Gotham #5.10 "I am Bane"

[Haggard01]

Gotham 5x10 has already started. Whoo, it's been a long wait.

[Aries83]

This episode was an improvement over the one two weeks ago, but not by much.

I found the majority of scenes silly. All that chaos while Barbara was giving birth? It was just too much. When Lee said, "Jim's not going to take the baby away from you," I expected her to say, "I am!"

Their iteration of Bane was just ok, but what more can they do with only two episodes left?

The revelation that Secretary Walker was/is al Ghul's daughter was surprising, although I suspected that she might have been Amanda Waller from Suicide Squad. At any rate, at least we know her motivation for wanting the city destroyed (to hurt Bruce) via Special Order 386. It looks like she got her way.

I'm more worried about Alfred, though. I literally cringed when I heard that loud crunch as he was thrown against the building... Will he be ok?

It was an ok episode, but there was way too much silliness for me to take it seriously, and it's probably not the best note to end on before such a long break! (4 weeks, what gives?! )

Oh well. What did everybody else think?

[costas22]

Definitely an improvement on the last 2 filler episodes. Now we are back to the storylines that really matter. In that sense, the episode delivered. But I do have to agree that there was a certain element of cheesiness to this episode that rubbed me the wrong way.

Anyway, obviously the big news is Walker's true identity. Haggard did call it a few episodes back, so it was really just a case of finding out if she's Talia or Nyssa. Whatever the case, I loved the twist and it does explain a lot of the things we saw earlier this season in regards to Walker's agenda and why Nygma was used as a pawn to sabotage the attempts to fix Gotham. Not sure why every Al Ghul just wants to destroy Gotham City, but it must be one of the longest running arcs in comic book lore. The cliffhanger was very creepy, I must say. Makes you very worried for Barbara's baby.

Speaking of Nyssa, just to showcase how all over the place WB/DC's planning is, she is actually the second Nyssa Al Ghul we've seen on television this week. Katrina Law's Nyssa also appeared on Arrow. Sheesh.

Looks like we are very close to Day 393 now. They've time jumped a lot in recent episodes, even though it hasn't felt like it (unless you look at Barbara's belly). The military bombing Gotham is the first step in the war they will wadge against Jim, Penguin, Nygma and co.

Bane. Not sure what to make of him. He looks and sounds a bit underwhelming and stylish. I mean, when I look at Bane I shouldn't have to think about how nice his hair looks. But like you said, Aries, we are in the closing stages of the series and Bane's mere introduction should be considered a bonus. Plus, he can always mutate even further like Jeremiah did this season. But to be perfectly fair to the show, this Bane did wreak a lot of havoc and destroy a number of people.

As far as Alfred goes, I'm guessing this was their homage to the iconic storyline of Bane breaking Batman's back. Since Bruce is still too young for this storyline, they had Bane break Alfred's back instead. The episode actually indicated that something bad might happen to Alfred because the tone of his scenes with Selina was quite sombre. And the scene itself was savage and hard to watch. You couldn't help but feel horrible for Alfred. It wouldn't surprise me if we don't see him again until the series finale and after a flash forward.

Nygma and Penguin had me in stitches during their scenes. Makes me sad that we didn't see more of them as a comedy pair all this time. The submarine was kind of small though, wasn't it?

Barbara going into labour was truly this episode's weak point. I don't know if it was the director or Erin's decision, but she made the entire moment feel cartoonish with her over the top screaming, the dialogue with Lee, Penguin and Nygma and the shooting frenzy while she was in the wheelchair. Anyway, the baby is finally born and to the surprise of no one, it's a girl. The future Barbara Gordon by the looks of things.

Can't believe I'll say this, but I actually liked Lee in this episode. Especially in the scene where she reassured Barbara that no one was going to take her baby away and she made up with her. Amongst all the silliness, it was actually a warm heartfelt moment. I just hope Lee means what she said, because last week her tone was very selfish and delusional. Barbara calling her aunt Lee was a nice touch. Lee's marriage with Jim wasn't brought up at any point. I wonder if this was a last minute decision when they shot episode 5.09 (which was actually the last episode they shot).

All in all, a pretty strong episode. Pity they planned out the season so poorly that we had a 2 week hiatus, we got this episode and now we have to wait another 4 weeks. Not for nothing, but this episode feels like the start of a trilogy and it should have aired along with episodes 5.11-5.12. Either now or in April.

[AsteroidMike]

This was actually a very good episode IMO.

Obviously, Bane is the biggest draw here, and right off the bat I must say he's okay looking but he ain't no Tom Hardy. Speaking of which, this whole episode seemed like a mini-version of The Dark Knight Rises, with Bane being a bit hard to understand, someone named "al Ghul" being a villain and both of them ready to destroy Gotham. Which they eventually start doing at the end of the episode. Also, Alfred got the Knightfall treatment, not at all something I expected.

Oh, and the fact that Walker is actually Nyssa al Ghul was a bit of a surprise because I expected the show to say she was Talia, so I was half right and when I think about it, she could only have been one of two people. I remember tweeting that Oliver should get his ass to Gotham and try and handle this because now that's 2 DC shows that featured both Ra's al Ghul and Nyssa at one point while they're still on the air.

Barbara and Lee's antics were pretty enjoyable. I especially liked the part where she was giving birth in the wheelchair and still shooting bad guys in the process, and even better when the camera switched to a POV mode when that happened, almost like it was Call of Duty. It was about 15 seconds but it was great.

Overall it was fun, and that was a good cliffhanger which leaves me wondering how will everyone get out of this one. I truly despise, however, that we're being made to wait another month before it returns, after we waited an extra week for this episode. First Flash and now this? C'mon you guys.

[Aries83]

the big news is Walker's true identity. . . . I loved the twist and it does explain a lot of the things we saw earlier this season in regards to Walker's agenda

After I posted last night, I thought about the storylne. She mentioned that TLoS was everywhere, and I assume that she has been leading them since her father died. So, wouldn't she have already known that her father was basically on a suicide mission (to get Bruce to kill him with the dagger)? Can she really blame Bruce for the fact that her father wanted to die?

Bane. Not sure what to make of him. He looks and sounds a bit underwhelming and stylish. I mean, when I look at Bane I shouldn't have to think about how nice his hair looks. But like you said, Aries, we are in the closing stages of the series and Bane's mere introduction should be considered a bonus.

The problem with Bane, in my opinion, is that he has a limited backstory. The Knightfall storyline (from the comics) is so well-known that it overshadows him. Plus, we've seen the story play out on the big screen already, and anything less than that (like what they're doing) just seems like an imitation.

As far as Alfred goes, I'm guessing this was their homage to the iconic storyline of Bane breaking Batman's back.

Yep. Like I said, I cringed when I heard the crunch. I was like, "OMG, he's going to break his back!"

Nygma and Penguin had me in stitches during their scenes. Makes me sad that we didn't see more of them as a comedy pair all this time. The submarine was kind of small though, wasn't it?

It looked pretty good, for materializing out of thin air! As funny as some of it was, the tone just didn't fit the situation.

Barbara going into labour was truly this episode's weak point. . . . she made the entire moment feel cartoonish with her over the top screaming, the dialogue with Lee, Penguin and Nygma and the shooting frenzy while she was in the wheelchair.

I agree. This (and all the Penguin/Nygma scenes) were just too over the top to be believable.

I actually liked Lee in this episode. Especially in the scene where she reassured Barbara that no one was going to take her baby away and she made up with her. Amongst all the silliness, it was actually a warm heartfelt moment. I just hope Lee means what she said, because last week her tone was very selfish and delusional. Barbara calling her aunt Lee was a nice touch.

I liked the scene/moment too, surprisingly, but: I hope Lee stands by her word.

Pity they planned out the season so poorly that we had a 2 week hiatus, we got this episode and now we have to wait another 4 weeks. Not for nothing, but this episode feels like the start of a trilogy and it should have aired along with episodes 5.11-5.12. Either now or in April.

I agree. Now, I'm wondering if they'll be a 2-week+ wait in between 11 and 12 too? A totally bad call by Fox, but whatever.

[Aries83]

that was a good cliffhanger which leaves me wondering how will everyone get out of this one. I truly despise, however, that we're being made to wait another month before it returns, after we waited an extra week for this episode. First Flash and now this? C'mon you guys.

I agree on both counts. It'll be interesting to see the city after it has endured a bomb strike (and just where everyone ends up after the fact).

The scheduling SUCKS, though! What is the network thinking?

[costas22]

After I posted last night, I thought about the storylne. She mentioned that TLoS was everywhere, and I assume that she has been leading them since her father died. So, wouldn't she have already known that her father was basically on a suicide mission (to get Bruce to kill him with the dagger)? Can she really blame Bruce for the fact that her father wanted to die?

Depends on how close Nyssa and Ra's were. Maybe she was on her own mission with her own band of LoS and she didn't know what her father was doing in Gotham?

Regarding her father's agenda, that kind of changed during S4, didn't it? The first time he died, he truly wanted Bruce to do it so that he would take his place or whatnot. But the second time he died, did he say he wanted it again? I don't remember last season's finale well, but I was under the impression that he wasn't looking to die again.

The problem with Bane, in my opinion, is that he has a limited backstory. The Knightfall storyline (from the comics) is so well-known that it overshadows him. Plus, we've seen the story play out on the big screen already, and anything less than that (like what they're doing) just seems like an imitation.

Fair point. They rushed to introduce him because they didn't have enough time left, so they concocted the whole Eduardo thing. Which wasn't particularly deep anyway. On top of that, he just doesn't have that monster aura that Bane usually has. Because we basically saw him go from normal man to juiced up man. Granted, he did cause a lot of damage, but he lacks presence.

It looked pretty good, for materializing out of thin air! As funny as some of it was, the tone just didn't fit the situation.

Heh, that's why I always say that they should tell us how many days have passed between episodes. Because in the previous episode Barbara was 5-6 months pregnant and the submarine's constuction hadn't even begun. 3 months later and its completed.

In regards to the tone of their scenes, I didn't mind it a lot. Probably because it's a repeated pattern. Oswald's scenes are mostly comedic nowdays and Nygma always seems to lighten up when he's in a scene with him. I don't think they've had a serious scene together since season 3...

I liked the scene/moment too, surprisingly, but: I hope Lee stands by her word.

Me too. And she probably will. We're so close to the end now, that there's not enough time to pit these two against each other again. Mind you, I am not completely sold on Barbara and Lee suddenly getting along well, but it beats them fighting over a baby.

I agree. Now, I'm wondering if they'll be a 2-week+ wait in between 11 and 12 too? A totally bad call by Fox, but whatever.

No, thankfully there won't be. 11 is on April 18th and 12 is on April 25th. It just sucks that those 2 episodes are so distanced compared to the rest of the season. They should have just aired the entire season in back to back weeks.

[Aries83]

Maybe she was on her own mission with her own band of LoS and she didn't know what her father was doing in Gotham?

That's a good point. She would've had to have been on her own (with her own small faction) given that Barbara took over as leader once al Ghul died.

The first time he died, he truly wanted Bruce to do it so that he would take his place or whatnot. But the second time he died, . . . . I was under the impression that he wasn't looking to die again.

That's right. I still have a hard time believing that he's actually dead. You would think, if you have lived as many lifetimes as he had (at that point), he would've made sure to secure more of the Lazarus water so that he could always be brought back (if something went awry like it did with Bruce/Barbara).

he just doesn't have that monster aura that Bane usually has. Because we basically saw him go from normal man to juiced up man. Granted, he did cause a lot of damage, but he lacks presence.

This version is WAY better than what we got in B&R, though...

We're so close to the end now, that there's not enough time to pit these two against each other again. Mind you, I am not completely sold on Barbara and Lee suddenly getting along well, but it beats them fighting over a baby.

I agree. It shows character development. I would think Gordon would let Barbara raise her for the most part, but chip in (with Lee) when she needed help or guidance.

11 is on April 18th and 12 is on April 25th. It just sucks that those 2 episodes are so distanced compared to the rest of the season. They should have just aired the entire season in back to back weeks.

Oh, good (and I agree about the last 3 needing to have been back to back too). It'll be here before you know it, though, and I'm ready!

[Haggard01]

It was a decent episode. I'm glad we are getting back into the main part of the series and out of these two extra filler episodes, and so it feels like part 1 of a two part finale.

Here's where the break really and truly sucks, is because we are not getting part 2 for a whole month. Frankly Gotham should have aired at least 5x10 and 5x11 episodes weekly, back to back. So we could have the end of the main season's story line and at least 5x12 would be the like an epilogue future episode.

Moving on Bane to sum up is he's an decent villain for the finale two episodes we've got Bane in.

Nyssa, eh she's okay and serves her purpose.

The whole Barbara, Penguin and Riddler stuff with Lee I frankly fast forwarded through like a good majority of it. Maybe just wanted to avoid the silly parts and I know I was not at all interested in Lee. I did more of watch Riddler and Penquin stuff though.

Which Barbara shooting guns while in the wheel chair, is just really over the top ridiculousness that's just um no thank you.

I did catch Lee saying Jim didn't want to take the baby away from her and like I hope you stick to your word Lee. Frankly your more possessive then Jim is over this, Lee. Still I hope they just all get along and we can cut out this baby melodrama crap.

Which looks like Barbara Jr., well she's not even a few minutes hold and her life is already in danger. Yeah this is going to be a recurring theme when you get older Barbara, frankly welcome to Gotham.

Second for Bruce, well he got a nice call back to 1x02 where Bruce was burning the ropes ever the candle, similar to when Bruce purposely burnt his hand to test his pain limit in 1x02.

Poor Alfred in this and while I know about the back breaking due to Bane from actor interviews and promo for what would happen to Alfred, still watching it is not fun.

Which for the ending, I got flashbacks to the Protocol Ten of Gotham being unstable and the helicopters destroying shooting missiles into the city to destroy it.

So yeah an okay episode but I'm ready for the second part to see how this all wraps up.