Bam Smack Pow
Fansided

Gotham Season 3, Episode 11 Recap: “Mad City: Beware The Green-Eyed Monster”

By Steve Lam

facebooktwitterreddit

Gotham’s mid-season finale has some fine performances and nice conflicts, but it could’ve used some more twists to circumvent viewer expectations.

Gotham‘s “Beware the Green-Eyed Monster” brings the first half of Season 3 to a close, and puts Jim in a very difficult position. There are fine performance all around, but the writing could’ve introduced some more surprises.

Spoilerific Recap

A lab worker wraps up for the night and checks out. He arrives at a bar and runs into Mario, who questions the man about his profession—hematology. Mario promptly crushes the man’s skull with his bare hands and takes his access badge.

More from TV

At Wayne Manor, Bruce learns that Volk has been killed. However, he still wants to press on with stealing the object from the Court of Owls.

The GCPD is now on the scene of the murdered hematologist. Harvey tries to get Jim to take a break. No luck there, as Jim finds a clue to the bio-lab—motivating him even more.

Barbara meets with Ed and clues him in on who actually killed Isabella. Ed finally figures out that it’s Penguin, but wonders about Barbara’s play in all of this.

Bruce, Alfred, Selina, and a Whisper Gang member survey the Court of Owls building. Bruce grows impatient and tells Selina that he plans on breaking in today.

Jim visits the bio-lab and finds that the murderer is still in the facility. He goes to investigate, and Mario ambushes and renders him unconscious. As a parting gift, he writes a clue on Jim’s hand.

Harvey and the GCPD are now on the scene. Jim doesn’t know who attacked him, but discovers that the message on his hand reads “Arkham.”

Jim pays Jervis Tetch a visit and demands to know who else he infected. Jervis is uncooperative at first, but Jim pushes his buttons, causing Jervis to inadvertently reveal Mario as the killer.

Bruce practices walking a tightrope to prepare for the heist. However, Selina’s paranoia gets the better of her, prompting her to leave. Alfred puts her on a slight guilt trip when he reveals that Bruce made a deal with the Court to protect his loved ones.

Mario is brought in to the GCPD and tested. Not surprisingly, he’s clear of any infection. Jim doesn’t buy it and thinks that Mario found a way to cheat the detection.

Alfred and Bruce prepare for the heist. At another location, the Talon has already found the Whisper Gang and murdered them.

Ed meets with Penguin and lures him into a verbal trap. After Ed expresses that he wants to be more than friends, Penguin admits to having feelings for him. Ed corrects Penguin and tells him that he was alluding to a business partnership.

Jim visits Lee, but finds Mario instead. Jim explains that Jervis infected Mario at the hospital during the events of “Mad City: Red Queen.” After Mario lays out his dastardly plan to make Lee despise Jim, he has Victor Zsasz hold Jim at gunpoint for a set amount of time.

At an awards ceremony, Ed fantasizes killing Penguin. Penguin, who’s concerned that their friendship has been jeopardized, wants things to go back to normal. Ed reassures him that they’re friends and gives him a cold hug.

Jim bursts into the church and finds Lee preparing for her wedding. However, Mario already told Lee about Jim’s suspicions. It dawns on Jim that this was Mario’s plan all along. He then admits his love for Lee and regrets never going after her. Angered and hurt, Lee reveals her plans to leave Gotham after her wedding. She then has Carmine escort Jim out.

As Mario and Lee go through their vows, Jim tries to fight Carmine’s bodyguards. He’s outnumbered and unsuccessful. He’s later dumped on the side of the road.

Bruce and Alfred case the Court of Owls building one last time before going in. Selina surprises them and offers her help. As they go to work, a dark figure surveys them.

Lucius has a convincing theory on how Mario cheated on the blood test. That’s enough for Harvey to put together a squad and get a warrant.

Alfred creates a diversion and takes out two guards. Bruce and Selina quickly find the target room and set up the tightrope. Selina walks across, with Bruce keeping the rope taught. Using the key, she opens the vault and finds a crystal owl. As she’s packing it up, Bruce is surprised by the Talon. A stun grenade affords them the chance to briefly escape.

Alfred attempts to hold the Talon off, but is soon overpowered. Bruce’s assistance is futile. When Selina gets in on the fight, Alfred knocks her out of the way to save her life. The mysterious dark figure—who was watching them—enters and gives Alfred a chance to turn the Talon’s blade onto himself. The figure soon reveals herself to be Selina’s long-lost mother.

Ed makes a surprise visit to the club where he finds an infuriated Tabitha and Butch ready to kill him. Lucky for Ed, Barbara steps in and quells the two. Ed quickly strikes a deal with Barbara: she’ll help him destroy Penguin if he uses his influence to unite the families under her.

Mario and Lee are at Carmine’s secret refuge outside of Gotham. He still wants to know if Lee loves Jim. She admits that a part of her will always care for him, but she’s devoted to Mario.

Jim visits Carmine, revealing that Mario is infected. Carmine didn’t know about the infection, but knew that Mario was in some sort of trouble. He’s adamant in sending his men to retrieve him. Jim is worried about Lee’s safety, so he shoot’s Carmine’s men, leaving himself as the only option.

Mario’s rage starts to take over just as Jim arrives. Unknown to Lee, Mario attempts to stab her with a knife. Jim opens fire and kills Mario. From Lee’s perspective, Jim murdered her new husband in cold blood.

Next: Catch up with a recap of 'Mad City: Time Bomb'

Best Moment(s)

“Think about it, Ed. Your brains. Their brawn. My … me,” suggests Barbara as she reveals her aspirations to take over Gotham’s underworld.

Final Thoughts

Poor Jim just can’t get a break. Even in death, Mario’s plan seems to have worked out. Lee only saw Jim murdering her husband in cold blood. She didn’t see the jealous rage monster coming after her with a knife. Like I said before, after all the built up stress, maybe Jim should come back post-hiatus with graying temples. If Jim will eventually be sporting white hair and a mustache, you might as well let the process begin now.

Overall, the acting and character interactions were nicely done in this mid-season finale. The writing could’ve used a bit more surprises. With the synopsis stating that Selina would be meeting an unexpected face, I already knew that it was going to be her mother. Who else would surprise Selina at this stage?

It will be about two months before Gotham returns. So we have plenty of time to speculate on why Selina’s mother has made a grand reentry into her life. While we’re at it, we might as well take some guesses on what that crystal owl actually does.

Also, don’t forget to visit the Gotham After Show where our friends at theStream.tv will give fans a play-by-play of the latest episode. And the fun continues with Welcome to the Batcave, also on theStream.tv.

Home/TV