This week, Kate deals with the interpersonal conflict of being Batwoman as new enemies emerge. We get more information about Catherine’s connection to Alice/Beth, and Kate’s new romance heats up. Read on to find out what went down in Gotham this week on Batwoman.
We open on a new villain terrorizing Gotham as Magpie steals jewels and baubles, nearly killing one guard in the process. Vesper Fairchild wonders where Batwoman is as we pan over to Kate in bed with Reagan. Kate turns off the radio to avoid the chatter, and Reagan playfully banters with her about this new hero. Just then, Luke texts that something urgent is happening, and Kate makes up a vague (and unconvincing) excuse to leave. Reagan seems disappointed that Kate is mysteriously leaving yet again, and Kate seems sad to go. Kate is struggling with all the dishonesty, since she’s never had to lie about a fundamental part of herself like this (she came out when a classmate teased her and never looked back).
Kate arrives at Wayne, where Luke and a woman from the Museum of Antiquities are waiting. Kate has loaned Martha Wayne’s pearl necklace to an exhibition, and she is thrilled. Luke is concerned about security with the Magpie stealing valuables and says they’ll send a security team. He tells Kate he called her because Dodgson, Alice’s boyfriend, isn’t looking good. Kate says he’ll stay there until he confesses the plan, but Luke says he needs treatment. Kate takes one look at his dropping vitals and agrees.
Beth’s grave is being excavated by Catherine, who looks on nervously. As she steps away to go to her car, Alice suddenly appears. She blackmails Catherine, saying that if she doesn’t provide Alice with a mysterious top secret weapon, then she will tell Jacob that it was Catherine who planted the bone evidence of Beth’s death all those years ago.
Meanwhile, at the clinic, Mary is visited by Batwoman, and she is star struck. Kate disguises her voice and asks Mary to heal Dodgson. Mary hesitates at first, since he tried to kill her, but then gives in to help Batwoman.
Kate leaves to pursue the Magpie, wanting to restore Gotham’s confidence. She tracks Magpie down and they fight, but Magpie is able to get away when one of Batwoman’s weapons malfunctions.
The next day, the whole city knows that Batwoman let Magpie get away. Kate thinks the weapon malfunctioned, while Luke gently suggests user error. They agree to disagree, and Luke notes that the item Kate managed to pull off Magpie was a grenade. As he goes to run chemical tests, Kate leaves, saying she owes Reagan a lunch.
Jacob is sitting in his office listening to classical music when Sophie enters. Jacob says this is the song Alice was playing in the penthouse. She remarks that it’s very “on brand” for her. Jacob says this was Beth’s favorite piece and that she also played the cello, but he abruptly slams his laptop shut at the suggestion that Beth is Alice. Sophie quickly hands him the report she came to give him. It suggests that the bomb used to ambush the convoy ferrying Alice to prison came from Hamilton Dynamics. Jacob wonders why one of their own would want to attack the convoy.
Kate and Reagan are out walking together. They have great chemistry and banter, and it’s clear Kate cares about her. Just before they get to the restaurant, Kate gets yet another text. It’s clear this act is getting old for both of them as Kate lies yet again. But Kate invites Reagan to the antiquities museum gala that night to make up for it, and it seems to smooth things over for now.
We flash to the Batcave, where Luke is working on figuring out the device. An alarm blares, signaling an intruder in the room with the necklace. He rushes there only to be knocked out by Magpie.
When Kate arrives, she’s devastated to learn the necklace was taken. It meant a lot to Bruce, and he spent a million dollars to get it back. Kate feels guilty for not being there, and this double life is starting to grate on her. She asks Luke about the bomb, and he says it was 3-D printed with exploding ink. He suggests asking Sophie to figure out who is buying the ink. Kate reluctantly asks her, explaining that her father doesn’t know about the theft yet. Sophie says she’s glad Kate came to her and that they make a good team. They share a look before Kate leaves.
Meanwhile, a group of men sent by Catherine to track down Alice are ambushed by her gang when they find her hiding place. She cuts off one of the men’s index fingers as a message to Catherine that she’s “not playing games.” Luke is checking out the list Sophie provided. Kate says she thinks Sophie has figured out that she’s Batwoman. She wonders how Bruce made living this life look easy, and Luke says he was miserable too.
Kate follows the address on the list and finds Magpie’s headquarters. But there’s a catch: the bomb is linked to the temperature in the room, and Kate’s body heat would raise it enough to make it explode. The suit can artificially lower her temperature, but if she breathes that would be enough for it to go off. Kate has two minutes, or however long she can hold her breath. As she works, Luke mentions that she was right about the tool malfunctioning. It was calibrated for Bruce, who had longer arms. She successfully copies Magpie’s hard drive, but can’t resist the urge to sneeze and detonates the bomb as she rappels out of the room.
Dodgson wakes up delirious in Mary’s clinic. He thinks Mary is Alice due to the high dose of painkillers, and Mary plays along to get information. She has a pretty hilarious impersonation of Alice that seems to work, and he slips that she has big plans for “Mouse,” who Batwoman doesn’t know. At the museum, Kate is on the roof waiting for Magpie to show. Kate knows she’ll target the show. Luke is 3-D printing the last thing on Magpie’s hard drive so they can see what her target is. Kate sees Reagan arrive for their date and goes to meet her, despite Luke’s admonishment.
Catherine is waiting in a car for her hit men to return, and one does: the one who’s currently missing a finger. He tells her he’s done, and that if she wants Alice dead, she’ll have to do it herself. Her phone rings, and it’s Alice with a cryptic message. Back at the gala, Reagan is waiting for Kate, who stashes her gear in a janitor’s closet. She sees Sophie, who is working security for the event. Reagan spots Kate and heads over. It’s awkward, but Reagan pulls Kate away with drinks. Kate is distracted, and Reagan attributes it to the run-in with Sophie. Just then, the woman running the gala approaches to again thank Kate for loaning the necklace. Kate is confused, since Luke was supposed to tell them that the necklace was stolen, but the woman says she was so relieved when the guards brought it over. Kate realizes something is wrong as the woman starts her speech. Luke calls, revealing that the necklace is a replica and a bomb. Kate leaves a confused Reagan yet again.
The lights go off and the fire alarm sounds as the attendees make their way to the exits. Magpie sneaks into the museum, and Kate confronts her as Batwoman. Magpie pulls out the detonator for the bomb, reminding her that the jewels are all insured but the people only have one life. Frustrated, Kate goes to save the guests as Magpie laughs. It seems like she’s getting away with it, but at the last second Kate uses her tools to pull Magpie off the building and into a fountain, where she is arrested. Magpie is revealed to be the photographer who was doing promotional shots of the necklace for the exhibit.
Reagan approaches, saying she tried to call. Kate’s inability to lie effectively means that Reagan feels lied to and ignored. Reagan says she’s not needy, but if she’s going to rearrange her life, she needs a little honesty. Kate says that this sucks, but she’s not in a place right now to get involved with anyone, even someone she really likes. Reagan says she gets it, but she just hopes that all this is making Kate happy and is worth it. She walks away, and Kate is dejected. I hope this isn’t the last we see of Reagan; she’s a good character and has great chemistry with Kate.
Back in Jacob’s office, Catherine walks in. She tells Jacob everything, including that she paid to doctor the DNA results on the bone fragments that Jacob thought belonged to Beth. She says that both Jacob and Kate were in a downward spiral, and she thought she was bringing them closure. She’s teary and genuine, and Jacob is angry. He storms out, leaving Catherine crying alone.
Back at the clinic, Mary is startled by Batwoman. She tells Kate what Dodgson said about “the Mouse.” Kate microchips Dodgson, much to Mary’s shock. Jacob sits in his office in tears, listening to the cello suite from earlier. Kate is back at Wayne, telling Luke about her plans to buy run-down high rises and convert them into low-income housing. It’s a callback to her lunch conversation with Reagan, showing that she’s still on Kate’s mind. Batwoman appears on the roof as Luke turns on the Bat Signal. As the credits roll, Kate is narrating that the city is worth living a double life for.
Batwoman airs Sundays at 8 p.m ET on The CW.
