Monday night’s episode of “Gotham,” titled “Viper,” continued the freshman Fox show’s pattern of over-the-top violence and gore — at a level usually not seen at 8 p.m. on a major network.
The episode featured everything from melting faces and crumbling bones to an interesting use of a deli meat slicer, but none of this should surprise anyone who has been watching the show. Here is a rundown of five of the most over-the-top scenes of violence we’ve been treated to so far.
1. The Wayne murder
The shooting death of Bruce Wayne’s parents (which ultimately inspires the creation of Batman) has been shown so many times in the movies that the latest retelling of the story shouldn’t have had any surprises.
But in “Gotham’s” pilot, the scene was shown in more graphic detail than even the movies have attempted, with plenty of blood spattering — and David Mazouz, as Bruce Wayne, reacting with realistic terror.
2. Penguin gets his walk
It’s never really made clear where Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) got the nickname Penguin that he loathes so much. But by the end of the pilot episode, he has a good reason to waddle when Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett-Smith) savagely beats him with a chair and has him thrown in the trunk of a car.
Later, he’s literally forced to take a long walk off a short pier. Luckily for him, penguins can swim.
3. Cat scratch
In the second episode of the season, “Selina Kyle,” we get a better understanding of just how vicious the future Catwoman (Camren Bicondova) can be, when, after giving advice to another homeless kidnapping victim to “go for their eyes,” we see the result of that method in detail.
4. Burn, baby, burn
Eye gouging seems to be a “thing” for “Gotham,” because in the fourth episode, “Arkham,” we see it again — this time through the use of a special extending spike that the villain Gladwell tricks his victim into staring down the barrel of.
Later in the episode, Gladwell sets fire to another victim using gasoline, and we get a quick view of the disgustingly charred remains.
5. Girl fight
“Arkham” concludes with yet another brutal beating, with a feminine twist. At the order of Fish Mooney, two extremely competitive nightclub singers vie for a job working for her, “Fight Club” style.