Max Original, the animated film for adults Comet Man: Hell yeah! premieres two of its ten episodes at a time before moving to a weekly release. And if bumbling Gotham villain Charles “Kite Man” Brown seems like an odd DC character to build a series around, Harley Quinn If you’re a fan of the DC Comics series, which has already been renewed for a fifth season, and you like the eccentric humor, the vast array of DC characters, and the diabolical explosions of blood that characterize the main cartoon, you may not be familiar with the superpower of having a kite strapped to your back. Comet Man: Hell yeah! features the voices of Matt Oberg, Stephanie Hsu, James Adomian, Michael Imperioli, Keith David and the late Lance Reddick in one of his final roles.
THE COMET MAN, HELL YEAH!STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
Opening shot: It’s the headquarters of the Legion of Doom, where a sign outside declares “32 weeks since last total destruction.” “My fellow Legion members,” Reddick intones as Lex Luthor, “what we have in this briefcase has the power to change the universe as we know it.”
The essence: Yeah, right! The ragtag group of supervillains who join Lex for this emergency meeting are tired of hearing about his plans to assassinate Superman. And besides, what has he shown them? A glowing briefcase? But Luthor was prepared for their lack of interest, and sends Bane (Adomian) to pressure Kite Man (Oberg) into becoming the Hall of Doom’s new air protector. Kite Man is thrilled at the opportunity. When the leader of Gotham’s criminal underworld hires you, even as a temp, it earns you his signature line: “Hell yeah!”
But it’s not that simple. When he screws up on his mission (because, of course, he does; his aspirations of villainy usually don’t follow through), his mistake threatens to destroy Noonan’s, the bar where Kite Man and Golden Glider (Hsu) fell in love and the hangout for all the bad guys who live on the dark side of that underground life. “This place is for the criminals, the thugs, the bullies,” as Joe/Moe Dubelz (voiced by Imperioli, Joe/Moe is the two heads of a cigar-smoking gangster) puts it. All Kite Man and Golden Glider can do is save the bar by buying the run-down place, a decision that results in the hasty heist of cash from an island fortress and the bloody, hilarious shootout that follows.
Kite Man and Golden Glider are in love, and they also love their unlikely band of Gotham’s D-list baddies and the pe bar they all call home. But Lex Luthor is always up to something. He’s got his own team of super-powered criminals. And he’s not even the only threat our antiheroes will have to face. After all, this is a cartoon universe full of weird criminals, and what cartoon universe full of monsters is complete without a galactic supervillain? He’s hell-bent on destroying Earth. Right after a few more sips of his “Kiss My Apokolips” cup of coffee.
What shows will it remind you of? Kite Man debuted in Harley Quinnas is Golden Glider, where she was originally played by Cathy Ang. So keep an eye out for Harley (Kaley Cuoco) here, as well as Lake Bell as Poison Ivy, who happens to be Kite Man’s ex. But adult animation that’s as loud or raunchy or whatever it wants to be is also having a moment right now, with series including Hazbin Hotel and Invincibleand Young Justice.
Our opinion: The animation style in Comet Man: Hell yeah! It’s updated for a cleaner look, but is otherwise remarkably similar to the old one. Best friends cartoons that appeared on Saturday morning cartoon shows in the 70s and 80s. Which is funny in itself, because from Lex Luthor onwards, the characters of The Kite Man He curses like a madman and spills streams of blood at any given moment. “Hell yeah!” our friendly bad boy main character loves to shout, but his line is cut short when he gets completely drenched in the blood of his henchmen. Other evil friends from the bar also catch stray dogs here. (Skuzzy the killer pitcher – we barely knew you.) But the biggest wildcard that brings violence of Comet Man: Hell yeah! It’s Golden Glider. She’s more than willing to take down Ice Capades rivals and minions alike by slicing necks with her ice skates. But that’s not even her main superpower, which when finally revealed in all its instability and volatility suggests the Necromancer of Raised by Wolves.
The gore is used primarily for laughs. The Kite Manas is in Harley Quinn or even in the live-action world of DC PacifierThis makes sense – it’s an adult cartoon, the episodes are short, don’t think about it too much – but it makes more sense than… The Kite ManIt’s also funny on its own, far from shock value, with the main character’s self-deprecation, Lex Luthor easily angering his subordinates, and lots of quick little comments about hidden, meaningless parts.
Sex and skin: Nothing in the first episode – Comet Man: Hell yeah! It’s more about shocking you with jabs of violence than trying to raise your temperature.
Parting shot: “I’ve done some really weird stuff in my life, but this is the best!” And Golden Glider says this before She and Kite Man discover what Lex hid in his bar, or that an evil being and his minions are determined to capture him, in order to control the minds of all beings in the universe.
Sleeping Star: At first, James Adomian steals The Kite Man as a malicious, masked, but completely eccentric version of Bane. And Adomian’s voice acting is inspired by Tom Hardy’s shrill, muted version of the character, so in #banevoice you have the villain saying things like “He has no powers, he’s just got a kite! Like a Victorian boy in a sailor suit!”
Pilot’s most typical phrase: “With this,” Lex tells his fellow Legion of the Damned, “I will destroy Superman.” Which elicits a collective groan from the evil conference room. None of these bad guys believe evil boss Lex that his latest evil acquisition will result in any sort of different evil outcome.
Our calling: Comet Man: Hell yeah! It’s a STREAM IT, especially if you’re already familiar with the brazen and bloody events of the Harley Quinn Animated series. This is a funny, foul-mouthed parody of the superhero genre with expressive voices and a gleeful murderous streak that guarantees its NSFW status.
Johnny Loftus (@glennganges) is a freelance writer and editor based in Chicago. His work has appeared in The Village Voice, All Music Guide, Pitchfork Media, and Nicki Swift.
