Because The A.V. Club knows that TV shows keep going even if we’re not writing at length about them, we’re experimenting with discussion posts. For certain shows, one of our TV writers will publish some brief thoughts about the latest episode, and open the comments for readers to share theirs.
- So, the DoppelBruce is officially named “Five,” despite the fact that Stranger Things represents the peak of labeling mutants with their experiment number.
- An interesting (and even logical!) subplot: Cobblepot is challenging Aubrey James’ claim to the Mayor’s office. I’m always down for a good “criminal uses the system to his benefit” storyline, so consider me intrigued, at least for now.
- Less interesting subplot: whatever’s going on with new villain/hypnotist/future canon character Jervis Tetch and his poison-blood sister Alice. It’s hard to care about familial in-fighting when there’s no backstory or character building.
- It’s looking like Lee will be back working at the GCPD now that her fiancé Mario has found a job at Gotham’s hospital.
- Speaking of Mario, we learn that he’s the son of Carmine Falcone, and this seems to be of no concern for Lee.
- “Five” has some Bourne-like fighting skills he (it?) didn’t know about.
- Remember how I spent most of last season begging for Nygma and Cobblepot to be in more scenes together? Well, it’s all happening now, folks. Best moment of the episode by far is Nygma wondering why he was released from Arkham Asylum, only for Cobblepot to pop his head out of his car and deliver a jolly, “hello, old friend.” Beautiful.
- There’s not nearly enough Harvey Bullock in this episode. What has Gotham done to him this season?!?
- The DoppelBruce has chopped off his hair and is on the loose with a clueless Selina Kyle. Surely this will turn out just fine.
- The Selina-Bruce relationship remains one of the show’s only strong emotional nuances (outside of Cobblepot and Nygma, obviously). These two rely on and understand one another, to the point where even the smallest failure of character is treated as a personal slight. That’s a real, if sometimes complex, connection, and Gotham mostly does a good job of exploring how and why Bruce and Selina continue to confide in each other.
- Cobblepot’s campaign slogan: Make Gotham Safe Again.
- So, Valerie Vale is kind of a useless, empty character at the moment, huh?
Join the discussion...