Like I said, I'll start it off.
Episode 1 was engaging right from the start. Establishing the Harvester as a persistent looming threat, late-night DJ Summer Gleeson (nice Animated Series reference), to the cold open of Bruce Wayne as a doctor were great hooks for me.
Bruce roleplaying as the victims whom he examines was very unnerving, but also an interesting look at his pathology as Batman.
The Harvester attack on Bruce was startling but not so startling as the crude surgery he performed while Bruce was bleeding out on the floor.
An even bigger shock came after when Bruce's PARENTS walked into Bruce's room after his surgery to treat the attack wound. More shocking was the display of a strained relationship between Bruce & his father, who clearly feels Bruce is squandering his talents as an medical examiner instead of live operations. This strain worsens after Bruce is mandated by his father to meet with a psychiatrist.
On first hearing, I was enamored by Dr. Hunter. Because it's John Rhys-Davies & I love his work. That blinded me though, because on subsequent listenings I became distrustful of Dr. Hunter. His "light show" seemed more like a hypnotic apparatus or something relating to mind control, something I missed Bruce calling out when I first heard the episode.
That first session also indicated that something is wrong with Bruce's world. He's hearing bat screeching & being triggered by the mere mention of guns, even though he shouldn't be carrying the trauma of Crime Alley.
The end of the session with Dr. Hunter was very interesting cause it sounded like Batman was coming out of Bruce's mouth when Hunter pressed him about him empathizing with the victims.
Bruce's second panic attack was intriguing because it seemed fabricated. Martha comes to Bruce's house (meaning he doesn't live in Wayne Manor) to celebrate his discharging from the hospital with a little drink. Despite the pop of the cork, I think they were drinking wine; red wine, which Mrs. Wayne spills on herself & then she somehow breaks her pearl necklace, triggering Bruce, reminding him of Crime Alley. That sequence of events felt too scripted (from an outsider's perspective) to have just occurred randomly, especially after that first session with Dr. Hunter.
Then came the phone call. The Harvester is truly unnerving. Sam Witwer did a masterful job because he sounds completely unhinged at times & manic yet sane for other parts of the conversation. His little gift to Bruce was horrifying & I was wondering where the other halves of the gift were.
This episode got me Googling before I even started episode 2, digging through Batsy's rogues gallery for anyone pulled as reference for the new characters like Hunter & Harvester. I'll share what I found when I write about Episode 2.
Staff / Moderator/ 2 years ago in Social & Random