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TV REVIEWS: FTN Review Gotham Season 1 Episode 2: Selina Kyle

September 30th, 2014 by Todd Black Comments

After a very promising pilot, the question on everyone’s mind was whether the show would be able to keep up the interest in the plots and characters. All the while driving the story, and by extension the season, and keeping us involved. The second episode of Gotham, titled “Selina Kyle” delivered a very interesting story, and furthered arcs both big and small.

The “crime-of-the-week” featured some very creepy people kidnapping homeless kids in Gotham. The first attempt of which involved the murder of a homeless vet, which immediately got Gordon’s attention.

While child kidnapping isn’t anything new by TV standards, I enjoyed how it showed the true darkness of Gotham. As both Bullock, the captain, and even Mayor talked about how “no one cares” for these kids. A recurring theme this show has to harp on is the fact that Gotham is dark, gritty, and has no singular savior to stop stuff like this. In the “present day” with a fully grown Bruce this may have been changed for the better, but not here.

The coolest thing no doubt was the reveal that the person behind the kidnappings was New 52 villain “The Dollmaker”. Many fans of Arrow will recall the name as he appeared in Season 2 of the show, albeit with a very different MO. While it’s technically unclear whether this show is separate from the world of Arrow and Flash, it’s not hard to guess that this Dollmaker is different from the one from Arrow. As I said, it’s a different MO, and one that the endgame is still unclear on.

The true crux of “Selina Kyle” in my opinion though was the relationships between various characters. Numerous of which got highlights in the episode. Harvey and Bullock continue to butt heads as to how to do things. It’s great to see that even though Harvey saved Gordon’s life in the pilot, he’s not the loyal follower we know from the comics. That should be more of a progression, and it appears the show is doing just that.

A relationship that proved where the season may be headed was the scene between Don Carmine Falcone and Fish Mooney. We saw Mooney’s desire to rule Gotham in the pilot, and apparently Falcone heard about it, from one Oswald Cobblepot no less. The scene between the two was tense and showed just how ruthless Falcone can be. There’s a reason he was feared in the comics, and Gotham is showing that here.

On a more sentimental note, the relationship between Gordon, Bruce, and Alfred is slowing coming to light. And what a light it is. Bruce is still dealing with the loss of his parents, and Alfred is unsure how to stop him from being so reckless. Seeing him mention that Bruce is burning and cutting himself shows that Gotham isn’t going to shy away from the PTSD that Bruce is somewhat suffering from. It also isn’t afraid to show that Alfred isn’t yet the loving butler we all know him as.

A curious thing that I liked was Bruce’s desire at the end to help the kids. And his confusion as to why giving money “wouldn’t work”. No doubt this will lead to him trying to discover how “Gotham works” as seen in the trailer for the upcoming season.

Finally the relationship between Gordon and Barbara Kean got some more spotlight, and seeing Barbara try and help Gordon despite him telling her not to was fun. I’m not sure how much Barbara will influence the overall plot, but having her be Gordon’s anchor is a nice thing to have in a show that will lead to Gordon’s rise to Commissioner.

No doubt you are wondering, what about Selina Kyle? Who the episode was named after? Well truth be told she honestly didn’t have much to do for much of the episode. At the end though, she dropped the bombshell that many, including myself, wondered about. She knows who killed the Waynes.

I want to give props to Camren Bicondova, who played Selina (or Cat, as she likes to be known as). In her few scenes she showed the personality of Selina that many of us were wanting or know of. Fiesty, careful, a fighter, a survivor (“you have no idea”), and one who will do what is necessary to get what she wants. I hope she gets a lot more scenes in the future, especially with Gordon, or possibly Bruce, as it will lead to fun no doubt.

There were other interesting tidbits in the episode, Cobblepot began his journey to Gotham with a bloodbath. Montoya and Allen tried to find out what happened to him by going to his mother. It’s good to Montoya shown as another honest cop, especially with how many know her via both the comics and the animated show she was in (Batman TAS!). Hopefully this’ll eventually lead to a team-up with Gordon. Time will tell I guess.

In the end, “Selina Kyle” kept the show moving in a positive direction. Highlighting both story and characters, all the while delivering some surprises along the way. It’s still unknown how the show will do in the long run, but the start seems to indicate it’ll do just fine.

Todd Black is reader of comics, a watch of TV (a LOT of TV), and a writer of many different mediums. He's written teleplays, fan-fictions, and currently writes a comic book called Guardians (guardians-comic.com). He dreams of working at Nintendo, writing a SHAZAM! TV series, and working on Guardians for a very long time!