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‘Gotham Knights’ Recap: Season 1, Episode 12 “City of Owls”

The Bad Guy Wins

Cheering opens the episode. Lincoln March — confirmed bad guy — proclaims to a crowd, “Isn’t it great when the good guy wins?” He was the only mayoral candidate in Gotham that wasn’t revealed as the deadbeat dad of one of Gotham’s most wanted, so to no-one’s surprise, he won.

Interspersed with Lincoln’s speech, we see Court of Owls goons exhuming a casket and wheeling it into a room filled with medical equipment. They open it, revealing the body of a man. Instead of a shroud, he was buried under a Talon costume. Gloved hands begin to prepare an Electrum concoction.

Once the mixture is administered, the man’s eyes jerk open. As the camera moves out, we see that the giver of the Electrum serum was Rebecca March.

Beep, Beep, Beep

At the Belfry, Harper brings Stephanie coffee. She seems reserved as she compliments Stephanie on standing up to her parents. Stephanie makes a comment about the “sober light of day” that doesn’t land right between the two maybe-sorta lovebirds. Stephanie immediately begins to explain what she meant, but they’re interrupted by a strange noise somewhere in the Belfry.

Downstairs, Cullen is pleased to wake up without Duela as his alarm clock. He greets Turner and tries to ask him how he’s doing, what with Duela bailing, but Turner is distracted by the same beeping that Harper and Stephanie heard.

After bickering over Duela (and whether she left them a ticking time bomb) the Knights finally discover the source of the sound — it’s a low battery warning on the receiver for the lapel camera. The one Turner wore to the Court of Owls gala, which Brody told them Lincoln destroyed. The Knights call Carrie and work out that either Brody lied, or he didn’t send the text to Stephanie, because the camera must still be in one piece to be sending the signal. Which means the card — with footage that could prove their innocence — might still exist too.

Stephanie tells the team that Brody mentioned stashing the video with his weed. They realize that they already have plans of the penthouse, as the Marches live in one of the buildings designed by Alan Wayne. While they discuss, Lincoln appears on the TV, talking about doubling the reward to find Bruce Wayne’s killers. Stephanie notices that the report is live, meaning that Lincoln is not home. Time to move!

Mr. Mayor

Lincoln is celebrating his election, schmoozing with Gotham’s most powerful. A surprising constituent turns up — Harvey Dent. The two have a hushed argument wherein Lincoln reveals that he knows Harvey slept with Rebecca and Harvey reveals that he knows Lincoln was involved with killing Bruce. Unfortunately, Lincoln has had Harvey fired as D.A., making his efforts to solve Bruce’s murder that much harder. As their bickering escalates, Cullen — disguised as everyone’s favorite GCPD rookie — steps between them and tells Lincoln he’ll take care of Harvey.

Cullen and Harvey talk on the way out. The interaction was a ruse so Cullen could get close enough to swipe Lincoln’s wallet, containing the key card to his apartment.

Floor Nu

Stephanie and Harper team up, with Lincoln’s keycard in hand, to infiltrate March Tower. Cullen gets into the security cameras and disables the security sensors. As soon as they get inside, Stephanie heads to the outlet where Brody stashed the goods. The camera and the card are still there. Which is great, but confirms that Brody didn’t send the text saying they were destroyed, and he’s likely in trouble.

Harper and Stephanie are interrupted by a security alert. Before they have time to act, two security guards burst in. The girls manage to grab their guns and take them out (Stephanie’s been practicing).

GCPD surround the building; Harper and Stephanie need another way out. Desperate, they try the oddly-named floor “N” in the elevator. It turns out to be a hidden floor 13 Alan Wayne built.

The signal between the Knights dies, causing Harper to mutter that her and timing aren’t besties. Stephanie calls her out, and Harper confesses that she’s unsure if Stephanie really wanted to kiss her after standing up to her parents or if she’s just the last person Stephanie’s parents would have wanted her to be with. Stephanie immediately reassures her. An attempt to rectify the situation by kissing her again goes awry when Harper notices a casket over Stephanie’s shoulder.

The two approach cautiously, jumping in horror when there’s a sudden banging noise. From within the casket comes Brody’s voice, yelling for help. They quickly bust him out, but before he can explain anything, the elevator starts to move. Brody tells them to run and hide.

The Owls Are in the House

Cut off from Harper and Stephanie, Turner and Cullen discuss how likely it is that all of Alan Wayne’s buildings had a secret thirteenth floor — which would mean Wayne Tower had one too.

Harvey is in his office, cracking open a bottle he’d been gifted by Bruce, when he gets the call from Turner. Turner relays their suspicions about a secret floor in Wayne Tower, and how Lincoln might have known about it and told his Talon to use it to enter undetected.

Harvey agrees to go check out Wayne Tower.

Zombrodie

Back at March Tower, Harper and Stephanie’s efforts to hide fail. Harper manages to reconnect to Cullen, but part way through telling him that they found Brody, they are interrupted by two Court of Owls goons. Brody tackles them, and a fight ensues. He knocks out the first, but the second brings Brody’s heroic streak to an end as he peppers his chest with bullets.

Stephanie screams. Harper knocks out the second goon with a wooden support, and they run to Brody’s side just in time for him to gasp and wake up.

“Apparently I can’t die,” Brody says, groaning in pain.

Back at the Belfry, the Knights get more of an explanation. Brody’s mom put Electrum in his tooth, stabbed him, then locked him in a coffin.

Harper successfully retrieves the video. It’s intact, and proves the Courts crimes, but they are masked the whole time. So, it doesn’t show who anyone is. Luckily, during Brody’s stint in the casket, he heard the Owls talking, and he knows there’s going to be a party that night, and where it’s being held.

The team quickly call Carrie to loop her in, but she’s stopped by her mom on the way out. They argue as she tries to stop Carrie from leaving, reminding her that no one is bulletproof. Carrie argues back that the good guys aren’t the ones she should be fighting. Despite her mom yelling after her, Carrie heads out to help the rest of the Gotham Knights.

Doe Family Business

In her camper, Jane Doe is examining Duela’s new look and trying to come up with a new name for her. Duela is more concerned about finding out whether her mom is mad at her for failing to kill Harvey Dent. Jane reassures her that she’s not; Duela pulled the trigger, and that told her where she stands.

They laugh about how they ruined Harvey’s life, even if he did survive. And, Jane points out, as soon as she gets money from her last job, they’re outta here. Duela questions when she had time to pull a job, but she’s evasive.

Outside, Duela contemplates the Joker card that she always carries. After a moment, she sets it on fire. Her tearful moment is interrupted by an angry yell from inside. Duela finds a frustrated Jane in the kitchen. Jane tells her that the money’s gone — the big payout she was expecting from her last job fell through.

Duela tries to placate Jane by suggesting other jobs they can pull, but Jane is prickly and annoyed, responding by reminding Duela how expensive she is for them right now, needing a new identity. Jane suggests that Duela goes back to the Belfry to get the Court of Owls watches, for fencing. Duela doesn’t want to, but her mom pushes. Reluctantly, Duela agrees.

Contingency

While the team are making their way to the Owls’ party, Harvey is overriding the elevator in Wayne Tower to make it take him to floor 13.

Across town, Rebecca is perfecting her party table when one of the masked Court goons brings her a recording of Stephanie and Harper breaking into March Tower. She dismisses him, saying she’ll deal with it.

Once the Court has assembled, Lincoln signals for attention. Rebecca steps out of the shadows and removes her mask. She makes a speech celebrating Lincoln’s election and their discovery of more Electrum.

While Rebecca recites the Court of Owls rhyme, we see Harvey making his way to Wayne Tower’s thirteenth floor. He finds Alan Wayne’s secret office full of notes, newspaper clippings, and more. Finally, he picks up an old portrait of a very familiar woman. “Doctor Leviticus,” he reads. “Rebecca.”

Coming to the end of her rhyme, Rebecca responds to one of the Court saying that they no longer have a Talon by bringing out a surprise — several resurrected Talons. Rebecca proposes a toast.

Lincoln is displeased that she didn’t tell him she was bringing the Talons back. In a side room, she tells him about the break-in. Lincoln starts to struggle to stay upright as she confesses her contingency plan to erase her own involvement from the Court before they are revealed. Poisoned, Lincoln falls to the floor. The Electrum in him won’t let him die, Rebecca agrees, but it won’t wake him up until he’s been exposed as the Court’s leader and he’s six feet under the ground.

“You’re pure evil.”
“And you’re just another man taking credit for a woman’s work.”

Lincoln and Rebecca March

The Culling of the Owls

As the Knights perfect their plan to infiltrate the party, Duela arrives at the Belfry. Turner tries to appeal to her, reminding her that they are her family too, but he’s unsuccessful. He tells Duela about her mom drugging him, and she realizes that turning in Turner was the job that fell through. Although she’s clearly upset, Duela grabs the watches and leaves.

The Knights get into the party with relative ease. Harper even stops to kiss Stephanie on the way, as they got interrupted earlier. But their good luck is short lived as they enter the hall where the party is taking place.

The beautiful dinner table that Rebecca laid is covered in blood and surrounded by dead Owls, their throats slit by Talons. Brody discovers his father at the head of the table, as unmoving as the rest.

While the team try to work out what happened, GCPD swarm the building. The Knights have been set up. Again.

Doctor Leviticus

Harvey’s investigation of Wayne Tower’s thirteenth floor is interrupted by Rebecca. He confronts her about all of it — being Doctor Leviticus, and being set up to take the fall for the Court. She denies nothing, and instead tells him how many times she’s had to start over with a new identity, alone. She loves Harvey, and wants him with her.

Horrified, Harvey tells Rebecca that the woman he loved was a mirage, and he could never love someone as cruel and twisted as her.

“Are you sure about that?” Rebecca asks as two of her goons drag him away.

The Sins of the Mother

Gotham News reports the day’s big story: Gotham’s most-wanted fugitives have been found at the scene of a grisly mass murder. The Gotham Knights are right back where they started the season: in a holding cell at the GCPD, but now with Stephanie, Carrie, and Brody too.

The camera pans out to show Duela tearfully watching the news. “Even Little Bird,” she murmurs. Rising, Duela turns to where Jane is examining the watches. She tells her she dreamed of being with her since she was a little girl, but right now her friends need her.

Jane pulls Duela into a hug before stabbing a syringe into her back. “I love you Duela, I always will,” she says. “But money’s just too good.”

Elsewhere, Rebecca addresses her group of Talons. “Your targets are locked in a jail cell downtown. Kill them all.”

Gotham Knights airs on Tuesday nights at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT. Stay up to date with our coverage on the show here. Additionally, make sure to check out Your Bat Is Dead, a Gotham Knights podcast by Nerds and Beyond!

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