“If there was ever a time for us to work together…it’s now,” says Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) to Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) after Gordon comes to in Nygma’s loft after being saved by the Penguin from Galavan’s thugs in season two episode 11 of FOX’s gritty comic-book crime series Gotham.

The episode begins with Alfred (Sean Pertwee) being hunted in the city’s dump where he ended up after falling into a garbage truck while trying to escape from Tabitha (Jessica Lucas). He finds a large old freezer to hide in while Tabitha and her thugs go by but unfortunately, the city workers dump more garbage on top of the freezer, trapping Alfred inside.

Bruce (David Mazouz) has been kidnapped by Galavan (James Frain) and has been prepared for his execution by the killer monks known as The Order of Saint Dumas who’ve put him in a cell. While this is going on, Lucius Fox (Chris Chalk) comes out of the secret cave in Wayne manor saying he fixed the hard drive and realizes no one is there. He looks around and sees the papers Bruce was going over and the condition of the room and realizes foul play has occurred.

Jim Gordon wakes up after having a weird dream about Barbara with a butterfly coming out of her mouth to find himself at Nygma’s (Cory Michael Smith) loft with the Penguin. Penguin reveals to Jim he’s now a fugitive for hitting Galavan and escaping from two police officers. There are actual wanted posters with Gordon’s face on them, and Penguin tells Jim they should work together to bring down Galavan.

Back at Galavan’s penthouse, Silver (Natalie Alyn Lind) asks Theo if she can skip the ceremony tonight because she’s fighting off a cold. Galavan doesn’t buy her excuse for a minute and tells her she’s weak. He’s aware she’s starting to have real feelings for Bruce. Theo tells her she needs to earn his trust back by seducing Bruce again and getting him to fall in love with her. He tells his niece he must see Bruce kiss her right before he goes off to die otherwise she might just be cut off from the family for good. Terrified of Galavan and what he might do to her, Silver goes into the cell where Bruce is calmly sitting and waiting to die. This doesn’t sit well with Tabitha who’s getting tired of Theo’s threats.

Silver enters the cell where Bruce is wearing a weird white nightgown as part of the execution ceremony. He asks why she’s there and she tells him she wants to apologize for everything and keep him company if he wants. At first, Bruce tells her to just leave but after a few silent moments and Silver slowly walking out – seriously, a turtle moves faster – Bruce says she can stay if she wants. Silver shares with Bruce her happiest memory with her parents and Bruce remembers a camping trip he and his parents went on a year or so before they were murdered. “That was a good day,” he says as a slight sincere smile crosses his face.

With that, Silver gets up and says she can’t let him die. She calls the monk guarding him over and shoots him in the leg then grabs Bruce’s hand and the two start running to escape.

At the GCPD, Lee (Morena Baccarin) is giving Capt. Barnes (Michael Chiklis) grief over making Gordon a fugitive and instituting a manhunt for him. The two argue, with Nygma eavesdropping and loving every minute of it. Right after the argument is over Nygma goes up to Lee and gives her a riddle hinting at Jim’s location. She figures it out and goes to Ed’s apartment where she finds Jim loading up with Penguin to go after Galavan. Gordon tells Lee she needs to get out of the city and she insists they need to leave together. Lee tells Jim she doesn’t care what he may or may not have done and if he goes with her now, it will all be okay. Jim says he has to stop Galavan and Lee blurts out she’s pregnant to which Penguin, who has been listening to the entire conversation, rolls his eyes.

Meanwhile, back at the city dump Alfred has managed to dig himself out of being partly buried alive and is now on the street trying to wave down a car. He forces a driver out of his vehicle telling him it’s an urgent matter and ends up getting tasered in the face by a policewoman who stopped to see what the trouble was. (Alfred just can’t catch a break!)

While trying to escape, Silver and Bruce run right into Galavan and his monk buddies. They’re put back in the cell only this time Silver is locked in with Bruce. Bruce tells Silver he knows she’s trying to play him but he doesn’t know why. He tells her the escape attempt was obviously fake but he doesn’t see her motivation. Silver finally breaks down and tells Bruce how her uncle threatened to cut her off from the family if she didn’t get him to fall for her again and kiss her. “You must hate me,” says Silver. Bruce replies, “No, I pity you.” Silver tells Bruce how horrible she is and he cuts her off and tells her that she’s a young person who’s surrounded by terrible people. He tells her it’s never too late to change and there is always hope.

Silver says to Bruce to stop being so calm, that she knows he’s scared. “A little. To be honest, I feel relieved almost happy,” responds Bruce. Silver looks at him questioning what he’s just said and he says to her, “I’ll be with my parents soon again.” Silver tells him to hold onto that thought as Galavan and the monks come to take Bruce to his death. As Bruce is taken out of the cell he tells Galavan, “One minute.” (It’s more of a command than a request.) He turns goes back to Silver and kisses her, telling her he loves her and forgives her which saves her from her uncle’s wrath. Galavan smiles at his niece and says, “Well done,” but it is now obvious Silver is devastated about what she has done to Bruce and has real feelings for him.

Back at the GCPD, Lucius has reported both Alfred and Bruce missing to Barnes and Bullock (Donal Logue) and accuses Galavan of being the mastermind behind it. Barnes gets a call about Alfred being in lock-up and being tasered. Bullock wakes up Alfred who tells Barnes, Bullock, and Lucius about his fight with Tabitha but still Barnes won’t budge to go after Galavan without more evidence. Alfred and Bullock decide to team up and go after Galavan on their own but Lucius is not ready to be involved in combat saying he’s a rookie and most likely would just get in the way during the fight. Alfred says they need Gordon to join them to save Master Bruce and Nygma, who’s been eavesdropping again, begins to laugh. “Something funny, Ed?” asks Harvey which causes Ed to nervously give out a riddle. Fox immediately figures out Gordon is at Nygma’s place.

Jim and Lee are preparing to leave town together and to almost everyone’s surprise, Penguin is wishing them the best, asking Lee to not think too badly of him. Just as they are about to drive off Harvey and Alfred pull up and quickly bring Jim up to date. Lee tells Jim to do what he thinks is best and to call her when it’s over.

Alfred, Harvey, Jim, Lucius, Penguin, and Penguin’s thugs are all arguing about the best course of action and how they are going to get into Galavan’s fortress-like penthouse when Selina (Camren Bicondova), who’s perched outside the window on the fire escape, interrupts and says, “I know a way in.” Fox asks, “Now who is this,” to which Harvey quickly responds, “Lucius meet Cat. Cat, this is Lucius…we good now?” Alfred is wary of trusting Selina but Jim says he trusts her and gives her a protective vest to wear. So Jim, Harvey, Selina, Alfred, Penguin, and his thugs go off to save Bruce and bring down Galavan.

Selina is true to her word and gets the boys in through an opening in the garage. The rescue party now has to climb to the very top of the penthouse which is where the ceremony is taking place. The killer monks and their leader, Father Creal (Ron Rifkin), chant “Death to the son of Gotham” and Creal shows off the ancient blade meant to end Bruce’s life. Bruce calmly tells Creal he’s a disillusioned old man and he will pay for this. Creal raises his huge blade and goes to plunge it into Bruce when Silver screams to stop and causes everyone a moment’s pause which gives Gordon, Alfred, Selina, Penguin and his thugs just enough time to enter the sacrificial room – Harvey it seems is still dealing with all those stairs.

The shootout and fighting is on and the monks are no match for Gordon and his comrades. Galavan flees with Silver and Tabitha during the fight, escaping back to the main room in his penthouse. Creal is the last member of the killer monk order standing and makes one last final attempt to kill someone, jumping in the air toward Jim and is shot dead by Harvey who has burst into the room. “Lots of stairs,” says Harvey as Gordon goes looking for Galavan and Alfred hugs Bruce while Selina unties him from the pole was tied to.

Galavan grabs two parachutes and gives one to Tabitha but tells Silver she won’t be joining them as he’s very disappointed in her actions. Tabitha attacks Theo and knocks him to the ground. “Sorry brother but it’s time I look out for myself,” says Tabitha, putting the parachute on Silver and pushing her out the window before quickly following her to make their escape.

Gordon enters to arrest Galavan who makes the horrible mistake of taunting Gordon about getting away with his crimes. Gordon realizes that Galavan might just escape as he did before by bribery or scare tactics and he has no intention of letting him get away. Before Jim can shoot Galavan, Barnes enters. (Really? He climbed all those stairs faster than anyone else?) Barnes knew where Jim was because Lucius alerted him to Jim’s whereabouts so he could go arrest him/be Gordon’s backup. Barnes tells Jim to put his gun down and submit to being arrested. Penguin rushes in and knocks out Barnes and tells Jim to forget revenge or what Galavan did to Barbara but for the sake of Gotham and the greater good Galavan has to die.

Gordon and Penguin go to the docks and Oswald begins to beat Galavan to death with a baseball bat in honor of his dead mother. Galavan, bloodied and suffering, looks up at Jim and says, “Jim, please.” Jim tells Penguin that’s enough and shoots Galavan in the head, dead. Later, Jim meets Lee and asks her to marry him and she looks at him and smiles.

The episode nears the end with Galavan’s body being brought to Indian Hill where a woman named Miss Peabody says to one of the workers, “Professor Strange has high hopes for this one.” They unzip the body bag and reveal Galavan’s dead body with an umbrella shoved down his throat.

In the last scene of the episode, a man is running down a dark alley and hides in fear from someone pursuing him. The man is trapped up against a fence when an oddly dressed man wearing some sort of chemical outfit points a weird-looking gun at him and fires. Ice and cold air come out…Hello Mr. Freeze!

Review of Gotham Season 2 Episode 11:

Action-packed, violent, and very suspenseful, season two episode 11 titled “Worse Than a Crime” brings the series to its mid-season close with the death of the major villain Galavan, possible wedded bliss for Jim and Lee in the future, and the introduction of two major villains from the Batman universe.

The stand-out performances in this episode are delivered by David Mazouz as young Bruce, Natalie Alyn Lind as Silver, and Robin Lord Taylor as Penguin. Mazouz wonderfully portrays young Bruce facing his death as a calm and collected yet hopeful martyr. The scene where he remembers his parents’ camping trip with Silver unable to understand why he’s not more scared to die is compelling. Bruce explains he’s almost happy because he’ll be with his parents again, and Mazouz plays it incredibly well, providing a deeper and keen insight into an intelligent and spiritual young man. Natalie Alyn Lind shows real feeling and regret at what she has helped do to Bruce as well as terror at what her uncle will do to her if she fails him.

Robin Lord Taylor again steals every scene he’s in as a determined Penguin who’s fixated on killing Galavan and believes teaming up with Jim will guarantee success. A perfect example of this is the scene where Lee is trying to convince Jim to leave town with her and reveals she’s pregnant. Taylor’s reaction to the news as Penguin with a double-take and eyes rolling, realizing he most likely just lost his ace in the hole in the fight against Galavan, is hilarious. Another great scene finds Penguin actually wishing Jim and Lee luck as they are about to leave the city and sincerely asks Lee not to think too badly of him. Taylor’s performance as Penguin has elevated the series to a higher level.

With both Professor Strange and Mr. Freeze being introduced at the end of the episode it seems Gordon, Bullock, Barnes, Selina, Alfred, and of course Bruce are going to have a lot to deal with when Gotham returns in February.

GRADE: B+