Gotham S4 Ep. 9 Thoughts & Easter Eggs

"Let Them Eat Pie"

After such a noteworthy character debut, fans (including myself) were wondering what a character like Professor Pyg would possibly bring to the gritty crime-drama now in its 4th season run. To my surprise, not only did he stretch pass the traditional two episode villain arc that was sort of set in stone during Season 2, but he also brought forth a strangely intoxicating mixture of creepiness, fun, and horror all in one nicely wrapped package. With his story now seemingly coming to an end, how does the pig mask wearing, cop killing, and now tango singing maniac do in his grand finale? Well, driving alongside a side plot about Bruce partying his problems away, and Penguin grooming an innocent orphan as his personal spy, I'd say Professor Pyg manages to leave on a pretty high note in the end.

Music & Meat Pies

Gotham has introduced quite the library of villains since its initial premiere, but this arc has been one of the rare situations to where I was consistently smiling since the character's introduction all the way to said character's "end". Professor Pyg not only entered into the show with a well developed concept and design, but the performance by Michael Cerveris truly stole the show with his love for theatrical flare. Before we get into the big moment where this passionate performer gets to really shine, let's start from earlier on in the episode where we see Pyg rounding up the homeless for his sinister schemes. What I really enjoyed about this scene is that we get to see him using yet another disguise (going along the theatrical trait) as well as a nice foreshadowing for the big climax to come with his random camera snapshots.

What makes him particularly dangerous here is the fact that he'd go to extreme lengths just to send a message to Gotham's corrupted higher ups including murdering a group of complete strangers. When you think about it, Professor Pyg is, in essence, a costume themed vigilante attempting to wipe away corruption from the city. While looking at him through that perspective, it's fascinating to consider the idea that Batman was preceded by a pig mask wearing anti-hero. One of the many things that makes villains so compelling (especially within the Batman rogues gallery) is the concept that said individuals do have a legitimate reason behind their feelings to commit heinous acts. This is where Pyg brilliantly comes across as a multilayered villain due to Penguin's spreading of corruption inside of the GCPD.

Character motivations aside, one of the more obvious praises to be had is the excellent horror presentation given to the character. During the scene where Harper and Gordon, I'm sorry, Capt. Gordon (something that I'll happily have to get used to) searches an abandoned paper plant for Pyg, it felt as though I was watching a slasher film scene surrounding the reveal of the killer's lair. You have your traditional gruesome display of physical crime evidence all leading up to the surprise appearance by the killer himself. It's all done rather well. However, let's talk about that surprise killer reveal moment specifically as I feel the series yet again shows off its brilliance in utilizing simplistic but effective imagery.

As Jim and Harper approaches Pyg's van, you can make out what appears to be the cop killer himself silently walking behind of Olivia before ambushing her. What makes this scene so impactful on a horror level? There are no bombastic musical cues whatsoever to signify to the audience that Pyg has appeared in the scene. It's as simple as Harper walking towards the van by herself, as Jim surveys the other side, and Pyg abruptly showing up blurred in the background before the amush. It's a legitimately creepy moment and one that I think hardcore horror fans like myself can appreciate for its subtle approach.

The actual standoff between Pyg and Gordon here is also done very well in the way that it displays the commanding screen presence of this villain. It's crazy to think that a man in a pig mask can genuinely standout on a show where crime bosses and metahumans exist. However, considering Michael's amazing performance, Gotham proves that anything can be made possible with the right talent behind it. In this case, this may be one of the best casting choices ever made on the show and one that should be celebrated. Also, you gotta love the foreshadowings that Pyg drops such as "the table hasn't been set" or "no meal should be served before its time". I've admittedly nitpicked during past seasons about overly cartoony characters. This is a prime example of how something so over the top can work in favor of the show.

After disguising himself as a chef for Sofia's fundraiser dinner, Pyg manages to do something that I never expected to see again on Gotham...a musical number. Surprisingly enough, despite my reservations going in after hearing about a song being implimented, I found myself eating up every bit of this scene (bad choice of words). Perfectly portraying the villain's comic book counterpart's love for singing, Michael Cerveris gets to show off his talent with Pyg's song of choice "Meat Pie Tango". After taking command over the dinner and placing Penguin's partner in crime, Martin, as his personal triangle player, Pyg dominates the room by singing his feelings towards Gotham's corrupted elite. It may seem far fetch, but the singing never felt out of place as the writers did an excellent job at previously setting up this character trait.

"Despite appearances, I am not an animal" - Professor Pyg
Interesting to note that Pyg only kills who he deems necessary. Perhaps some sense of a vigilante code?

What makes this such an entertaining moment, aside from the catchy tune, is that the show still manages to keep its terrifying component of Pyg. Without hesitation, he stabs Sofia's hand after she interrupts him and immediately threatens Penguin that the next one will go into her eye. Again, this is a character that, even with such a eerily goofy appearance, manages to still convey an intimidating presence putting someone like Oswald in a powerless position. This leads to the big twist reveal that the pies that he served for the guests are made from the innards of the previously shown homeless people (hence the title). Pyg did say that he shares Gordon's mission with the caveat that he does so with a little more flair. I suppose serving justice with an ironic cannibalistic twist is as stylistic as it gets. Yikes!

Speaking of irony, I did find it brilliant that (and I'm assuming this was intentional) Oswald is the one to confirm with disgust that the pies were made from people. Considering what he did to his stepmother during Season 2 forcing her to eat her own children, this is one of those "have a taste of your own medicine" moments. It's nice to see the writers decide to not throw the Season 2 callback in our face and instead have us connect the dots through Robin Taylor's excellent performance. After signaling Oswald out as the reason that he chose to invade that party due to his vendetta against the Pax Penguina, and threatening to kill Martine if he didn't eat his human pie, we see Oswald desperately scoff down his food. This may be one of the most sickly things that I've seen in a comic book TV show, so...congratulations Gotham?

Once everyone else is forced to eat, before Sofia has to dig in, I started to realize that at this point, Pyg actually wins. Yes, I'm pretty sure no one eats their entire pie, but with all things considered, we're actually witnessing the ultimate victory of the villain here which is pretty bold. The only convenient hero entrance comes when Sofia is about to take her bite to which Gordon flies in guns blazing. By the way, you gotta love Pyg's mannerisms throughout the entire pie eating scene. Invoking the behavior of a chef and a parental figure creepily enough, Pyg grinningly keeps constant control over the situation by making sure everyone eats. Hate to sound like a broken record here, but Michael Cerveris at this point is deserving of a comic book TV villain award or something of that nature.

Just when you thought Professor Pyg's peak of villainy ended with a victorious grin at the sight of a cannibalistic feast, we get a pretty solid fight scene between him and Gordon. This was something that I honestly wasn't expecting whatsoever as the character never came across to me as a physical threat in the sense of a highly skilled fighter. Fortunately, I underestimated the capabilities of Gotham villains not sporting a leather black outfit or ninja-like attire. It was a pretty engaging action scene altogether seeing Pyg tossing knives after Jim leading to a close combat fight on top of a table. Gotham yet again surprises me this season with its high value entertainment altogether.

Overall Thoughts:

After seeing Pyg being arrested, one must wonder if he's truly gone. With Gotham's logic, this is probably considered a ridiculous notion to consider. Whether or not we'll see the professor again, this episode was a fantastic exit for the character delivering on everything that I could've possibly ever asked for and more. We get to see Pyg's ultimate plan come into fruition, a surprisingly fun music number, an unexpectedly solid fight sequence, and of course, Michael Cerveris's incredible performance. We also got to see Bruce Wayne's downfall of regret bringing out the more teenage rich boy angst side to the character that we've never really explored before. In addition to Sofia continuing to deceitfully wrap Gordon and Oswald around her fingers, Gotham is building up quite the season of character drama to soak in. 

Bonus Thoughts

Easter Eggs

1. Sofia's Agenda?

In a "Who's playing who?" scenario, we see Sofia continuing to seemingly puppeteer a greater conflict between Oswald and Gordon by exploiting their individual desires. The question here is Sofia's end goal regarding these two and the Falcone name. Considering Martine's reveal to Oswald (which let's not forget that Sofia pulled him to the side for an unseen conversation), what does this mean going forward?

2. Jim & Harvey's Conflict

One conflict that is very much clear is that of Gordon and Harvey's degrading friendship. It's difficult seeing these two be at serious odds with each other. Fortunately, the opposition here feels organic as both Bullock and Gordon have a right to feel betrayed in some sense given recent events. What's interesting is seeing where this relationship goes. Captain Gordon is about to have quite a handful now.

3. Professor Pyg's Disguises

One of Professor Pyg's most interesting traits is his ability to completely disguise himself. This perfectly plays off his love for theatrics. So far, we've seen three disguises including a wounded officer, a priest, and a chef.

4. A Nice Tip of The Hat

During this episode, Oswald is shown having purple streaks in his hair which is a nice callback to the classic attire of the comic book character sporting a purple colored top hat.

5. The Makings of A Batman Villain...Hero?

Ever since Martin (Martine?) made his debut as Penguin's muted sidekick, I kept thinking to myself "This kid's got to be someone from the comics. He just has to be!" Who? No idea. After doing a little research, I came up with Harold Allnut (a mute who helped crafted and repaired Batman's gear). Perhaps we're looking at Gotham's adaptation of the character in his youth?

Favorite Shots

Check out the PFYTT Gotham Gallery for some of the best frames from this episode and more...

Episode Rating: 9/10