Now that Coryana is behind us, it’s time to start letting Ryan be her own. While Kate Kane might be out of the picture (for now,) Gotham needs a new protector, and Ryan has officially taken up the mantle, and not a moment too soon! Crime is on the rise, Snake Bite is spreading through the city, and those closest to the Batfamily are at risk. So don your cape, grab your new mantra, and join us as we give you five thoughts on season 2, episode 9, “Rule #1.”
1. The dangers of working with a broken system
Did you remember that Gotham has an actual police force? After dealing primarily with the Crows for most of the show, “Rule #1” starts with Gotham’s police chief’s assassination, who had vowed to fight the spreading False Face Society and their spread of Snake Bite. Gotham PD is also receiving aid from Batwoman and fighting corruption. Still, it seems like they’re dealing with corruption themselves, as a young activist confronts the commissioner about shooting unarmed black men and the continued fight to defund the police.
The young activist is Jordan Moore, Sophie’s sister, who does suffer from a bit of “trying to write like the youths” syndrome, but actress Keeya King does her best with the dialogue. (Except for calling Batwoman “cringe,” that will never sound authentic.) Jordan is a witness to the commissioner’s death, but both Sophie and Ryan have a hard time connecting with the young activist because they represent the system. What makes this plot point work is Ryan’s initial confusion by the revelation. She’s working to make Gotham safer but can’t connect to this young activist. Jordan’s inclusion in the plot also continues to build Sophie’s story; being a Crow isn’t as helpful as she seems to think it is.
2. Old flames and hard lessons
In “Rule #1,” Angelique attempts to come back into Ryan’s life, but Ryan is initially skeptical. Angelique represents many facets of Ryan’s old life. She was a friend, a confidant, a girlfriend, but is also responsible for Ryan’s arrest and refused to change her ways when Ryan confronted her about being a Snake Bite dealer. She’s ready to turn a page and start fresh. She doesn’t want to be in the False Face Society and would instead create a new chapter with Ryan. Then she’s the getaway driver from the commissioner’s assassination.
A good portion of “Rule” #1 is the team’s conflict about Ryan’s trust in Angelique. Luke and Mary both warn Ryan about their toxic past and the negative impact on her life. Ryan counters with her belief that change is possible. To the episode’s credit, Angelique is very coy. You’re never quite clear what her intentions are. This builds some significant tension in the episode, at any point expecting Angelique to turn on her girlfriend, which makes the ending much more tragic. The Face Society captures Angelique, but Batwoman saves her. Angelique agrees to turn on her gang and confess, except that she falsely admits she was the murderer. This was all to protect Ryan, who Black Mask had threatened. It’s an excellent resolution to a well-executed tension that built through the episode. Superhero lives tend to be lonely. Ryan is no exception.
3. A very special tea party
The revelation of Kate’s death hit everyone hard but had the biggest impact on Alice. “Rule #1” finds Alice coming to terms with the loss of her other half, her twin sister, when suddenly Kate arrives at the door (well, a teen version at the very least,) and has a tea party with her. The two discuss their relationship with one another, how Kate was always the one who got them out of the trouble Alice always brought them into, but it seems that this Kate is not just a reflection of her sister, but a part of herself. This episode feels like it was drawing on some of the themes of Batwoman: Elegy by investigating the binary of the two characters, how they are sides of a similar coin.
Alice doesn’t have much to do in “Rule #1,” but as always, Rachel Skarsten makes the most of it. The final revelation is that Alice is on the border of having another full breakdown, but her strength is her ability to create things in her mind as ways to protect herself. Alice interprets this as an ability to create a world free from Kate. While it’s unclear what this means, it feels dangerous.
Continued below4. The power on anonymity
While we have seen glimpses of him in prior episodes, “Rule #1” is the first true reveal of Black Mask, who is shaping up to be the big bad of season 2. While it seems that the show isn’t being coy with who is behind the mask, both the voice and mannerisms of Mask match a character introduced earlier in the episode, “Rule #1” really plays with how creepy it is to have an anonymous gang. Members of the False Face Society wear masks, so it’s unclear if they know one another. The False Face Society feels similar to the Red Hood Gang in Snyder’s Batman: Year Zero and it wouldn’t surprise me if others in the gang were from the upper crust of Gotham society.
But the thing that makes Black Mask’s anonymity so creepy is the permission it gives him to act intensely cruel. By not knowing the faces of his minions, they are blank slates, numbers, expendable. “Rule #1” features many scenes of wanton violence against lower-level gang members, brutal executions for breaking the rules. If you don’t know the face of who’s working for you, you won’t care about what you do to them. It’s creepy, establishing Black Mask as a credible threat for the team.
5. What is a legacy?
After her run-in with Jordan Morse and her tension with the team over Angelique, Ryan decides to lay down some new rules for the Batfamily. As she says, each Bat has their own thing, their chance to make their mark. Her rules are simple, respect, accountability, and “Rule #1” legacy. Jordan explains to Ryan and Sohpie what “defund the police” means, taking those funds to build something bigger, and Ryan takes that to heart. For Ryan, legacy is not just taking out the threat. It’s creating something in its place to prevent another Black Mask from rising, to prevent someone like Angelique from falling in with the wrong crowd because she’s looking for a support system. It’s not enough to fight crime. You have to create something better in its place.
There’s a lot of (kind of tiresome, honestly) criticism of Batman just punching, not fixing, Gotham’s crime. There is something very cool and profound seeing three characters of color being the ones to work and leave that legacy. It makes you excited to see what Ryan will do with the mantle, now that she has officially taken it, even if we have an evil Kate waiting in the wings.
So what did you think? Are you excited to see where we go from here? How will Enigma impact the team? What’s up with Julia’s memory gaps? Sound off below, and see you next time!
