After a recap of the past two episodes, Penguin gets off a bus and comes back to Gotham. Crime is everywhere: prostitution, corrupt cops, muggers, etc. A news report opens about a man about to be put on trial, Ronald Danzer. He leaves his office and a Balloonman handcuffs a weather balloon to him and sends him into the sky. A man who was wearing a pig mask who wasn't Professor Pyg apparently.

Back at the station, Gordon meets Lt Cranston, who is a hothead and extremely sarcastic. Cranston isn't corrupt that we know of but he doesn't follow the books like everyone else. Gordon tells Bullock he's a thug. Gordon wants to investigate Danzer, but Bullock says it's not worth it. Selina Kyle comes in to see Gordon. Bullock is annoyed because that's a closed case.

Gordon tells Kyle that he wants to see the Wayne's murderer arrested. Kyle shows Gordon where it happened and what happened. Gordon isn't sure if she's lying or not about her being there to see the murder. Kyle says she stole a man's wallet and dumped it. Gordon handcuffs Kyle while he searches for the wallet. He finds it in the sludge and realizes she was telling the truth. Kyle picks the lock and gets away.

Detective Montoya and Allen head to see Fish Mooney. They want to know where Penguin is. She says she doesn't know. Montoya knows he's dead. Mooney says she didn't do it but she thinks Gordon did it. She tells the cops that Falcone ordered the hit.

Penguin is on the streets and has only some change and a knife. Someone sees him on the street and says Fish will pay a lot of money for him. Oswald says he couldn't stay away because Gotham is his home. Penguin gets stabby and kills him. He takes his money and gets some food.

Bruce and Alfred are practicing sword fighting with canes. Bruce eventually gets angry and lets loose. Alfred finds that Bruce has the police files on his parents' deaths. Bruce has doubts that Gordon will find the killer.

Detective Allen and Montoya pays Gordon a visit and they ask him about Oswald. Gordon says he didn't do it and they have no proof.

Penguin asks for a job at a restaurant and the boss says he doesn't have the right shoes. Oswald spots a cook with the shoes he needs.

Gordon and Bullock talk about Penguin's murder. It's intense between them.

Penguin stops the chef on the streets and asks him what shoe size he wears. The chef says 9 and Oswald laughs because it's a coincidence.

Bullock and Gordon talk to a man about the balloons and they find out that the Balloonman stole four of them.

Lt Cranston is roughing up a thug for money. The Balloonman approaches him and tries to handcuff him. Cranston beats him down, but eventually gets lifted into the air by a balloon.

Bruce is reading the newspaper while at the table. He's not eating. Alfred is concerned. Bruce shows Alfred the headline about the Balloonman.

Barbara asks Gordon about Balloonman and wonders if he'd be safe. She says Gordon is giving people faith because he caught the Wayne killer.

On the news, citizens like the Balloonman because he kills the corrupt. The captain is pissed and wants to know how far they are on this case. Bullock wants to put it on the guy who the balloons were stolen from. The captain wants them to find who the Balloonman will target next.

Bullock talks to the underbelly of Gotham to get answers.

Penguin has a new job and new shoes. Penguin's boss is tough and as he's yelling at Oswald, Maroni walks in.

Bullock and Gordon continue the search for answers. They get to Carl Smikers and Carl's girlfriend tells him to run. Bullock struggles, but eventually, they get him.

Lazlo tells Fish he's worried about everything happening. He doesn't want to get beat down again. Fish tells him it will be ok. He walks away. She tells one of her other men to get rid of Lazlo and to rough up Falcone's girlfriend.

Montoya is in Barbara's house and wants to talk about Gordon and how he killed Penguin. Barbara says she's lying. She thinks Montoya is determined to destroy Gordon. Montoya says she deserves better. Barbara tells her to leave. Montoya tells her to ask him where he was the night the murder happened.

In interrogation, Carl tells them he sold the balloons to someone else. Carl says the balloons will pop and come back. They do and splat on the ground. Bullock finds a list with Gordon's name on it. Gordon says he know who the Balloonman is.

Maroni stops Penguin and Oswald gives him a fake name. Maroni says he's was once like Oswald and gives him some money. They see on tv that a priest who was convicted was sent into space.

Gordon says the juvenile services guy who handed over Selina to Gordon is the Balloonman. He explains it all to the Captain. Bullock can't find any leads but Gordon thinks they're storing stuff in an abandoned juvie building. They get to the building and see a gate open. Bullock and Gordon head in and find a blue conversion van. The Balloonman holds a gun to Bullock. Balloonman says Gordon and he are the same man. He wanted to make a difference in Gotham for the better. He asks Gordon who he is fighting for. Bullock handcuffs him to a balloon and sends him into the air. Gordon grabs onto him and Bullock is forced to shoot down the balloon.

Carmine Falcone waits for Fish Mooney at her place. Fish enters and greets her. Falcone stopped by to make sure there are no hard feelings. Fish asks about his girlfriend and he says there was an accident with her. He says he'll hurt the person who did it and anyone connected.

The Balloonman gets taken away in an ambulance. Before he gets taken away, he talks to Gordon and Gordon asks who the last person was. Balloonman says they'll be more people like him.

Bruce Wayne watches the television story about the Balloonman at home.

Gordon gets home and throws his jacket on the bed. Barbara comes in and hugs him. She wants to know if he's ok. She asks him what's wrong and tells him that Gordon can tell him anything. Gordon says the city is sick. Gordon reveals that the Balloonman's last target didn't matter since the city is so corrupt and that's why the city embraced him. Barbara seems reassured in him and his character. She says she loves him. There's a knock at the door and she goes to answer it. It's Penguin.

Enough of Bruce Wayne! We don't need his take on all the events happening in Gotham. Cutting back to him is the most frustrating part of this series. Yes, Batman is cool, but this isn't about Batman or Bruce. This is about Gotham Central and James Gordon. Every time they cut back to him, my blood boiled because this show is better without the young Bruce Wayne.

There's a lot to love about this episode though. Sure, the idea of The Balloonman is incredibly silly and stupid, but it's important moment for Gotham. A citizen took the law into their own hands. Sure, you're probably thinking, "but didn't you just talk about how having Bruce Wayne in the show is pointless? We need to see how he reacts to this idea." No we don't. Anyway, the story overall is very cool and Gotham is currently 3 for 3 on stories this season. While I'm still a bit scarred this show may still turn into "villain of the week," as long as the stories add this much to the world, I'm totally for it.

The real reason to watch this show is the journey Oswald Cobblepot takes in Gotham. Sure the Bullock/Gordon dynamic is fantastic and Gordon's struggle to be a better man in a corrupt city is great, but man, Robin Taylor as Penguin is easily the best part of this show. He's probably only on the screen for a total of 7 minutes, but those are the best 7 minutes of each episode. He really has made this iconic character his own.

Aside from the Bruce Wayne moments of this episode, I loved everything about "The Balloonman." Gotham is the perfect mix of cop-drama and comic books. It has just a tinge of fantasy in each episode, but at no point does it really get too over-the-top. So far, this was the best Gotham has to offer; however, this show keeps getting better and better.

@inferiorego Mat you're missing RAW!!! They just had an incredible 5 stars match between EL Torito and Hornswoggle for the 100th time!!!

Great episode.

My idiotic DVR only recorded five minutes of the episode, now I gotta find it online.

Okay, watching it now, and I gotta say, this is campy as heck, a guy floating away on a balloon?? Come on son! That's cray cray.

I know people won't agree, but I found this episode to be the weakest one so far.

I agree. I gave the pilot a 3. Episode 2 was a solid 4, but this...was a 2.5 at best.

@inferiorego Personally the most interesting story we never get to see is how Bruce Wayne deals with his parents deaths over along span of time. I mean how was his childhood after that.

I didn't mind the Balloonman. His motivation was kinda weak for such an extreme gimmick, but the thought of being hoisted up into the sky and dropped back down is pretty scary. I really hate Fish Mooney. I don't care about that character and Jada Pinkett's Eartha Kitt impression is growing old real quick.

I completely agree with your points on Bruce Wayne!!!

@the_stegman said:

Time to get a new DVR. This is the what the second time it only recorded half of the show?

Pfft, I'd be lucky if I had half, literally, five minutes. And yeah, I need to trade it in..but that means leaving the house...that's a lot of commitment.

Honestly, the Bruce Wayne bits are the best part of the show to me. Do I want the show to be entirely about Bruce? Nope, but the small doses we are getting is awesome. Honestly I feel like Bruce should -slowly- become the main character of the series. (And by slowly I mean over the course of many seasons.)

We have never really been able to see an in depth look at a Bruce during this time period. I'm all for him being in it like they have been doing.

Haven't seen this yet, but how can you have a guy wear a pig mask and not have him be Pyg?

It goes against all logic

Diggin this show. I am surprised by how I don't really mind seeing Bruce, at first I hated his appearances but now I'm ok with it and see a lot of potential in him. I would take the show without him but the writing for him is not too bad considering how difficult it must be to portray a rich and spoiled child that likable while showing he has the potential to become Batman (court of owls recently showed readers that Bruce was doing minor detective work as a child). Also, without Bruce there would probably be not much need for Alfred and his character in this show is awesome. I definitely like the edge they put into Alfred. No matter how silly the balloon thing that is a scary as hell way to die, who would not be horrified to suddenly realized you are going to slowly freeze to death, die from lack of oxygen or possibly fall to your death if the balloon somehow pops.

@inferiorego why don't you like Bruce, are you more interested in other aspects of the show or do you flat out not like his character/role/acting in the show?

The only way the young Bruce plot can pay off is if they introduce young Tommy Elliot.

I'm still not sold on this show.

It feels like an "Arrow" that takes itself too seriously..

If they ever do the Joker in another Batman movie Robin Taylor should play him. He could be a better Joker than even Heath Ledger.

loved this episode,showed alot when it comes to Bullocks character and just showing he just doesn't care and would save his own skin,sooo good! I also enjoyed the little interaction with Gordon and Selina

How many catch that Lamond killed Lt. Cranston covered in a scarf was a reference to Lamont Cranston (aka the Shadow one of the inspirations for Batman)?

I thought Cranston beating a suspect with the award he received for being a good cop was pretty funny.

@saren said:

It look like an Oscar statue.

Even though I'm not liking the show too much so far other than Penguin, I loved this cliffhanger. It was so good. Also, Robin Lord Taylor has a smile as disturbing as the Joker. Looking forward to next week! Also, I gotta disagree with you Matt about the Bruce scenes. Personally, I love them and think they are interesting, even if unnecessary. I also thought that Alfred was more fun this episode, since the last 2 he has been more serious and mean.

@inferiorego I think young Bruce is probably the most interesting part of the show, so I hope they don't "cut back" on him. They're what makes the show more than just a police drama, at the moment. Plus, as time passes, I really want the show to follow Bruce through his training to become Batman.

Seriously? Bruce is easily one of the best parts of the show! Watching a kid develop into the most dangerous man on earth is far more interesting than watching a generic psycho repeatedly prove that he's definitely crazy. Since when is Penguin crazy anyway? He's just one of Gotham's elite that happens to be the most crooked of them all. Why is he some brown-nosing psychotic all of a sudden?

I happened to love the Bruce Wayne parts....leave the kid alone he just lost his parents...Matt...

And a young Roman Sionis. I'd like to see these three interact as kids.

Is this the plot summary or review?

i cant read this if its the plot summary before watching it

@abdullahzubair: the review is under the picture of the penguin, everything above is more like an episode play by play than a summary lol.

It was funny when the show hadn't come out and yet and people were like "OMG A show about Gotham that doesn't have Batman in it? LAME!" and now that the show is out suddenly it's "OMG, stop showing Bruce Wayne! Let's see more of everybody else!" It's like no one is going to be happy with how Bruce/Batman are handled in anyway. But it's the internet so I guess this is par for the course.

Honestly I like what they're doing with Bruce Wayne. Since he is a young kid who spent the first six years of his life oblivious to the real world, he's now interested in how it functions. He didn't just wake up one day and say "That's it I'm going to be Batman". He had to be inspired, but he also had to learn. Like this episode where he sees a vigilante get people's attention and it gives him the idea how such a person can bring out the hope in people, but at the same time there is a line that if crossed can get you into serious trouble. The "Balloonman" killed and that made him no different from any other criminal and Bruce knows this.

Others have pointed out other characters who could help flesh Bruce's character out a bit more and I agree that they should be added. It would be interesting to see Bruce get picked on at school and he gets into a fight, perhaps with a young Roman Sionis who picks on Bruce because he had grown resentful of his dumb parent's wealthy friends? Then Bruce can be saved by a young Thomas Elliot who has been his close friend for years. After getting home Alfred is upset to see what happened to him at school but Bruce says it's all right and asks Alfred to teach him how to fight. He will give Bruce his first taste of combat skill before he's old enough to travel the world and seek out other more experienced fighters in different skills.

I know some people don't like this Alfred much but I think he's good for toughening up the kid who will grow up to be one of the most badass characters in comic book history. He seems more like a street brawler whose has his own beginnings in the more seedy parts of the world, which means he can teach Bruce about the underworld he intends to wage war with someday.

Personally I would love to see more stuff like this.

Where is the Riddler? I didn't see him in this episode...

The best show.

Almost verbatim what I said about last weeks episode. There is No need whatsoever for the scenes with Bruce. They can make verbal nods to how he is doing in each episode. Seeing him not eat doesn't build the story, doesn't speak to the audience, it does nothing. Unless you have no idea who batman is, but somehow stumbled on to the show, then maybe you feel something about those scenes.

@sachmoo: I'm a huge Batman fan who has read many of his stories and to my surprise am so far enjoying how they are handling Bruce and hope to see more of his character.

So, to review: in the comics Professor Pyg was a Mad Hatter knockoff, in "Beware the Batman" he was a Poison Ivy knockoff, and now he's an Anarky knockoff? This is why I hate Pyg so much.

On the bright side, Penguin was a total badass!

I hope Fish Mooney dies a horrible, horrible death.

I am Lamont Cranston, wealthy young man about town.

"Who knows what evil Lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows..." ~LC TS

@amazingwebhead: I don't think that was supposed to be Pyg. He was wearing a pig mask very briefly but it's not as if he wore it the entire episode or did anything else similar to Pyg. It is a bit odd they would choose to use a pig mask tho

I like the review par, but I don't understand why you had to summarize EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED IN THE EPISODE. That's either a spoiler for people who haven't watched yet, or unnecessary for those who have.

Anyways, I actually rather like the Bruce Wayne/Alfred moments. Although I am still trying really hard to like this show, if it wasn't for the Batman-connection I probably would have given up by now. The balloonman seems a great idea for a comicbook villain, but on TV it looked rather lame. Aside from Bruce and Alfred, I only enjoyed Bullock and Oswald for obvious reasons. To me, this was the least interesting episode so far.

Bruce takes up, what 2 scenes per episode? I can't see how it can bother anyone that much really, he's still mostly a side character. Seems a little silly to be angered that Bruce Wayne is being featured on a show about Gotham City. He's my favorite character on the show closely followed by Penguin so I hope they just don't stop focusing on him. I thought this episode was a little meh the Balloon Man was lame imo and Fish Mooney is starting to annoy me but Bruce/Alfred, Penguin, Gordon/Bullock made up for that.

Okay, makes sense

Honestly I just keep watching for Penguin he's been my favorite character so far. He's got the most depth and he's interesting and don't know why, but I love it. Gordon is okay he just seems to have a lot of angst all the time. Bullock is only occasionally good but a little too surly.

@thecomedian_: nope i agree with you, couldn't finish the episode

also the music in the policing montage is really off putting intact most of the music to this show is jarring in comparison to the title theme tune

is this show still trying to figure out what it is?

@doombot890: I really think it is still trying to figure it out. Which is sad, y'know? I just really hope things start to get better, but with the choice for Harvey, silly scenarios, and age differences I'm worried that I might just have to stop watching it. But who knows? It's possible it could get better. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

@thecomedian_: i'm hoping it does get better as there are moments that completely make me forget how it fucks up the timeline but those parts are sadly not really coming from the main characters.

I'm a thankful that this show is not really part of DC's TV universe as i do not think it'll get much more than 1 season at this rate

which leaves me feeling really bad about Constantine

Thats cool. As you said, your a huge batman fan, so someone saying Bruce Wayne gets you esssited. That seems to be the only reason he is added in the show. They shoehorned him in for people like you. But like i said, it serves no real Plot purpose for the show. You know every detail of batmans story, so is it doing anything for you as it pertains to the show? No. You know what becomes of poor lil Bruce. Unless you don't know who Bruce Wayne becomes, him being in the show has no meaning.

He is simply a glorified and overplayed Easter Egg, which is starting to spoil.

3 strikes and you're out for me. To each his own but not a single one of these episodes have held my attention.

@sachmoo: I certainly don't agree with all that, but will agree to disagree.