Gotham Episode 5: “Viper” Review

This week young Bruce is pinning up papers on his wall when Alfred comes in and asks him, “What if all of this was a complete and under waste of time, what if you never discovered who killed your Mum and Dad? What if you never get to reap revenge.” the answer comes back to him that Bruce was to understand how Gotham works. He does not want revenge. Interesting, already this kid is showing some of the smarts we see in Batman. Alfred accepts its a better hobby than trying to grill his hand over candles.

While our other bad guy Sal says he strong armed the Mayor got a piece of Arkham and now he wants to rob a casino owned by the Don. Frankie his underling really does not look happy about it and doesn’t want to tweak the nose of the Don as it were, while penguin looks on kinda nasty like. So by now we know the pattern he is a brown noser and is likely to swoop in and do something about it while Frankie waffles.

Lost looking skinny man on the street walks up to a man playing a guitar with a sign that honestly says, Why Lie I need the money for drugs. The guy drops a vile of green stuff into the case and runs away. Our druggy friend does what druggy’s do pick up and reads it says breath me so he does and he gets a weird looking happy high. Off to get a drink of milk, two gallons to be exact and when the shop owner tells him he has to pay for it guy says “Do not vex me mortal.” it would appear something is up in the neighborhood. Then he breaks a bat in half like it is a twig.

The detective duo make their first showing of the episode and are getting something to eat when Cat sneaks up, she is about to pick pocket a guy when Jim sees her. He screams at her and she runs off and gets away. Partner wants to have his lunch when an alarm goes off, it’s the shop where drug boy was and several gallons of milk are gone and so is the ATM. Our cops can’t fathom how the skinny little man stole an ATM with his bare hands, but to prove that he did show makers give us a look at him running down the street with it. While back at PD camera footage shows the ATM lift and they found the drug bottle that was used.

Fish in the meantime is teaching opera to her new little girl, a weapon. Who is bored. She gets slapped when she says that she wants to go out and get some fun. She may be baby girl, but Fish also informs her that she has to earn the privilege of a Mama. Ouch. Then it is back to opera learning.

The Don has a meeting with his people, including a new Russian guy. No one is happy about the fact that Maroni got part of the Arkham project and is pushing again. The Don tells him now is not the time and when he complains, Fish firmly puts him in his place. She looks like she wants to kill him, but the Don says they need each other they are family.

The cops are doing it the old fashioned way to find their superman type guy with a picture and asking around. They get a hit after what seems like a long time the mans name is Benny. The hooker demands $20 as to where they can find him, but settles for $10. They find him with all kinds of milk and ATM mess and he is all strung out. He needs more drugs. He lifts the ATM and is going to throw it at the boys, but then the drug seems to have its final say and he breaks like a twig man and under the ATM. The last thing Gordon says is god help us if that drug gets out, cut to the scene of nasty skinny man handing it out like it is candy.

Turns out Bruce has found out that Wayne enterprises gave the shares to the mob. He worries for a moment that his parents may have worked that way, but Alfred assures him they did not. Alfred seems very nervous that Bruce is is digging into these things, maybe he knows something that he is not saying. Bruce sees the information about the new drug, it is called Viper and running rampant and everyone who takes, it is dying after going on a rampage.

Oswald butts in at the restaurant and says that he knows a janitor who works at the casino. Frankie tries to get rid of him, but our big guy has him settle in and tells him penguin is a good name that he should be proud of it. As they talk and get to know each other Oswald gives out the information that he used to work for Fish and finds his head bashed into the table.

Turns out the biggest pharma company in the city of Gotham Wellzim has an employee that became unstable working with them. It is our nasty skinny fellow. Looks like he is the one who made the drug and Gordon is blaming the company saying they knew.

Frankie shows up to get Gordon over Oswald, looks like he just jumped out of the frying pan and into the fire and is on his way for another mob meeting. Down to the restaurant after being hooded where penguin is beat up clearly. Turns out if Jim tells the wrong story both of them will die. Have to love the way the Mob thinks. Jim tells the entire truth of it. Which is the same story Oswald told so Moroni is happy and has Oswald brought back out and is kissing him and saying they have a new weapon.

Jim and partner find a friend of the freaky chemical guy and find out the truth. He did not work on beauty products and all of that no he worked on chemical drugs for soldiers. The viper was the first of it the second, which took care of the death as it turns out was Venom. Turns out the professor is in on it and doesn’t want to help the cops then he snorts his own bottle of Viper. Crazy town.

At the party Bruce got invited to he corners a middle manager and wonders why the board is not there. There is of course all sorts of gesturing and the rest, that is when our lunatic comes on a big screen and talks about his drug, Viper. The middle manager lies outright to Bruce about the company that made the drug. Gordon and partner arrive as the drug is being sent through the vents and manage to get people to start evacuating, then up on the roof with the bad guy they shoot the tank of the stuff, the poor guy gets a major dose. The bad guy says go look at warehouse 39 before jumping off the roof. When the cops find the warehouse it is empty and the middle manager is following them.

A great breakthrough for the episode is after the scary party Alfred comes in and starts going through paperwork with Bruce. Meanwhile Maroni pulls off his heist and Fish it turns ou is sleeping with the Russian and backing his plan to take over the family. Our final big hit of the show is the Don feeding the birds and our secret weapon all dressed in beautiful white humming her Opera song, she of course gets his attention. The first step in Fish’s plan seems to be a hit.

Overall, this is an interesting episode of Gotham to be sure. Perhaps not the strongest of the season, but the viewer can walk out of this one knowing that the seeds of a bigger and better episode to come have been laid. We are getting details to go into layers.

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