‘Gotham Knights’ Recap: Season 1, Episode 2 “Scene of the Crime”

Tom Griscom/The CW

Gotham Knights follows Bruce Wayne’s adopted son as he teams up with the children of Batman’s enemies to solve his father’s murder. It’s up to this group of chaotic misfits to find the real killer and clear their names, but first, they have to survive the powder keg that Gotham has become.

Five Finger Discount

“Scene of the Crime” opens with Gotham City Police Department, including single-minded DA Harvey Dent, swarming the Bat Cave. As the GCPD bag and tag everything Bruce Wayne had hidden in his subterranean safehouse, Cressida coldly reminds Harvey that Turner was his friend, too, not just Bruce.

Elsewhere, set to a score of Garbage’s “I’m Only Happy When It Rains,” Turner, Duela, Cullen, and Harper are doing a little light shopping. (Light on the payment front, at least.) Cullen and Harper at least pay lip service to justifying the crime, but Duela seems happy for an excuse to stock up on accessories. In reality, they need to change up their looks so they don’t resemble their mugshots — which is what they tell Carrie when she arrives, in full Robin mode, to investigate the burglary.

Tom Griscom/The CW

Back at their hideaway in the belfry, Carrie points out that they’re supposed to be keeping a low profile and won’t prove their innocence by committing crimes. Harper reminds her that all of their leads are dead. The team easily slips back into joking about the “bird cult” that Duela is so afraid of — the Court of Owls. Turner declares they need something more tangible to go on. Luckily, he has a friend working on that.

That friend, Stephanie, is holding her head high as she walks through the school halls despite all the looks aimed her way. She is convinced of Turner’s innocence, telling Brody firmly that he didn’t do it. Brody is flabbergasted when she tells him that she used Bruce Wayne’s batcomputer to hack into all the banks, trying to help Turner. He immediately points out how crazy that is and reminds Stephanie how much trouble she could be in.

Stephanie is unfazed by Brody’s warning, and as the belfry bells chime in the distance, she heads off to find Turner. Instead, she finds Cullen and Harper sleeping in the hideaway — and Duela finds her. With a knife to Stephanie’s throat, the two trade quips before Turner arrives and convinces Duela to back off. Woken by the commotion, Harper and Cullen join in to roast the “hacker chick,” but everyone grows serious when Stephanie lets them know that the GCPD have the batcomputer.

You’ve Got Mail

At the police department, Harvey Dent and his colleagues are looking for Detective Ford while all the goodies from the Bat Cave are being carried in. Harvey says that Ford has been dodging his calls, so his colleague calls him — resulting in a sound from not too far away. Over on Ford’s desk, Harvey finds a ringing package. Inside the box is more than just Ford’s phone, though — there’s also his severed head.

Harvey suggests they check on Ford’s team. His colleague picks up her phone again, and the camera shifts to show a chilling shot of a mail cart loaded up with several more head-sized packages, ringing ominously. Harvey looks murderous.

A news report confirms that six GCPD officers from the task force created to find Turner and his supposed accomplices have been decapitated.

Danny Delgado/The CW

A Plan

Back at the Belfy, Duela finishes watching the news and turns to the others, awaiting an apology for doubting her about the Court of Owls. She doesn’t get one, but the Bat Brats do seem more on board with her theory. It doesn’t matter, though, Harper points out. Who is going to believe them anyway?

Turner reminds them that Bruce was found with a Court of Owls coin. Maybe he was already looking into the Owls? He wants to pick up where his father left off and investigate. Carrie shares that Bruce kept journals at his office in Wayne Tower. But they’ll have to break in to get them.

Despite her earlier words about not committing crimes, Carrie is the first to agree to go with Turner to try and retrieve the journals when he comes up with a plan to use his dad’s private elevator to access his office. They don’t have a lot of choices. Cullen volunteers to drive, and Harper points out that Turner will need her. Duela is much more reluctant but wants to get out of the attic.

At the GCPD, Mayor Hamilton Hill has a thing for numbers, listing out several for Harvey: seven toe tags, six grieving families, and zero leads. Harvey snarkily offers him thirty-four, his approval rating, but the Mayor is unphased. During the boxed heads debacle, Harvey’s colleague from earlier interrupts to say that they do have one lead. Someone hacked into all of Gotham City’s banks, and Turner’s accounts were dug through.

Turner has an alibi by virtue of escaping the police convoy, so someone was helping them. Harvey swiftly questions who Turner’s one phone call was when he is arrested, and GCPD go to pick up Stephanie for questioning. Brody watches from a distance as she is taken away.

Curse Your Sudden But Inevitable Betrayal!

Meanwhile, at Wayne Tower, the Bat Brats make quick work of getting Turner into his dad’s office. Cullen keeps the engine running, and Harper monitors everything from her laptop in the passenger seat. Duela tells Turner that he’s got this, even giving him a thumbs up — immediately making Harper suspicious. Once Turner and Carrie are out of the car, she confronts Duela about her new team spirit. Duela happily confesses that she only went with Turner’s plan because it’s a part of her own. Now they have a Wayne Security car they can use to escape, sell the Owl’s watch, and take the cash to get out of Gotham.

Harper is tempted, but Cullen isn’t having it. He pushes back, arguing with Harper and explaining to her that he wants agency — he wants to clear his name. He’s sick of running, and Cullen is staying to help Turner and Carrie.

Upstairs, Carrie leads Turner to the secret compartment in Bruce’s office where his journals are. One of them has been pulled out to read. It’s old, from back when Bruce’s parents were murdered. His first case. Within, Bruce confesses that Joe Chill may have pulled the trigger on his parents, but it was the Court of Owls who were responsible for orchestrating it.

Danny Delgado/The CW

While the break-in is going on, Harvey speaks to Stephanie in his office. He tells her that he doesn’t think Turner killed Bruce, but the longer Turner is on the run, the worse it looks. His efforts to persuade Stephanie to help him fail, even when he reminds her that corporate and financial data theft carries a five-year prison sentence. Keeping her cool, Stephanie points out that they don’t have any real evidence against her and tells him that she won’t say anything else without an attorney.

A knock at the door interrupts before Harvey can continue. A note is delivered to him — someone else wants to talk. Through the interior window, Stephanie sees Brody speaking with an officer.

Back in Bruce Wayne’s office, Turner is still looking at the journals. Bruce suspected the Court of murdering Waynes for decades. His journals are full of maps and theories, but he never found anything. In the end, he became certain they were a fairy tale. Something must have changed his mind since then. As Harper frantically lets them know they aren’t alone and all the security cameras have gone offline, Carrie and Turner take Bruce’s last journal.

Unfortunately, before they can flee, the Talon makes his appearance. Shutting themselves in Bruce’s office, the duo hold the door closed and dodge the assassin’s blade.

Duela tells Cullen and Harper that they have to go help — only to double-cross them the moment they get out of the car. Ditching them in the parking lot, she drives off with the Wayne Security car.

A Zippy Escape

The Row twins make it to the top of the secret Wayne Tower elevator, but they’re trapped with Turner and Carrie — GCPD below, and the Talon on the other side of the door. Robin comes to the rescue as Carrie pulls a cool gadget from her bag. It’s a zipline, allowing the four fugitives to fly out of the window and across Gotham.

Duela takes the Owl’s watch to an antiquities dealer that she previously mentioned back at the belfry. The dealer seems very interested in the piece, but things quickly go downhill when he reveals that his buyers offered him even more money for the seller of the watch. He pulls a gun on Duela. She tries to warn him about the Owls, claiming that he can’t be that stupid. The Court of Owls doesn’t leave trailing ends. She’s proved right as a blade bursts through the dealer’s chest.

Fleeing from the Talon holding the sword, Duela makes it back to the stolen car. It’s not much protection from the assassin, though, as he quickly disables the engine. Not able to break through the security glass windows, the Talon pierces the car’s gas tank and sparks up a ring of flame around the vehicle, trapping Duela.

A thrown blade distracts the Talon as he watches Duela struggle. The cavalry is here! Fresh from their zipline ride, the Bat Brats have come to rescue Duela, even after she abandoned them. Turner correctly deduced that for the watch to be worth so much money, whoever wanted it must know about the engraving. Outside the dealer’s shop, Turner gets to put his fencing skills to use as he and Carrie hold off the Talon while Cullen and Harper get Duela out of the car.

Carrie resorts to another bat gadget, an impressively explosive crossbow, but their combined efforts can’t keep the Talon down for long. With Duela freed, the Bat Brats flee.

Secrets and Lies

At the Belfry, Cullen bandages up Duela’s burnt hand. When she tries to thank him for coming back, Cullen rebuffs her and tells her to thank Turner instead.

Duela opens her conversation with Turner by telling him he was stupid for going up against the Talon. He points out that he had help. As they talk, Turner wonders about the fencing and martial arts classes his dad insisted on and pushed him to do well in. Was Bruce preparing Turner for something?

Over in the GCPD building, Stephanie confronts Brody as he exits the interview room. She thinks that he turned her in, but in fact, it’s the opposite — Brody told them he did it. She’s baffled, not understanding why. Brody tells her he couldn’t sit by and watch her screw up her life for Turner.

Harvey arrives at Bruce’s office, the scene of the crime yet again. He hears that the only thing taken was a sword and that an antiquities dealer was found impaled by one.

The scene switches to an ominous fireplace, with Cressida standing in front of it. “They watch you at your hearth,” the Mayor intones from behind her, echoing the Owl’s rhyme. He reassures her that finding the fugitives is his top priority, but it’s not being made any easier when he has to keep covering things up for the Talon. Cressida notes that he didn’t seem to have any complaints when the Talon eliminated his rival years ago. Her tone turns colder as she approaches him, asking if he has forgotten his debt of gratitude. The mayor reassures her he hasn’t, and she departs, leaving him to drink alone.

Tom Griscom/The CW

In the Belfry, Duela and the twins try to rest. Up by the window, Turner apologizes for Stephanie for risking her getting in so much trouble. She tells him it’s fine, and they discuss some of the many questions they still have: not least, how did the Talon get into Wayne Tower undetected? Turner reveals his father’s journal and shows it to Stephanie, admitting to another mystery. Someone has ripped the last pages from the journal, taking out his most recent case.

Across Gotham, Carrie sneaks back into her apartment. Alone, she unrolls the stolen pages from Bruce’s journal. At the bottom, a single question stands out: What will happen when Turner finds out the truth?

Gotham Knights drops new episodes every Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET on The CW. You can find all of Nerds and Beyond’s coverage of the show here.

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