Gotham 4×14 Review: “A Dark Knight: Reunion”

Remember what I said previously about Poison Ivy ruling Gotham City? Well, that reality didn’t last long. The nature-loving villain got a big dose of bad karma; she fell like any other bad guy who came before her. Her big, masterful plan was put to the test on Gotham and unfortunately for her, James Gordon stopped her in the nick of time. No infectious flowers, no mass of dead bodies, and no plant kingdom for her to rule. Ivy Pepper had to go back to the drawing board, and based on this week’s episode, she really does need to learn from her mistakes.

Ivy’s latest bit of revenge stemmed all the way back to Gotham’s first season. When it was revealed that Ivy wanted Harvey dead because he killed her father, the revelation brought up a lot of nostalgic memories. Does anyone even remember her partners? If memory serves, her father was an abusive criminal and her mother committed suicide out of guilt. Taking this revenge mini-plot all the way back to the beginning was a nice, but strange connection. She had her reasons for wanting him dead, but why did she have to release the video tape? It made no sense in her scheme. All the tape did was warn the Gotham City Police Department to protect Harvey and hunt her down even further; she took her revenge one step too far.

David Giesbrecht/FOX

Speaking of Harvey, he made a stupid move hunting down Poison Ivy on his own. He’s lucky that she only compelled him; he almost became one of her flowers if she had not decided to use him to try to kill James Gordon. We do have to give Ivy credit for thinking ahead; “Reunion” was the second time she utilized poisoning and compelling someone in advance to her advantage. In this case, she had Harvey shoot at James to get away.

However, her big plan to kill the rich citizens of Gotham City didn’t make much sense. She placed the flowers in the centerpieces on the tables and was planning for the guests to inhale the pollen. However, why did she need to use so many flowers? The pollen from one flower alone could kill at least four people in a room (based on the example she made earlier), and we can’t imagine the flowers couldn’t be used more than once. There was an easier way that Poison Ivy could’ve killed the people in the room, but she failed in that regard to make it efficient. James Gordon and the GCPD were able to quickly sweep in and stop the fight. Ivy’s grandstanding and poor planning ruined her goal.

The best scene of the night had to be Selina and Ivy’s fight in the hideout. These former best friends/now frenemies finally came face-to-face with the tension that had been mounting for weeks. Ivy is a pure villain while Selina is a reluctant hero/neutral ally – they’re on different sides in the battle in Gotham City. Even though they didn’t completely fight, it was interesting to see that even at the height of their animosity, they still wouldn’t turn on each other. They’re best friends, through and through. On the other hand, Catwoman destroying the last of the Lazarus water might be the last of her getting in Poison Ivy’s way for a while.

Alfred had the right idea about teaching Bruce the importance of forgiveness. The butler had been there from the beginning to protect the future Dark Knight and the way Bruce treated Alfred was deplorable. A simple apology wouldn’t cut it; words are just words, after all. When the gala went under attack, Bruce assuming the vigilante outfit to save Alfred showed that the good and honorable Bruce Wayne was still there. He needed to prove to Alfred that he was a changed man and the move worked out in the end. Hopefully, with Alfred back in the fold and at Wayne Manor, we’ll be seeing Bruce’s continued change toward becoming Batman.

David Giesbrecht/FOX

Sofia rejecting Lee’s offer and taking it by force will come back to haunt her. She played this move incorrectly; her actions could lead to her eventual downfall and will only push James and Lee to want to work together. Plus, her smashing Lee’s hand went a step too far in completely burning that bridge! Either accept the deal from Lee and learn the secrets about James Gordon or lie to learn the secrets and then kill Lee – there were only two options she could’ve taken. If James succeeds in toppling Sofia, we can look to this moment as far as where she went wrong.

Are you happy to see The Riddler return? This revival has been sorely missed. Something was off about Edward for a while now without his heightened intelligence and riddles; a part of his personality seemed to be missing. The Riddler completes him! Penguin’s masterful riddle twist was every bit worthy of The Riddler’s approval. The letter containing a secret message only the split personality would understand was jaw-dropping to say the least. It was brilliant, bold and shocking! Now that The Riddler has returned and teamed up with Penguin, Gotham City could be in store for a mess of trouble.

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