hombre , I ’m apprehensive that I have been instantly Stockholm Syndromed by Gotham , much as the malefic Ogre did to our non - beloved Barbara Kean . Because I really kind of liked “ The Anvil or the Hammer ” — or at least part of it . The mad portion , specifically .
Please do n’t mistake me for think this was a honest episode . It was n’t . The writing and plotting was just as bad as it has been , but at least occasionally this fourth dimension it was entertainingly bad . For illustration , there ’s nothing ace - electropositive I can say about the show ’s decision to string up out the meager Ogre storyline to three full episodes . However , I did appreciate several thing about this calendar week ’s installment . For example , I enjoyed that the search for the Ogre required Bullock to pass through a sex activity order directly out of Frank Miller ’s troubled vision , which had to be sanitized for primetime Fox consultation . The end result was that it included a dude hold out nothing but a bunny mask and a diaper getting publically spanked . [ Correction : He was being fed milk , not spanked . My apology for the fault , and the fact this scene happened at all . ]
Now , as you ’ll recall last episode , the Ogre brought Barbara to his sex donjon and we saw a grinning creep across her face . Was the psychologically break Barbara move to embrace evil and become a villainess ? ! Alas , no . She ’s just into kinky sex ( and good for her ) . Unfortunately , the next dawning the Ogre take out his “ halt or I will down you ” routine , and Babs has a pretty normal reaction to discovering she just slept with a sociopath .
I was worried that Barbara would just be another damsel - in - distress , but here ’s where Gotham cast off me a curveball . Barbara initially resist him , but eventually the Ogre render her an ultimatum — name someone for him to kill , or he ’ll kill her . Barbara whispers a name to him . Gordon would seem to be the target , but as it ’s shortly revealed , Barbara in reality told him to kill her parents — her terrible , terrible parents who appear for 30 seconds for one episode like three calendar month ago , and who crapped on their emotionally vulnerable daughter the minute she asked if she could stay with them for a while . Do you know what that think of ? It think one of Barbara ’s unnumberable prospect of being abandoned by every single somebody in her life story actually pay up off .
And that ’s not even the best part ! The undecomposed part is that the Ogre has transform Barbara into a willing captive , one who tells Jim “ Just provide us alone ! ” even as the Ogre has a knife to her throat in their eventual point of view - off . Barbara , who avowedly has never been the emotionally strongest type even at the beginning of the series — when she had a romantic partner , a job , dignity , a sense of self - worth — has somehow get Stockholm Syndrome in less than 24 hours with her captor , and a decent chunk of that was before he reveal he was a liquidator , and they were merely having consensual sex together . Good authorship ? Absolutely not . Entertaining ? Yes , I think so .
While the show ’s other disparate storylines continued to stay stubbornly unconnected , either by game or by theme , there were a few pleasant surprise here , too .
• Penguin take up a bunch war between Maroni and Falcone by hiring Falcone ’s # 1 gun to stop by Maroni ’s favored eating place ( which Penguin bought last sequence ) after hiding gas pedal in there . The gadget that the Penguin withdraw the firing pen from the guns so the gunmen would get killed and Falcone would be charge is standard Gotham giddiness ( the Penguin work for Falcone , and Maroni hat Penguin anyways . Why on Earth does Cobblepot cogitate this feint will somehow keep him off the come-on ? ) but it appear the long , recollective , long - simmer crew stuff and nonsense is finally going to actually get somewhere , so that ’s nice .
• Bruce ’s elaborate parody with Bunderslaw ’s safe tonality is meaningless , in Gotham ’s other standard . Bunderslaw knew Bruce was coming , and tell him that his father bang about Wayne Enterprises ’ fly-by-night dealings and was okay with it . However , Bruce meets a young employee name Lucius Fox who hints that Wayne Sr . might have only been playing along . I do n’t see this going anywhere the comics have n’t cover advertizement nauseum , but see TV ’s young Bruce grapple with the idea that his father might not be a saint has a flock of possible drama , even if Gotham does n’t choose to use it .
• And last but shockingly not least , the Riddler prove to be interesting for the 2nd week in a row ! He continues to show absolutely no remorse about murdering Dougherty , and has suddenly transformed from one - dimensional nerd - in - would - be - shining - armour to a more or less compelling villain . He has zero remorse about hacking up Dougherty ’s eubstance , stuffing it in two uproariously huge grip and bringing them to GCPD ( which is ludicrous , but a very Gotham - appropriate move ) to dispose of it . He even happily smash Dougherty ’s skull in with a hammer so it ’s harder to identify . Best of all , he write a letter to Ms. Kringle , pretending to be Dougherty and say he ’s leave town — a note in which Nygma hides his name as the first letter of each prison term . It ’s not shockingly ingenious , but it actually serves as the first clue given by a man who would subsequently become a villain obsessed with leaving clue for people to captivate him , and it ’s actually interesting ! Seriously !
Next hebdomad is Gotham ’s season one finale , so I ’m going to take this episode ’s increased craziness as a good sign . If nothing else , the show has spent so much time linger with its innumerable plot lines that the finale should be action - packed . So even if it is n’t good , per se , it still has a blame decent chance of being think about . I ’ll take it .
Assorted Musings :
So I think this last prison term , but this episode confirmed it : The Ogre ’s sexual practice room had a lot of weapons in it — weapons like axes . I ’m reasonably sure someone at the show accept the set phrase “ sex dungeon ” way too literally . That enounce , if any of you go for adults use giant axes in your sexuality caper , my excuse .
I ’ve get to include , I got a little thrill when Lucius Fox popped up . I think that ’s because Gotham inclose him nonchalantly and did n’t force a big , goofy instalment around him . I hope he continues to show up .
Kid or not , I feel like Bruce should have full access to Wayne Enterprises any clock time he damn well pleases .
Oh ! Bruce concede to Alfred that Selina killed Reggie , and Alfred could not give care less about the murder of his close-fitting ally . He ’s infinitely more concerned about the Bunderslaw / safe hokum at Wayne Enterprises . Seriously , you guys , Dexter had more empathy for his dupe than Gotham ’s Alfred does for … well , anybody other than Bruce .
Adventures in Gotham writers failing to understand how human existence speak : “ She ’s as safe as Milk River . ”
More dangerous undertaking in Gotham writers failing to realise how human existence verbalize : “ HEY , JERKO . ”
adventure in Gotham lines that genuinely made me laugh : Nygma : “ Sometimes with men you need to read between the lines . ”Ms . Kringle : “ Sometimes with men you necessitate a drink . ”
Gordon continue to curl the crappy drawing of a generic livid gallant from 10 years ago around , and people somehow still now discern it as Milo Ventimiglia . I made my wife , who was not look out the show but knows Milo from Gilmore Girls , take care at the drawing and severalize me who she thought it expect like . Her solvent : “ Maybe Ben McKenzie ? But that may just be because he ’s holding the drawing . ”
So that shot of the fireplace unwrap a surreptitious something - or - other in Stately Wayne Manor that was in the “ Next calendar week On ” preview ? It was in last week ’s preview , too . I ’m calling it mighty now : This is the final shot of next week ’s season finale , which ends with Bruce and Alfred looking down the unavowed musical passage , but not unveil what ’s in it — on the dot like the hatch in the Lost season one stopping point . I ’d have sex to be wrong , but I do n’t opine I am .
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