The Ogre plot gets some unexpected twists, and we finally start having some big payoffs for key characters whose threads started way back with the series pilot. All of that, with the added bonus of that feeling we get in our guts – that, despite this being an origins series, not every single character has to make it out alive – makes for a more than enjoyable heart of the serial killer’s story.
Again, Gotham succeeds because it matches a strong character development with a well thought-out plot, playing with its big ensemble cast of characters and giving almost everyone their time to shine.
Once we left behind the Dollmaker subplot, as it sort of ended – for the time being – with Fish Mooney escape last episode from the villain-to-be island, we not only have one less subplot to worry about, but we have also closed a story that had important ups and downs. This was a very elaborate way for Mooney to get back the status and confidence she once had as a Mob leader in Gotham.
Therefore, this episode strikes fast and hard, going back to the best characters of the series and moving their stories forward at a dramatic pace.
Even if the Ogre (played by a creepy Milo Ventimiglia) is the big bad of the episode – playing his part at perfection, and gaining through the episode’s narrative a more three-dimensional feel, with a backstory which may explain his twisted persona – his establishing a weirder than usual tie with Barbara Kean (Erin Richards), former fiancée to main character Detective Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie), despite being so wrong on many levels; gets surpassed by Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) and the unexpected developments that take place in his perfectly-calculated plan.
With the return of a really missed Sal Maroni (played by the great David Zayas), Penguin’s world seems to crash and burn, as his intended prey makes a bold move and confronts him face to face. This breaks the pretty little bubble full of lies that both Oswald’s mum and he had built around them and his spectacular rise to stardom of the little boy; from “umbrella boy” to “club owner.”
Thanks to the great performance of these three actors, and the amazing ambience that permeates everything in the show, the breakdown of Gertrude Kappelput (Carol Kane) becomes much more dramatic, as now, for the first time maybe, she doesn’t trust her boy, but fears him. And with good reason, as we can see with Penguin’s final brutal act of violence.
There’s also some fun and tender moments in the relationship between Gordon and Dr. Leslie Tompkins (Morena Baccarin), and the way Jim bluntly confesses both his love to her and the way Gotham’s worst serial killer may be after her. We are remembered that subtlety is not Gordon’s strong suit, a fact that is only reinforced with his bold approach to the case, letting the media – and therefore the Ogre – know that the GCPD is starting a manhunt on the serial killer.
Though it is an old trick of the genre – using the media to get to the crazy bad guy – I loved that sequence; both Gordon’s statement to the press and the Ogre’s reaction.
However, another character that surprisingly steals the show is Edward Nygma (Cory Michael Smith), whose subplot of being bullied and tossed around for months reaches its inevitable climax. With one of the least hastily-developed supervillain origins of the show, it was a treat to finally see Nygma turn to the dark side. Sure, he had butchered a fellow forensic colleague before, but that was off-panel. This time, we really see it. And see it. And see it.
And last but not least, we follow Bruce (David Mazouz) as he continues through a dark journey to uncover the truth about who’s rotten in Wayne Industries, and who was responsible for Alfred (Sean Pertwee) getting stabbed by an old war comrade turned mercenary.
After seeing how Selina (Camren Bicondova) crossed a line he tells himself he won’t ever cross, aptly establishing what made these characters who they are with four brushes, he gets some work done, but the bigger reveal is left for next episode.
Gotham is speeding towards its finale. And it is doing so with a vengeance.