In the Bible, God inflicted ten plagues onto Egypt for refusing to release the Israelites from slavery, the last of which was killing the first-born son in every household. With Gotham being the evil and corrupt city that it is, a similar calamity is cast on the dark city with the first-borns of some of the wealthiest families killed — the only difference being it’s not an act of God but of a man who calls himself the incarnation of an ancient goat (yeah, I laughed too). In the meantime, with Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) now one of the lieutenants in Maroni’s (David Zayas) organization, he decides this is the time to come out of the shadows and let everyone know the Penguin is back and very much alive.

Harvey Bullock — A Nice Guy After All?

If you think about it, we haven’t had a lot of character development for Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue). Yes, he shoots his mouth off, acts like he doesn’t care about a damn thing except how to get out of doing any work, but it makes you wonder how much of that is real and how much is just for show. With tonight’s case, we get a rare glimpse of who the man really is and what we learn may surprise you.

Ten years ago, Bullock and his then partner, Detective Dix (Dan Hedaya), investigated a series of murders of the first-borns of some of the most elite families in Gotham, with the killer was dubbed the “Goatman” because he claimed he was following the orders of the spirit of an ancient goat. The perpetrator ended up being Randall Milky, an A/C repairman with a long history of mental illness and the case culminated with Milky being shot and killed when Bullock and Dix tried to apprehend and arrest him at the location of his last murder. In the process, Dix was shot and while he survived, the injury resulted in the end of his career.

 

Fast forward ten years and a new killer with the exact same M.O. pops up and starts the pattern all over again. The victims are kidnapped in their homes, propped up in an elaborate display and for some very strange reason, an 1813 Liberty penny is sewn into their necks — the latter being a detail that that was never released. Because the details from the decade old murders match exactly, either the original “Goatman” had a partner or someone very close to the case is involved. Or could there be another explanation?

Bullock and Gordon (Benjamin McKenzie) decide to visit Dix (who now resides in a nursing home and we presume has been there since the shooting) to get his take on the new string of murders. He is able to offer a compelling alternate theory:

You don’t have a lone killer here. You have a conspiracy — Detective Dix

Neither Bullock nor Gordon is quite sure what to make of this until they have a suspect, Raymond Earl. Just like Milky, he too has a history of mental illness and also very conveniently, both killers had the same therapist, Dr. Marx (Susan Misner, Person of Interest). It just so happens that the good doctor was not very good at all because using the power of hypnosis, she’s the one who put the two men up to doing the killings. And why? Because Gotham “needed it” and she just doesn’t like rich people.

They say you can’t really hypnotize someone to do something they don’t want to do. And deep down, we all want to eat the rich. — Dr. Marx

At the end of the day, this case was pretty boring and somewhat on the ridiculous side. But just like other cases this season, the purpose wasn’t to keep you glued to the television screen with anticipation, but to propel the story forward by providing some fantastic character development.

When Bullock and Gordon leave the nursing facility after interviewing Dix, we get to hear Bullock talking to the administrator about his paying Dix’s medical bills. We should recall that Dix was shot because the two split up to try to corner Milky and I can see how Bullock may feel guilty and somewhat responsible. So he pays his medical bills and does other things like buy him, um, “bad” (pornographic?) magazines. I’ll be honest, Bullock has really annoyed me since the beginning of the season, but deep down, I really think the guy has a heart. It’s really given me a new perspective on the character and I can’t wait to learn more.

Oswald Cobblepot as Norman Bates Part II

With Oswald being promoted to one of Maroni’s lieutenants, he finally decides it’s time to come back out and also go back home to Mommy. Of course, Gertrud (Carol Kane) is very happy to see her son but continues to insist that he must have been gone because he fell into the clutches of some skanky whore. This makes for probably the best scene in the entire episode and also reinforces the fact that Oswald and his mother seem to be a little too “close” for comfort.

 

don’t know why you always think I’ve run off with some tainted lady. I don’t even date. — Oswald

Why do you not call your Mother after all this time? I tell you why, you got tangled with some hussy. —Gertrud

Mother, there was no hussy. Only betrayal and savagery. All I wanted was a little respect, then they hurt me. And so cruelly. I’ve been to hell and back, they tried to kill me! — Oswald

Those bullies again! My poor, poor darling. They only do these things because they resent you. Envy and spite, that’s all it is. — Gertrud

You watch, Mom. I’m going to be somebody in this town. — Oswald

I always knew this. — Gertrud

Then the already-uncomfortable conversation continues with Oswald in the bathtub and Ms. Kapelput sponging her son down in a super-creepy scene that honestly made my skin crawl.

I think I finally found someone I can trust, a policeman. — Oswald

No, no, the police are liars! — Gertrud

No, not this one, Mom. He’s a real friend. He’ll help me come out right in the end. — Oswald

Right before this scene, we learn that an arrest warrant has been issued for Gordon after a witness is found who saw Gordon “shoot” Oswald on the pier. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what’s going to happen next, but damn, it was so fun to watch.

Yeah, Gordon is arrested and they are actually about to arrest Bullock too because he was at the scene of the shooting. Then, Oswald crashes the party at the GCPD and judging from the look on everyone else’s faces, he’s the only one in the room who thinks it’s funny. Shit immediately hits the fan, with the MCU in total shock and Bullock about ready to tear Gordon’s head off.

Hello, everyone. My name is Oswald Cobblepot. — Oswald

[Looks at Bullock] Harvey, Harvey, wait! — Gordon to Bullock

You son of a bitch! You son of a bitch! — Bullock to Gordon

Wow, what a hell of a way to end an episode. I can’t even begin to imagine what’s going to happen now. How will Jim explain what he did? And what will Bullock say to their Captain and to the MCU about forcing Jim to shoot Oswald? And, of course, what will Fish Mooney do once she knows the Penguin is alive? Regardless, next week’s episode should be great and one that you definitely won’t want to miss.

Gotham airs on Mondays at 8/7c on FOX.

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