We are five episodes into the third season of BATWOMAN, and the show has done an excellent job of rolling along, mixing, and matching Batman’s history while creating its mythology. This season makes you wonder who will be the downfall of Ryan Wilder, and will it be the murderous psychos of Gotham or her newfound family? BATWOMAN has gotten better every week since the premiere. Let see if this episode can keep up with the rest.
Episode five, “A Lesson from Professor Pyg,” returns to what has worked so well this season, the villain of the week. This week’s big bad is one of the newest members of the Gotham Rogues gallery, Professor Pyg. Pyg may get most of the PR for this episode, but this is a watered-down version of the character. His only purpose is to move along the subplot of Ryan and her extended family. Gone is the flair and showmanship of Professor Pyg and his Dollotrons and replaced with a simple-minded revenge plot. I will give credit where credit is due and Pyg has one slasher film kill that left me impressed. This season BATWOMAN has not been afraid to get blood on its hands.
For the first time this season, I have to say I am disappointed in the series. This episode relies so heavily on what I think has been holding the show back — the extended family of Ryan Wilder. We learn the truth about Jada and Marquis only for it to be beyond uninteresting. The Jet subplot feels like something that we would have seen in one of the previous two seasons. Too much time has been dedicated to Marquis Jet and the horrible acting of Nick Creegan. Creegan, at times, feels like someone cosplaying a TikTok influencer, and I am afraid of the approach he will take to being an actual villain.
Meanwhile, Alice and Montoya are the best part of this episode. We learn Montoya’s actual motive for pursuing the stolen Bat-trophies, and it will lead to her finding her long-lost love. In the brief time on screen, Rachel Skarsten does her best to save this episode on life support. From her heart-to-heart therapy session with Montoya or her request for help from Mary, Alice, as she has been for three seasons, is the most compelling character on the show.
“A Lesson from Professor Pyg” is the first bump in the road this season. As it worked in the past, the formula was there, but this was a total fumble on all accounts. What BATWOMAN has done with Professor Pyg is something you would have seen on GOTHAM, just completely butchering the character. Combine that with the one-two punch of Robin Givens and Nick Creegan, the worst-acted family on TV, and you have yourself a pretty forgettable episode. Let’s hope the show can rebound next week. I’m going to watch the two-hour Supergirl series finale and try to wash this bad taste out of my mouth. – Peter Verra
