Angular POST request - error reading response - node.js

Question

I have a rather simple situation. I make a call to an endpoint in my Google Cloud Functions, it sends a simple response. I try to console.log.
Angular component
async submitHandler(formDirective: FormGroupDirective) {
this.loading = true;
const formValue = JSON.stringify(this.reqForm.value);
this.http.post('https://myApp.cloudfunctions.net/myEndpoint', formValue)
.subscribe(res => {
console.log(res);
this.success = true;
formDirective.resetForm();
},
(err) => { console.log(err) });
this.loading = false;
}
Google Cloud Function
const functions = require('firebase-functions');
const cors = require('cors')({ origin: true });
const admin = require('firebase-admin');
admin.initializeApp();
exports.myEndpoint = functions.https.onRequest((req, res) => {
return cors(req, res, () => {
const body = JSON.parse(req.body);
const name = body.name;
console.log("REQUEST BODY >>> ", body);
console.log("REQUEST NAME >>> ", name);
if (!name) {
res.status(400).send('missing name!')
}
res.send(name.split('').reverse().join(''))
});
});
The cloud function responds with the name field reversed. So, "name": "Kenny" would respond with "ynneK". That's what I should see in my front end when I console.log(res).
Here's my front end error:
HttpErrorResponse {headers: HttpHeaders, status: 200, statusText: "OK", url: "https://myApp.cloudfunctions.net/myEndpoint", ok: false, …}
error: {error: SyntaxError: Unexpected token l in JSON at position 0 at JSON.parse (<anonymous>) at XMLHttp…, text: "llaH ynneK"}
headers: HttpHeaders {normalizedNames: Map(0), lazyUpdate: null, lazyInit: ƒ}
message: "Http failure during parsing for https://myApp.cloudfunctions.net/myEndpoint"
name: "HttpErrorResponse"
ok: false
status: 200
statusText: "OK"
url: "https://myApp.cloudfunctions.net/myEndpoint"
__proto__: HttpResponseBase
As you can see in the second line of "error: {.." I have text: "llaH ynneK"}. So, I don't think it's a server problem, I think it's a local Angular problem.
What am I doing wrong? Should I set response headers to application/json in the cloud function endpoint? I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong here.
The flow is:
JSON.stringify form data and send in post request (seemed to be the only way it'd work)
GCF endpoint gets it and JSON.parse(req.body)
endpoint does it's thing, then sends back to client res.send()
Client gets response to make sure all is well, but the error occurs when trying to read it.
Thanks for any help.