2019 animated series focusing on the titular character's evolution after severing ties with the Joker. As she seeks to establish herself as an independent force in Gotham City's criminal underworld, the film explores her journey toward becoming Gotham's criminal Queenpin.

Release Date: November 29, 2019
Showrunner: Dean Lorey, Chrissy Pietrosh, Jessica Goldstein
Franchise(s): DC Universe
Creator(s): Dean Lorey, Patrick Schumacker, Justin Halpern
Seasons: 5

Before getting into the hilarious plot that season 5's latest episode had to offer, it is worth noting the DC series also has time to deliver emotional moments that stay with characters, leading to impressive development. After all, Harley started the show as the Joker's lover, then went out on her own before finding herself and falling in love with Poison Ivy. Now pretty much a hero, Harley spends most of the time thinking about how she can help people. After Harley Quinn season 5, episode 2 teased that Ivy would be in trouble, Harley's hero instincts kick in.

Poison Ivy's Past Comes Back To Haunt Her After A Big Decision

Harley Quinn Has To Save The Day

Harley Quinn season 5, episode 2's ending showed how Poison Ivy tried to kill Jason Woodrue. While she momentarily got revenge for his role in her transformation, Woodrue himself morphed into the Floronic Man and made Ivy's life miserable in this week's episode. I know about Floronic Man from both the comics, Batman & Robin, and the live-action Swamp Thing series, so it seemed obvious from the moment Woodrue debuted in Harley Quinn that it's where his story might go. Episode 3 sees him try to get revenge on Poison Ivy after she left him to die.

While the character was certainly a threat to be taken seriously, Harley Quinn ended up making the Floronic Man more comedic than I imagined.

The Floronic Man had an unexpected personality. I thought that Woodrue would be scarier and more dramatic after Ivy tried to kill him and we learned about his past. While the character was certainly a threat to be taken seriously, Harley Quinn ended up making the Floronic Man more comedic than I imagined. Still, I liked the way he taunted Ivy and trapped her in the Green. This took their fight to a different level, with Frank being roped into the action and Harley getting the chance to take part in the story.

I wondered how Harley would take the news about Ivy meeting Woodrue again after she did not hear about it in the last episode. Even though she was not happy to learn that Ivy met her past flame, not out of jealousy, but because she could not hit him for Ivy, I was glad to see that Harley got the chance to resolve that. However, with season 5's exploration of Poison Ivy's past being something I had wanted to see for a long time, I was disappointed by how the Floronic Man was killed so soon after debuting.

Clayface & Bane Make For A Hysterical Duo

The DC Series Delivers Quite A Few Laughs This Time Around

As for episode 3's B-story, it was classic Harley Quinn humor. I enjoyed how the show clearly divided episode 3 into two stories where the main plot had a more urgent feel and action, and the subplot was let loose to focus on how much fun can be had in the DC series' expansive world. Fan favorites Bane and Clayface are back in the episode. The characters could not be more different, as Bane is the introvert, while Clayface is loud and has quite the ego. Still, they work perfectly together.

Harley Quinn is the perfect example that there is nothing wrong with having fun in the DC world.

Live-action superhero projects have often thrived with grounded and serious approaches. DC has become notorious for going for that angle, both with projects that have not been big hits, like multiple DCEU entries, and others that have turned into household names, like The Batman and The Penguin. However, Harley Quinn is the perfect example that there is nothing wrong with having fun in the DC world. I loved how episode 3 paired Clayface and Bane, with the duo bouncing off each other in a way that I hope to see repeated throughout the season.

Clayface and Bane taking over the Daily Planet was not something I saw being in the cards for Harley Quinn season 5, but it strangely works. Clayface pretending to be Perry White to prop up his career as an actor matches what he has done so far in the show and by doing so, the show has planted a hub for its characters in one of DC Comics' most iconic locations. Lois Lane is already mad at "Perry's" orders, so I think that funny plot could continue to pay off as season 5 progresses.

New episodes of Harley Quinn season 5 stream on Max each Thursday.

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