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Batwoman: Down Down Down

"Down, down, down. Would the fall never come to an end?"

This episode was basically the coming out party for Batwoman. We got the full costume reveal and a potential new love interest for Kate.

It also played out as more of a straight up mystery of the week, with a new villain introduced stealing Wayne Tech for a nefarious plan. Straight out of the comics plot, it was clear Tommy, Bruce Wayne’s best friend, was behind it. The resolution was also very Batman, with Tommy getting sent to Arkham Asylum instead of prison. I'm not sure how I feel about the suit being bullet proof, but every version of Batman has its quirks (like rubber nipples).

Alice continues to be an enigma, and while her motivations are fairly clearly drawn, her plans are quite the opposite. She also has a deep connection to Kate, and a seeming unwillingness to hurt her sister. While she was never going to keep her promise not to kill, she was almost begging for that ultimatum from Kate. Will she continue to kill, continue to push her sister away, or will she eventually give in and embrace the redemption that Kate is offering?

It is very likely too early to expect any actual growth from Alice; she is likely going to be a character we see develop over the course of this season. Yet she was hardly the only character we learned more about here. Mary continues to be a highlight, with her hero moment coming as soon as she saw people were hurt. The same can be said of Luke, who is reluctantly starting to get into being Kate’s behind-the-scenes sidekick, even though I'm not really warming to him as a character yet.

Jacob and Catherine also had some interesting screen time, Catherine is being teased as a potential big bad. Her involvement in what happened to Beth seems like the biggest mystery of the season, and I cannot imagine it will remain unsolved all season. Additionally, as Shari noted in one of the comments from last week’s episode, Catherine (Kate’s stepmother) was the one who found the skull fragments confirming Beth’s death. It is an easy jump to imagine that she planted that evidence to make everyone believe that Beth had died.

Then there’s Reagan who seemed to appear out of nowhere as a potential love interest for Kate, with quippy dialogue and an instant chemistry with our lead. By the end of the episode they are already going on a date, set up in front of Sophie for dramatic effect. It helps that Reagan is played by Brianne Howey, who played a significant role in the cancelled vampire apocalypse show The Passage. I liked her in that show, and I already like her here. Let's hope she isn’t evil or killed off in the next episode.

Bits:

Alice destroying the Batsignal was a good narrative choice to symbolize that Batman is now out of the picture, even if it was a bit on the nose.

Mary in the elevator scene watching Sophie and Tommy talk about Kate was priceless.

Using red on the Bat suit to symbolize Kate and Beth’s birthstone is a nice touch.
Alice looking at the old crumpled map of Kate’s search for her sister felt important.

Quotes:

Alice: "I guess it's broken. It's supposed to call Batman."
Kate: "What do you want?"
Alice: "What happened to your bat suit knockoff, Kate? Too tight, no give… or did you just realize that you accidentally blew a dog whistle that you can't unblow?"

Sophie: "Late night?"
Mary: "Sophie. Hey. If you're looking for Kate, she's not here. In fact, she rarely comes home. You know, I wouldn't be surprised if she was dating again. Seeing as she's single… and gorgeous… and emotionally available."

Alice: "A red wig? And I'm the crazy one."

Not a great episode, it was again an improvement over the first two.

3 out of 4 Shiny new costumes

Samantha M. Quinn spends most of her time in front of a computer typing away at one thing or another; when she has free time, she enjoys pretty much anything science fiction or fantasy-related.

6 comments:

  1. I liked this one more than than the first two. I especially liked Kate with Reagan -- like you, J.D., I'm really hoping that she sticks around because there was a lot more chemistry between Kate and Reagan than Kate and Sophie. I absolutely loved Kate's outfit at the party, especially the nonsymmetrical earrings. And Mary was terrific. More Mary too, please.

    Enjoyed your review!

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  2. Good review J.D., thanks.

    I admit that I had seen all the Arrowverse's series pilots, but never got attached o interested in any. Well, meaby Flash and Supergirl for a little while but it didn't last. (I was looking to scrath that Smallville itch but in the end I couldn't get engage). I always try to see the crossover specials though. But for some reason I liked Batwoman. Since the moment I saw de Elseworld crossover she hooked me. I dont know why. Is like you said, is not great but there is room for improvement, it has potencial. I think I like more the concept than the series itself right now. So I will stick around. And of course I love Ruby Rose, so thats a plus. (I read she even got injured during filmig and almost got paralized! O_O So you can tell she is committed to the role)

    Thank again for the review. Keep them coming.

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  3. Alice is already one of my favourite Arrowverse villains ever.

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  4. Thanks Juan, I agree there is something in this series that is appealing a different way. I am hoping that the upward trend in quality continues.

    Anonymous, I wouldn't quite call her my favorite villain yet. However, she is pretty great so far.

    The earrings were awesome Billie.

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  5. Batwoman just got a full season pickup on The CW.

    https://tvline.com/2019/10/25/batwoman-full-season-1-order-episode-count-the-cw/

    ReplyDelete

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