Batwoman season 1 episode 8 review: The true villains of Gotham
This week’s episode of Batwoman finally sees Alice’s plans coming to fruition — and she has quite a message for the “true villains of Gotham.”
The first season of Batwoman has slowly been building up to Alice’s “Mad Tea Party,” and this week’s episode finally shows her elaborate plans coming to fruition. At a gala honoring Catherine Hamilton-Kane, Alice makes her big move — and it has some dire consequences for the Kane family.
The episode opens with Kate writing to Bruce about hope. She tells him that she’s choosing to try to save Beth — or Alice — from herself. And comically, she reflects that this might make her an optimist. If it does, though, it’s likely she’s shifted to pessimism by the end of the episode.
The gala begins with everything seemingly going smoothly, although viewers know that the Jacob accompanying Catherine and Mary is actually Mouse wearing Jacob’s face. The real Jacob is held captive by Alice, and the two share an emotional and devastating scene, during which he admits it was easier to give up on finding her than it was to wake up to further disappointments every single day. Unfortunately, this sorrowful display doesn’t sway Alice; she’s happy with who she’s become and she’s going through with her plans for vengeance.
Losing a mother
When we shift back to the gala, the meat of this week’s episode really begins to unfold. As Catherine is giving her speech, it quickly becomes clear that things are awry. Instead of whatever words of gratitude had been written, the script has been replaced by Alice’s own sentiments — which paint Hamilton Industries and The Crows as “the true villains of Gotham.” Catherine continues to read, becoming more anxious as she realizes that Alice is here — and that she’s been poisoned.
Mary and fake Jacob attempt to get Catherine help for the sudden ailments that have suddenly overcome her, but Alice shows up to ensure her revenge goes as planned. While Mouse takes his Jacob persona elsewhere to notify the police that they don’t need backup — thus incriminating the real Jacob — Alice forces Catherine to apologize for all the harm she’s caused.
The moments between Alice, Catherine, and Mary are some of the best in the episode. From Mary’s promise that she’ll kill Alice if anything happens to her mother to Catherine’s heartfelt apology for the pain she caused, the acting is raw and emotional, and it truly makes you feel for both characters. And that’s saying something given that fans haven’t really had time to know or like Catherine.
Catherine’s final moments on the series are the most heartbreaking, and it’s difficult to watch as she comforts her daughter with her dying breaths. The only thing worse than watching Catherine tell Mary she’s the “only thing she ever did right” is Mary’s later lamentation that she’s saved so many horrible people, but she couldn’t save her mother.
If there’s one positive about Catherine’s death, though, it’s that the loss is sure to kick Mary’s storyline into high gear. Could we see another vigilante in Gotham sometime soon?
A choice for Sophie
Sophie escapes Alice’s wrath during this episode, as Kate’s twin knows that killing her ex would be the one thing Kate could never forgive. Instead, Alice ensures that Sophie and Tyler are securely tied up while she makes her move on the gala — and it gives the two of them time to address all the feelings they’ve been avoiding.
By the end of the episode, Tyler is ready for the truth. And while Sophie admits that she loves him, she can’t honestly tell him that she’s in love with him. We know now that Sophie has never quite gotten over Kate either, and it’ll be interesting to see where her separation from Tyler takes her going forward.
A new vow
Not long ago, Kate and Jacob vowed they would get Kate’s twin sister back. The end of “A Mad Tea-Party,” however, shows the two making a new pact. As Jacob sits in an interrogation room, Kate visits him. Distraught over what’s happened because of her choices, Kate tearfully tells him that she hates Alice.
His response? That he’s going to put her down for good once he’s free again. “This time, I won’t stop you,” Kate replies, and it’s a huge moment for the two of them. They’re finally facing the truth of who Beth has become, and they’ve begun to accept the hard choices they’ll need to make heading into the latter half of the season.
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