It seems like Gotham is set on bringing on every big-name character early on into the show. This week, it was Nicholas D’Agosto in the role of Harvey Dent (the future Two Face). Now, like I’ve said many times before, I’m not familiar with the comics and yet it was clear that the writers were intent on shoving this character into our faces. It was a huge “look, guys, we brought Harvey Dent! Rejoice!”
But I couldn’t rejoice because the weekly format is starting to annoy me. The sick prisoner was an extremely predictable subplot that had me bored out of my mind. And I’m starting to get worried about the show because of how young Bruce Wayne is. I know it’s silly to expect Batman here now (or possibly even ever) but having Harvey Dent join the team felt useless and seemed like just another one of Gotham’s attempt to lure the comic-book fans into what turned out to be a weak introduction of this character.
Bruce’s subplot remains my favorite part of the show. His training scenes with Alfred continue to shine, and seeing him force himself to stay underwater to develop skills and willpower that will later help him turn into Batman was sincerely amazing. I didn’t even mind Selina Kyle’s presence here at all. It actually felt like they redeemed her character the minute they decide to pair her with Bruce (non-romantically so far) because while you can argue the food-brawl scene they had was a bit goofy and ridiculous, it felt truly sincere to these characters and innocent in a way that Gotham hasn’t been ever since it started.
Oswald, who is usually the standout on the show, didn’t have the best material going for him but I thoroughly enjoyed his sneaking into Liza’s room and scaring the crap out of her. I still don’t care about this character as she seems extremely one-dimensional and dull so far. She needs to start interacting more with Falcone, or send her away like Barbara.
Who, by the way, provided a very underwhelming cliffhanger. I was starting to hope that we wouldn’t see her again, but the reveal that she was in bed with Montoya was not what I expected (nor what I cared for). This is about to turn into the dullest love triangle ever. All these supporting characters who don’t contribute much (or any) to the main story need better things to do. And much, much better writing.
Bat Bits
– Bruce talks about starting his own home-school curriculum. So I guess we won’t be seeing him punch more classmates any time soon. How disappointing.
– When Bruce and Selina are meeting for the first time, I cheered when she didn’t introduce herself as Cat. And then seconds later she told him that people call her Cat. And I cringed.
– How stupid are the cops in Gotham, from a scale of 1 to 10?
– The Riddler had a few amusing scenes, like his guessing the correct answers to a radio quiz show. This was surprisingly an entertaining moment for me.
– The show seems to be building to an Arkham storyline, and I hope to god they don’t ruin this too. We should be expecting more from this show.
– Fish Mooney was boring again. But I do like how badly she wants Falcone down, and I can’t wait to see him squish her down like a bug.
Cracks From Gotham
Bruce: [about the vase] It’s from the Chinese Ming dynasty. 500 years old.
Selina: You can get one just like it for $5 in Chinatown.
Bruce: I’m developing self-discipline and willpower.
Selina: Why?
Bruce: So I can be strong.
Selina: I get you, but it won’t work. Not on the streets, not in Gotham.
Selina: Hit me, and I’ll let you kiss me.
Oswald: Falcone might not believe me at first but every time he’d look at you, he’d ask himself “Is she? Could she? Would she?”
Conclusion
A slow episode saved by Bruce’s training sequences rather than Harvey Dent himself.
Chris Rating
B-
As always, the case was lame but I adored the stuff between Bruce and Selina. FINALLY they got the dynamic between the future Batman/Catwoman RIGHT! It was wonderful and Carmen is finally growing into the role. The rest of the episode however was unexciting. So much potential. Here's hope they eventually get it right like they did a few weeks ago. Because really, I love spending time in this world. It's beautiful to look at!