‘Gotham’ episode 13 review: Fish Mooney’s quick escape hurts ‘Welcome Back, Jim Gordon’

“Welcome Back, Jim Gordon” was the second episode of “Gotham” back after the winter hiatus, so of course there was a certain hope that this would be a story that would be responsible for really pushing the story forward in some grand way. We didn’t quite have that.

Instead, this could really be the tale of how the Penguin and Bruce Wayne proved that they have guts, and that is for the most part what we were excited about. Bruce returned following his “it’s too dangerous to be in the city” trip to Switzerland, and upon his return we got a clear sense that Alfred was ready to kick him in gear and over the whole Selina Kyle saga. Seriously, the quicker we get over that, the better. We’re still not feeling anything that Selina is doing on this show.

However, we are 120% all about Oswald challenging Fish Mooney and making some of his first real power-moves beyond just trying to pull strings behind the scenes. This guy has been at times sniveling, and we know that he eventually becomes a crime boss! There was only so long that the sniveling act was really going to work.

If the episode had just focused on these characters and then Jim himself (who was getting back to the force and the real world again), it’d be okay. Unfortunately, we also had Fish Mooney’s practical magic-trick to get free of Falcone and his men, which made almost no sense how it happened so quickly. Even when they are battling each other, the henchmen on this show are set up to be the stupidest people who have ever lived.

In the wend, “Welcome Back, Jim Gordon” is not an episode you’re going to be remembering. Sure, it did have a couple of nice highlights here and there, but it’s hard to really get aboard a Fish Mooney arc where she and her people are seen as so smart, whereas Falcone and his people are so inherently dumb. Grade: C+.