Gotham 1.21 “The Anvil or the Hammer”

One episode before the big finale, Gotham’s writers have decided to really stomp on the gas, giving us an exciting anticipation of the big closing of the first season of the Bruno Heller-helmed Batman origins series.

The episode delivers in every way, not wasting a single scene and picking up all the threads that were still in the air, and that most of us thought were going to be left dangling until the final showdown.

This time around, the plot did a great job of balancing each character’s stories, giving each of them their time to get a proper closure. It’s a high-stakes, no prisoners taken approach, and it left a great taste in my mouth by the end.

Let’s see what we got, shall we?

The Ogre (played by a disturbed and disturbing Milo Ventimiglia) develops a big crush on Barbara Kean (Erin Richards), who seems dazed all throughout the episode, which, frankly, felt a little annoying. This is a character that has been given her time to shine several times but, to me, has never really caught on with the rhythm of the series, always moving at her own pace.

It is left a bit unclear if she’s attracted to the murderous dark side of the Ogre, though, judging by her actions towards her parents – that will still need to be addressed – left almost dead at her hands, it is obvious something’s very wrong with her.

It is a pity that the Ogre’s story ends with this episode, as Ventimiglia had really given a breath of fresh – and cold as death – air to the series and its stable of characters. Though DC is all about legacies, so who knows…

Detective Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie), on the other hand, is so bent on getting the Ogre to prevent another murder, that he doesn’t have a clue about the upcoming mob war until it’s all over the news. As Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) had planned all along, a really pissed of Sal Maroni (David Zayas), is led to believe that it was Falcone (John Doman) who put the hit on him and his men. That’s all it takes. The spark needed to light the fuse of the impending mob war was small and calculated, with Penguin laughing – so far – at how well everyone has played into his plan.

Penguin is the best character of the show another time around, as he plays everyone and in the meantime manages to get another favor out of Gordon – as if one wasn’t enough trouble for the detective!

The writers also tackle, in a very fun and creepy way, the very logical and unstoppable way that Edward Nygma (Cory Michael Smith) loses his grip on sanity and reality, even laughing with pride at his own genius, after solving the problem of the dead – and dismembered – body that once was a cop who regularly used to beat Nygma’s platonic love interest, Ms. Kristen Kringle (Chelsea Spack).

I love how the show has left the best Nygma moments for the ending. They were long overdue.

We meet Bruce (David Mazouz) and are hurt, just like him, to see him suffer, hearing how his father’s memory and figure is tarnished, thanks to one of the most crooked members of the Wayne Enterprises Board; whose trail the little best detective had followed without an ounce of fear. Alfred (Sean Pertwee) plays a smaller role this time around, but an important one, as his strong presence urges Bruce to be up-front about all that he’s been doing behind Alfred’s back.

And, still on the Wayne side of things, we are reminded that not all of it is crooked, with the short but sweet introduction of a really young Lucius Fox (Chris Chalk) who tells the kid not to worry, and gives him the first hint that the Waynes live secret lives, dead father included.

There’s just one more episode to go, the grand finale, and from the look of things, it is going to be a doozy!