“Is this Hamlet? I guess he wasn’t meant to be.”
Harvey had only one quip in this episode, and wasn’t enough to carry me through. I mean it, when is Harvey going to get more sarcastic lines, and when will he be reteamed with Foxy? Perhaps my hopes of a back half of stronger episodes for this season weren’t meant to be, either; they plummeted faster than Jay Cutler’s quarterback rating. That is not to say Gotham is terrible, but we seem to have slipped back into the type of episodes that one might be tempted to dismiss with casual indifference. It’s puzzling that the episodes don’t stick to what really works on this show, and The Primal Riddle is no exception.
Penguin and Ivy are on a “gathering of the team” quest to build an army of freaks, starting with Mr. Freeze and Firefly. I’m not sure how Mr. Freeze managed squatting rights in the Fortress of Solitude, nor how Penguin managed to find him, but I half expected Freeze to either cuddle up with Polar Bear cubs or hang meat in his living room. While he was cool towards them at the beginning (see what I did there?), he was quick to join on account Penguin brought his suit. Then our dynamic duo search out Firefly in a steel mill, and the finest moment of the episode occurs when Firefly declines Penguin’s offer to kill her abusive boss and she hurls a handful of molten steel at his face.
Both Freeze and Firefly were quick to jump on board Penguin’s revenge train; it was worthy of Burt Reynolds convincing the cons to play the guards in The Longest Yard. I know the producers are teasing this storyline out, but I think we’ve earned the right not to have a few filler scenes with arguably one of the show’s finest actors in what amounts to a recruitment drive, even if it does reunite us with two good and underused villains. Penguin quips the team have a “busy day tomorrow,” though whether it’s to gather more freaks or wreak havoc in Gotham is unclear. Likely we will see more of them next week.
The main story sees Riddler seek out the truth of who runs Gotham for Babs’ benefit; doing so involves kidnapping corrupt Mayor Aubrey James and calling out the Court, because why do something on the sly when it can be done with style and showmanship? Gordon’s story crosses into this one, as Catherine tells him he needs to prove his loyalty to become a member of the Court. Since Riddler’s performance on live television, Gordon’s test is to capture and hand him over to the Court. Gordon does so with the help of Tabs, who provided the bomb collar, which angers Bat-Crazy Babs. Turns out Babs can’t run Gotham if there is a secret group who already runs Gotham, thus the collusion with Riddler in solving the mystery. Babs may have overstepped the bounds of villainy etiquette; she promised Tabs her revenge and now she’s BFFs with Riddler.
Having Riddler throw himself into solving a puzzle seems a little out of character, so much that Catherine has to state the mystery of the secret group hinted at by Hugo Strange is his obsession. Having no other plan than solving the riddle is also out of character unless this is another example of Riddler unhinging since he shot Penguin and left him for dead, but I don’t buy it. While this storyline seemed a bit contrived, there was one scene worthy of note: when Gordon and Nygma sit in a car and reminisce about a dinner party they both had with Lee and Miss Kringle in Season Two. It was a nuanced moment which doesn’t occur often enough on the show and reveals more depth for both men, and allows Riddler to speak as Nygma rather than his gargling-on-Draino-Christian-Bale impression.
Clone Bruce seems to have pulled the wool over poor Alfred’s eyes, deftly using relationship troubles with Selena to explain his odd behaviour. But he has bigger troubles as he realizes he is dying and the Court will destroy Gotham, so he goes to Selina and comes clean with the truth because he cares for her. Selina retorts the real Bruce would try to save everyone, becomes particularly catty towards him (see what I did there?), and threatens to tell Alfred. Clone Bruce can’t have any of that, so he pushes her out of the window.
Fear not, she only drops two stories and is surrounded by every alley cat in Gotham, whose magical feline powers will restore her and likely transform her into Catwoman, girl, whatever. But did the producers have to lift the origin scene from Batman Returns?
It does look cool, but Michelle Pfeiffer did it better. Perhaps the producers were betting younger audiences wouldn’t notice, but I suppose if everything in the DC universe is open for appropriation, then the films should be as well.
Not enough Harvey, not enough Penguin and Ivy, and not enough of many things, though the rift between Babs and Tabs could be intriguing. Riddler was not quite himself and zero Foxy contribute to an episode that is neither great nor horrible; it lies somewhere in the meaty part of the curve.
Tune in next time – same Bat-time, same Bat-channel.
