Batwoman 3x1 : Mad as a Hatter review

 

            Be warned there will be *SPOILERS* involved in this review. With that being said let's get into it.

Batwoman returns for it's third season and with a promise of a lot of classic Batman villains showing up this could shape up to be the best season yet. The episode begins as we see the Mad Hatter's hat being retrieved from the lake where we saw it among other villain objects last season. Someone picks the hat up and takes it to their home placing it up for sale online. Someone ends up buying it and as we see it's a man who later becomes known as Liam. He takes the hat and places it on his head as the camera pans out showing his entire room. It turns out he is a fanboy of Alice with pictures of her everywhere with the words Free Alice also being shown. With a great and interesting start we're soon shown both Batwoman and Luke in his batsuit out and about on the hunt for more of the villain objects that were let loose at the end of season 2. Luke's suit begins to malfunction which in turn leads to his heart being to beat very fast. He's obviously in distress as two gun men are seen hunting both Batwoman and Luke. When they defeat them and get back to the bat-cave they place the latest find in confinement. While there we learn that Mary is to graduate from medical school the following day and everyone is invited to see her speech. This in turn ties into Alice and what's been happening with her. She is still in Arkham and now thinks that Jacob Kane has been writing to her stating that he will help her escape Arkham. When Mary and later Ryan visits her she is in pretty rough shape mentally. 

We're introduced to a new character after a murder in the sewers of Gotham. It's none other than Renee Montoya GCPD officer who is now apart of the rouge unit. As for the murder in the sewers it's all down to this Mad Hatter copy cat which is almost immediately learned. He uses his newfound hat technology to cause a man to kill his friend in cold blood right in front of the Hatter. So with Renee on the case and also Ryan can this Hatter copycat be stopped?? back at the bat-cave and Luke talks about Jervis Tetch the original Mad Hatter. He says that his hat is fitted with technology that can mind control all in it's path. Batman stopped him by using a frequency blocker which made him unfazed by the hat and it's tech. When they all learn that the Mad Hatter is to have a tea party they're shocked to learn that this tea party will take place at the exact location where Mary is about to give her graduation speech and also where plenty of graduating students are to be. When Ryan, Luke and Sophie take their seats and Mary takes to the stage they're thrown off immediately when Mary's speech takes a dark turn. It's because she has been affected by the Mad Hatter who soon appears on the stage. He soon has control over everyone expect our 3 hero's who all wear frequency blocking ear plugs. 

The episode draws to a close as the only way to stop the Mad Hatter's mind control is to break Alice out of Arkham. After all he is her number 1 fan which is just flat out disturbing. Batwoman reluctantly gets to work and does end up breaking Alice out of Arkham. Alice who at first doesn't want to go with her as she again says her dad is going to break her out. She shows Batwoman the letters on her prison cell wall. Notes that're nothing just adverts and pieces of paper. Your mind has been playing tricks on you says Batwoman as Alice ends up going with her. Back at the assembly for medical graduates and the Mad Hatter has Mary performing an operation on stage. An operation her her mentor that has her removing various organs from him starting from the least important to the most important. A deadly game of operation if you will. Alice soon shows up and gets the Mad Hatter to stop what he's doing. The two hug but Alice ends up stabbing him in the back..literally. She was wearing the same ear buds that Ryan, Luke and Sophie were wearing which helped her not be controlled by him. The episode isn't over yet however as back at their apartment Ryan not only ends up giving Luke the name of Bat-Wing but we also learn that Ryan's mom is infact alive and she is a pretty big deal as she is shown getting off of a helicopter. Earlier in the episode Sophie had done some digging into her which she learns off which in turn could lead to a very interesting story arch indeed. The episode ends as Batwoman gets called by none other than Renee Montoya. She has a proposition for her. Batwoman has to work with Alice to collect the various villain objects still out there in Gotham or hang up the cape. Renee even knows that Ryan is Batwoman which was a bit of a surprise. No messing around by her it seems. The episode ends as Batwoman like earlier reluctantly agrees to work with a newly freed from Arkham Alice. This was a really solid episode. I did enjoy the Mad Hatter copycat and how his technology worked and affected others. Who knows what's to come down the line when it comes to other villains but I am really interested to see it all unfold. As for Batwoman and Alice's working relationship well that has the potential to be absolutely amazing in so many ways. A good start for Batwoman's third season lets hope it can keep a steady pace and be a strong season overall. 

★★★