I liked that episode better than the pilot. It did have a plot of its own, which is good. The plot itself, however, was not something earth-shattering or especially great. Still, one has to count his blessings.
I'm starting to really like Selina in this show. Well, during the pilot, her presence felt random, forced and unnecessary, but they are trying to make her an important character and... so far, so good. On one hand I applaud this, as she is very much a central figure in the Batman mythos, so getting to see her early years and adventures is cool. On the other hand, though, I'm still not sold on the idea to make her connected to Bruce and Gordon in such a way. I mean, I get it, the show has its own universe and storylines, much like the Burton/Schumacher and Nolan films did, so certain story inventions and changes are pretty much inevitable. I do get that. But still, I can't help but think that Selina's character would be even better if she stood on her own instead of being tied into Batman's origin and Jimbo's investigations.
Speaking of origins, it seems that the Penguin is starting to take form... Unfortunately... the form I'm starting to make out is not much like the Penguin I know and expect. Honestly, the actor is great, but the character himself is starting to feel very much like... I don't know, like Black Mask or the Joker. Too psychotic, too much hands-on cruelty... Not that the Penguin is supposed to be a gentle flower, but he's not an unhinged serial killer either. I don't know. I guess we'll wait and see. Like I said, the actor is great and, if nothing else, it will be fun to watch him take down the mob.
Riddler still had a cameo and I'm still not sure how I feel about it. This time we didn't see Poison Ivy, but we did hear about the Dollmaker. So it pretty much evens out. Still, at least to my knowledge, Dollmaker is not that big of a deal nor is he an exclusively Batman's villain, so maybe I'll let that pass. I mean, sure, I get the idea that Batman's baddies had lives and crime-careers of their own before Bruce donned the cape, but just... connecting everything at once... that's the part that gives me trouble. I mean, come on, look at this:
The Waynes are murdered, whole thing reeks of conspiracy, the mob is acting fishy, Batman's origin -> Selina witnesses everything -> While investigating, Gordon starts working with the Riddler -> trying to find the killer, Gordon and Bullock kill Poison Ivy's dad -> but the mob and the Penguin framed Poison Ivy's dad so he can take the fall -> Penguin ratted Mooney out, and as a result he barely got out alive -> Selina is captured by the Dollmaker's goons, Gordon saves her, so now she's going to trade information regarding the Wayne murder...
And so on, and on. And that's, like, two episodes. I know that it's actually a normal structure for a TV show, but connecting everything like that feels very strange in a Batman universe. Especially in one where Bruce won't be Batman for the next 10 years.
Anyways, back to the episode. Harvey Bullock is once again the cooler cop of the duo. I'm still not feeling Gordon as Gordon. He's a fine generic good guy, though, so maybe it will get better in time. But they just have to write his character in a more Gordon-y way.
Bruce and Alfred are once again interesting on the fringe of things. I know that this show is not meant to be Batman Begins for TV, but nonetheless I'm glad they're seem to realize that you just can't cut Wayne completely out of the equation.
So, overall, decent episode. Had it's moment. The Dollmaker's goons seemed like a fun villainous duo, Selina and the Penguin got more spotlight. The episode itself seemed slightly more focused.
So far, so good. I'm not giving up on the show quite yet.
(YEAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!)
