Month: March 2024

Jean Smart is a darkly (and gloriously wryly) comedic force to be reckoned with, and Hacks celebrates those abilities like no other show has before. Smart portrays a veteran comedian, Deborah Vance, whose relevance had seen better days at the start of this series, and Hannah Einbinder has broken out as Ava, the other half of the central hate-love dynamic. And yes, Ava can write the jokes for younger generations, but Deborah’s the one who delivers them in Vegas and beyond.

As viewers recall, the pair went through rough-and-tumble times in the first season when Ava violated her NDA agreement and spilled some nightmare details about Deborah. In turn, Deborah dragged Ava through various rounds of purgatory while they toured the U.S. during the second season. From there, Deborah grabbed a chainsaw, which had nothing to do with how the two parted ways. Will they stay apart? Some clues do exist.

Plot

The Max series keeps the synopsis simple while only revealing, “A year after parting, Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) is riding high off the success of her standup special while Ava (Hannah Einbinder) pursues new opportunities back in Los Angeles.” So, at least that condo is getting some use, but what else?

A new trailer shows the former begrudging teammates bumping into each other, and they don’t seem to be mad about it. However, it’s clear that the show aims to shake things up by showing how Ava and Deborah are doing their own things, which is one way to keep a wonderful series from going stale. Ava is also shown in a tryst with an oil heiress portrayed by Christina Hendricks, and Jean Smart revealed that Deborah Vance would be seeing romance as well. Could that be part of what co-showrunner Jen Statsky alluded to while telling Vanity Fair that success isn’t enough for Deborah this season?

“This character is defined by being a dog with a bone,” says Downs. “So very shortly into this season, she finds something else that she’s hungry for. And in a way, it is what drives her this season.”

Adds Statsky, “She finds another goal to work towards that is her hardest challenge yet.” Smart tells me that Deborah’s success “renews her drive—the good parts of that drive and the bad parts of that drive. It ends up revealing things about Deborah that aren’t necessarily the most positive parts of her, and that causes an interesting interaction between her and Ava. I never thought we’d see her in the light that we see her.”

Previously co-showrunner Lucia Aniello let the world know that these two will probably aways need each other more than they’ll ever want to admit, which suggests that no matter what, they will remain the key focus of the story. Aniello also noted that Ava actually kind-of liked being sued by her mentor because it was “a way to see Deborah.” Oh damn.

Cast

The dastardly duo, Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder, return as Deborah and Ava, thank the comedy gods. Paul W. Downs and Megan Stalter have been promoted to regular cast members, and Carl Clemons-Hopkins will continue to steal scenes as Marcus. Additionally, Kaitlin Olsen portrays Deborah’s daughter, and expect to see Kaitlin Olson, Christopher McDonald, Mark Indelicato, and Lorenza Izzo.

Guest stars will be off the hook this season, including not only saucy Christina Hendricks but also Christopher Lloyd, Helen Hunt, George Wallace, and Tony Goldwyn.

Release Date

This irresistible return on May 2 with the rest of the ensemble in tow. Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello and Jen Statsky created and act as showrunners, and they have their lean and mean laugh machine down to a virtual science.

Trailer

Behold, these two cannot quit each other.

The Walking Dead is once again showing that the franchise still has some life in its unkillable corpse. The latest spinoff, The Ones Who Live, racked up huge ratings for AMC during its February 25 premiere. The series officially brings back Andrew Lincoln’s Rick Grimes for an epic story with Danai Gurira’s Michonne set after the events of the flagship series.

According to Deadline, Nielsen reports that The Ones Who Live scored three million viewers after its first three days, which is the “biggest premiere night audience for a new AMC series in six years.” The previous record holder was for The Terror as it coasted on a smooth lead-in from the original Walking Dead series.

Creator Scott Gimple has also hinted that fans can see even more reunions with favorite characters as the spinoff unfolds its tale. That promise seems to be enough of a draw for The Ones Who Live to give AMC a much-needed win.

Here’s the official synopsis:

The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live presents an epic love story of two characters changed by a changed world. Kept apart by distance. By an unstoppable power. By the ghosts of who they were. Rick and Michonne are thrown into another world, built on a war against the dead… And ultimately, a war against the living. Can they find each other and who they were in a place and situation unlike any they’ve ever known before? Are they enemies? Lovers? Victims? Victors? Without each other, are they even alive — or will they find that they, too, are the Walking Dead?

The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live airs new episodes Sunday on AMC.

(Via Deadline)

“Lamb Chop’s Play Along” taught a whole generation so many meaning for things. The little sock puppet taught kids things like manners, kindness and a really annoying song that doesn’t have an ending. It’ll probably be difficult to find a Millennial that doesn’t know “The Song that Doesn’t End” by Shari Lewis who voiced Lamb Chop.

The kids show aired from 1992 to 1997 on PBS, with Shari passing away just a year later. But turns out everyone’s favorite squeaky voiced lamb wasn’t done bringing people joy. Shari’s daughter Mallory Lewis has taken up her mom’s throne as Lamb Chops handler and the internet couldn’t be more thrilled to see the duo.

Mallory has the same fiery red curly hair that her mom did and has brought Lamb Chop, Charley Horse and Hush Puppy back out to play. To the delight of Millennials, the sassy lamb is still just six years old and gets Mallory into some tricky situations when trying to explain things to the puppet.

Mallory, bearing a striking resemblance to her late mother seems to have figured out the art of ventriloquism and brought the puppets back to life. Mallory tells Today.com her mom never “taught me how to do ventriloquism. I never had to learn Lamb Chop’s voice. That was just easy. I mean, you could probably imitate your uncle’s voice or your aunt’s voice because you grow up with it … I had to learn some stage craft issues, but I never had to learn Lamb Chop.”

No one seems to be safe from the feelings of nostalgia that come with hearing that familiar voice combing from the little lamb.

“Anyone else almost 40 and crying over this,” one person writes.

“This is what I needed today. Thank you for giving us all this gift. I know I wasn’t the only one who gasped and smiled!,” another says.

“Seeing an OG Lambchop come to life again brings my heart so much joy. She is one of my earliest childhood character memories,” someone else reveals.

“Oh my God. I had almost forgotten how much Sherry Lewis and Lambchop were such a huge part of my childhood and how much they meant to me until I found this account and this post. Oh no. Oh no. I’ve also simultaneously remembered the song that never ends. Oh no. Oh no and I have to drive several hours with my kids today. Damn. This is gonna be interesting. Nevertheless… Zero regrets,” a commenter remembers.

See on Instagram

Mallory has been on the road with Lamb Chop for around 25 years touring the country doing two different shows. “A Lamb Chop Celebration” is a family show while “Lamb Chop Legacy Show” is a more political show for adults, according to Today.com.

Recently the legacy puppeteer discovered TikTok and Instagram is also a place she could perform with the puppets and has amassed a large following. People just can’t help but to smile when Mallory comes across their feed with that familiar little puppet.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mallory Lewis (@mallorylewisandlambchop)

Oh, the memories hearing Lamb Chop brings back for people. The comments on each of her videos are filled with people reliving their childhood with Lamb Chop and Shari. So if you were one of those folks that used to sit crosslegged in front of a TV watching “Lamb Chop’s Play Along,” you’ll probably get a touch of joy following Mallory’s account.

A Helpful Chart to Explain the Difference Between Support and ‘Toxic Positivity” was originally published on The Mighty.

There’s no denying that positivity can be powerful. I know when I’m struggling with anxiety and negative thoughts, if I can hold onto an ounce of hope — that I’ll make it through, that I’m not defined by my thoughts, that I’m not as bad as my brain is making me out to be — I can cope a little better.

The positivity we hold within ourselves, when we can manage it, makes it a little easier to get by.

That being said, perhaps counterintuitively, positivity isn’t always the best way to help others. You can’t make someone be positive. You can’t sprinkle positivity dust on them and make their problems go away. And honestly, when people are seeking help and support, they’re usually not looking for straight-up, inspirational poster positivity. More often, they’re looking for validation that their negative feelings are OK.

I’ve always kind of known this but didn’t think about it in a tangible way until I saw a graphic made by Whitney Hawkins Goodman, LMFT, owner of The Collaborative Counseling Center. She runs the Instagram account @sitwithwhit, and after she posted an image explaining “Toxic Positivity,” I started seeing it all over social media.

The graphic shows the difference between supporting someone with validation and hope, and trying to support them with “toxic positivity.” According to Whitney, it’s the difference between, “This is hard… I believe in you,” and, “Just be happy!” If you could never pinpoint why simple “inspiring” quotes didn’t sit well with you, this could be the explanation.

It reminds me of a popular animated video about empathy, which uses the words of Brené Brown. If sympathy is shouting down at someone while they’re stuck in a hole, empathy is getting into the hole with them. If “toxic positivity” is telling someone to just “look at the bright side,” support is putting yourself in someone’s shoes, and accepting their feelings for what they are.

Of course, when we throw around phrases like, “Think positive,” or, “Stop being so negative,” we’re probably coming from a good place. You’re spreading these messages because you want people to be happier, damn it! So what’s wrong with reminding people to be positive?

The hard-to-face truth is, supporting people isn’t about being “positive.” In fact, when you force positivity down someone’s throat, it can actually have the opposite effect. “Toxic positivity” can make people feel unsafe expressing their negativity, and negativity thrives in isolation. It can make people think there’s something wrong with them for not simply “choosing” happiness, and shame is negativity’s enabling best friend.

When we’re supporting someone who’s hurting, we need to leave room for positivity to grow. And you don’t yell at a flower to “just” grow — you water it. In this case, you water it with listening, with validation, and with unconditional support. It’s OK to experience negative emotions, and with support, we can help people who are stuck in negativity find their own way out. Simply telling them to “be positive” doesn’t cut it.

Thanks to Whitney for making this informative graphic! You can follow her on Instagram here.

This article originally appeared on 2.12.19

Recently, blogger Jen Hatmaker had a funny conversation with a friend about parenting:

“My girlfriend told me the greatest story. Apparently her 11-year-old also wanted to be a grown up this week and, in fact, not only did he treat his siblings like despised underlings, but when asked what he wanted, he said: ‘I want the authority to be in charge of them and tell them what to do, because they deserve it!’

Well. My girlfriend and her husband are NOT AT ALL MESSING AROUND with parenting. Calmly, evenly, they granted his request to be a grown-up for a week by pulling him out of camp (the underlings still got to go, because they are ‘such children’) and sending him to work ALL DAY EVERY DAY with his dad. He has to get up early and shower and make breakfast for everyone. He has to kiss the underlings before he goes to work and tell them to have a great day and that he loves them. He has to work on a typing project during his office hours. He only gets to eat what his dad eats, because eating like a grown-up is not nearly as fun as eating like a kid.

Want to be an adult? Fine.”

Photo via iStock.

Hatmaker’s post went viral, with thousands of parents chiming in with their own stories of tough love, both giving and receiving.

The responses were hilarious, poignant, and a sign that the next generation is being parented by extremely capable, if not a little bit diabolical, hands.

Here are five of my favorite stories from the comments about parenting-gone-absolutely-right:

1. Jill Duff’s mom used an embarrassing outfit to teach her sister an important lesson:

“My sister was snotty to my Mom. She called her and pretty much demanded, ‘Bring my band uniform to the high school!’ She’s the one who forgot her uniform in the first place. Then she told my Mom ‘Do not come in the school, that would be so EMBARRASSING. Just wait for me by my car.’

So my Mom did just that. She stood by my sister’s car, in the Texas heat, WEARING my sister’s band uniform. All the kids walking out for the day saw it.

Parenting GOLD.“

And Mom was like…

2. Jessica Klick got her sons new shoes … but not the ones they wanted.

“Our 11 and 12 year olds at the time were complaining and whining and being ungrateful, saying how ‘hard their life was.’ For boys, the big thing is wearing those cool Steph Curry shoes and our boys LOVE their Currys!

So after hearing the last complaint my husband went to Walmart to buy white maypop leather shoes (the kind you see in geriatric centers) and high white socks. He brought those bad boys home, set them on the boys’ dresser, and made them wear those things everywhere we went. Those devastated boys told us we were ‘ruining their lives.’

I may or may not have laughed like a little girl when I dropped them off at school and watched them do the walk of shame.“

3. Marisa Rodriguez Byers says she wished her mother was dead. And boy, did she regret it.

“I was a wretched, hormonal teenager. At the age of 13 I told my mom, ‘I wish you were dead!’ And at that moment, she ‘died,’ but to me only. (I had younger sisters).

She completely ignored me, didn’t speak at me, didn’t look at me, wouldn’t cook for me, set my place at the table, wash my clothes, take me to school, NOTHING. After 8 days, I broke down in the middle of the night, went to her room, clutched her tightly while sobbing how sorry I was and how much I loved her and that I would NEVER say those words again. I’m 41 years old now, I have NEVER uttered those words or anything remotely like them after that incident.“

After tough love, you gotta hug it out.

4. Jessica Hill gave her daughter a good scare — and, in turn, a new appreciation.

“I was grocery shopping with my three year old when she decided to start screaming for ice cream. There was no reasoning with her in this hulk-type rage. I swear she had super human strength as I struggled to get her out of the cart full of groceries.

I was completely unaware of the two police officers who were witnessing this wrestling match. She was still hitting, kicking, and screaming when I was stopped by the police officers in the parking lot. They thought I had abducted her. This happened long before we had smart phones full of our children’s photos. They tried questioning her but she was still too busy throwing a fit, so I handed her over. I told them she could ride with them because I really needed a break and they could follow me home to see her birth certificate, baby book, etc. They started chuckling as one officer said, ‘Spoken like a true mom!’ I think they were more relieved than I was when she finally cried out, ‘Mommy?’

The officer handed her back to me while the other went back inside the store to ensure there wasn’t a distraught mother looking for her missing toddler. That evening my daughter told her dad she almost went to jail because she threw a fit, and I let her believe it. She didn’t throw a fit in public again.”

“Uhh, ma’am?”

“I didn’t mean to scare her, so after this experience, I wanted to ensure my daughter had a healthy respect and appreciation for first responders. Today, I’m happy to say she is highly aware and appreciative of the police, firemen, paramedics, and military personnel who serve to protect her.”

5. Erica Goodnight taught her son an incredible lesson that he carries to this day.

“My kid was whining over not having anything to play with. So, without a word, I went to the garage and got a black 50 gallon trash bag and started putting in all the toys that he obviously didn’t even realize were in our home to play with.

I loaded them AND him into the car and we drove to our local homeless shelter and gave every. single. toy. in the bag away. To a child who TRULY had nothing. And you know what? He didn’t even cry. His eyes were opened to the ones who have nothing. He actually enlarged his heart that day. And, we still do it. We still take toys to kids with nothing at least once a year.”

Parent win. Life lesson score.

There’s a fine line between teaching your kids a tough lesson in a funny way and engaging in “humiliation parenting.”

Making children wear a sign that says, “I sneak boys in at 3 a.m. and disrespect my parents and grandparents” or otherwise berating them publicly is a good way to erode trust between the two of you and seriously damage your relationship.

But calling their bluff on a ridiculous demand? Or having a little fun with how you choose to correct their bad attitude? That’s just plain survival.

And that’s what parenting is really all about.

You can read the whole hilarious exchange over on Facebook.

In the meantime, what’s your favorite tough-love story?

This article originally appeared on 07.13.16

The final season of HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm continues with a new episode this weekend. In season 12, episode 5, “Fish Stuck,” Larry asks his friends to vouch for his character following an incident at temple, while also trying to help name a baby and worrying about a fish. We’ve all been there.

Curb Your Enthusiasm season 12, episode 5 premieres on HBO and Max this Sunday, March 3, at 10 p.m. EST.

Earlier week, a member of the Curb family passed away. The great Richard Lewis died at 76 years old after suffering a heart attack. “Richard and I were born three days apart in the same hospital and for most of my life he’s been like a brother to me,” Larry David said in a statement about his buddy. “He had that rare combination of being the funniest person and also the sweetest. But today he made me sob, and for that I’ll never forgive him.”

Curb star Cheryl Hines also paid tribute to Lewis. “He would take time to tell the people he loved what they meant to him,” she wrote on X. “In between takes on Curb, he would tell me how special I was to him and how much he loved me. To be loved by Richard Lewis. A true gift. I love you Richard. You will be missed.”

Music lovers rush to X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram each year to share their Wrapped results with friends (sorry, not sorry, Apple Music). That data-driven badge of honor lets their friends and family know which albums, songs, and genres they were obsessed with on Spotify. But the streaming giant could be looking to do the same for audiobook enthusiasts.

Spotify has announced a new subscription plan solely for audiobooks. Continue below for details about the new plan.

How To Get A Spotify Subscription For Audiobooks Only

In October 2023, the platform rolled out audiobooks at no additional cost to its Spotify premium subscribers. Now, for those unwilling or uninterested in the music side of the app, Spotify offers an “audiobooks only” option starting at $9.99. To sign up, users must visit the mobile application or web version here, then select the “Audiobooks Access” plan. However, it is important to note the limits of the plan. Read the restriction as listed on Spotify’s website:

“With the Audiobooks Access plan, you now get 15 hours of audiobook listening time every month from our audiobooks subscriber catalog. Unused listening hours expire at the end of each month and do not carry over. Your music listening experience will be on our free, ad-supported service. If you’re an existing Premium subscriber or a Premium plan member, you’ll need to cancel your current plan first before joining Audiobooks Access.”

Find more information here.

Was this a big indie news week? Steven and Ian hope it wasn’t. Steven was off recording the audiobook version of his forthcoming book There Was Nothing You Could Do (out May 28, you can pre-order now!) so the guys had to bank this episode ahead of time. And you can immediately tell this was a banked episode, as they spend several minutes talking about the Kings Of Leon album that was announced last week. They also promise to spend next week talking about the big Fantasy Draft albums that are out today from Mannequin Pussy, Faye Webster, and Yard Act. Speaking of the fantasy draft, Vijay Iyer finally showed up on Metacritic and he has a fantastic score. But Ian insists he doesn’t regret pivoting off of him.

From there Steven and Ian dip into the mailbag to answer inquiries from our listeners. Some important topics are discussed. Is Q1 of the 2024 music release schedule historically great? Did Feist invent the “female seal” vocal style? Which modern albums would have ended up in thrift store bins, Fairweather Johnson-style? And Ty Segall, yay or nay?

New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 178 here and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. You can submit questions for Steve and Ian at [email protected], and make sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter for all the latest news. We also recently launched a visualizer for our favorite Indiecast moments. Check those out here.

Welcome to SNX DLX, your weekly roundup of the best sneakers to hit the internet and where to find them. This week is an interesting one, it’s no secret that Nike is the dominating sneaker brand. The ol’ Swoosh snags most of the spots on our list week to week, but brands like New Balance and Saucony aren’t that far behind.

It’s also a great week for three-strip fans. While Adidas has some of the best classic silhouettes in all of footwear and great collaborators, it’s rarely been competitive with the big Swoosh lately. This week is different. Snagging nearly half of an admittedly short list, we have Adidas, with its strongest drop week in recent memory.

We love to see it — we just wish the other brands had something to show as well. Here are the seven best sneakers dropping this week.

Nike Women’s Air Jordan 5 Lucky Green

Price: $210

This week the legendary Lucky Green colorway returns! The AJ 5 Lucky Green features a crispy white leather upper with a black shark tooth over a green midsole with embroidered details and a translucent lace lock.

It’s one of those Nike drops that feels incredibly lazy yet is somehow undeniable. It’s an easy pickup for fans of classic Jordan colorways.

The Nike Women’s Air Jordan 5 Lucky Green is out now for a retail price of $210. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app or aftermarket sites like GOAT and Flight Club.

Nike Air Terra Humara x UNDEFEATED Light Menta

Price: $170

Nike and UNDEFEATED are teaming up again for a seasick take on a ‘90s classic. I say “seasick” because this sneaker has a sort of aquatic vibe to it. It’s a bit messy thanks to its shaggy suede upper. Rounding out the design are woven underlays, a textured heel piece, and a speckled midsole with UNDEFEATED branding at the tongue and heel.

The Nike Air Terra Humara x UNDEFEATED Light Menta is out now for a retail price of $170. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app.

Nike Air Foamposite One Black and Varsity Purple

Price: $240

The Air Foamposite One is the polar opposite of the Air Humara UNDEFEATED collab. Where that sneaker was textural and messy, this one is all sleek and futuristic. The sneaker features a molded upper in metallic Varsity Purple over a semi-translucent outsole and black contrast points.

It’s futuristic, stealthy, and ultra-sleek. It’s an instant favorite of the month.

The Nike Air Foamposite One Black and Varsity Purple is set to drop on February 29th at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $240. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app or aftermarket sites like GOAT and Flight Club.

Nike Air Jordan 5 Olive

Price: $225

Sorry to the Lucky Green but the best Jordan 5 dropping this week is without a doubt the Jordan 5 Olive. The sneaker features a textured upper in Army Olive with a metallic tongue, translucent outsole, and orange-speckled shark tooth at the midsole.

It’s a great combination of colors but our favorite detail is the metallic silver tongue which shimmers under low light. The colors and textures are in perfect harmony here, one of the best colorways to ever hit the Jordan 5.

The Nike Air Jordan 5 Olive is set to drop on March 2nd at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $225. Pick up a pair via the Nike SNKRS app or aftermarket sites like GOAT.

Adidas Rivalry Low Extra Butter

Price: $140

A late ‘80s classic returns! The Rivalry silhouette is back and it’s looking better than ever. The sneaker features a smoothed-out leather upper with a leather lining, lace jewel, rubber outsole, and a ragged three-stripe design with frayed threads.

The colorway combines warm beige tones with a white perforated underlay and a red stripe tongue. Anytime Adidas updates an old silhouette, they’re going to knock it out of the park.

The Adidas Rivalry Low Extra Butter is out now for a retail price of $140. Pick up a pair via the Adidas Confirmed app.

Adidas AE 1 Best of Adi

Price: $120

Adidas has been rolling out the AE 1 colorways lately and the best of those new colorways is this week’s Cloud White and Core Black take on the Anthony Edwards signature. The sneaker features a textile upper over a BOOST midsole equipped with Lightstrike cushioning.

The AE 1 is designed for speedy court play and this colorway highlights the ultra-sleek design perfectly. I love that such a simple design can look so different when dipped in different colors. It’s no secret that I’m not the biggest fan of Adidas’ more recent silhouettes, but the AE 1 is an exception.

The Adidas AE 1 Best of Adi is set to drop on March 1st at 7:00 AM PST for a retail price of $120. Pick up a pair at Adidas or aftermarket sites like Flight Club.

Adidas Bali

Price: $115

Do you see what I mean about vintage Adidas designs? They just hit in a way that the modern stuff can’t. The Adidas Bali was originally released in 1977 as part of the limited “Island Series” collection of sneakers. Much of the design language here is lifted from the Samba, which is never a bad move.

The sneaker features a smooth all-suede upper with a monochromatic teal colorway. It’s simple, yes, but we wouldn’t change a thing.

The Adidas Bali is set to drop on February 29th for a retail price of $115. Pick up a pair at Adidas and select retailers like END.

Disclaimer: While all of the products recommended here were chosen independently by our editorial staff, Uproxx may receive payment to direct readers to certain retail vendors who are offering these products for purchase.

After making the leap from a throwaway gag in the Batman comics to a fan-favorite character on Harley Quinn, Kite Man is moving up even further by getting his own spinoff series Kite Man: Hell Yeah! on Max. The high-flying villain has big plans in this raunchy spinoff, and you can definitely expect some of your favorite Harley Quinn characters to come along for the ride.

Here’s everything we know so far about the new spinoff series from Harley Quinn executive producer Justin Halpern:

Plot

Like Harley Quinn, don’t expect too much in the way of plot as the Kite Man: Hell Yeah! will lean more into the hilarious private lives of Gotham’s most notorious criminals. When they’re not embroiled in elaborately themed heists, sometimes they just want to cut loose and get freaky, and Kite Man plans on opening just the place for them.

Here’s the official synopsis:

Kite Man and Golden Glider take their relationship to the next level by opening a bar in the shadow of Lex Luthor’s Legion of Doom. Nobody said serving cold ones to the most dangerous rogues outside of Arkham Asylum would be easy, but sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name, and how to hide a body.

As for Kite Man’s backstory, well, he lives up to his name and a surprisingly tragic backstory for a toss-off character with a funny catchphrase that was coined by writer Tom King during the mid-2010s. In the latest version of the comics, Charles Brown Sr. is a brilliant engineer who gets mixed up with The Joker and ends up building the Clown Prince’s Jokermobile. This move puts Brown in the middle of an all-consuming gang war between The Riddler and The Joker during Batman’s early years, and ultimately leads to the death of Brown’s son after The Riddler poisons a kite string.

Brown soon builds himself an experimental kite suit and fights for The Joker in the ongoing gang war. However, Brown is routinely mocked because Kite Man is a pretty ridiculous schtick, and he becomes a punchline in the criminal underworld despite being a loyal soldier for The Joker.

Whether any of this tragic backstory will pop up in Kite Man: Hell Yeah! remains to be seen, but The Joker has been a routine presence in Harley Quinn so we could see that connection explored in the new comedic series.

Cast

Matt Oberg will reprise role as Kite Man along with Kaley Cuoco as Harley Quinn. There will also be some familiar voices from her series including Keith David as Darkseid, James Adomian as Bane, Janelle James as Queen of Fables, Jonathan Banks as Noonan, Stephanie Hsu as Golden Glider, and the late great Lance Reddick as Lex Luthor.

Release Date

Max has yet to reveal an official streaming date for Kite Man: Hell Yeah!, but the series announcement confirmed the Harley Quinn spinoff will debut some time in 2024.

Trailer

You can watch the official teaser below:

Kite Man: Hell Yeah! will take flight in 2024 on Max.