Every TV show has filler episodes, and it’s extremely rare for them to be massively entertaining (looking at you, The Bad Batch). In the case of Riddle U, however, this filler episode is one of the best Harley Quinn has to offer.
Considering that not much happens in the episode to affect the larger narrative, there’s a lot going on. The episode’s main story follows Harley, Ivy, and Clayface as they infiltrate the Riddler’s university campus to try and gain access to clean water and electricity for the gang’s lair, while the B-plot gives Psycho and King Shark a fun little escapade to try and steal a water filter from Two-Face’s territory.
The stakes may be low this time around, but the laughs are high: Clayface finally gets to show off his acting chops by posing as Steph, a co-ed student who’s smitten with a boy but can’t decide if she wants to commit to a relationship with him or not. Alan Tudyk is clearly having a total ball with Clayface’s dramatics, and it’s safe to say that we are too.
It’s also nice to see Dr Psycho and King Shark get their own little adventure: we haven’t seen much of these two in the way of a pairing, but Tony Hale and Ron Funches have great chemistry together, and we never feel like we’re missing anything when we cut away from the main narrative – especially with all the bloody kills that come with their Mad Max-esque battle car. They never get old.
Of course, the big revelation this week was the introduction of Barbara Gordon as Batgirl – or at least, the first incarnation of her. Barbara (incidentally voiced by Kaley Cuoco’s younger sister Briana) fits perfectly into the universe of the show, and her progression from suspicious student to wannabe crime fighter feels natural and earned, even if it only takes one episode for her to don the cowl. We also get some excellent laughs from Christopher Meloni’s Jim Gordon, who at this point is bunking in with his daughter after the downfall of his marriage – Gordon’s scenes throughout the show are almost unbearably tragic but undeniably hilarious.
As for Harley and Ivy, they get just enough to do to keep us entertained, but not so much that they overshadow anyone else’s moment. The pairing of Cuoco and Lake Bell is easily the show’s greatest strength, but it’s nice to see that the writing team have the courage to give the duo the back seat when the narrative requires it – not a lot of shows have that kind of self-awareness.
Though Riddle U may be lacking in the dramatic stakes of the season two opener, it’s a stronger episode on the whole thanks to its delirious sense of fun – which, let’s be honest, is the main reason we want to watch a Harley Quinn show in the first place.
HARLEY QUINN continues on E4 on Mondays and is available via ALL4, Amazon, and Apple thereafter.
