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I’m torn between whether or not to watch it online or wait until it comes on channel 5. I think I might wait then it is something to watch on a Monday night.
[adrotate group="5"]All magic comes with a price!
Keeper of FelixThoughts on the second episode?
–So this episode is both great and not so great. It really nails why Gotham is often a frustrating show: because it can’t pick a style and stick with it. This show can be ridiculously campy and funny. You have larger than life iconic characters, like Penguin and Nygma, hamming it up as villains while you have scene chewing from Barnes that is simply poor acting but hilarious to watch because it fits in the over the top comic book depiction of characters that often act outside the parameters of normal humanity. Add to this wonderful one liners from Bullock or Hugo Strange being all manner of trope-tastic “Mad Professor” and you have an episode and a TV show that does’t take it self too seriously. And that’s great! But then you have tortured scenes–like anytime Baby! Batman shows up–or when the show tries to make Jim Gordon into some sort of anti-hero or at the very least a hero with dubious moral lines and it gets bogged down in trying to be serious and heavy and, frankly, this is when Gotham becomes dull and tedious. The opening scene between Lee and Baby! Batman, for example, is one of those where the dialogue is so weighted that it drags down the entire scene. The writers all but have a flashing neon sign above Baby!Batman that he is Future! Batman and he says things that don’t feel organic from the mouth of any teenager. Even one that is Future! Batman. This was a fairly long winded way of me saying that I really enjoyed parts of the episode but any time the show tries to be serious and gritty, it gets dull.
–Selina Kyle what is your purpose on this show? Do you have one? I’m honestly asking because I’m starting to doubt that you have a purpose outside of nostalgia.
–The scene where Strange’s minions strap Penguin into their medical devices and everyone is laughing like crazy villains and Penguin keeps screaming “you are vexing me!”—that’s the camp I’m talking about. That was silly TV but it’s good TV for a show like this.
–“Goose!” “I’m a Penguin.”
–Barbara’s “appearance.” I hope she wakes up even more crazy than she was last arc.
–The visual effects of Mr. Freeze’s gun are still really good.
–This is the first episode that I haven’t felt like the show is actively wasting Donal Logue.
–RIP Mrs. Freeze
"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"No surprise, but Gotham just got renewed for a third Season:
Didn’t feel much like giving my thoughts on the third episode of the new arc, but the latest episode–which focused on Nygma/Gordon with a heaping crazy side of Penguin and Pee-Wee Herman–was utterly delightful. It was easily the best episode the latest arc, and maybe the best episode since early S2 with Jerome. This is the sweet spot for Gotham, a crazy train ride of over the top campy and iconic villains with Jim Gordon continually getting caught in the cross hairs. Forget the villain-of-the-week approach, show. Stay here. It’s where you belong.
In other news, I continue to not care about the bildungsroman of Baby! Batman, Baby! Catwoman, Baby! Ivy, and the other future Batman universe characters who show up as preteens. It’s so weighted and pretentious as to be eye-roll worthy. We all know Baby! Batman is in no real danger. We all know Baby!Batman will only learn good lessons about justice. Move along, show.
"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"This episode wasn’t as good as last week, but there are definitely some good things happening here. But first, a wee bit of criticism. I keep saying this, but it bears repeating: Gotham is often times so disjointed and jarring in its aesthetics and tone. This is such an episode. On the one hand, we have a grim and gritty look at Gotham’s broken systems, something that the show started with. Gordon in jail was a nice examination of *why* Gotham will someday need Batman. Usually I’m not a huge fan of Gordon and his storylines because Ben McKenzie gets a little to melodramatic (as do his lines, and the same thing happened this week–seriously, that final conversation between Gordon, Harvey, and Falcone on the bridge…ye gods, the dialogue was dripping in self-seriousness to the point of it being something out of a high school dramatization) but this week it felt organic to the show.
However, on the other hand, you have the almost cartoon-y adventures of Penguin and his new family. So many cliches! The wine glass being shattered in anger, the thunderstorms, the dark and sinister pills and looks. Pee Wee Herman dropping telling lines like “you’re my only blood relative” while Not!Daughter looks on in anger; confession of family secret, followed by Father wanting to will everything to Penguin in the morning followed by instant death. I like camp and I even liked the Penguin parts of this episode, but when they are working in tandem with Jim’s story it feels very jarring to go from Serious Prison! to Lair of Rich Billionaire Family!
However, the show did hit some good beats even if I found the transitions jarring, the prison stuff was quite good because it easily fit into the thesis of the show from S1.
Some other things:
–Leah lost the baby? Off screen? Eh gads NO. This is not the sort of thing that you keep off screen. That’s emotional drama right there. The show missed a lot of opportunists to develop Leah as a real person (and not just Jim’s love interest) by keeping the loss of a child to stage left. Not to mention “she’s fine. She moved down south and no one’s heard from her.”
–Harvey thinks the real murder is out there eating donuts and getting laid. LOL
–RIP Pee Wee Herman (kind of a waste of a character and his death wasn’t even that emotionally riveting. Penguin’s lost another parent before and that one had a lot of impact. Also, Penguin needs to re-enter the proper story. He’s too peripheral right now.
–I miss Nygma
–Pee Wee Herman wears an old fashioned dressing gown WITH a nightcap AND carries a candle. What century is Gotham in???
–The show did NOT just turn rape into a punchline, right?? (no, they did)
–LOL the monocle. Nice reference to DC Penguin as we know him in the actual Batman comics
–Movie night at the Gotham Prison is a Loony Toons cartoon. There’s something very meta about this…
–“How do you get rid of rats?” “Glue traps?”
–Next week’s promo looks Nygma-tastic. I am ready for that.
"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"I agree with most of what you said. Next episode looks amazing with Nygma. I’ve enjoyed his transition this season. And I enjoyed Falcone coming back. Although some of the dialogue was pretty ridiculous.
I love campy to, but yeah the whole penguin stuff was so obvious and predictable. Pee Wee Herman was wasted but he did fine for what he was given. And is there any chance we get to see Penguin with the monocle now, as a way of remembering his father? And when on earth are we actually going to get Penguin out of the perimeter story line and into the spotlight again? I want to see his umbrella hehe.
I’m guessing the whole lost baby thing is a ruse. I’m not believing it since it was off screen.
Dull at times, but I enjoyed the episode. It felt like a different tone, and the prison stuff I appreciated. I’m just waiting to see what Strange’s big plan is here and why they introduced him to us. The reveal is coming once he starts reviving all these people. I just want to get there already.
I would be okay with the miscarriage being a ruse. That would be impactful for Leah and Jim as opposed to losing the baby, stage left.
"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"Sigh. Prepare yourselves for a BatCat spam. You know, like I do with SwanFire on their thread.
Why does Gotham keep giving me plots I want, only to immediately tear them away?
I liked this episode until the ending (okay the whole feeding the step-siblings to the step-mother thing was creepy, I’ll give you that). That whole ending just ruined it.
Alfred, why? Why do you keep tearing my OTP apart? She’ll be fine, she’s a street cat.
Anyway, as for the trailer, I thought I saw Missy’s face on the file!
Also:
Cinder-Pengy! Cinder-Pengy!
Night and day, it’s Cinder-Pengy!
“Make the fire, fix-a breakfast,
wash the dishes, do the mopping…”Blah.
From Seriouslyficent:
From Polypam (more in link):
http://lewisabelle.tumblr.com/post/141889173303/hush-said-that-when-i-saw-your-heart-die-part-of
From StarMasayume:
Frombixxart:
From maryfgr23:
Finally sat down and watched the Nygma/Gordon episode for this week.
Overall thoughts:
–This was a good episode but not one without problem. The cat and mouse, catch or be caught part with Nygma and Gordon was outstanding. This is the kind of story Gotham could play out for several episode (heck, maybe an entire half arc!) with tons of meaty story and success that falls into all their sweet spots: exploring Gordon’s temptation into darkness, the gritty underbelly and overbelly of Gotham-city, and iconic villains becoming iconic. This is one of Gotham’s biggest flaws; it cuts its interesting stories off at the knees to move on to another story, never staying in one place for long enough. The Ogre was last years keeper, but he came and went. Joker was the keeper of the first part of this season, but he “died” a few episodes in for the super dull Galavan. Now it’s Nygma becoming the Riddler, something the show is sure to play out but in these piecemeal episodes, with too much time in between (AKA: Get Nygma out of jail and let him play havoc on the city!)
–One of the problems of Gotham is its insistence to make the subtext (or at least, not explicit text) into text through some seriously heavy handed and clunky dialogue. Like Penguin changing his hair—it doesn’t need commented on. We get WHY Penguin changed his hair. It’s a great little piece of visual subtext that the audience is smart enough to read without the characters calling attention to it with their talking.
LIKED
–Everything that is Ed Nygma. Seriously, show. Make him your series villain and leave your shiny canon-mandated objects alone. Nygma is where it’s at. He has the kind of evil magnetic staying power you need for this show.
–“The people of Gotham can eat my socks!” Donal Logue, kids.
–Bruce tossing the money off the roof made me laugh, as did Selena’s reaction to it. (I saved enough for burgers!) (This is honestly the first time I actually laughed/wasn’t annoyed at Baby!Batman)
–Harvey and Gordon working together; the show needs to explore their partnership a bit more. Too often Harvey gets one line and then is left to the sidelines.
–I really need Ed’s red/black plaid coat.
–“You’ve killed lots of people, haven’t you?” I adored the entire Nygma/Gordon talk at the apartment. It’s so twisted and tense, especially with Nygma’s “Riddler” side coming out and chastising him. And yeah, it was rather melodramatic with the spinning fan and the red light and the cuckoo clock that chirps AT JUST THE RIGHT MOMENT but I don’t care. “That’s why your chair is wired to the mains…” More of this plz.
–“You don’t want to admit that there’s a monster in all of us!” #Theme!
MIXED OR DISLIKED
–Penguin began this series as a very nuanced and compelling villain. A quiet nobody who was trying to climb the ranks to becoming our canon-mandated supervillain. Now he’s almost comical in his portrayal and storyline. Comical, I said. Not comic(book). I mean, really? Feeding the step kids to the mother and turning back to his murderous ways because of the murder of his father whom he met maybe a day before? So bizarre and otherworldly that you can’t take it seriously (this is why Nygma is better; so far his crimes and plots have felt really real-world)
–Speaking of the above, the demented family kept the poison alcohol because…..? Oh right, PLOT. Silliness. This whole story arc is silliness. (even the jingly musical cues are full of hammy silliness)
–No but really…Ed didn’t hear all those police men sneak up and hide OR he didn’t see them behind the very small trees when he was walking to Kringle’s grave?
–Jim is putting off going to find Leah (his fiance and mother of his baby) because he made Baby!Batman a promise. Jim, honey. No. There’s honor and then there’s idiocy.
"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"I agree with literally everything you said. They don’t stick to one villain for long enough. I thought The Ogre should have gotten more time last year and now I really hope Nygma gets out of prison because he is just awesome in so many ways. Why can’t we have Nygma and Jerome and The Ogre back? Sad.
I will say I thought it was odd they kept the poison too, but then IU remembered that they were planning on using it on Oswald after some time had passed. Or at least that’s what the mother said to her two kids when she allowed Oswald to stay as their slave. Why she kept the poison in such an easily accessible place, well that might be PLOT. And I agree, the dialogue was clunky. We noticed the hair. We noticed the expressions. We noticed the mannerisms. You don’t have to point them out writers! But overall, I really liked this episode, although I’m bummed that Gordon already figured out about Ms. Kringle and Nygma has already been had.
Side note….loved how Nygma, instead of just giving up and dropping his weapon, or continuing to try and fire and take out as many people as possible in the woods when the jig was up, he actually tried to trudge through the snow and run away haha. I just thought that was a very Riddler thing to do.
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