Slowly but surely, the once puny orphan Bruce Wayne is once again shifting into Batman, or at least Batman-like mental patterns, for Fox's Gotham. While we're still a ways away from seeing a caped crusader on-screen, if that ever even happens, we are definitely witnessing the foundation of what will bring the Dark Knight out of Gotham's Bruce Wayne. Actor David Mazouz shared a major cornerstone Bruce learned in his latest encounter with the Joker-esque Jerome.
He learned he wasn't going to kill. Through that experience -- and that very close encounter with crossing the sacred line that we all know that Batman holds dear -- Bruce decided that was a line he didn't want to cross.
Of all the Batman rules out there, that's the biggest one! Batman doesn't kill, and Gotham would've pissed off a lot of people had they let young Bruce cross that line. David Mazouz tells CBR he believes Batman doesn't kill bad guys because the vigilante truly believes that no one is beyond redemption, and whether he came to that conclusion himself or was fed it, I love that he said it.
While the Gotham writers have certainly taken some unique liberties with the Batman mythos and other characters' mindsets, it's good to see Mazouz and the writers respecting the cornerstones of what Batman is really about. The actor says the lesson didn't stop there, and that Bruce also learned another important thing in his encounter with Jerome:
Something else he learned is how evil people can be, how evil humanity has the potential to be, through Jerome and his maniac crew. That whole experience showed him the underbelly of Gotham. It was the first time Bruce was exposed to something so ugly, evil and disgusting on so many levels. There was a moment, that wasn't really explored too much in the episode, where Jerome said, 'Face it, Bruce. Gotham has no heroes.' I believe in that moment that Bruce begins to decide to do something about that. I don't think he necessarily thought, 'Okay, I'm going to go be the hero Gotham needs.' It gives Bruce a kick. Most people would have taken that and said, 'Oh, crap. You're right. I guess I'm screwed.' Bruce doesn't. Bruce takes that and goes, 'Well, I'm going to change that.'
Once again, I'm loving all the things I'm hearing from David Mazouz. Don't get me wrong, Gotham's post-pubescent Bruce Wayne is still a work in progress, but it's clear the understanding of the character's ethos is there. With a broader Court Of Owls arc being teased for the latter half of Season 3, as well as the full blown baptism of Edward Nygma into The Riddler on the horizon, we can expect to see a lot of growing up come this season's end for Bruce. Will it be enough to slow Gotham's everlasting descent into chaos? Better yet, will it finally sever his ties with Selina Kyle?
That's the big question, as the latest Gotham episodes showed a falling out between the future Batman and Catwoman. While Bruce's betrayal of Selina's trust was well intentioned, you have to wonder if Bruce's withholding of information about Selina's mother's con job is going to affect their long term relationship. Mazouz confirms that the Gotham dynamic duo's relationship will sit on the back burner for the next few episodes, but as Selina and Bruce historically do, they'll come together once again. For now though, Bruce will have to grow and train in order to take on The Court Of Owls.a
While Jerome certainly appears to be the beginning of the Batman transformation on Gotham, David Mazouz seems to tease it's only beginning from there! Gotham returns to Fox on April 24th with the exciting title "How The Riddler Got His Name," airing at 8:00 p.m. ET. Gear up for a crazy second leg of Season 3 and bide the time by hitting up our midseason premiere guide for what to watch until then.
