Tonight's show starts as a reunion of ex-lovers. Jim is shocked to see Barbara standing in front of him. Jim is very suspicious of her. I can’t say I blame him. She assures Jim she is truthful now and was released from Arkham. Jim is happy for her, then quickly asks her to leave.
Smart move, Jim. Barbara still has that crazy look in her eye.
Meanwhile, Thomas Wayne’s secret study is hosting an all-night tech party where Bruce is determined to find out information. Lucius and Alfred both tell him to rest and eat, which obviously Bruce denies. He finds out the week of his father’s murder he was to meet with a Karen Jennings about Pinewood Farms. Alfred knows how this is going to go. Bruce finds Karen’s address and is going to visit her.
Jim and Bullock are working on the Wayne murder case. Jim’s plan is to interrogate hitmen until he finds a contractor named "The Lady." Bullock tells him he should come back to GCPD but Jim wants to go rogue for a while and do this his way. Bullock misses having Jim as a partner and tells him to be careful. Rogue Jim goes through hitmen like nothing and ultimately gets a lead on "The Lady" at a club called The Artemis.
Who is patient 44? Dr. Strange is inside his facility when he is told somebody else is looking for Karen Jennings. She is the celebrity of this episode. She was Dr. Strange’s first project. This couldn’t have been good for her. Bruce and Alfred have arrived at Karen’s address and break into her cabin. The walls have marks on them and something whips past Alfred, cutting him. Karen reveals herself and her mutated hand. Bruce tells her and Alfred that he is going to find out the truth behind the Pinewood facility. It's amazing how much Bruce has grown up over the past season.
Jim arrives at The Artemis and go figure…Barbara happens to be there. It is a women’s club and Barbara wants to help Jim close the door on the past. She offers to help him. Rogue Jim isn’t sure, but agrees to the plan. Barbara and The Lady meet and hit it off. Jim gets anxious and sneaks in, where he is pinned down by Barbara with a knife.
I knew he shouldn’t have trusted her.
Life on the Farm: Karen tells them about living in this cabin and the origins of Pinewood. It was a bioengineering program at Wayne Enterprises. Karen gives the backstory about her arm and how nice Thomas Wayne was to her. Pinewood was shut down by Thomas Wayne and Bruce is convinced whoever started Pinewood back up is behind his parents’ murder.
To bring the backstabbing full round, The Lady and Barbara are preparing to torture and kill Jim. The Lady reveals she has no knowledge of who killed the Waynes, only that he has the nickname “The Philosopher.” Barbara then does a complete 180 and stuns everyone, which allows her and Jim to escape. In the alleyway, Barbara confesses her true feelings for Jim. She wants Jim to trust her and maybe he can help her become a better person. Jim can’t and won’t forgive Barbara for trying to kill Leslie. He leaves her in the alley when Bruce calls him.
Has Barbara actually changed?
Pinewood looks abandoned as Karen, Alfred and Bruce arrive. They investigate inside and we notice a car full of guys watching them. I’m betting Hugo Strange has something to do with this. Karen is definitely hiding something from Bruce and he is determined to get the truth. They flee Pinewood when the men chase after them and are quickly surrounded by GCPD outside.
Jim arrives at GCPD around the time Alfred and Bruce are being released. Those troublemakers! Captain Barnes addresses them in his “bad ass” voice and tells them that Karen Jennings is being transported to Blackgate. Bruce brings Jim up to speed about Pinewood. Jim brings Bruce up to speed about The Philosopher. Jim thinks this man is behind Pinewood. The plan is simple: get pictures of the scientists and have Karen identify them. This seems simple enough. Jim brings up the difficult part - they must break Karen out of Blackgate.
Who is patient 44? Dr. Strange finds out that the patient is close to waking up. He knows Karen can’t be allowed to talk. He decides it is time to give Mr. Freeze his first mission. (Mr. Freeze is by far one of my favorite villains of the entire DC universe.)
Karen is being transported to Blackgate when a bag of money in the road distracts them. This allows Jim, Bruce and Alfred dressed incognito to steal the truck to save Karen. Karen tells Bruce that his father started Pinewood with good intentions but it went south. The rescue plan is short-lived when the truck spins out of control and they are confronted by Mr. Freeze. Alfred and Jim open fire on Mr. Freeze, while Bruce tells Karen to run. Karen thanks Bruce for everything, hugs him and walks right up to Mr. Freeze. He freezes her and then smashes and kills her. Bruce is horrified. R.I.P. Karen.
Gotham’s favorite odd couple, Butch and Tabitha, have a house guest…Barbara Kean. “She has come,” Tabitha says to Butch. The evil sisters are back together.
Bruce is grieving over Karen’s death. He feels defeated, since she could identify The Philosopher. Jim tells Bruce to have faith and he will keep his promise.
I trust Jim. You should trust him, Bruce.
Lucius arrives with good news and a major revelation. He found an old company newsletter that had everyone’s nicknames. The Philosopher was standing right next to Thomas Wayne. His real name…Hugo Strange.
"The Philosopher," Hugo Strange himself, hears the news that Jim and Bruce are working together. He tells Ms. Peabody things are about to get very interesting for them. Chaos erupts when the mysterious patient 44’s reanimation is complete. We finally discover who the patient is. THEO GALAVAN. He wakes and starts saying the name…Azrael.
Who is Azrael? How did Hugo Strange successfully bring someone back from the dead? The chaos is daily in Gotham City…