TV REVIEWS: FTN Reviews Batwoman Season 2 Episode 10: Time Off For Good Behavior

I have a shocking announcement…I liked this episode of Batwoman. I know right? Look, I know I’ve been hard on the second season, and the reason for that is because I really do feel the writing team and the showrunner made some bad calls in terms of how to handle Kate and they haven’t done Ryan Wilder any favors in terms of making her stand out in a meaningful way. They’ve tried to go big and missed more than they’ve hit, so it’s ironic that the more “by the numbers” story of “Time Off For Good Behavior” is the episode that I feel did her the most favors…aside from some things that honestly weren’t her fault.

As I noted last review, I liked the idea of Ryan making her own rules to try and be a different Batwoman, including doing more community service work to try and make Gotham better. This episode kicked that off by showing the rising of that community center via Sophie’s sister…and of course something happening to it right away.

Usually, I would’ve lamented this because it was “too easy” a story, but they made it work for the most part by tying it into a major corruption story and showcasing how far some will go to NOT help at-risk youths. Something that is very prevalent in today’s world.

Meanwhile, Ryan doing everything she could to get Angelique to rat out the False Face Society was good because they could’ve easily just let that one go. But instead, they tied it to two different stories as Angelique trusted Ryan enough to do the deed…and then Black Mask got her in order to keep making Snakebite as she was the only one in reach to keep making the drug. So now she’ll be trying to save her once again and that could lead to more compelling stories.

Furthermore, the False Face Society and Roman Sionis getting Jacob Kane hooked on Snakebite could’ve been a dumb move (and it certainly started that way in terms of how Jacob handled it at first) but with how it weaved in with Roman, the newly revealed Enigma, Beth/Alice, and now Mary, you can see why he would revert to the Snakebite after only a few triggers. Where this goes for him…I’m not sure, but it will be interesting to see as his life likely breaks apart.

Alice and Julia’s team-up was all kinds of fun if short-lived, but Alice is truly driven to go and forget her family and that could make her even more dangerous depending on how it goes.

So…what didn’t work? A few things. First off, how did Luke get from the Batcave to the prison site in seconds flat? Second, while I think they were teasing a KGBeast connection with those “Kilavolt Guns”…considering the other places destroyed were done by fire and bullets…why did this guy go so high-tech to destroy the next one? Also, I am NOT happy with how they’re getting rid of Julia Pennyworth. I pray she gets brought back because she’s too great a character to be left on the sidelines after the shuffling that’s gone on.

Finally, the new girl at the community center is clearly being setup as another love interest for Ryan and…why do we need that?

In the end though, “Time Off For Good Behavior” was a very solid entry and something that makes me hopeful for what COULD happen in the rest of season 2. But as in all things…we’ll have to wait and see how it goes.