Andi and Lise discuss and express much love for the 2020 DC movie with the longest subtitle in either the DC or Marvel universe: Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn. The movie, narrated in parts by Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), is a story about how she finds herself after the end of a relationship with the Joker (arguably a poster child for toxic masculinity) while also dealing with the fallout from the relationship. She manages to forge an alliance of sorts with Black Canary, Detective Renée Montoya, and Huntress as they battle another poster child of toxic masculinity, Roman Sionis. The result is a gorgeously frenetic journey through and with the mind of Harley Quinn, filled with great fight scenes, excellent character development, and snappy, snarky dialogue. Lise and Andi agree: this film is liberating, and makes us vicariously love kicking ass.
Shout-outs: Lise highly recommends the animated miniseries Over the Garden Wall (2014), in which 2 brothers are lost in a mysterious land trying to find their way home. Vintage aesthetic and elements of fantasy, a bit of creepy horror, and other surprises. Andi implores listeners to read Sarah Rose’s 2019 D-Day Girls: The Spies Who Armed the Resistance, Sabotaged the Nazis, and Helped Win World War II. Beautifully written nonfiction account of some of the women who were parachuted/boated into occupied France to support and develop Resistance networks.