“Batwoman” Episode 215 Recap: The Blame Game

Down in their subway car, Alice meets up with Ocean and she can’t figure out why he’s stuck around despite everything she’s done to push him away. She asks if he’s a masochist or if he just hates himself, but take it from me, sweetie, two things can be true. Much like the USPS, not attempted murder, nor actual murder, nor betrayal will stop Ocean from delivering on his promise to keep Alice from what she truly wants while calling it love. Alice is no stranger to gaslighting or imprisonment though; it’s all she’s known until now when freedom is at her fingertips. She questions why she should have to choose when she could have it all, and if Ocean actually loved her, he would want that for her too. He doesn’t answer though. He kisses her and we’re left to wonder if it means that he agrees or that he is once again manipulating Alice’s feelings.

Alice stares shocked into the camera

Rachel! Your face!

Sophie arrives at the Batcave to help (I love that she can just come and go as she pleases now) Ryan who is recovering from the Crows attack. Meanwhile, Mary is STRUTTING down the hospital hallway on a mission to charm her way into Luke’s room. She’s thwarted by some Crows on order from Commander Kane though, rendering her “do you know who I am” attempts useless.

Mary walks down a hospital hallway

Werk, bitch.

Back in the Batcave, Sophie and Ryan watch the newly released body cam footage that has been doctored to show Luke pulling a gun from his jacket rather than the cell phone that was actually in his hand. The gun they photoshopped was one used in a recent string of robberies, ensuring Luke would be booked as soon as he wakes up. Ryan is distraught by this knowledge coupled with the fact that Mary wasn’t able to inject the Desert Rose. Sophie explains that they still have a shot to save Luke because the original footage won’t be wiped from Crows servers until 3am. Ryan turns her anger toward Sophie and lights her up over waiting so long to quit the Crows. Soph knows that Ryan doesn’t actually think this is the former Crow’s fault and calls her on it. And the way Javicia Leslie’s voice breaks when Ryan tells Sophie that she believes it’s her fault Luke got shot?? It broke every part of my heart. Ryan blames herself because she called Luke a privileged bystander and she thinks that’s why he didn’t call in the robbery. I understand the impulse, but the sad truth is that this could have happened to Luke whether or not he made the call.

Ryan is crying

Ow.

And speaking of Luke, he finally realizes that he’s in his subconscious and Bruce tells him that a machine is keeping him alive. He has two choices: attempt to stay alive or stay here, talk to his dad, and die.

At Crows HQ, Sophie tries to convince Kane to look deeper into Tavaroff and of course, the Commander attempts to turn the convo back on Sophie, her recent resignation, and his disappointment that she wouldn’t come to him first. Well tough noogies, bro.

Soph reminds him of a time airtight evidence appeared when they tracked down a rapist they knew was guilty. If it happened then, who’s to say that’s not what happened here? She leaves him to consider how many more people could die if he doesn’t get his head out of his ass. Or something like that. On her way out of the building, she hacks into their security feed to set the team’s plan in motion.

Sophie looks at commander Kane and btw she's also hot

I am aroused.

A side profile of Sophie smiling

“I love it when a plan comes together.”

And in motion it is! Wolf Spider is back and they’re swinging into Luke’s room while Mary expertly distracts the guards again. Wolf Spider successfully injects Luke with the Desert Rose and meets Mary back inside as Evan, ready to flirt with Luke as soon as he wakes up.

Mary is walking with Wolf Spider

I love this duo!

But Luke is still in the in-between trying to get a hold of his dad. He can’t touch Bruce anymore though because the Desert Rose has started to do its healing thang.

Back at HQ, Commander Kane questions Tavaroff about how it’s possible the Luke went from someone with nary a parking ticket to his name, to full on GTA and possessing an illegal firearm. He then suspends Tavaroff who pistol whips Kane because white bois gonna white boi, I suppose.

As Batwoman heads to delete the bodycam footage, Sophie updates her on Luke’s condition. Of course the bodycam files aren’t saved by date and before the two can figure out a plan, Sophie sees Tavaroff dragging the Commander away and asks Ryan to switch gears to save him. I really wished Ryan had continued to attempt to save Luke, but it looks like they’re heading toward a redemption arc for Kane and I, for one, am not here for it.

Batwoman is staring into the camera

“This hacking shit would be so much easier if the Crows data made sense.”

Tavaroff has Kane tied up, about to inject him with a lethal dose of Snakebite, when Batwoman swings in and takes down the entire murder of crows. She unties Kane and makes sures he knows what it cost her to save his life. He admits, much like many people in my DMs last summer, that he didn’t realize it was this bad; that the corruption and systemic racism ran so deep. Batwoman demands that he take this chance to burn it all down, lest he be complicit in whatever happens next.

Ryan and Mary are at Luke’s bedside unsure what’s taking so long for him to wake up. While they wait, they see Bad Dad Kane giving a press conference where admits that the bodycam footage was doctored, takes full responsibility, apologizes to the Fox family and shuts down the Crows. And OF COURSE, we overhear that the first question he receives after making that announcement is about Gotham’s security. Y’ALL STILL GOT REGULAR COPS OMG. I’m sorry, this has been a long time coming and I cannot even feign caring about the dismantling of this organization.

More importantly, Javicia Leslie and Nicole Kang prove yet again why this cast it top notch. Ryan and Mary beg Luke to wake up because they need him. They need him with every fiber of their beings and Mary, specifically, needs him more than I think even she and her one single tear realized.

Mary looks downward in a sad face

*throws all the awards at Nicole Kang*

Luke’s not quite ready yet though. Bruce tells him that of course nothing about this situation is fair. Look at all the Good that Luke has done and yet because he’s Black, he’s fighting for his life after a brutal police attack. Luke is tired, y’all.

He’s tired of living in a world where even when you do whatever “they” think is “right” or “good”, this could still happen. He asks Bruce, “What’s the point?” and the way I felt that question deep in my soul. I think almost every Black person has felt that soul-crushing exhaustion that comes from simply existing in a country that does its best to convince us we are less-than. Waking up tired of being afraid to wear a hoodie or a backpack; doing emotional labor for our non-Black friends who we know mean well; showing up and showing out at work when on the inside we are screaming. It is exhausting. And just like that, Luke is a kid again. A kid who just wants the safety of his dad’s embrace. But as soon as he makes the decision to leave and his father begins to turn toward him, Luke wakes up in the real world and sees the faces of his friends looking down at him.

Luke cries and you can see the child within his soul and it is heartbreaking

“Oh y’all thought only the women could wreck your hearts?!”

I’ve done a lot of yelling about the women in this episode, and I almost never give a man credit for anything, but Camrus Johnson put his all into the few scenes he was in, and I’m going to be thinking about his delivery of “What’s the point?” for a very long time.

Back at Crows HQ, Jacob packs up his things and is met by Sophie who tells him he made the right decision. Down in the parking garage, Alice has managed to break in, quip about the weak Crows security, and update her father on Kate being alive. Again. Look, I hope that Alice gets what she needs from Jacob but all I’m going to say about any possible redemption for him is…I don’t want it.

Alice is looking like she could murder, and you know she will

“I will not hesitate to slit your throat if you make one wrong move.”

But next week, Diggle!!

What did y’all think of the follow up to the previous episode? Sound off in the comments, and I’ll see ya next week!

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Nic

Nic is a Senior Product Manager at a major Publisher and lives in Astoria, NY. She is way too attached to queer fictional characters and maintains that buying books and reading books are two very different hobbies. When she's not consuming every form of fiction, you can find her dropping it low on the dance floor. You can find Nic on twitter and instagram.

Nic has written 82 articles for us.

5 Comments

  1. Whew! SO MUCH in this episode. And in this recap. Hope I can keep it all straight (well, I never keep anything “straight”, but you know what I mean)

    * Minor correction: Alice previously called Mary “Steppy” back in, like the 2nd or 3rd episode of this season? When Alice showed up in the clinic, and Desert Rose was discussed for the first time.

    * “she’s in love and that’s something everyone deserves”

    The thing a great piece of art does, is remind you of other great works of art. And Yes, I’m applying that to “Batwomen”, and the other (at times, anyway) great shows it reminded me of (which happened a BUNCH of times in this episode). This was was on the subject of “deserving love”: as w/ forgiveness, is love something we really deserve? Or just something we need/can’t live without, and good people give to those who need it, whether they deserve it or not? Show Reminder #1: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Episode “I Only Have Eyes for You” (Buffy and Giles discuss whether a murderous spirit “deserves” forgiveness or not. Wise Giles points out that deserving isn’t the point)

    [I’m going to list the other reminders here, out of chronological order to the recap. Because I Very Fecking Old, and may otherwise forget them.]

    * Ryan blaming herself for Luke getting shot. Hello, “Supergirl” Ep 5.19! This is what a hero-with-a-team has to live with: that team-members—lacking Kryptonian- or Batsuit-invulnerability—may nevertheless risk it all for you. And the guilt that evokes for the hero.

    * Luke waking up, thanks to Desert Rose, when his CHOICE was otherwise. Back to Buffy again: Season 6 (cringe, I know all its problems). Buffy “This world is hard, and cold. I think I was in heaven.” Luke “This is still a world where this (innocent black men being shot) happens. I don’t want to live here anymore, I want to go be w/ my dad.” I think the specificity of WHY this world is cold&hard (and for some moreso than others) makes it even more tragic. What will the ramifications for Luke’s involuntary callback-to-life be—can Team Bat make it feel, to him, worth his while?

    OK, back to the recap!

    * “Ocean from delivering on his promise to keep Alice from what she truly wants while calling it love”: Nic, APPLAUSE-APPLAUSE! Perfectly-stated. I am SO over this prettily-packaged box of nothing. “…or that he is once again manipulating Alice’s feelings.” Ding-ding-ding! She may enjoy the lips (etc), but it seems they can’t keep her from her (far healthier, IMO) goal.

    * “Mary is STRUTTING” …in her Fuck-Me boots! {Raises hand, I volunteer for the assignment ;-) }

    * “Ow” This is all.

    * “it looks like they’re heading toward a redemption arc for Kane and I, for one, am not here for it”: I feel ya, it’s just that, do we really want to put Mary, Kate (when she’s back), and now Alice, and even Sophie through any more grief? I, for one, do not. [And you KNOW how I’ve been all “Jacob Kane is the Worst” week after week!]

    * Speaking of Kate: I was legit shocked to see that pic of Ruby-Rose-as-Kate—I seriously thought we’d never see her again. Sharp-But-Ambivalent Feelz.

    * “doing emotional labor for our non-Black friends who we know mean well” : Sigh, I did a thing this afternoon. I purchased something at store—fairly sizable objects—and put them in my home-brought bag. I then walked into the store next door, checked to see if they had an item I wanted. They did not, and I walked right out again. With my generic-bag of stuff purchased next door. “No one will stop me.” I KNEW I was practicing White Privilege even as I was doing it. I knew it.

    * “Look, I hope that Alice gets what she needs from Jacob”: that’s what I hope about all the other characters-we-care-about in this show. They get what they need from Jacob . . . and then, without further trauma, he . . . I don’t know, get a new job in Metropolis or National City. [Or hell, Smallville.] Just Somewhere Else.

    Kudos to you, Nic, for recapping all this. It’s clearly a job you love, but also puts you through it. Grateful.

  2. I really do love this show and I’m pleasantly surprised to see the Crows disbanded (GCPD next, please and thanks, what are they even doing anyway???), but hoo boy am I with you about not wanting Jacob Kane’s redemption arc, Nic! I do not care about this lil man, I will not be moved by him, I cannot stretch myself want anything from him except in very tiny flashes and only ever for his daughters’ sakes. And even then, I’m more team legit therapy (Mary and Kate) and prison plus therapy (Alice) than team daddy-daughter reconciliation.

    Part of the reason that Sophie leaving the Crows is so compelling is that she’s a) a Black woman grappling with her relationship to an inherently anti-Black system that she would like to see reformed (and believes at first can be reformed), and b) while the audience sees Sophie make questionable choices w/r/t to how she threatens suspects, we actually since S1 have watched her try to de-escalate the Crows down from lethal measures, and also remove herself and report it when Crows start violating basic rights. We know that Crowphie has believed in this bad system, but we also know she was a good faith actor. She also actively listens when people challenge her complicity, and has been building toward leaving the Crows since late S1.

    We’ve only ever seen Jacob Kane escalating violence and tensions up until the moment he realizes he’s trying to kill someone in his own bloodline. We’ve watched him be a crappy boss slash father figure to Sophie while promoting people who he literally must know have been accused of brutality, and either greenlight or tacitly accept a violent open season on drug users while abusing snakebite himself. We’ve watched him ignore every invitation to be empathetic, or to question the organization he founded after any of many bloody incidents involving his Crows.

    It’s mentioned in the ep that he tried to murder Batwoman in the stadium last season, but conveniently left out that he personally called for the slaughter of the Black man that Kate was painstakingly talking down from committing any more violence. Yes, that Black man was guilty and had proven himself dangerous and hard to subdue, but guess what? So’s Alice. And since her last breakout, Jacob doesn’t even care if she’s locked up or out and about doing murders in broad daylight. And killing her has been pretty much yanked off the table since he realized she was his kid. A Black man menaces the city for a week and Jacob thinks 100 bullets are exactly what he needs. Alice menaces the city for over a year and Jacob simply grits his teeth and screens her calls.

    Jacob claiming that he didn’t understand how corroded his personal paramilitary outfit had become when he has actively chosen to fabricate evidence against some people and put out kill orders on several others is really something. The lack of regard that Jacob showed for life, and specifically Black life, might never be brought up again, even as he skates over his snakebite usage and general dickery into being a hero, and I feel some type of way about that.

    I’m grateful that Luke will heal physically, and pleased that his traumatic experience led to the end of the Crows and hopefully the last time we’ll see Tavaroff, but I’m gritting my teeth over having to watch a Black man be hurt and traumatized (TWICE) just for Jacob to finally be in a black square on IG kinda head space.

    I need them to let this bad CW dad fade into obscurity so I can comfortably split my time between all the fascinating, complex women (and Luke) featured here, plus all the mean-but-in-a-fun-way milfs scattered across other CW shows. Tired of having my resentment for Jacob eclipse my big feelings about Mary, Ryan and Sophie.

    Also lmao imagining Julia traipsing back into town one day, still in a daze from being hypnotized over and over, finding herself suddenly with no job prospects, with one ex dating a new Batwoman with a better wig, and another ex with a whole new face.

  3. Oof. This was a hard episode to watch. Thanks for recapping it for us, Nic.

    Mary’s fierce looks and Alice’s quips about the lack of security in the parking structure were the light moments I needed to offset the heaviness of the rest of the episode. My heart was breaking in all the other scenes.

    Glad that Ocean and Bad Dad Kane are on their way out. I need less disappointing men and more of Ryan, Sophie, Mary, Luke.

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