In last week’s episode of Gotham, Gordon got an unwelcome helping hand from Oswald, who worked his way up the ranks of Maroni’s organization. Meanwhile, Fish hired a new employee to help her with her mission to bring down Falcone, and the mayor handed over the Arkham development deal to the two rival mob bosses.
In this week’s episode of Gotham, “Viper,” Gordon and Bullock search for the person creating a lethal new street drug, and Oswald gets Gordon in trouble with Maroni. Like last week, please let me know if I miss any moments of foreshadowing or overlook the introduction of an important comics character. Read on to find out if Gotham delivers the corruption and creepiness we have come to expect.
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Deadly Drugs
Gordon and Bullock are out to lunch when they catch the case of a man who tried to steal milk from a store before pulling the store’s ATM machine out of the wall with his bare hands. As they later learn, the guy was high on a new drug, and when they finally track him down, his bones break and he dies right in front of them.
Edward Nygma explains that the drug, nicknamed Viper, strips the body of calcium. This causes the bones to crumble and the user to suffocate to death. Nygma also tells them that the drug can only be made in a state-of-the-art lab and the largest lab in the city belongs to WellZyn, a subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises.
A WellZyn lawyer shows up at the station, claiming the company has no involvement with the drug, but she manages to identify the person creating it quickly enough. This man, Stan, used to work for WellZyn, but she claims they had to fire him after he went crazy. After speaking with Stan’s only friend, a professor at Gotham University, Gordon and Bullock realize there is more to the story.
Stan developed pharmaceutical weapons for WellZyn, but ultimately had a crisis of conscience and went to the Waynes to have the project shut down. After the Waynes were killed, WellZyn started the program back up, with the blessing of Wayne Enterprises, and Stan decided to take action. Gordon realizes that the professor is in on the attacks with Stan, and before he dies, the professor reveals information that leads Gordon to realize that Stan intends to attack Wayne Enterprises directly.
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Bruce is in Danger
Stan’s target is a charitable luncheon hosted by Wayne Enterprises. Bruce and Alfred are in attendance, as are many other innocents. Gordon and Bullock arrive at the luncheon just as Stan starts to pump the drug through the air ducts. While Bullock clears out the ballroom, Gordon goes after Stan. Gordon is unable to talk Stan down, so he shoots the container holding the drug. Stan is close enough to the container to overdose on the drug and he jumps off a building before Gordon and Bullock can take him into custody.
Before he dies, Stan tells Gordon and Bullock to go to Warehouse 39, but when they get there, the warehouse has been cleared out. A woman working for Wayne Enterprises, Mathis, tells her bosses that they should leave Gordon and Bullock alone for now, as they found nothing at the warehouse.
Maroni Kidnaps Gordon
Fresh off his win at getting a piece of the Arkham deal, Maroni is planning to hit Falcone’s casino. Oswald offers his assistance, claiming he knows a janitor at the casino who can help get Maroni’s men inside. When Maroni wants to know how Oswald knows this man, Oswald tells Maroni the truth about who he is and who he used to work for. Maroni apparently wants more details and forces Oswald to tell him the whole story behind his “death.”
Thanks to Oswald’s story, Maroni has one of his men grab Gordon for a nice chat. Maroni wants Gordon to back up Oswald’s tale or he will kill both men. Gordon tells Maroni everything about the frame job, up to his supposed murder of Oswald, and Maroni believes him. Once Maroni is convinced no one else knows that Oswald is still alive, he sends Gordon away, with a warning to keep their conversation quiet, and uses Oswald’s inside man to rob Falcone’s casino.
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Other Happenings
— Bruce is still looking into the Arkham development deal, and Alfred lets it go because it is a better hobby than his recent attempts to conquer fear. After some research, Bruce finds irregularities in the Arkham deal and he wants to talk to the board at Wayne Enterprises to find out what is going on. When Alfred accepts the invitation to the charitable luncheon, Bruce decides to go, thinking he can speak with the board members. Alas, none of the board members are there, so Bruce tells Mathis about his discovery and asks her to set up a meeting with the board. Predictably, Mathis is corrupt, but at least the events at the luncheon prompt Alfred to help Bruce with his investigation.
— Fish is still plotting against Falcone because this is apparently the only plot she will have all season. In this week’s episode, we learn that Fish is sleeping with another member of the Falcone family and he is in on her plans to destroy Falcone, though they put on a show of hating each other in public so Falcone does not catch on to their connection. Fish is also training a reluctant Liza in all manner of ways to get close to Falcone. At the end of the episode, Liza makes her approach and Falcone takes the bait.
What did you think of this week’s episode of Gotham? What is Fish’s endgame with Liza and Falcone? Will Bruce and Alfred uncover the truth about the corruption seemingly running through all levels of Wayne Enterprises? Why is Maroni so quick to trust Oswald when he turned on his previous employer? How much longer will Falcone and Fish remain in the dark about Oswald’s survival? Cat makes a brief appearance in this episode. Was she following Gordon again, or was their almost-meeting a coincidence? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.
Gotham airs Mondays at 8pm on FOX.
(Image courtesy of FOX)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
