Gotham S01E04 Recap: Arkham

Oswald Cobblepot pays Jim Gordon a visit at his home. He lies to Barbara who he is, and doesn’t get a warm welcome from Gordon. Outside, Gordon is very displeased to see him. If Falcone sees him, then both of them will die, but Oswald had to come back. Gotham is his home, and he has no where else to go. He believes that Gordon may be the last good man in Gotham, and he wants to help him. Oswald knows that war is coming, and many will die, but he can help prevent it. Arkham is the key. A couple of drunk girls provide Oswald with the opportunity to slip into the shadows.

Jenkins is stopped by one of his constituents, wanting to show him something. He’s hesitant, but he listens. The man with him puts eye to the contraption, and is skewered by it. Jenkins is next. The man pricks him, but he runs. The man gives chase, he really did vote for him, but it doesn’t stop him from shooting him with his dart gun contraption.

Harvey gets assigned to a double homicide. Councilman Jenkins and his aide were found dead in a parking lot, they’re waiting for the ME report. The Lieutenant gives them permission to sniff around city hall, but believes that it was just a matter of wrong place at the wrong time.

Fish Mooney is auditioning new talent. The singer is pretty enough, and she sings well, but Fish wants more. The girl’s seduction lacks, but Fish wants something more. She wants a weapon.

Harvey and Gordon pull in a suspect, and Harvey goes with his usual interrogation tactics. Gordon is bored, knowing that he’s not the guy. Gordon finds a box of evidence, with plans for Arkham.

Thomas and Martha Wayne had a progressive plan for Arkham. The Mayor tells the press the new plans for Arkham. One plan wants to get rid of the asylum all together, and introduce a waste plant, but the mayor is for the Wayne’s plan of a new and improved asylum and housing for the unfortunate.

Maloney sits with his men. He’s celebrating a new proposal, with lots of land.

Gordon goes to Alfred to find out about the plan. Jenkins was backing Falcone’s plan, he was killed because of the opposing plan. Only Maloney has enough power to oppose Falcone. Bruce’s parents were worried about the people of Gotham. They thought that if they could help the less fortunate, then it would show the people of Gotham that there was hope for them. Bruce doesn’t want his parents dream to die. But there’s more at stake than just the dream. If war breaks out, the police won’t be able to protect everyone, and their faith will be shattered. Gordon gets a call from Harvey, one of Malroney’s councilmen were kidnapped.

The councilman in question is dumped into a trashcan and gas is thrown on him by the same man that killed Jenkins. He begs for mercy, that he’ll change his vote, contact the mayor, anything. The man shows no mercy and lights him on fire.

Gotham PD head over to Arkham Asylum. Two councilmen killed in two days aren’t a coincident, and it’s just the start of a war. Gordon think that there will be more deaths as Falcone and Malroney get started. Nygma has news. Both victims sustained fatal puncture wounds with a metal spike, which points to the same killer for both cases. A crazy man provoking both Kingpins. Harvey wants to pay a friend a visit.

Cobblepot watches Malroney’s men. His boss isn’t so pleased with his snooping. He was suppose to be deaf and blind he reminds him. Cobblepot remains in the shadows.

Harvey and Gordon go to talk with a prisoner. They want to know about a lone hitman with an unusual weapon. He knows of him, it’s Gladwell and he knows where he can be found. The pair head over to the building, but Gladwell overhears that they’re looking for him, and he slips out back. They split up to search for him, and Gordon takes the rear. Before he can discover Gladwell, Harvey has a clue. In Gladwell’s desk are some clippings. They scare one of his paperclip stealing associates, and Gordon finds a slip of paper with the letter CLM on it.

Bruce awakens from a nightmare of his parents’ death. Alfred asks if he was in it. Not this time. Bruce wants to look at some Arkham files. He wants to see if there is a connection between the councilmen deaths and his parents.

The restaurant that Cobblepot works out is robbed, many of Malroney’s men are killed and his money stolen. Oswald runs for cover. Some more men arrive, led by top goon Frankie, but too late. They find Oswald in the fridge. He didn’t see who did it, only that they had masks. Oswald managed to grab one bag and hide.

Gordon comes home early, he missed Barbara, but something is eating at her. Long hours and late nights make her worried. He’s just doing his job, but Barbara thinks that he’s keeping secrets. He is, he has to. Barbara asks who Oswald Cobblepot is, and he can’t begin to answer that. He knows that Montoya came to see her again, and now he wants to know why she keeps coming to her. Barbara admits that she and Montoya were in a relationship, which only lasted a year before she broke it off and moved on. Gordon is upset that she lied to him, and she’s sorry.

Malroney isn’t happy that Falcone hit him on his home tuff, and he wants to make him pay. Malroney has Oswald sent in. He appreciates what Oswald did for him, and he gives him a promotion. The manager position just came available with the previous one’s death, and he gets a fancy new suit to boot.

Harvey tells Gordon that Richard Gladwell is dead, or at least the real one is. They found his body in his apartment, he’d been dead for five years. The killer took the identity, and was the perfect tenant. The Arkham vote is just a day away, they have to solve the crime before that, before it ignites a gang war. Harvey leaves to work the case his way.

Fish auditions another beautiful singer. Liza’s voice is hauntingly beautiful. She too likes boys. Fish asks if she wants the job, but Liza doesn’t know what it is yet. Fish is offering her power, she just needs to be willing to do anything to get it. Fish tells her to seduce her, and Liza laughs, but she’s serious. Lisa saunters over and kisses Fish, and finishes her drink before walking out without another word. Harvey has come for Fish’s help. He asks about Gladwell, if she can find him. She can find anyone, given time, but she needs a reason. She thinks it’s a waste of time. If Gladwell is lost, Falcone will find another hitman. He cannot afford to lose the vote, to lose any piece of Arkham, otherwise it’ll prove that he’s old and weak. Harvey worries about Fish if Falcone falls, but she’ll be just fine, she has a back up plan.

Oswald puts in a call to Gordon. Another hit will happen tonight. He’s not sure who, but Malroney has sanctioned it. Gordon looks over the list of people on staff, and who they’re set to protect, and deduces that it’s the mayor that is the next target. Gordon heads over to the mayor’s residence. The officers protecting him are no place in sight. He knocks on the mayor’s door, and tells him that he needs to get him to safety, but the mayor needs something from his safe first. Gladwell has arrived. Gordon needs a safe place to put the mayor, the station not being a safe place. Gordon opens the front door, and Gladwell is there, steel spike in hand. He leads the mayor towards another exit, unable to shoot Gladwell having lost his gun. He’s forced to take on the man in hand to hand combat. Thankfully, Gordon called Harvey before heading over. Gordon regains his gun, and the pair are forced to kill Gladwell when he tries to finish his job.

Barbara asks how Gordon is. He’s fine-ish. She admits that she should have told Gordon about Montoya, but she feared because they worked together, because she’s a woman. Barbara doesn’t want there to be any secrets between them. She asks again about Cobblepot, but Gordon can’t tell her about him, its work he tells her. She points out that he’s told her about work before, but that was a mistake, he won’t do it again. She can't live like this anymore, and she wants him to spill or let her go. He remains tight lipped.

Fish pits the two chartreuses against each other. There’s only room for one. One has the talent, and the other has everything else. Liza proves she’s not above getting her hands dirty as she bashes the other girl’s head on the ground.

Oswald arrives with a treat, scaring the hit men. It was his plan all along. The money was good, and they’re more than happy to do a job for him again. They’re curious about his box, it full of cannoli. He offers it over to them, and they eat up.

Gordon watches the news unfold. Both plans are winning. Arkham district will be both housing and waste disposal. Arkham asylum will be retrofitted, and made all shiny and new. Fish sees it as a blow to Falcone, one closer step to his grave. Bruce knows that the mayor’s plan really isn’t good for Gotham. The mayor is stuck between two powerful opposing forces, and he gave them each what they wanted. Gordon points out that it may not be perfect, but it probably saved a lot of lives. Bruce sees it as the end of his parents’ dream, but Gordon isn’t so sure. He believes that Gotham can still be saved.

The hit men taken care of and dead, leaves Oswald all alone to carry away his big bag of money.