The animated Harley Quinn series on HBO Max is consistently one of the best things ever done with the character. And now, it is getting its very own spinoff. The upcoming series, Noonan‘s, centers around the seedy Gotham bar Noonan’s and Kite Man, its hapless new owner. According to Variety, which first reported the Harley Quinn spinoff is officially a go, “The series will focus on lovable loser Kite Man and his new squeeze, Golden Glider, as they moonlight as criminals to support their foolish purchase of Noonan’s, Gotham’s seediest dive bar.”
As seen on Harley Quinn, it’s a place for the bad guys of Gotham City to hang out and grab a drink together. Not to mention, commiserate about Batman and other superheroes. Noonan’s was not a creation of the series; it’s actually from the comics. It appeared in a 1993 issue of DC Comics’ The Demon. Former hitman Sean Noonan was its owner. In the comics, Noonan’s was located in the Cauldron, one of the worst neighborhoods in Gotham.
The news of a spinoff was first announced in March at SXSW. Harley Quinn series co-creator Patrick Schumacker teased the premise at the Not Kidding Around: Warner Bros. Animation and the Reimagining of Iconic Characters for an Adult Audience panel. During the panel, Schumacker teased, “[Kite Man] tries to run the bar by himself but it doesn’t turn out so easy. We have Harley and Ivy appear in the first episode, but after that we have different goons and villains appearing every episode like Lex Luthor and Bane. It will be kind of like Cheers for supervillains.” You had at us at “Cheers for supervillains,” sir. Of course, this begs the question; which DC bad guy is Norm?
Noonan’s first season will span 10 episodes. Matt Oberg, who voices Kite Man on Harley Quinn will reprise the character on Noonan’s. Justin Halpern, Patrick Schumacker, and Dean Lorey, who created Harley Quinn, will executive produce the spinoff, with the latter serving as showrunner. Harley Quinn star Kaley Cuoco and Sam Register also executive produce.
Originally published on March 14, 2022.
