Gotham 4×07 Review: “A Dark Knight: A Day in the Narrows”

Welcome to the party, Bruce Wayne! This week on the Gotham episode “A Dark Knight: A Day in the Narrows” we were treated to the other side of Bruce Wayne’s future personality: the party boy. Excessive drinking, womanizing and the squandering of his fortune…this is the image of billionaire Bruce Wayne when he’s not wearing the black cape. I was wondering when we would eventually see this side of Bruce – at least it only took four seasons.

The reason for Bruce’s transformation makes a lot of sense from a plot standpoint. He “killed” Ra’s al Ghul, and it resulted in the death of the people closest to him. (I don’t believe Ra’s is gone; I predict he will come back,) Bruce is clearly suffering from that trauma and he’s lashing out at himself and everyone around him with his excessive partying. We need to prepare ourselves, Gotham fans. If Bruce is going through party boy mode these next few episodes, it’s going to be a bumpy ride for his likability factor.

Another important part in Bruce’s development is Tommy Elliot returning to the fold. According to the comics and other outlets, they were close friends during his childhood, and he helped shape Bruce’s path. When he only appeared in one episode in Gotham‘s first season, I worried his inclusion was a gimmick, since his character was nothing but a smug bully. So it’s great to see the character used properly and get a second chance at shaping their identity.

Meanwhile, Sofia has Penguin wrapped around her finger. Their scene in the orphanage showed how much Oswald truly values what she has to say about his business. As much as he looks down on the Falcone name, we’re getting inklings that he still values its power and what it means. He wouldn’t have cared so much about Sofia disagreeing with him if he didn’t want her opinion as a Falcone.

Also, is anyone else excited for the Selina, Barbara and Tabitha team up? It’s great to see them team up to do these odd jobs and dealings around Gotham City. For a while it seemed like the trio was going to be written out in favor of focusing on the main storyline with Professor Pyg and the eventual return of Ra’s al Ghul. I’m happy the show is sticking with them. These three have great chemistry, with the fight scene at the garage especially showcasing how well they work together, even if Barbara doesn’t want to admit it.

But what’s kept me hooked these last few episodes is the storyline with Professor Pyg. I will admit that he is one of my least favorite Batman villains – it has something to do with his constant butchering of people/animals and his dramatic attitude. Still, he’s not going down without a fight. Sometimes these big villains from the comics come and go too quickly on Gotham, even when they should be big characters who get more than a three episode arc (*cough* Scarecrow *cough*). This episodes gave us the mind games he plays and the surprise delivery of pig parts to torment the police; we can’t get rid of that just yet. But we’re creeping up on the supposed deadline for these plotlines. Let’s just see if Professor Pyg makes it past next week.

I feel bad for James Gordon having to work at the Gotham City Police Department. He always ends up being the person who tries to talk some sense into everyone. Unfortunately, no one ever listens. Harvey and Penguin sure didn’t, and a bunch of people ended up dying…again! It’s becoming standard on Gotham now: if you ignore James Gordon, you’re going to die. I’m happy others are listening to him now. The trope of everyone disregarding him when he was clearly right was getting old real quick.

My favorite part of “A Dark Knight: A Day in the Narrows” was when the show revealed that Headhunter was getting written out. He was such an annoying character that I could not stand him whenever he appeared on-screen. He was so reckless and cavalier during the raid on the building, and he didn’t care who he killed. Gotham gave us a gift by making this a one and done.

“A Dark Knight: A Day in the Narrows” was an important episode in the Gotham storyline. We saw the return of past characters and the development of important relationships. The show is setting up for some big advancements, like Bruce’s new lifestyle and the GCPD going against Penguin. The battle is coming.