Plot: One of Bullock’s (Donal Logue) old cases comes back to haunt him as a copy cat killer known as the Spirit of the Goat starts kidnapping and killing the wealthy children of Gotham. Meanwhile, Montoya (Victoria Cartagena) may have the evidence she needs to arrest Gordon (Ben McKenzie) for “the killing” of Oswald (Robin Lord Taylor).
Gotham was a slow burn this week, but man were the payoffs worth it. What I loved most about this episode was the character focus on Harvey Bullock. So far we’ve only seen Bullock as the wisecracking jaded detective who falls in line with the corrupt system of Gotham. This week we got a glimpse into his past. When the same case that broke his spirit years ago returns with a vengeance, Bullock becomes a different detective – one who cares. There’s a fantastic scene where Bullock and Gordon think they have everything wrapped up, but this time it’s Bullock who wants to dig deeper into the case. Logue shows he’s more than just providing comic relief. You can see it all over his face. That piece of Bullock that was ripped away years ago briefly comes back. Not only did this episode build on Harvey’s character, but it improved on other characters who haven’t been working.
We haven’t seen too much from Corey Michael Smith’s Edward Nygma, but every time he’s popped up it hasn’t been stellar. The Riddler-isms are too much. This week, Nygma gets extended screen time and I’m happy to report this character is finally rounding into form. I always knew the actor could do the job, but he finally got the writing he deserved. There’s a brilliant scene between Nygma and a female coworker (Chelsea Spack). Smith was pure Riddler here: creepy, awkward, brilliant, funny, obsessed, and going off on tangents. They didn’t lay it on too thick though. It was the perfect balance. If that’s the Edward Nygma we’re going to get on this show, I’m on board.
Another character who struggled in the beginning of the series was Erin Richards as Barbara Keane, Gordon’s fiancé. The actress has really improved. She’s a much stronger character, and I’m starting to buy into their relationship.
The two characters who are not improving though are Montoya and her partner, Allen (Andrew Stewart-Jones). Not only are they unbelievably obnoxious, the acting flat out sucks. Cartagena is just awkward as Montoya, like the actress is unsure of herself. The one scene she was with Erin Richards was amateur hour. At least she’s not as bad as her partner. Seriously, this guy has to go. All he does is over act and make arrogant facial expressions. Please let Oswald kill this guy in brutal fashion or something.
Speaking of Oswald, we don’t see too much of him this episode, but I did like the awkward scenes with him and his mom (Carol Kane). I’m still not crazy about the mom character, but I love how deranged Oswald appears in those bath scenes. Robin Lord Taylor does a great job, but seriously, when is he not?
Despite a couple minor character gaffes, this was another great episode for Gotham. While the story was slow, I loved the payoff at the end, and the reveal of who the mastermind is, albeit a tad anti-climactic. The meaning of the Spirit of the Goat was also brilliant. We also get a near epic meeting between two iconic Batman characters! The real show stopper though was the last scene where shit really hits the fan. Tensions are flying high, a big secret is revealed – it was awesome, and a great way to tease next week’s episode.
P.S. Great Dan Hedaya cameo!
Rating: 8 out of 10 (Great)
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Daniel Cohen is the Film Editor for Pop-Break. Aside from reviews, Daniel does a weekly box office predictions column, and also contributes monthly Top Tens and Op-Ed’s on all things film. Daniel is a graduate of Bates College with a degree in English, and also studied Screenwriting at UCLA. He can also be read on www.movieshenanigans.com. His movie crush is Jessica Rabbit. Follow him on Twitter @dcohenwriter.
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