We go from a game show run by a psycho to zombies in the streets of Gotham this week on Batwoman season 2.
Last time on Batwoman season 2, Ryan, Sophie, and Mary were busy getting a clue to the appropriately named Cluemaster’s evil plan and how newcomer Stephanie Brown – his daughter and the future sidekick called Spoiler – fit into the puzzle.
A bigger mystery was unraveled when Sophie finally admitted to seeing right through Ryan’s poker face and knowing of her secret life as the new Batwoman. Saving the day, Sophie is now part of the team and on her way to building bridges with Ryan, who was on the other side of the law before she ever put on Kate’s suit.
Meanwhile, Alice is the prisoner of Black Mask and finds out Kate is mind-warped into thinking she is the late Circe Sionis in a twist I argue was too soon. They could’ve milked this plot thread for weeks to put viewers in a position that pities poor Alice through the looking.
But, alas, it wasn’t to be. Wherefore, dear reader? Well, you see, they have to cut right to the good stuff – that is… zombies!
It’s Night of the Flesh Eaters for Batwoman Season 2
Yes, there are zombies in an episode of Batwoman at the same time Army of the Dead is debuting. And they say Warner Bros. doesn’t like Zack Snyder anymore?
Okay, the supposed zombies are actually less Snyder or George Romero or Walking Dead and much closer to something out of 28 Days Later.
Romero drew a distinction between what he did in his movies and what he classified as infected people in Danny Boyle’s cult classic. The virus in 28 Days and Weeks bred “rage,” essentially, and allowed for the infected to run and not suffer the effects of decomposition.
Batwoman’s “zombies” are along those lines except they are inflicted by the side effects of a bad batch of Snakebite that has an improvised and messy formula turning addicts’ eyes a reptilian shape. They also develop a craving for (that’s right) brains.
Explaining the Bad Batch
Snakebite usually provides a fleetingly fulfilling fantasy to its users so they get a do-over with the loved ones they either miss or failed in some way. At this point, the drug has a bizarre evolution that causes those users to want other people’s memories, and the only way to get them is by consuming brain matter.
It sounds weird but makes sense on a level that fits in this surreal CW multiverse. After Crisis On Infinite Earths, it’s hardly the weirdest thing the Arrowverse has left us with.
In all, it’s Justice for All?
Where the episode, “And Justice For All”, really gets clunky is its inciting incident that sends Ryan, Luke, and later Sophie to jail. The incident advances a subplot involving macho elements and corruption within Gotham Police and the Crows, spurring Sophie to resign.
A lot of questions and serious issues are raised, and Soph is now closer to fighting crime the Bat’s way, but the group only sits in jail to let zombies fester. They get out fairly easily and turn their attention to the hordes of infected.
It’s probably setting the Crows up as a bigger threat going forward but things pivot so quickly into the season’s next big shock, twists and turns are here and gone before they have time to set in.
And, if that isn’t enough, we’re going to wait longer – until June – to see how the latest piece of business resolves. Judging by the tease for the next episode, things won’t be pretty.
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