Gotham - 'The Last Laugh'

Gnah! Called it, damnit.

With the GCPD working overtime to track down Jerome and the other Maniax, Lee twists Gordon's arm to join her for a gala at the Children's Hospital (of which, naturally, the Waynes were big supporters, thus bringing Bruce to the show.) Before things get started, Jerome and Tabitha (who is indeed making out with Barbara now, because whats more fun than trashy lesbian bad girls, amirite?) pay a call on the former's father to frame the old man for masterminding Jerome's breakout from Arkham, because clearly Gordon is going to believe that's something a frail, blind fortune teller could do. Actually, in Gotham I'm quite surprised that he doesn't. Bullock suggests going to Penguin for information, but Gordon is skittish.

"How about a magic trick? I'm gonna make this pencil disappear."

At the party, poor Alfred gets a crush on Lee and Bruce spots Selina working the crowd, which seems kind of odd since we last saw her apparently on salary with Penguin. Things take a downward turn when Jerome and Barbara mug the magician for the gala and take the party hostage, with Lee in pride of place. There's a lot of stand off, Alfred is a bit badass and Bruce gets to man up. Barbara menaces Lee and tells her that totes for certain she'll end up with Jim, because he's got darkness in him too and they're, like, so perfect for each other and one day they'll laugh about how Lee tried to come between them.

I am so ready to go back to tedious villain of the week procedural now.

In the end, it turns out the whole thing is just theatrics. While he has explained to Barbara that she will be at the forefront of phase 2 of his plan, Jerome was just the warm up. Theo offs Jerome to 'save the day', thus earning the gratitude of the city he claims his family built, but were denied their credit*. Since he's stabbed someone now, Barbara is way into him when they get home, and Tabitha gets jealous. For a meticulous planner and psychological chessmaster, Theo seems utterly blind to potential emotional disruptions to his inner circle, or maybe Barbara is supposed to be some sort of irresistible sex goddess now she's a wicked, depraved bisexual? I'm starting to suspect that this show has some serious bad girl issues.

Never mind the sex, peoples; here's the Bullock!

Gotham: Rise of the Villains continues to be hampered by, well, its villains. Jerome has a certain panache, and the scenes at the end where his laugh becomes almost an infectious, psychopathic meme sweeping through Gotham plays nicely with the whole 'everyone is the bloody Joker' bit they've got going on, but dear merciful God in Heaven Barbara and the Galavans are tedious. Penguin, meanwhile, is doing very little; resting on his laurels and waiting for Bullock to warn him off messing with Gordon (aww!) while his henchlings apparently seek more rewarding employment in the field of high-society pickpocketing.

* He had this whole rant, but since he opened with 'We built this city...' I just blanked most of it and assumed the foundations to be made of a combination of rock and roll.