Batwoman 1×04 – Who Are You?

Gotham has now discovered the truth about it’s hero, and seems to have accepted that their new hero is female. However, some people seem to already be losing confidence in her as a bird-themed thief by the name of Magpie seems to be escaping with precious jewels, with no sign of Batwoman (Ruby Rose) at the scenes to stop her.

Magpie, portrayed by Rachel Matthews in this series, was first introduced in Batman #401, November 1986. In the comics, she is a serial killer and a jewel thief, and whilst she does not kill anyone in this episode, she certainly tries, in order to distract Batwoman from stopping her.

Whilst Magpie is a thief and for lack of a better word, a terrorist, she also has a nifty skill that allows her to make convincing replicas of the jewels she steals, but instead of just making copies, she enjoys putting explosives into the replicas which cause havoc for the rest of Gotham. In this episode for instance, she steals the pearl necklace of Martha Wayne, which is due to be presented at a memorial for strong females in Gotham, but when Batwoman has Magpie at arms length, Magpie releases the pearls, causing them to scatter across the floor and each tiny pearl causes a somewhat lethal explosion.

Meanwhile, Alice is still lurking about Gotham and the audience gets to learn a little more about Catherine Hamilton-Kane’s (Elizabeth Anweis) past, as she reveals a dark secret to Jacob Kane (Dougray Scott) regarding Alice, and the events that took place all those years ago when Beth and Kate were still young girls.

This episode continues to prove that this series is at the very least, heading in the right direction. It’s still finding it’s footing but after 3 previous episodes with a serious tone, this episode seems like the writers were having a little more fun with the dialogue etc. as there are a variety of wise-crack jokes and quips from the characters, especially between Batwoman and Luke Fox (Camrus Johnson), as they seem to both be enjoying their new roles as they team up to save the city.

There are many jokes referring to how serious Batman took his job, and what it did to him as a person, whilst Batwoman seems to be having a little too much fun, and not only that, but the writers of the series added some great little moments that make you laugh out loud, as Batwoman continues to grow accustomed to the new equipment she’s using.

We finally get to see some batarangs in action, but I will say that the motion in which Ruby Rose throws them, seems a little stiff, although this could just be to portray Kate Kane getting used to the equipment as I previously mentioned, but when she throws the batarang, there seems to be a lack of conviction in the throwing and it’s very robotic, whereas in most adaptations of a batarang being thrown, the movement is swift, somewhat stylistic, and feels like it’s being thrown with purpose. However that is my only problem with this episode, and as I said, I’m hoping it’s just a purposeful action that will improve with the character development as the series continues.

Overall I’d give this episode a 4/5 as it gives us a look into Kate’s personal life as she’s trying to move on from Sophie (Meagan Tandy) by dating Reagan (Brianne Howey) who was introduced to us in the last episode. As Batwoman, this episode gave us some more action, some added humour, and as previously mentioned, further development of the characters and a series as a whole, production wise. I for one will continue to watch and support this series as it is certainly gaining strength and finding some sort of formula for the episodes. As the series continues, I’m sure the writers will find the right blend of action, drama, plot twists and humour in order to make the episodes more entertaining.