Pennyworth review, Episode 202: “The Burning Bridge”

Pennyworth introduces new villains and continues to tease an epic war coming to London in the satisfying “The Burning Bridge.”

“The Burning Bridge” expands on some of the intriguing revelations from the Pennyworth season premiere while also serving up some twists of. The end result is a solid showcase of what this origin story for Batman’s butler has to offer.

The episode picks up with Aziz convincing Martha to put aside her petty jealousies for her country and convincing Thomas Wayne and the CIA to help fight the wave of fascism across sweeping their country courtesy of the Raven Union. Katie Browning is still being held captive by the throat-slitting charmer Bet Sykes, and Alfie and the boys celebrate getting enough money to move to America.

At Raven Union headquarters, Lord James Harwood and Frances welcome back Colonel Salt, who updates them on the latest Storm Cloud tests. Frances thinks the chemical weapons experiment is wrong, and Harwood promises to put a stop to it, even if he believes in it himself. Harwood’s reasoning is that chemical weapons are more effective than bombs simply because they don’t damage property, which is spine-tinglingly heartless. Harwood may usurp Voldemort as the most psychotic noseless villain in fiction.

Alfie is having a tough time in his personal life, whether it’s his day-drinking mom or telling the truth about his departure to Sandra. Then Thomas Wayne shows up at his club, but Batman’s dad isn’t there to see his future butler. At the request of his superiors, Wayne recruits old foe Aleister Crowley to do a job of him: he is to remove some unspecified public figure from his position. Crowley accepts, but creepily requires a kiss to seal the deal.

In a secret council meeting, Aziz tries to get the Prime Minister to help with the growing Raven Union threat, but he is unmoved.

Alfie continues to struggle with telling Sandra that he’s leaving. Then he finds out that his Mom has been taken. The kidnappers tell him where to meet to exchange all of his money for her life.  He gets the drop on two of the thugs involved, who reveal a man named Mr. X is running the show, but they have no idea who he is because they’re just hired goons.

Aziz and his officers arrive during this exchange, guns blazing, and allow the kidnappers to escape with the money. Alfie’s mom is safe, but Aziz, thinking Alfie is playing them, has really ruined things for Pennyworth and his mates.

“The Bruning Bridge” ends with Crowley entering a church looking for salvation only to find the Prime Minister, who is his apparent target. Crowley offers to take him on a journey to explore the depths of his imagination. Things may get weird.

Crowley has all the makings of a Mad Hatter-esque character and could become another excellent addition to Pennyworth’s rogue’s gallery. Then there is the name drop of Mr. X, who could very well be Captain Gulliver Troy, but that’s just speculation.

While the new bad guys were outstanding, the return of Pennyworth favorites like Lord Harwood and Frances was even better. It was also nice to see John Ripper’s return, even if it was only for a brief moment.

Paloma Faith continues to be one of the highlights of the show. Bet Sykes always defies expectations, which makes her a formidable villain that even Batman would have issues taking on alone. She may end up becoming the Joker of Pennyworth.

Episode Grade: B

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels