Kate struggles with her actions and what they might mean for her both as a person and Batwoman. Luke receives word that his father’s killer’s case is being reconsidered. Alice has a favour to ask of her sister.

Though it was clumsy in the specific execution (in my opinion) of its point last time out, I stand by that the destination was a narratively interesting one and the show burrows deeper into that particular angle this week. Having killed Cartwright, Kate wrestles with what his means – is she really so different from her sister as she imagined? And how can she continue carrying the mantle of Gotham’s self-appointed arbiter of justice if she really is just the same as Alice?

Meanwhile, Luke has the thorny issue of his father’s murder case being re-opened. With what we know is happening behind the scenes this feels like a fair thing but it’s easy to see why it affects Luke quite badly. Mary, of course, senses that he’ll be struggling and makes sure to be around when Kate definitely isn’t, and it’s touching to see the two of them united again like this – I do wonder whether the writers intend something more down the line. Even Mary’s incessant quest to get to the truth behind Batwoman’s identity takes a back seat as she just wants to be there for Luke.

Alice has issues of her own to deal with – namely it seems someone has a real issue with her and she wants nothing more than to get Mouse back and skip town for good. Getting to Mouse may well be the problem though, given that all of Gotham law-enforcement and The Crows are also out looking for him. Enlisting Kate’s help with a promise you feel sure she’ll break, the writers do a lot of interesting work here to give us a resolution we didn’t necessarily see coming.

Sophie also has issues of her own, investigating a lead related to Lucius Fox’s murder which leads her to bump into a new face for her, albeit someone we have seen previously. Someone whose introduction into the mix may be simultaneously very good and very bad for Kate.

What’s apparent here is that things are going to get really tricky in the Batcave quite soon. Kate is now a killer, albeit one that you can hardly blame. But if/when Luke finds out, how forgiving is he likely to be, given his own personal history? For that matter, how might Mary take it? The idea of Kate really struggling, not because of how difficult it is to do the job but because she genuinely worries as to whether she’s worthy of the mantle is a deeply interesting one, and leaves us set up for a very interesting final stretch of this maiden season.

Verdict: Surprising, deftly woven and with real heart. This is the good stuff. 9/10

Greg D. Smith