Batwoman
"Batwoman" is being a bit of a slow burn. I'm not sure if that is great when we are talking about a CW superhero show. But here we are. So, let's take a look at how Kate Kane is doing as she appropriates the mantle of her cousin.
Episode 2: "The Rabbit Hole"
Batwoman: "You're going to tell me everything you know about Alice."
Chuck Dodgson: "I thought you were Batman."
Batwoman: "You wish."
Kate is convinced that Alice is Beth. Jacob is not. Kate goes out of her way to prove that she's correct. Alice continues to goad Kate until they have a confrontation in a park near a childhood waffle stand. Kate has flashbacks to she and Jacob trying to locate Beth after the accident. Mary continues to operate her underground clinic and Catherine is up to something.
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| "I'm Batman, er Batwoman." |
This episode is basically part two of the pilot and if you read that synopsis and thought "Wow, that feels like a stretch for a 42 minute episode of television," you'd be absolutely correct.
That's the biggest issue with this episode. Not a lot happens. There's about 10 minutes of story in this episode and it is pretty boring. The episode is padded with these flashbacks showing Jacob and Kate trying to find Beth after the accident until her remains are supposedly found. I understand the intent of the flashbacks. Alice believes that Kate gave up on her, but Kate clearly didn't. I'm not sure why Arrowverse shows are so obsessed with flashbacks but there are better ways to get this across. It feels really lazy and every time a flashback started, I audibly groaned.
The show is still finding its way with the characters. The majority of them are just thinly sketched archetypes right now. I will give the writers some credit. They are trying. Having Mary running this underground medical clinic helps add some depth to what you initially thought was just some Kyle Jenner-esque, social media influencer airhead. Catherine is another character that desperately needs to be fleshed out and making her some sinister figure working with the criminal element is not doing it for me. It was very predictable. I'm not sure what happened between episodes 1 and 2, but whatever chemistry Sophie and Kate had is completely gone. The scenes between them were borderline painful. If we are supposed to root for these two, then that chemistry needs to be rekindled stat.
One thing the show is doing right is continuing to have scenes with Kate and Alice together. That is a relationship that really pops. Ruby Rose and Rachel Skarsten sizzle and play off each other astoundingly well. If Alice is going to be the season long villain, they need to continue this because it is working. I really enjoyed that Alice immediately knew that Kate was Batwoman. It felt really true and is a nice change of pace from a season long dance that doesn't feel realistic.
There are some weird CGI things in this episode that I don't understand. The obvious fake backgrounds when Kate is on her motorcycle are so bad they are distracting and why couldn't they use a real bat at the end?
This episode was really lacking in action sequences. Batwoman's rescue of Mary at the clinic was weirdly anticlimactic and they attempted murder of Alice was cool but again, it felt tacked on. Like, oh man, we've wasted so much time on these flashbacks so we have to do something.
"Batwoman's" second episode is kind of a momentum killer, but the promise of better things to come keeps you engaged and excited for what comes next.
Grade: C+
Episode 3: "Down Down Down"
Regan: [To Kate about Tommy Elliott] "Danger. Hazardous waste. Thinks he's doing us all a favor when he really just helps fund the laws that are separating our city... Gotham, am I right?"
Alice: [seeing Kate in her new Batwoman suit] "Red wig? And I'm the crazy one."
Kate is having a hard time. She can't decide if she wants to continue bearing the mantle of the bat after working Gotham into a lather. She is having a hard time reconciling that Alice may be Beth, but she's not the Beth that Kate remembers. She's struggling seeing Sophie with her husband, but she does meet a hot bartender named Regan. It's not the best time for Bruce Wayne's childhood friend/rival, Tommy Elliott, to show up, buy a building taller than Wayne Tower and start a new gated community policed by the Crows. Oh and a rail gun that can penetrate Batman's armor has also been stolen.
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| Is someone looking for... revenge? |
Before we dive too deep into this episode, I wanted to mention something that I have meant to and keep forgetting. Rachel Maddow is great as Vesper Fairchild. I love her snarky radio broadcasts and it's a great tweak on her serious news persona. She's like the Gossip Girl of "Batwoman" and I say that with nothing but love and admiration. And much like Gossip Girl, I hope we never see her in the flesh, but I do hope that she continues to be a presence on the show as long as it's on the air.
Now that that's out of the way, let's talk about the episode. This is what I'm talking about. This episode is much more exciting and I love that the show is already introducing some Bat villains to challenge Kate.
Hello, Tommy Elliott. "Revenge's" Gabriel Mann brings the Bat villain Hush to the small screen. The show keeps Tommy's comic book origins basically the same. Tommy is a friend of Bruce Wayne who becomes obsessed with competing with him and grows to resent him and Batman when Batman saves his mother and he's forced to care for her. Mann brings a great creepy, manic energy to Elliott. Even though he heads to Arkham at the end of the episode, I'm hopeful that we get to see his full transformation into Hush.
Last episode, I was complaining about some of the characterization outside of Kate and Alice but the show steps it up by switching some people around. Sophie is charged with being Mary's bodyguard and it really brings out the best in both characters. There is a lot of potential here and I'm excited to see where it goes. That being said, the show could really go a little farther with de-blanding Sophie's husband. In fact, I couldn't really remember his name and didn't care enough to look it up on Wikipedia. Until he stops being walking, talking white bread, I will only refer to him as Sophie's husband.
Regan is clearly just a stop gap until Sophie and Kate get back together, but she is delightful. So, I'll allow it. Catherine is still acting shady and now she's getting playing cards from Alice. They need to hurry this up.
Kate finally embraces the Batwoman identity in this episode and debuts her costume, which I love. There's some solid actions sequences in this episode with the elevators. The show makes a smart decision by not having Kate steamroll Elliott. It's clear she is still learning and I hope that continues. Even Batman had a learning curve. There's some new gadgets. I love the sonic gloves or whatever they are.
Batwoman makes her official debut, gets a girlfriend and a new nemesis in an action packed third episode.
Grade: B+
Now that Batwoman is officially Batwoman let's hope that the show continues to get better and better. What did you guys think? Are you all the way on board? Who's your favorite character? Let me know in the comments.
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