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“Gotham” recap (2.2): Female Trouble

I don’t think I can begin this review without addressing the elephant in the room: Gotham has a female problem. Last night’s episode gave us the fourth death/disappearance of a woman of color from the series, which seems alarming considering the show is barely in its second season. Granted, I’m not watching this show for realism. This is a noir fantasy imagining of a comic book world, where little boys become flying masked detectives or sadistic serial killers. This show is arch and ridiculous, as well it should be. But that’s no excuse for the cavalier and poor treatment of its women as pawns to further the male storylines. Commissioner Essen’s death in this episode is sad, but it’s endemic of a larger problem in Gotham: the way the show handles female characters.

So tired of this shit

But let’s back up a second. We open with our Big Bad Theo Galavan, who holds the Mayor hostage with a large box on his head. Theo threatens to put spiders in the box unless the Mayor give him permission to run the city, and the terrified man agrees. Theo tells him that a great cleansing is coming to Gotham, and monsters are descending on the city.

Said monsters make their appearance on the roof of the Gotham Gazette, where the escaped Arkham inmates (sans Barbara) are tossing victims off the roof. As the bodies fall, they reveal a spray-painted message: Maniax! And just like that, there’s a new gang in town.

I scream you scream we all scream for spelling errors!

Over at the GCPD, Commissioner Essen is giving the cops a rundown of the Maniax situation. She puts Gordon in charge and he runs through the escapees: there’s Nervous, Cannibal, the Giant, Jerome, and Barbara. AWKward.

Theo is impressed with the Maniax team effort and buys everyone donuts. He tells them to work on their stage presence and style, like he’s a pageant coach. Jerome charms him with his boyish looks and creepy laughter, while Barbara and Tabitha skip into the room whipping the Mayor. They seem to be getting along great, but Barbara wants to know when she gets to wreak havoc. Like every other female character on this show, she’s bored and ready to play.

Please, tell us again how we can’t be in control of our own reproductive rights

Down in the Kitten Cave (what do you call baby bats?) Bruce and Alfred discover bulletproof vests, weaponry, and a fridge full of blood. Is this Mr. Wayne’s lair or Mona Vanderwaal’s? Bruce is more than ready to fire up the computer when Alfred starts wailing on it with a hammer in order to protect him from the truth. Bruce becomes furious and fires Alfred. Can he do that though? Alfred is his legal guardian. It’s like firing your mom, basically. I tried to fire my mom once, but she just rolled her eyes and told me finish my breakfast because I was late for school. Touché, Mom!

Meanwhile, villains be villaining. They’re firing up chainsaws and swinging katanas and playing Russian roulette with themselves. Jerome is emerging as the MVP of insanity and the clear ringleader of the group.

American Psycho: Prep School Edition

Gordon goes to visit Bullock, but before he can ask him to return to the force, he gets an earful from Bullock’s fiancée Scottie. Scottie (from last season’s phobia support group) is happy that Bullock has gone from Greasy Cop to Greasy Bartender, and doesn’t want him back in harm’s way. I don’t care about this storyline, but it reminded me of that time Dr. Crane used a piglet as a weapon and UGH, THAT PIGLET WAS SO CUTE LET’S BRING HIM BACK.

Can I trade my greasy fiancée for that adorable piglet tho?

Gordon gets a lead off of Bullock and runs it by Essen, who takes a brief break from her near constant exposition to share her own thoughts and feels. Apparently she walked away from the force, but was dragged back in when she saw how shitty the GCPD had become. Now she’s in charge and it’s a new damn day and, uh oh, that’s the kind of speech characters make before they get killed off, isn’t it?

The Maniax have hi-jacked a gasoline tanker and decide to douse a school bus full of cheerleaders with gas and light them up. If you think that’s disturbing, wait til you see their new uniforms. The Maniax are now outfitted in a shirt that’s a cross between a straight jacket and Sgt. Pepper. And it may or may not strap on between their legs and go up their butts? I’m so confused, you guys. Fifty points to whoever can explain this costume to me.

The latest looks from the Insanity Collection by John Galliano

The cops arrive and the Maniax start shooting, but the cops can’t fire because they might light up the school bus. The Maniax escape, except for Nervous, who starts the fire. Gordon hops on the bus and drives it out of harm’s way while the streets burn. They arrest Nervous, but before he can spill the beans he’s shot with a sniper rifle by Tabitha. So long, Nervous.

Alfred waits at the train station, as if he’s gonna take a train all the way back to Jolly Olde England, when Bruce shows up and apologizes/realizes he’s a fucking minor who can barely make himself a sandwich. Alfred promises to help train him, to fix his computer, and to maybe throw in a bedtime story every now and then.

I hate the constant iTunes updates too, Alfred, but that’s no excuse for beating up my computer

Alfred goes to meet with Lucius Fox, the technology head of Wayne Enterprises. There’s a lot of cockney slang and a lot of homoerotic tension, which leads to Lucius agreeing to fix the battered computer. If these two hook up and co-parent Bruce, I will be ecstatic.

Back at the precinct, Gordon gets a phone call from Barbara. He tries to talk some sense into her, before realizing that Barbara is CALLING FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE. He chases her into an alley, where he is ambushed the Giant who beats the shit out of him. This is such an UGH moment, because while I love seeing Gordon get punched in the face, I’m frustrated that Barbara still has nothing to do. She just gets to watch while Gordon gets pummeled, and then kisses him. Girl, let me see you whip! Love the red leather gloves, though.

I’m back bitches, and I know everything. XOXO, B

This beating is merely a ruse, as the rest of the Maniax storm the GCPD dressed as cops and proceed to massacre the Gotham police force. Nigma takes a bullet protecting Miss Kringle. Lee hides under the autopsy table. And Essen gets held hostage by Jerome, who kills the Cannibal for stepping on his joke. Essen fires off some insults and spits in his face, but she’s still outmatched. By the time Gordon stumbles back into the precinct, she’s dying. He holds her hand, unable to do anything. So long, Commissioner Essen. We barely knew ye.

Ugh, why didn’t I take that Rosewood PD job?

Back at Wayne Manor, Bruce and Lucius are fixing the computer when Alfred rushes in with news of the massacre. Bruce heads to the precinct to hug Gordon and tells him he’s a good friend. He also apologizes for being kind of a dick to him in the last episode. Gordon looks up to see Bullock, back and ready to police. They turn on the news (anchored by the most lesbian haircut I’ve ever seen) and watch Jerome’s handheld video of the massacre. Jerome looks into the camera and tells the viewers that Gotham is in a prison of sanity, and he’s here to free everyone.

I don’t know who this woman is, but she’s anchoring the AfterEllen Nightly News

What’s frustrating about Essen’s death is, like so many other female deaths on the show, it’s completely to service a male character’s storyline. Essen had to die so that Bullock would be forced back into the job. Just like Fish Mooney had to die so the Penguin could rule Gotham’s crime world. Just like Liza had to die to move the Falcone storyline forward. Just like Renee Montoya had to-well, I don’t really have an explanation for that one. She’s just a casualty of raging fanboys and an overstuffed first season roster.

Again with this shit?

In only two episodes, Gotham has done some nice course-correcting in Season 2. It already feels like a leaner, more focused show. Now if only they could treat their female characters with the same planning and care as their male ones, we’d be onto something. To the writers of Gotham, if you’re unsure of where to start, maybe stop killing your women to service your men. That fridge is getting awfully full.

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