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‘Gotham’ Recap “A Dark Knight: Pax Penguina”

Finally, we have the return of Gotham after being teased for weeks with some pretty awesome trailers.  I’m pretty happy with how they continued right where we left off.  After Gotham being exposed to the virus, Bruce feels like he is responsible.  He takes it upon himself to help save the city he loves.

While over looking the city, Bruce sees a family being held at gun point.  He jumps off the roof and gives them one chance to walk away.  All while having what we would call “the Batman voice” going on.  Since the men stand their ground, Bruce ending up fighting them.  One of the men tells Bruce he has a license.  He grabs it from the mans pocket.  On the license reads “License of Misconduct” with an umbrella stamped at the bottom.  Guessing it’s the works of Penguin.  Bruce hears someone on the steps.  He looks up to find no one in sight.  Of course he has his mask off at this time too.  He leaves the scene of the crime with the license in hand.  A man opens the door, and watches Bruce walk away.

At the scene of what seems to be a perfect wedding, a group of thugs breaks in.  They begin to take items from the guests.  While doing this, we hear “excuse me” coming from Victor Zsasz.  He was just passing by since he heard the commotion. He informs them that they need a license from Penguin in order to commit a crime anymore.  Proving he is not messing around when he is “outnumbered,” Zsasz shoots the mans finger off.  No license, no crime.  They are told to drop the loot and leave.  The bride thanks Zsasz for taking care of the thugs.  When Zsasz brings his group of thugs in to take the loot.  The people at the wedding can’t believe what is happening.

At the Mayors office, the mayor thanks Penguin for helping keep the town safe.  Crime in Gotham is now down 55 percent.  Penguin wants to unionize crime.  He makes it clear to the mayor that he is the one who has kept Gotham safe, not the GCPD.   Gotham will always have crime, which is why Penguin wants to give out the license.  If a person has a license, the GCPD is to leave them alone.  Penguin leaves heading to the opening of his club, ‘The Iceburg Lounge.’

When Jim walks into his corner bar for some coffee in the morning, he sees the place being robbed.  Though the robber doesn’t make a big deal of it, and neither does Jim.  The man tells him he has a license, which Jim pays no mind to.  Putting the man in cuffs, Jim takes his coffee to go.

'Gotham' Recap "A Dark Knight: Pax Penguina"
Image: Foxare

He takes the man down to the GCPD.  When all of the officers look at Jim as if he is nuts for bringing someone in.  Harvey is speaking to a man that they will honer the license.  He can’t really argue being that crime has been down in Gotham.  Jim goes to speak to Harvey about it, but he pretty much gets ignored.  Jim is shocked to know that Harvey is playing along with the Penguin.  Penguin took control of the underworld and it has changed Gotham.  Jim’s biggest concern is what happens when someone murders another, while having a license.  Harvey doesn’t say much, but he makes the license clear to Jim.

Bruce shows Alfred the license that he had taken off of the man.  He wants to make a difference in Gotham, which is why he started wearing a mask.  Alfred explains to him that it is going to be messy and dangerous.  He just needs to trust Bruce with his instinct.

Over at Arkham, the thugs who were at the wedding are there looking to see someone.  The warden takes them to see a kid.  This inmate creates a boogie man figure from what the warden tells them.  They give money to the warden and off they take Jonathan.  On the floor of his cell, is a charcoal drawing of a scarecrow.

The thugs take Jonathan to a house, where they lift up floor boards on the porch to find Jon’s fathers work.  The box has potions in it.  They force Jonathan into making the fear juice.  To keep him company, they bring out a scarecrow which freak Jon out.

The thugs walk into a bank with gas masks on.  While trying to take the money, they spray people in the face with the fear juice, setting them off.  When the GCPD comes into the crime scene, Jim makes it known to Harvey that they do not have a license for this.  With the way that the people are acting, Jim tells Harvey he believes it’s Crane’s formula.  Harvey knows Crane is dead, but Jim reminds him that his son is not.  They head over to Arkham to see if Jon is still there, but he can not be seen.  Harvey and Jim threaten the warden with Zsasz.  After being threaten he tells them where to go.  They head over the the thugs hide out.  Harvey and Jim get knocked out by them.  It was like the were warned.  The leader of the group tells Jim they are outlaws.  They have a code.  Everything they are doing is to show Penguin.

'Gotham' Recap "A Dark Knight: Pax Penguina"
Image: Fox

Selina walks into an alley by herself where a bunch of men are.  She asks them to let her go.  Not a chance.  “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” she tells them.  Selina fights all five of them no problem.  Tabitha walks up and hits the one man, then tells Selina to never turn her back.  So Tabitha is training Selina….hmmmm. Back at their hideout, Zsasz finds them. Though they were hard to track down, he tells them that Penguin doesn’t let them operate alone.  Zsasz makes it an or else kinda deal.  They show up at the club and get a license, or they suffer the consequences.  I’m liking Zsasz a lot already this season.  Tabitha doesn’t want to work for Penguin, but Selina sees no other choice.

Bruce shows up at the GCPD, shocking Jim because he pretty much appeared out of nowhere.  He shows Jim the license he found.  He mentions the number on the license.  There has to be a master list out there.  A list that shows of all the crimes committed and those yet to commit.  Jim tells Bruce that the judges are going along with the license, though he doesn’t believe in them.  Once Penguin goes after the group of thugs the GCPD is hunting down, it’ll be more proof that the GCPD is no longer needed.   Bruce gives Jim the idea to use Penguin to lead them to the thugs.  Jim doesn’t say much about it.  Letting Bruce down, he still invites Jim over for dinner.  Jim turns around and then back again to set up a day with Bruce, but Bruce has vanished.

While in a press conference about his new club, Penguin is asked questions that start to put him in a tizzy.  He shows them the frozen figure of Edward.  Penguin lies to them and tells them he had a brain condition, and that he wanted to be frozen until there is a cure.  Penguin is also asked about the license.  He doesn’t confirm or deny it.  When Jim walks in to call Penguin a fraud.  Penguin says he is going to find the group of thugs, because he is who keeps Gotham safe.

The group is watching on TV about the opening of his club when they make a plan to go after him.  Jon is continuing to make the fear potion.  They continue to use the scarecrow as a way to torture him.

'Gotham' Recap "A Dark Knight: Pax Penguina"
Image: Fox

 

With the opening of the club happening, Oswald is speaking to the frozen Ed.  Ivy is standing there with him when she makes a stupid comment and is sent off.  Poor girl.

The GCPD is talking about catching the gang.  The officers clearly don’t want to listen to Jim about the situation.  Jim wants to make sure they grab gas masks.

Jon begs the men to let him out of the room he is locked in with the scarecrow.  He hears the scarecrow talking to him, calling his name.  When he turns around to look at him, the fear sets in.

While in the locker room getting ready, officers decide to gang up on Jim.  They are siding with Penguin, and don’t want Jim to get in the way.  Jim fights them, since he wont back down.

At the club opening, Bruce and Alfred show up.  Bruce personally wants to thank Penguin for everything he has done for the city.  Though you can tell he is not being sincere at all.  Bruce asks Penguin about the license that he is giving out.  Alfred steps in saying that Bruce is over stepping his boundaries.  Penguin is promised that everything between them will stay between them.  All Penguin does, is provide the guidelines.  He points over to the man who hands them out.  Bruce is a little too smart anymore for his own good.  Now they know who has the list.  Past Alfred, Bruce sees Selina walk in.  Zsasz goes and speaks with Selina.  Tabitha decided to not go with her.  When out of nowhere, Tabitha shows up.

Harvey goes to find Jim and sees that he has a blood nose.  I guess they can forget about any backup they would have had.  It’s just them now.

The thugs are standing in the kitchen of the club waiting for their moment.  When they hear “don’t you think bullets are a little faster than that spray.” Surprise, there is Penguin and his group.  Instead of killing them right there, Penguin has something special planed for them.

'Gotham' Recap "A Dark Knight: Pax Penguina"
Image: Fox

Bruce heads up to the roof to see Selina.  He knew he would find her there, but she replies “you don’t know anything about me.”  Well if she isn’t a whole different person.  Bruce apologizes to her for what he said to her at the hospital.  She tells him that if he wants to speak with her, he needs to join her up on the ledge.  He says sorry to her but she doesn’t seem to care.  Selina keeps walking back and forth on the ledge in her heels.  Don’t know how she is doing it, because I can’t even walk down the street in heels.  He compliments her dress, and all she can do is smile.  Just then Alfred interrupts the love birds.  There is a situation down stairs that Bruce should attend to.  Penguin has the thugs on display.  Ivy looks disgusted while watching everything.  While Penguin is giving a speech, Bruce feels like he should do something to stop him.  “There is a time for masks, and a time for Bruce Wayne,” Alfred says.  Bruce turns around to stop Penguin.  He wants to know what will be happening to the men, and asks them to turn them into the police. Penguin decides no on that.  Just then, Ivy cuts the power and everyone scatters.  One of the men sprays Penguin in the face and he sees his fear as Ed.  Jim arrests the man, while Penguin is freaking out clinging on to Jim.

The news paper the next day reads ‘Penguin or Chicken’.  Penguin wont be too happy with that one.  Jim worries about finding Jonathan Crane.  No telling where they put him.

The man who holds the lists of license, is sitting around making more.  Just then the lights flicker and a masked Bruce comes in.  He takes the list without any problem.  Finding out where the next crime will take place, Bruce heads to the top of a building.  An alarm is sounding, but the men ignore it because of their license.  Bruce falls through the glass on the roof when the men scatter and the GCPD comes in.  Bruce looks like deer in headlights,  shaking and in shock.

One of the thugs walks in to see Jon for him to make more fear juice.  All the man hears is, “Jonathan Crane isn’t here anymore, just the Scarecrow.”

 

I am so pleased with how this episode went.  We really see Bruce coming into the Dark Knight.  Though, yes, he does need his real training, but we know that will come in time.  I am already loving the Scarecrow.  I can not wait to see more of him.  When did Victor Zsasz become such a sassy person.  I love all the comments he made this episode alone.  I hope he stays like this, but at the same time, I hope we see his character unfold a little more.  What did you think of this season premier?