"The Mask" is the eighth episode of the television series ''
Gotham''. It premiered on
FOX
Foxes are small-to-medium-sized omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull; upright, triangular ears; a pointed, slightly upturned snout; and a long, bushy tail ("brush").
Twelve species ...
on November 10, 2014 and was written by
John Stephens, and directed by Paul Edwards. In this episode,
Gordon
Gordon may refer to:
People
* Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters
* Gordon (surname), the surname
* Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War
* Gordon Heuck ...
(
Ben McKenzie
Benjamin McKenzie Schenkkan (born September 12, 1978) is an American actor, author and commentator. He is best known for his starring television roles as Ryan Atwood on the teen drama ''The O.C.'' (2003–2007), Ben Sherman on the crime drama ''S ...
) and
Bullock
Bullock may refer to:
Animals
* Bullock (in British English), a castrated male cattle, bovine animal of any age
* Bullock (in American English), a young bull (an uncastrated male bovine animal)
* Bullock (in Australia, India and New Zealand), an o ...
(
Donal Logue
Donal Francis Logue (born February 27, 1966) is a Canadian-American film and television actor. He played the starring role of Sean Finnerty on the sitcom '' Grounded for Life'' (2001–2005), and Detective Harvey Bullock on the DC Comics adapta ...
) investigate a killer with a fight club while Bruce (
David Mazouz
David Albert Mazouz (; born ) is an American actor, best known for his leading role as Bruce Wayne in Fox's Batman-prequel TV drama '' Gotham'' (2014–2019). Mazouz started his acting career with several guest roles before joining the Fox TV se ...
) returns to the school since the death of his parents.
The episode was watched by 6.35 million viewers and received positive reviews with critics commenting on Bruce's storyline.
Reception
Viewers
The episode was watched by 6.35 million viewers, with a 2.2 rating among 18-49 adults.
With Live+7 DVR viewing factored in, the episode had an overall rating of 10.03 million viewers, and a 3.8 in the 18–49 demographic.
Critical reviews
"The Mask" received positive reviews. The episode received a rating of 83% on the review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, with the site's consensus stating: "The appearance of a familiar Batman villain and a bullying scene at Bruce's school make 'The Mask' an important episode, though it returns to ''Gotham''s procedural format."
Matt Fowler of
IGN
''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
gave the episode a "good" 7.8 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict, "The 'case of the week' and Barbara's decision to unravel into a mess and leave Jim again (!) - which felt like the show was purposefully giving up on her and forcing her out more than anything - gave us plenty to roll our eyes at this week. But the fact that Gordon's relationship with his co-workers had become a critical topic was excellent. As was, believe it or not, Bruce's bully story. Kid Wayne still hasn't quite found his place on the series, but this was a spectacular moment between him and Alfred. With Alfred finally figuring out how, with his limited parenting skills, he could best help young Master Wayne."
The A.V. Club
''The A.V. Club'' is an online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was created in ...
's Oliver Sava gave the episode a "C+" grade and wrote, "Very little comes of the procedural this week. It may not be as ludicrous as the Balloonman, but there's little to no stakes here. Sure, ''Gotham'' tries its damnedest to get us to care about Gordon's ongoing battle to 'stand up for the city,' giving Bullock a speech (though he wouldn't call it a speech) that rouses the police force to spread out across the city and find Gordon, who's gone missing while investigating the fight club. When Sarah Essen shows up at the episode's end and helps save Gordon, it doesn't feel like a triumph of the system, or a sudden turn for the GCPD towards actual policing. Instead, it's a tidy end to an episode that's supposed to make us cheer for Gordon, but only continues to outline how sloppy and inconsequential these procedural storylines can be. Where’s the tension or insight?"
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mask, The (Gotham)
2014 American television episodes
Gotham season 1 episodes
Television episodes directed by Paul Edwards (director)