The Harley Quinn animated series is no stranger to killing off its characters. Most of the time, people in the background are the victims of the constant mayhem. One-time individuals also are eliminated once their roles are no longer needed. Even secondary characters are not immune to becoming victims of the Grim Reaper. This statement rings true because this brand-new episode does away with a long-time character. Are you ready to discover which of these beloved figures we must bid goodbye to?
The First Half of Season Five
Season Five of Harley Quinn began with Gotham City, now a ruined and lawless wasteland. Harley and Ivy decide to move to Metropolis, where they meet Lena Luthor. Lena offers Ivy a job helping to make the revered city a greener place. Unfortunately, this opportunity leads to Ivy reuniting with her traitorous ex-lover, Professor Jason Woodrue. She tries to take her revenge but accidentally mutates him into Floronic Man. They have a battle to the death that ends with him chopped into firewood.
Brainiac, who’s been perfecting Metropolis for harvest, suddenly abducts Harley and Ivy. He attempts to eliminate Harley for being too chaotic until Lena intervenes and saves her. Lena reaffirms their deal before Brainiac returns Harley and Ivy home and wipes their memories. Harley begins having nightmares about Brainiac’s skull-shaped spaceship looming over her, making her sleep-deprived. She and Ivy go to a dinner party with Bruce Wayne and other guests. Lois Lane, one of the guests, asks for Harley’s assistance with a skull-related nightmare investigation.
Harley Quinn Stars in a Musical
This week’s Harley Quinn episode, Bottle My Heart, opens with Harley as Lois’ new assistant. Unfortunately, the arrangement doesn’t last long because the two ladies get into an argument. Harley later has a personal meltdown about how mundane her life is. She suddenly becomes angry upon reading Lois’ new, unflattering headline about her. Wanting a retraction, Harley confronts the editor, Perry White, at the Daily Planet. She realizes he’s Clayface and demands Lois eliminate the article, but Lois quits.
Lena and Brainiac, aboard the latter’s ship, observe Harley and her antics. The villainous duo soon gets into an argument that ends in Brainiac breaking their partnership. Scorned, Lena goes to the Daily Planet and reveals everything to Harley, Bane, and Clay-Perry. She asks them to alert everyone through the press, though Clay-Perry decides on a play. Harley expresses her excitement to Ivy and Frank while Clayface and Bane write the script. In the middle of writing, Clayface changes the performance into a musical.
With Harley as Lena, Clayface as Brainiac, and Frank as Koko, they recount Brainiac’s backstory. It also causes Brainiac, who’s watching too, to realize the real Koko is dead. And he understands the Koko he’s been conversing with is a figment within his mind. Despite Lena’s annoyance, the audience adores the musical and applauds at intermission. The performance is interrupted when Harley screams and reveals Frank has been fatally injured. Ivy tries to save him but fails, leaving her to wail in pain and despair.
Death of Frank the Plant
That’s right, this latest Harley Quinn episode killed off Frank the Plant. The guy has been around since the very first episode of Season One. He was initially Ivy’s sidekick and friend before Season Five revealed their true dynamic. She and Frank share a relationship similar to that of a mother and child. This shift makes sense since she created and cared for him in college. Despite the revelation, their interactions stayed true to their usual status quo until this episode.
Ivy watches Frank’s performance on stage with much pride and parental love in her eyes. She also cheers for him and shouts, “I love you!” during intermission. Frank tells her the same thing as he dies, even adding, “Mom.” He used his last breath to solidify what she meant to him. And after he perishes, you can hear the heartbreak in Ivy’s voice. She wasn’t a friend at that moment but a parent who lost their child.
Who Would Want Frank Dead?
Of course, Harley Quinn now presents the prominent question of who killed Frank. It was foul play since stab wounds or cuts covered him. The most likely culprit is Brainiac because he’s angry and bitter about Koko. He secretly wanted to make someone else feel the pain he was feeling. Even his last line in the episode paints him as the murderer. He could easily have one of his countless droids to the grisly dead.
Another suspect is Lena Luthor, simply for disappearing for a while. She’s also upset to see a musical based on the crucial information she gave. And that no one was taking the warnings about Brainiac’s plans for Metropolis seriously. Her motive and means for killing Frank remain unknown, though she did have the opportunity. Lena is an unlikely culprit, but she has tricked people before. Hopefully, the real culprit, Brainiac, Lena, or otherwise, will debut in the next Harley Quinn.
Final Verdict of Harley Quinn 5×06
After watching this Harley Quinn episode multiple times, I give it a 9.8. The 0.2 reduction comes from the fact Clayface made a play with Lena’s information. He had a chance to warn people and used it to bolster his ego. The loss also stems from how Harley lost a purpose for the season. She became a secondary character during Season Five while supposed to be the series’ protagonist. Overall, this was one of the better installments of the entire season. It made me chuckle, my eyes teared up, and the season’s plot stayed relevant.
The most prominent highlight of this episode is Lake Bell’s voice acting. The actress portraying Poison Ivy in Harley Quinn, Bell’s talents shined during the ending. You can hear the emotions pouring from her as she cries during Frank’s death. That moment had to be the most spectacular display of her voice actor prowess. You can watch the entirety of Harley Quinn on Max. And I will return to review the newest episode when it premieres next week.
