Final Thoughts from the Gotham Episode “Knock Knock”

1. As far as Gotham City’s criminal element goes, I have to admit Galavan has really taken things up a notch to the point he’s causing chaos. However, I’m still trying to figure out his motives for leaving Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) alive. While I’m sure Barbara (Erin Richards) influenced that a bit, it just doesn’t seem like a good strategic move given Gordon’s history of cleaning up Gotham City’s streets.

2. Speaking of Barbara, I’m still trying to sort out her overall role in this series. She’s pretty prominent and part of me suspects she’ll end up becoming Harley Quinn or a comparable Batman villain. However, Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett Smith) received comparable airtime during the first season and was killed off at the very end. So, Barbara becoming a long-time villain isn’t a given.

3. I was also a little surprised by the absence of the Penguin (Robert Lord Taylor) in this episode, mostly because I’m curious about what kind of reaction he’s having. I’m not sure whether this new criminal group’s activities are helping or hurting his criminal empire. If it’s the latter, I wonder if he’ll ultimately decide to team up with the police and lend them his resources.

4. Also somewhat notably absent this series is Edward Nygma (Cory Michael Smith). Yes, we still see him and he’s obviously going through some sort of split personality thing. But, he’s not as involved with the investigations as he has been in the past. Split personality or not, if he isn’t providing the Gotham City Police Department with his knowledge, what is the point of having him on the staff?

5. I’m still trying to decide whether or not Alfred overreacted when Bruce insisted on seeing what was on his dad’s computer. I mean, he only pushed a button to turn it on. I have a hard time believing, given all the other secrecy and security about his activities, his dad wouldn’t have at least had the computer itself password protected. The least he could have done was let the computer boot up first. Of course, when Bruce fired him, I pretty much figured it was going to be a temporary thing that would be resolved by the end of the episode.

6. Along those same lines, did anyone really believe Bullock (Donal Logue) was going to stay away from the police department? It’s just too bad his decision to return was a direct result of newly-appointed Commissioner Essen (Zabryna Guevara) being murdered. I was actually starting to like her.

7. Speaking of that, does this mean Gordon will be the next one in line for that job or will this mean the return of Commissioner Loeb (Peter Scolari) or someone else who is as corrupt as Loeb was?

8. It’s good to see the return of Lucius Fox (Chris Chalk). But, when Alfred approached him in that bar, was I the only one who wondered if Bruce’s guardian was trying to pick him up? It sure sounded like it at first.

So far, I find myself liking this new season of the series, largely because it wasted no time when it came to getting the action started and putting Jim Gordon on the defensive versus overwhelming odds. This episode, in particular, did a great job of setting things up and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

My Grade: A