'Gotham' Recap 'What the Little Bird Told Him': Gotham City Is Becoming More Familiar

The first two episodes of the second half of Gotham’s first season have continued the improvement that had been exhibited towards the end of the first half of the season. This week’s outing, “What the Little Bird Told Him”, was particularly strong as it not only felt the most Batman-y but it also focused solely on the case at hand and the mafia storylines. Gordon’s quick readmission to the homicide division aside, “What the Little Bird Told Him” was a fun and solidly executed hour of TV.

So what exactly is “feeling Batman-y”? Well, a large part of it has to do with the villain. Gotham’s focus in the long run is to establish origins for many of Batman’s classic villains, which has clearly begun with both The Penguin and Selina Kyle/Catwoman. But seeing as how these supervillains have not become their true villainous selves yet Gotham, also must create/use new or lesser villains for Gordon and Bullock to chase every week. This was done with mixed results in the first half of the season. Jack Gruber (Lester Buchinsky) was the show’s most exemplary villain thus far.

Buchinsky and his plan are the main reason “What the Little Bird Told Him” felt Batman-y. He had the right mix of insanity and malice that we’ve all come to expect from a Batman villain. If his escape from Arkham Asylum last week was not enough, then Buchinsky surely did not disappoint this week. His immediate dispatch of both electric shop workers and his attempts of revenge against Sal Maroni certainly proved his worth as a lesser Batman villain – his attack on GCPD headquarters hammered this point home. Buchinsky showed just enough danger that he could become a thorn in a future Batman’s side in later years but not enough so that it made it unbelievable that Gordon and Bullock would not be able to catch him. Even though he was captured by the end of the episode, he was at least a threat for two episodes, which made him feel more important than the usual bad guy of the week and the possibility of his return in later episodes or seasons makes his introduction all the more exciting.

Where Buchinsky helped to further ground the show into a more recognizable Gotham City, most of the fun from the episode came by reuniting Gordon and Bullock. While it would have been nice to see Gordon toil away as an Arkham guard for a couple more episodes (perhaps meeting a few more future villains), the show usually excels the most when Bullock and Gordon are together. This was no exception this week. Gordon’s looser attitude and Bullock’s surprise by it felt true based on their relationship’s previous set up in earlier episodes. They were both cracking wise and seemed to genuinely enjoy being back together. It helps that Ben McKenzie (James Gordon) and Donal Logue (Harvey Bullock) have a natural chemistry. Even Gordon felling Buchinsky by splashing water on his electromagnet was played for laughs, which felt a tad anticlimactic but also was a nice switch up of how the climaxes usually go on Gotham.

“What the Little Bird Told Him” also saw the mafia storyline briefly collide with Gordon and Bullock. Gordon using Maroni as bait for Buchinsky showed Gordon’s new attitude and how he has learned from his initial days on the force. The Penguin’s electrocution also was a more organic way to begin Maroni to doubt his loyalty as Penguin, in a dazed stupor, blurted aloud that he had to meet Falcone after having told Maroni he had to leave to see his mother. Maroni is now rightfully suspicious and this could become an interesting arc for the next few episodes.

It was also a welcome surprise to see Fish make her play against Falcone so early. The storyline began to drag a little towards the end of the first half of the season but it seemed like it would continue to build until the end of the season. Instead Fish, maybe jumping the gun a little as well, decided to try to force Falcone out by kidnapping Liza. As Falcone was considering this retirement strategy, due to his affections for Liza, until Penguin informed Falcone that Liza was working for Fish. For whatever reason Fish did not rough up Liza one bit so when Falcone went to make the trade with Fish and saw Liza unscathed he knew Penguin had told the truth. And then in a shocking, but much needed, instant of violence Falcone choked Liza to death. Finally Falcone’s power was shown to the audience and he now feels like an actual force to be reckoned with. What was even better was that Falcone was clearly affected by him killing Liza but he still did it anyway. By the end he took captured Fish and Butch and let Penguin reveal himself to Fish as one last screw to Fish.

Much of the relationship storyline was put on the back burner for this episode but it still received a scene or two, just to keep those plots moving. First, Barbara returns to her parents who are naturally cold to her, though the reason is unclear. She will end up staying there a few days but does not tell them about the troubles between her and Gordon. At the end of the episode Dr. Leslie Thompkins visits Gordon in the locker room at headquarters, which is where he is currently staying. Then Batman’s future doctor and Thompkins share a couple of intense kisses before being interrupted. Neither of these storylines are too interesting, unless a major shake up happens in the Batman universe where Jim Gordon does not marry a Barbara. At the moment, however, it is refreshing to not have to see Jim and Barbara fight for no reason.

“What the Little Bird Told Him” was an exciting episode that could be a predictor of the show’s quality to come. Offering a villain like Buchinsky pushes Gotham further into a more recognizable world in which Batman is needed. Not focusing on Selina Kyle, Bruce Wayne, or Barbara Gordon – the show’s less interesting storylines at the moment – also kept the episode fun and engaging. The handling of both Buchinsky and the Penguin storyline lately also gives some hope that the aforementioned lesser storylines could improve can also provide some cautious optimism.