“Gotham” wrapped up its second season last week with “Transference.” But after a string of strong episodes, I found the finale disappointing, raggedy in its plotting and lacking the pop of the previous year’s cliffhanger.
Per the Court of Owls’ orders, Dr. Strange’s goal for the hour is to clean up and clear out Indian Hill. Strange avoids a raid of Arkham Asylum by sending Clayface-as-Gordon (Gorface? Clayon?) to talk down the cops. Ms. Peabody is charged with prepping the patients for transfer to their upstate facility, with the Court insistent that these monsters never see the light of day again, “under any circumstances, at any cost.” And while Nygma handles the questioning of Bruce and Lucius, Strange himself injects Gordon with a truth serum and interrogates him about what he knows.
This “therapy session” is actually a bit interesting. The drug Strange administers dials down Gordon’s constant angry braying and allows him to softly give voice to the guilt that’s been driving him (between this and getting to let loose portraying Clayface-as-Gordon, I bet Ben McKenzie enjoyed filming this one as he got to play some different notes for a change). The talk about Gordon’s father – we heard a bit about him last season too, mostly from Falcone – was intriguing. And he also apologized to Bruce for being arrogant and lamented what a fool he’s been, which I personally enjoyed.
But so many of the plot pieces throughout felt disjointed, leaving me with a lot of questions. Why was Strange so worried that Gordon and/or Bruce knew about the Court of Owls when neither had given any indication that they thought Strange had a boss? It’s a common genre trope, but why was so much time wasted on the false drama of Bruce and Lucius being gassed, especially since the very next scene saw them wake up totally fine in Gordon’s cell and make lighthearted comments about it? Why did Strange let Selina live for even one second, and why was she allowed to go talk to Bruce et al? Why were Mr. Freeze and Firefly just hanging around, besides so they could have a brief but visually cool fight? Why, after the lengths she went to to find her friend, did Selina show no regard for Bridgit when she (and Freeze) disappear in the aftermath? And finally, how the heck did Strange survive getting blasted by both Freeze’s ice gun and Firefly’s flamethrower?
Now, I know some of these questions might seem nitpicky. But I wouldn’t have had time to think of them if this episode had been entertaining or engaging me. And it just didn't.
And then, ugh, Barbara. Her being the one to realize that Clayface-as-Gordon was a fake felt right, given her past relationship with Gordon and her present obsession with him. But her reappearance here makes no sense. Apparently, she’s now best buddies with the Penguin, advising him on where in his house he should place his stepmother’s rotting head and going to the GCPD station to help Oswald find Strange. Uh...okay? It’s all just a huge contrivance to shoehorn the character back in.
On the plus side, Strange survives the episode so hopefully we’ll see B.D. Wong again next season. And a woozy Ms. Peabody’s request for water is what enables Gordon and Lucius to diffuse the bomb under the asylum. Therefore, Ms. Peabody saved the day!
Meanwhile, complicating matters for all involved is Fish Mooney. Once she’s able to get her hands on Ms. Peabody, Fish makes it clear that she’s not interested in being another mad scientist’s captive. Fish eventually ends up being the wheel of the transport containing the Indian Hill patients, but while she’s able to outrun the police, her getaway is foiled by Butch with yet another huge gun. Robin Lord Taylor and Drew Powell then do nice work as their characters come face-to-face with Fish, who puts the whammy on Penguin, allows Butch to flee into the night, and then slinks off into the shadows. So I’d expect to see Fish next season, as she’ll no doubt want to rebuild her criminal empire while the Court of Owls will be after the secrets in her mutated DNA.
So how does the show leave things as the season ends? Gordon decides now is the time to go after Leslie so, because he’s kind of a dick, he steals Bullock’s car and takes off. To Alfred’s exasperation and Selina’s amusement, Bruce wants to go after the “secret council” that was backing Strange. And a kindly homeless woman unlocks the Indian Hill bus, letting a slew of monsters loose that will no doubt terrorize Gotham and “Gotham” next season. One of whom looks just like Bruce, but with longer hair. I think this Bruce lookalike cliffhanger was supposed to be a bigger deal, but it fell extremely flat for me.
That’s a wrap on season two of “Gotham!” What did you think of the finale, and the season as a whole? What Batman villain are you hoping to see on the show next year? Before you start your summer hiatus, please come share your thoughts and speculations in the comments section.
