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Recap / Harley Quinn 2019 S 2 E 3 Trapped

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Harley and Ivy recruit Catwoman for a heist of the Gotham Natural History Museum, which has been turned into a death trap by Doctor Trap.


Tropes:

  • The Ace: Catwoman effortlessly steals anything she sets her sights on at a ridiculous success rate. She even ends up stealing Ivy's jacket without arising suspicion.
  • Annoying Arrows: Kite-Man is at one point suspended in a net with several arrows in him, yet treats it like an annoyance more than anything.
  • Asshole Victim: The Board of Ace Chemicals have been dumping toxic waste into Gotham Harbor, and end up being horrifically melted by those same chemicals by Harley and Ivy.
  • Badass Boast:
    The Riddler: I'll escape when I'm good and ready.
  • Didn't Think This Through: Doctor Trap rigged up a crushing box over the display case for the plasma flamethrower, set to trigger as soon as someone removes the gun. It never occurred to him that a flamethrower able to burn through anything might let the victim escape.
  • Gender-Concealing Writing: Harley tells Ivy she arranged a meeting with the best thief in Gotham and "they" are meeting them at the cafe. Ivy immediately picks up on Harley trying to avoid mentioning gender and deduces that Catwoman is the woman they're meeting.
  • Iron Butt Monkey: Kite-Man suffers the indignity of the various traps as he and Harley navigate the museum — being battered, bruised, and stung by bees — yet his injuries are treated as hilarious rather than threatening.
  • Kick the Dog: Catwoman ditches Harley, Ivy, and Kite Man after they reach the flamethrower, and swipes the engagement ring Kite Man stole for Ivy just to rub it in.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: Ivy punishes the board of Ace Chemicals by pouring the toxic waste they dumped into the river on them, resulting in their Cruel and Unusual Deaths.
  • Mythology Gag: The Museum is full of them.
    • There are several items from the Batcave like a giant coin and dinosaur.
    • One display is about "Egghead", who became a Canon Immigrant from the Adam West series in Harley's solo comic.
    • A submarine that looks like the one Penguin built in Gotham is there.
    • Among the items present are Dr. Fate's helmet.
  • Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Dr. Psycho angrily tossing moisturizer at Riddler allows Riddler to slip out of his restraints and lead the crew on a wild goose chase through the mall.
  • No-Sell: Riddler shrugs off Doctor Psycho's attempt to probe his mind, being far too smart for that.
  • Play-Along Prisoner: Riddler shows that he can outsmart Harley's crew and he could escape at anytime, but he chooses to stay because it's a wasteland in Gotham, he's being well-fed, running in the giant hamster wheel keeps him in shape, and he enjoys watching Harley's crew fail at certain tasks.
  • Pronoun Trouble: When Harley is describing the expert burglar she's recruited:
    Ivy: Wait, why'd you say 'they'— it's Catwoman isn't it.
  • "Pop!" Goes the Human: The last two board members Ivy kills pop like balloons, creating symbolic fireworks for her touching moment with Harley.
  • Rogues' Gallery Transplant: Dr. Trap was originally Cameron Chase's arch-enemy in the short lived DC series Chase.
  • Running Gag: After Riddler references The Baby-Sitters Club to mock Doctor Psycho, Frank starts talking about the book series throughout the episode.
  • Saying Too Much: When Mr. Freeze's goons mock Harley's failed attempts to get into his territory, one of them reveals they would need Firefly's flamethrower to melt the ice. When Harley tells them she's going to get Firefly's flamethrower, one goon brings up Doctor Trap and when the other goon asks who he is again he explains who Doctor Trap is and he has the flamethrower in the Gotham Natural History Museum. When they see Harley's crew leave, they realized they said too much.
    Harley: Text us if you think of anything else!
  • Ship Tease: At the end of the episode, as Ivy is sludging the Ace Chemicals board, the camera lingers on her and Harley's hands coming together. They are a canon couple in recent comics, and eventually become one in this show, too.
  • Strange Minds Think Alike: Kite-Man speculates that the armory exhibit probably has some sick arrowheads. As Ivy and Catwoman pass through, Ivy sees an arrowhead display and makes the same comment.
  • There Is No Kill Like Overkill: One of the display cases is rigged with spears that come out of the floor, more spears that come out of the ceiling a few seconds later, then the whole thing catches fire for the cherry on top. Harley even comments on it.
  • Too Much Information: Ivy casually drops to Catwoman that her dating Kite-Man includes having sex.
  • Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys?: Poison Ivy wonders what contractors Doctor Trap uses to build all his deathtraps.

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