Gotham – 01×03 – The Balloonman (SPOILERS)

SPOILERS

So, a guy is wandering around, attaching scummy people to weather balloons…. LOL, that’s so Gotham.  Harvey, as usual, doesn’t really give a shit.  You better get used to these kinds of crimes happening, Bullock.  You’re in Gotham.  Where people get killed by people called The Balloonman.  Some ex-employee stole 4 of the balloons, according to the dude who owns them.  A dirty cop is the second one to get ballooned after he beats up a drug dealer for not giving him enough ‘protection money’.  Jim’s disturbed by the fact that the case got nothing when it was just a crooked stock broker, but that when it’s a cop, the case matters.  It also brings out New York (sorry… GOTHAM’S) love of a vigilante.  They track down the former employee through Harvey’s list of scumbags that reads like a game of telephone.  So, purple monkey dishwasher led them to a place where a brawny whore is holding up Charlie the balloon factory guy.  The girl beats the crap out of Harvey, and he’s only saved by Gordon putting a gun on her.  Harvey then punches her out, and Gordon gets his ‘awwww, man.  Harvey!!” facial expression.  Get used to that expression.

Oh man!  Mr. Factory dorkus explains that weather balloons rise and get cold, and when they get too cold, they burst.  We see that in practice when one of the victims falls on a woman walking her dog.  They have to break out the shovels for the crime scene.  YES.  I’m SO glad that they did that.  Usually when a body falls from a big height on TV, like from a roof onto a car or the ground, there’s just a little bit of blood, and the body is still intact.  That does NOT happen in real life.  You’re like a busted bag of rancid meat when that kind of thing happens.  It’s totally one of my TV pet peeves.  Turns out the body was Cranston, the dirty cop.  And he had the sheet of paper he took off The Balloonman in his pocket, it’s got Gordon’s name on it.  Of course.  But, it makes Gordon realize he knows who The Balloonman is.  Turns out it’s the guy from juvenile services who dropped off Selina Kyle to Gordon.  But, The Balloonman strikes again, attaching a corrupt priest to one of the balloons.

Bullock and Gordon find an abandoned building that was the old juvie facility ready for demolition.  The Balloonman gives a passionate speech about protecting the innocent in a city where it’s impossible to because justice has never been done.  A city with a mayor in the mob’s pocket, with dirty cops taking bribes and beating down anyone in sight.  Bullock winds up attaching the dude to one of his own balloons (and even says hoisted by his own pitar… oh Harvey).  Gordon jumps after the guy and makes Harvey shoot out the balloon.  This time, he won’t get to bust out his “awww, man.  Harvey!” face.

Selina is brought to Gordon’s desk, and gets a get out of juvie free (for now) card since she was an apparent witness to the Wayne murder.  She totally steals Harvey’s pen and uses it later to bust herself out of the handcuffs that Gordon puts on her while he investigates down the sewer to where she says she ditched the wallet that brought her to the crime scene.  And she bails while he’s ankle-deep in shit, dropping his handcuffs down there for him to dig around for.  God, I love Selina.

In Oswald’s world, he’s back in Gotham, and we see a panorama of Gotham’s shittiness.  Whores and thieves and grime everywhere.  He breathes it all in, but totally gets recognized by one of Gotham’s various goons.  Who he shanks in the ankle and then goes stabby stabby on.  He gets some money out of it, and then goes on the job hunt.  He’s told no, and that he doesn’t have the right shoes.  But some other guy does.  Stabby stabby!  God, I love Oswald.  He gets the job, and finds out that the restaurant is a haunt of Don Marone, Carmine Falcone’s chief rival.  Things are finally starting to go Oswald’s way.  He meets with Marone at the restaurant, saying his name is Paolo.  Marone takes a liking to him and gives him money.  Awww.

Bruce and Alfred have a fake fencing match in a room full of gorgeous, expensive looking antiques!  No, stop!  YOU’LL BREAK SOMETHING!  The only things that actually suffer are the pride of a suit of armor, and some papers on the desk.  One of the papers is the police file on Bruce’s parents’ murder.  Alfred is obviously distressed about this turn.  Get ready to get more and more distressed over the course of your life with Bruce Wayne, Alfred.  Bruce doesn’t believe that Gordon will find anything, and Alfred promises Gordon will try.  He’s also reading the paper about the Balloonman, and probably getting vigilante wet dreams.  Alfred’s also worried about Bruce not eating.  Bruce points out that since The Balloonman killed people, it made him a criminal, too.  He’s already getting into his very black-and-white vision of justice.

Fish is up to her old double-crossing, and she puts a bug in Montoya’s ear about Gordon ‘killing’ Oswald.  It makes Renee go to Barbara’s house like a total stalker and tries to get between Barbara and Gordon.  Apparently Barbara used to be quite the junkie, and Renee didn’t exactly help the situation.  She doesn’t ingratiate herself to Barbara by accusing her fiancee of corruption and murder.  Fish also wants to get one of the mob girlfriends hurt for payback for her boytoy Lazlo.  She also wants to get Lazlo out of her face.  I just gotta say that she’s got the coolest wardrobe.  She’s got the awesomest cuff earring.  So sexy.  Carmine and Fish wind up talking.  His lady, Natalia, did meet with an accident – a mugging.  They also talk about Arkham, something that Marone was mentioning in the Italian restaurant.

To finish up the episode, we go to Barbara’s apartment (because you know that Gordon couldn’t afford that on his cop’s salary).  Barbara wants Jim to know that he could tell her anything, and he says the city is sick, and that there is no law because the cops don’t obey the law.  Her faith in him is renewed, and then a knock at the door.  Oh no, is it Montoya to cock block again?  Actually, it’s Oswald, coming to cock block.  Well, I didn’t expect him at the door.

Another great episode.  I’m really loving this show, and just how scummy Gotham actually is.  Next week a war really starts.