Wrath of the Villains: Azrael

"Wrath of the Villains: Azrael"
Gotham episode
Episode no. Season 2
Episode 19
Directed by Larysa Kondracki
Written by
Cinematography by Crescenzo Notarile
Production code 4X6219
Original air date May 2, 2016
Running time 44 minutes
Guest actors

"Wrath of the Villains: Azrael" is the nineteenth episode of the second season, and 41st episode overall from the Fox series Gotham. The episode was written by co-producer Jim Barnes and co-executive producer Ken Woodruff and directed by Larysa Kondracki. It was first broadcast on April 18, 2016. In the episode, Theo Galavan is finally resurrected and begins a killing spree across Gotham City, calling himself "Azrael" while Gordon and Bruce try to arrest Dr. Hugo Strange for his involvement in the resurrection and his inhuman experiments.

The episode received critical acclaim, with Azrael's introduction receiving the most recognition.

Plot

Having been resurrected by Hugo Strange (B. D. Wong), Theo Galavan (James Frain) is suffering from paranoia and reciting the sacred book of the Order of Saint Dumas. Meanwhile, Gordon (Benjamin McKenzie) visits Strange to ask him about Karen Jennings' death and the Pinewood Farms program. Strange states that Thomas Wayne started it to heal every disease and denies his involvement. Gordon then shows Strange a warrant to see Victor Fries' corpse but Strange states they cremated him. Strange realizes Gordon made a false warrant so he could admit his lies.

While leaving Arkham Asylum, Gordon runs across Nygma (Cory Michael Smith) in the playroom. Later, Nygma overhears Strange and Peabody (Tonya Pinkins) complaining about Gordon's interference. Nygma suggests that he help them to kill Gordon but Strange refuses. Strange later finds a reference to the warrior Azrael in the sacred book and tries to talk with Galavan, but he instead attacks him. Strange later poses as his father Adam Dumas, naming him Azrael and ordering him to kill Gordon.

Bruce (David Mazouz) is told by Gordon and Bullock (Donal Logue) that the evidences won't be enough to imprison Strange. Angered by this, Bruce reveals that he knows Gordon is responsible for killing Galavan, pushing his belief that the law is ineffective at bringing him true justice. While talking with Captain Barnes (Michael Chiklis), Gordon and Barnes are attacked by Azrael, who is forced to flee when the police arrive. While walking through an alley, Azrael sees a poster of Galavan's campaign, causing some of his memories return.

Barnes imprisons Gordon in a cell for Karen Jennings' escape. Suddenly, the lights go off and Azrael shows up. He kills three officers and tries to kill Gordon. However, Gordon and Barnes escape to the balcony where Barnes fights with a pipe against Azrael and manages to break his sword and pull off his mask, realizing his identity. Azrael then stabs Barnes when Gordon appears. Azrael tries to flee but Gordon shoots him multiple times until he falls off the building, landing on a TV van. The news broadcasts that Galavan is alive and is Azrael, which Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) witnesses from Dahl Manor. Likewise, Butch (Drew Powell), Tabitha (Jessica Lucas) and Barbara (Erin Richards) watch the report from their mansion, to their shock.

Barnes is transferred to the hospital. Nygma discovers a secret elevator in the hallway of Arkham Asylum, which directs him to Indian Hill labs, to his surprise. Gordon leaves the GCPD while from a distance, Azrael stands atop a bridge watching him.

Production

Development

In April 2016, it was announced that the nineteenth episode of the season would be titled "Azrael", and was to be written by Jim Barnes and Ken Woodruff, with Larysa Kondracki directing.[1]

Casting

Morena Baccarin, Camren Bicondova, Chris Chalk, and Nicholas D'Agosto don't appear in the episode as their respective characters. In May 2016, it was announced that the guest cast for the episode would include B. D. Wong as Professor Hugo Strange, Tonya Pinkins as Ethel Peabody and Stink Fisher as Aaron Helzinger.[1]

Reception

Viewers

The episode was watched by 3.59 million viewers with a 1.2/4 share among adults aged 18 to 49, reaching another series low.[2] This was a decrease in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 3.72 million viewers.[3] With this ratings, Gotham ranked first for FOX, beating Houdini & Doyle, fourth on its timeslot and ninth for the night on the 18-49 demographics, behind Blindspot, The Odd Couple, two episodes of Mike & Molly, NCIS: Los Angeles, a rerun of The Big Bang Theory, Dancing with the Stars and The Voice.

Critical reviews

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Rotten Tomatoes (Tomatometer)100%[4]
Rotten Tomatoes (Average Score)7.6[4]
IGN7.3[5]
The A.V. ClubB+[6]
TV Overmind[7]

"Wrath of the Villains: Azrael" received critical acclaim from critics. The episode received a rating of 100% with an average score of 7.6 out of 10 on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.[4]

Matt Fowler of IGN gave the episode a "good" 7.3 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict, "Gotham's version of Azrael was fun, even if it was a bit on-the-nose from a 'Gordon's sins coming back to haunt him' standpoint. Also, Ed Nygma's new role as a cunning evildoer is cool to watch. Strange, however, will most likely cause himself to lose this battle long before Gordon ever makes a definitive move."[5]

The A.V. Club's Kyle Fowle gave the episode a "B+" grade and wrote, "One of the longest-running issues with Gotham has been its futile search for an identity. For almost two seasons now the show has struggled to define what it is and, more importantly, what it has to offer each and every week. That last point is especially significant in today's TV climate, where superhero shows are treated with the same amount of reverence afforded so-called prestige dramas; in fact, the age of Peak TV seems to make superhero shows even more popular, as their blend of episodic and serialized storytelling perfectly fit into models of both binge watching and week-to-week appointment viewing. Every show, to an extent, struggles to define what it is and what it has to offer, but superhero shows like The Flash, Arrow, and Marvel's Agent Carter have moved through those struggles and come out on the other side with a mostly cohesive vision. You know what you're getting from them every week in terms of storytelling, visual aesthetic, performances, tone, and themes. The same can't be said for Gotham, which feels like it's constantly changing shapes, forging new directions before abandoning them and starting all over again. There's no easy answer, but 'Azrael' at least suggests that Gotham does have some redeeming qualities mixed into its failed attempts at being a police procedural, superhero show, and lengthy origin story. When Gotham is good it's not taking itself too seriously while using its supporting performances to craft a story that's actually fun to watch unfold. 'Azrael' succeeds in large part because of the performances, as many of them are firing on all cylinders here."[6]

Andy Behbakht of TV Overmind gave the series a star rating of 4.5 out of 5, writing "Overall, 'Azrael' was a very strong episode that did a solid job with introducing their version of Azrael and with only three episodes left of the season: things are starting to come full circle nicely."[7]

Keertana Sastry of EW stated: "That's how Hugo Strange and his No. 2, Peabody, describe the newly revived Theo Galavan on Monday night's Gotham, 'Wrath of the Villains: Azrael,' and they could not be more right. As the title of the episode suggests, the Order of St. Dumas comes back in a big, big way to the series, but this time it's not Theo pulling the strings."[8]

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Wednesday, May 04, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.