Directed by TJ Scott
Dix: “He always thinks he’s the smartest one in the room.”
Gordon: “I know, right?”
Bullock: “That’s because I’m always in a room full of idiots.”
I’m not gonna lie – a Bullock themed episode wasn’t high on my list of things I was clamouring for with this show, even though I do somewhat like the character. However this episode was a great one for him nonetheless.
Not only did it give us a little bit of a back story on him but his former relationship with former partner Dix from a decade ago wasn’t that dissimilar to the one he has with Gordon, only back then the roles were reversed, until the titular villain managed to cripple Dix that was and the present day brought about a copycat killer.
I couldn’t have been the only one who got a little Batman Returns reminder when the Goat’s MO involved kidnapped the first born kids. Only unlike Oswald from that movie, the Goat targeted both sons and daughters and seemed to like disposing them in a rather clichéd ritualistic manner. Oh and did I mention the killer was a copycat?
I should mention it because a decade ago, the Goat was someone called Randall Milky and in the present day, a janitor named Raymond Earl. However what stopped this from being a typical case of the week with a side order of Bullock angst/memory lane shots was that the therapist to both men was really the one calling the shots.
While Marx’s motives were no different either Balloonman or Viper guy from last week, I did find her a lot more charismatic as a villain and I liked that it was Bullock himself who actually pieced everything together without Gordon’s help and actually solved the case. When Bullock makes the effort, he’s actually a decent cop and person. Of course, that’s probably only something we’ll see sparingly though.
At the heart of things, he’s still massively intolerant towards Jim’s goody two shoes approach to police work and looked set to kill him when Oswald strolled into GCPD as well. Oswald’s simple little gesture has probably managed to wreck things for Gordon, Bullock, Montoya and Allen as well as Fish and Falcone too for good measure.
Oswald didn’t have as much to do in this episode as previous ones but even with the lesser screen time, he still made the most of it. The last scene alone, his actual scenes with his mother were just downright creepy. I’m not sure how Oswald is supposed to be in this series, but he’s definitely too old to be getting a bath from his mother and that’s probably one scene that managed to be more terrifying than anything the Goat did this week.
As for the rest of the episode – it was a good one for Edward Nygma. When he wasn’t helping with the Goat case, he was trying to be helpful with rearranging records girl, Kristen Kringle system, which only managed to annoy and creep her out in the process. It’s nice that Nygma finally got more than one scene this week but I’m still cool with him staying in the background for a little while longer though.
Also in “Spirit Of The Goat”
I’m hoping with Oswald revealing himself, both Renee and Crispus will actually give Jim a break now, but somehow I doubt it.
Dix: “Gotham’s golden rule, Harvey, no heroes.”
It seems that Bullock has been financially supporting Dix since his accident. The fact that he makes sure Dix gets his dirty magazines was a surprisingly perfect touch.
Nygma: “Are you alright, detective?”
Bullock: “No, I’m not alright. I already solved this case.”
Renee (to Crispus): “We got the son of a bitch. We got Gordon.”
Dix referred to Bullock as a white knight. Er, wrong Harvey but that one will be showing up fairly soon though. I also loved Nygma’s on the nose mug as well.
Nygma (to Kristen): “I want you to keep your job.”
This week in terms of Selina cameos, she broke into Wayne Manor, looked at Bruce’s detective work and then stole a box. As you do.
Renee (re Gordon): “He’s right not to.”
Barbara: “Why?”
Renee: “Because it’ll get you killed, okay?”
This episode was the first one not to feature Fish. Also both Falcone and Maroni were nowhere to be seen as well.
The Goat: “You will never stop the Goat. I will always come back.”
Bullock: “Quit saying that.”
Seeing as the Goat was targeting Gotham’s elite kids, I’m actually surprised that he didn’t go after Bruce. At least Alfred considered the possibility of it though.
Essen: “Bullock, look happier.”
Gordon (to Barbara): “Somehow they cornered me, they tied my hands.”
Chronology: Not long from where “Viper” left off. The ads for the episode almost implied it was supposed to be Halloween.
“Spirit Of The Goat” had some nice elements of horror to it, even if parts of the case felt a little too similar to most cop series. I did like the twist with the therapist and the last scene certainly made this episode as well.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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