Episode 3 of Batwoman was another solid episode of the show which served to strengthen Ryan’s position as the new Batwoman whilst also building a greater understanding of the relationship between Alice and the big bad of the show, Safiyah.
This week starts with the inclusion of a seemingly untouchable hitman named Victor Zsasz killing two people before leaving a razor mark on his own body for each of his victims. Sophie and Alice wake up on a private island which is owned by Safiyah and we find out that Alice was trained by Safiyah 5 years ago. Safiyah then drops the bomb that she didn’t kill Kate and in fact that Kate is still very much alive, which she proves by showing Alice one of Kate’s necklaces. Later in the episode Alice and Sophie wake up in Gotham and Alice takes off to carry out a mission which Safiyah has set her.
Upon finding out that the Desert Rose which was used to treat the bat bites of the victims who were bitten last week, Safiyah hires the hitman Victor Zsasz to obtain the list of those who were treated but his attempt is stopped by Batwoman. But that doesnt stop Zsasz trying again, this time nearly coming close to hurting Mary in the process but again Batwoman swoops in and saves the day and is hailed by the people of Gotham as a hero with a new look. Kate’s Dad Jacob uncovers an image on Kate’s phone which shows a picture with the name Safiyah drawn across it and he recognises that the picture was by Jack Napier.
It was certainly another very busy episode of the show but it didn’t seem overwhelming. For those keeping up with the show, it helped to answer some of those questions which have been left unanswered up until this stage, mainly who was Safiyah and what hold did she have over Alice. The scenes with Safiyah and Alice were largely uneventful, aside from the one in which Alice tried to overcome her master. But served a greater purpose in giving us some context to the power that Safiyah has over Alice who up until this episode has been largely untouchable. Its encouraging to see a women in such a fierce, powerful and prominent role on the show and I just hope this isn’t a swerve later on in the season.
We also had our first reference to a villain within the Batman universe and that was when Jacob Kane unveiled that the artist he had found on Kate’s mobile phone was none other than Jack Napier, aka The Joker. I absolutely loved this and really do appreciate nods and shout outs to familiar faces within the wider DC World. It is likely to come of nothing but even the slight possibility of an appearance from The Joker leaves a level of excitement running throughout the rest of this show, which I guess is what they set out to achieve.
Now we have to also talk about Ryan’s amendments she make to the Batsuit, I have to say I love them. Finally we can bid farewell to the red wig which is perhaps the most noticeable change from Kate’s costume to the one that we saw Ryan wear in this episode. Ryan rocks her Afro with pride and it just works so well for the Batwoman look. Ryan’s Batsuit is more colourful than the one that Kate wore with red forearm gauntlets and a redesigned logo which is prominent on the chest of the suit. Some may question the differences but for me the new suit bids farewell to Kate and moves us on with the new hero in town who goes by the name of Ryan Wilde.
But whilst I’m on that subject lets also mention the fact that Safiyah told Alice in this episode that Kate is very much alive. Now do we believe her? How would Kate come back if she was to? Do we even want to see her back? Now Caroline Dries who is the show runner for Batwoman had promised that she wouldn’t kill of Kate Kane, but its a new season and we are a few weeks in and for me it doesn’t feel as though there is any space for Kate Kane in this season. Ryan Wilde has done such a fantastic job as Batwoman in such a short space of time that I feel as though if Kate did return it would only serve to undermine that hard work. Also from a storyline perspective I genuinely have no idea how they write her back in and that is even if Ruby Rose wanted to come back. There are so many questions to be answered about a potential Kate Kane return but this episode definitely left that door slightly open for that possibility.
A slower episode of the show this week in terms of action but a much needed episode in terms of storytelling and intrigue which will now continue to build throughout the rest of the season. Will Kate return? Will The Joker turn up in Gotham? Lots still to be answered which all make me excited to see what happens next week in Batwoman Season 2!
