Birds of Prey – A Fantabulous Movie that No One Saw

Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is a film that never should've ended up on this podcast. Centering on the immensely popular character at the end of its title, introducing a host of other DC characters to the big screen, and following up the box office hit that was Suicide Squad, it should've been a no-brainer. Somehow, it wasn't

Suicide Squad amassed over $746 million at the box office, despite an abysmal 27% on Rotten Tomatoes. Its mediocrity may have turned off audiences, but to the degree that Birds of Prey suffered that seems unlikely. Birds of Prey's $201+ million is heartbreaking.

In the eyes of both critics (78%) and fans (78% compared to 59% for Suicide Squad), this should've done better. Our podcast, for the most part, agrees. 

Birds of Prey is a tremendous showcase for Harley and does all the things that Suicide Squad failed to. Turns out, viewing a film through the lens of a mad woman is a hell of a lot of fun. In saying that, though, the titular Birds do not get shortchanged. They're a unique assemblage of badass women, who all stand on their own and have tremendous chemistry.

Should this be their only onscreen adventure, we'd all be poorer for it. To paraphrase Capt. Cash, Birds of Prey is a glitter-bomb, sucker punch to the taint, and you should definitely watch it!

So sit back, spike open a New Wave Radical Blond Ale from Pontoon Brewing, and strap on your rollerskates! I, the Thunderous Wizard (@WriterTLK), Capt. Cash, and Chumpzilla are storming Gotham Police Department with baseball bats and egg sandwiches in hand!

This Week’s Segments:

• Introduction/Plot Breakdown – The Anatomy of a Flop: We break down why this movie failed to generate the buzz it should've.  (00:00)
• Lingering Questions and Harleen Quinzel's Madhouse Trivia Challenge – After answering some of Chumpzilla's lingering questions, he challenges us to trivia that is DC comics and film-themed. (53:32)
• Where We're at in Quarantine Life and Recommendations – We say this every week, but stay safe, stay indoors, and make the most out of your quarantine. Don't let it drive you too crazy like it has us in the stories we share. Next week, we're going on a quest with Pixar's Onward! (1:14:56)

And, as always, hit us up on Twitter or Facebook to check out all the interesting factoids—the origins of Harley Quinn and more—from this week’s episode!

You can find this episode of Hops and Box Office Flops on Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, Podbean, and Spotify!