Try 30 days of free premium.

Heroes Rise: Light the Wick Recap

At Arkham, two orderlies are transferring a manacled Barnes. Jervis watches from his cell window as Barnes breaks his manacles and takes down the orderlies. A Court assassin arrives and injects Barnes with a syringe, but Barnes plucks it out, tosses it aside, and attacks the assassin. He finally manages to grab the killer by the throat, but finally passes out from the drug. Jervis is left to wonder what mysterious forces are at play.

Later, Kathryn visits a confined Barnes at a Court lab. She says that she wants the guilty of Gotham to be punished, but they need what's inside Barnes to do it on a large enough scale. He realizes that Kathryn is talking about the virus, just as Hugo arrives to drain it out of Barnes.

Lee visits Harvey in his office and gives him her final report on Frank. She's labeled his death a homicide, and Harvey wonders if she's overreacting because of Mario's death. Lee wants him to open an investigation into Frank's murder, and wants Jim to be questioned. She admits that she doesn't know why Jim would kill his uncle, but figures that he's involved somehow. Lee asks Harvey if there's anything else going on--like his involvement—and he tells her that she's hurt. Harvey also insists that there's nothing going on. Angry, Lee promises that she'll find out what's going on and leaves.

Kathryn tells the Court members that the ruling council has declared that they suspend all activities in preparation of the matter at hand. She tells them to submit their list for review and approval that day, and adjourns the meeting. Jim walks out with the others.

Ivy goes to Sirens and asks Tabitha if she's seen Selina. Tabitha doesn't care to hear the story, and tells Ivy to check out Gotham General.

Jim returns to the meeting room and dusts Kathryn's mask for fingerprints. As he puts it back and gets his mask, he drops his fingerprint vial on the floor. Before he can pick it up, a masked man comes in and asks what Jim is doing there. Jim steps over the vial to hide it, and says that no one told him what the list was for. The man explains that their loved ones are to be spared and each member needs to submit their list, and Jim picks up the vial when the man's back is turned. Jim writes out his names and leaves.

Ivy arrives at Selina's hospital room and finds her friend in a coma. The doctor comes in to tell Ivy that the ward is restricted, and Ivy uses her mind-control perfume to get answers. The woman explains that the police found Selina on the street after she fell, and admits that they've tried everything but nothing has worked. Ivy tells the doctor to leave them and don't come back, and tells the unconscious Selina that she will heal her.

Kathryn visits Hugo, who tells her that holding him against his will is bad enough but she's also hovering over him. He says that he was able to save Fish, and Kathryn asks if he accomplished what they asked. Hugo shows her a captive in a sealed glass chamber. Hugo vaporizes the virus and sprays it into the chamber, and the captive goes berserk.

The Shaman watches as Bruce spars with an opponent. The man disarms Bruce, who refuses to pick up his weapon. The Shaman tells Bruce that if he wins then he goes free, and orders him to pick up the stick and defeat the man. Bruce figures the Shaman is lying, and the Shaman tells him to do it and prove him wrong. After he picks up the stick, Bruce attacks his opponent and the Shaman tells Bruce that he can't harness his anger like he believes. Bruce's opponent knocks him down, and the Shaman says that he was defeated so easily because his rage blinds him. It has controlled Bruce ever since the night his parents were killed, and the Shaman offers to release him from that pain and then nothing can stop Bruce.

Harvey calls Jim at his apartment and tells him that they identified the fingerprints as belonging to Kathryn Monroe. She's from one of Gotham's oldest families, and Harvey gives Jim her address. Jim tells his friend that he's going to break into Kathryn's room and try to find out what the weapon is. Harvey warns him about Lee's suspicions, and warns that she's in a dark place. He also got a call that Barnes was transferred but they don't know where.

As Jim leaves, he finds Oswald waiting outside. Firefly is with him, and Oswald explains that he's looking for Edward. Jim was the last one who saw him, and figures that Edward didn't escape from custody as the police claimed. Oswald figures that Jim knows about the Court and gave Edward to them. Jim advises Oswald to drop it, and threatens to expose the Court unless they deal with him. He gives Jim a phone with a number to reach him at, and reminds Jim that they're old friends.

Later, Jim breaks into Kathryn's townhouse. He finds a hidden compartment with a Wayne Enterprise access card and pocket sit. Kathryn comes in to the next room and Jim tries to leave, but Kathryn's servant comes up the stairs. Realizing that he can't escape, Jim confronts Kathryn and tells her that Oswald is alive and knocks Edward's disappearance is connected to the Court. He demands a seat at the table, reminding her that he's done everything she's asked. Kathryn tells him that Gotham is sick, and to heal it they will show the people their darkest selves. She says that she'll consider Jim's request and orders him out, and Jim leaves.

Outside, Jim leaves a message for Harvey that he knows what the weapon is. Above, Kathryn watches him from her window. At the GCPD, Jim tells Harvey and Lucius that the Court is going to use the Tetch virus. Lucius confirms that if they can isolate the virus, they could turn it into any number of compounds once they have a sample. Jim and Harvey realize that the Court has Barnes, and he shows them the card. Lucius doesn't recognize it, but says that Wayne Enterprises only had a half-dozen off-site labs. He thinks he knows where they took Barnes.

Ivy mind-controls two nurses into bringing potted plants to Selina's room. Once she sends them away, Ivy explains that she has been cultivating the plants for an emergency. She tells the unconscious Selina that she was always there for her even when she screwed up, and tells Selina to breathe deep and wake up.

In the mountains, the Shaman tells Bruce that they're going to start with the memory of the first time he felt rage after his parents' death. They need to remove the pain before it consumes Bruce. Bruce wonders what happens if he doesn't want to lose the emotions, and the Shaman insists that Gotham needs a protector and Bruce needs a purpose. He tells Bruce that it needs to be Bruce's choice.

After a moment, Bruce agrees and they arrive at the memory of the Waynes' wake. Bruce explains that it's the first time that he realized he was an orphan. He left because he heard people talk about him rather than his parents. Bruce left because no one was angry at the Waynes' death. He went to his father's room to get his cufflinks, because his father wanted to be buried with them. Bruce couldn't let them go, and they appear in his hand. The Shaman tells him that he needs to throw them away, and Bruce puts them in a safe. Back in the temple, Bruce passes out and the Shaman says that together they will make Gotham pay.

Jim and Harvey go to the offsite lab and find dead guards and Hugo's record player. The captive runs out covered in blood and says that he didn't mean to kill the guards. When Jim orders him down on the floor, the captive attacks them. He knocks Harvey down and chokes Jim... and Hugo arrives and injects the captive with a sedative. Hugo tells Jim and Harvey that Kathryn has the virus, and he has no idea where she took it.

When Harvey threatens to arrest him, Hugo explains that the delivery mechanism recently arrived at Dock 9C. Jim and Harvey still have enough time to stop the test, but they can't take Hugo in without letting the Court that they know about their plans. Harvey offers them his research and a vial of his virus compound that he secreted away, as a token of goodwill. Jim figures that Hugo is playing both sides, and takes the gifts. As they go, Hugo wishes them good luck.

Outside, Jim tells Harvey to give Lucius the compound and the research to start working on a cure. He'll find out where Kathryn is testing the bomb. Kathryn calls Jim and admits that it is time to take the next step. She gives him an address to meet him at that/

Bruce spars with his opponent, and the Shaman taunts him. When Bruce finally defeats his opponent, the Shaman asks him how he felt when fought. Bruce says that he felt nothing, and asks if he can leave. The Shaman says that he can take away the pain and Bruce can return to Gotham with a power he never thought possible. After a moment, Bruce tells his opponent to get up and they continue fighting.

When Jim arrives at the address, Kathryn has her Court assassins take his gun and phone. Gathered below are a party of socialites, and Kathryn explains that they're merely window dressing. She tells Jim that her family has been making the difficult decisions to ensure Gotham's long-term survival. Kathryn shows her an aerosol dispersal bomb for the Tetch virus, and explains that in an open space, the radius of infection is a half mile. Releasing it in the room below is only a test. Kathryn sets the bomb for 15 minutes and tells an assistant to place it in the middle of the room. She then informs Jim that if he tries to interfere, her killer Talon will execute him on the spot.

Once Kathryn leaves, the assistant returns and reports that the device is in place. Jim secretly triggers his phone, calling Oswald. Jim loudly tells Talon that he was there the night that he took Edward, and identifies their location as the old First Bank of Gotham. Talon tells him to shut up, and Jim obliges.

As Lucius locks up the compound, Harvey tells him that Jim isn't responding to his calls. Lee enters the lab and asks Lucius if he's helping Jim. She wonders how many people Jim has to kill before they see what she sees, and Lucius insists that Jim is trying to make sure what happened to Mario doesn't happen to anyone else. Lee demands answers, and Lucius tells him that he can't. Furious, Lee walks out.

As the time for the detonation approaches, Jim finally realizes that no one is coming and attacks Talon. The two men fight and Talon gets the upper hand. Firefly arrives and incinerates Talon, and he falls through the window onto the floor below. Jim yells at everyone to get out, and Oswald arrives and demands to speak to the Court. Jim explains that the bomb with the virus is going to go over, and the Court will contact Oswald since he killed Talon.

The partygoers run out, leaving one young girl behind. Jim grabs her and gets her out, then closes the doors just as the bomb goes off.

Later, the Shaman calls Kathryn and tells her that Bruce believes in the destiny that he has promises. He says that he and the boy will be returning to Gotham that night, and Kathryn assures him that everything will be in place by the time they get there.

At his manor, Oswald is waiting for the Court to contact him when a Court assassin secretly takes out Firefly.

Selina wakes up and Ivy is there to greet her. She hugs Selina in relief, and Selina pulls off the monitor wires and says that she's going to Wayne Manor to kill someone.

Jim goes to the police lab and finds Lee packing. She tells him that she's resigning, and tells Jim that he infected the place and everyone around him. Jim has taken everyone from her, and he tells her that Mario was going to kill her so he killed her husband to save her. He insists that he would do it again, and Lee points out that that Jervis infected Mario to get revenge on Jim. Jim tells her that leaving won't help, and reminds her that she asked him how he could move on. He says that now Lee knows, and she walks out.

Kathryn realizes that the key card is gone.

The Court locks Oswald up in a cell. As he demands to speak to the person in charge, Edward calls to him from the adjoining cell. He's astonished to see that Oswald is alive, and Oswald tries to grab him through the bar.

Kathryn tells a captive Barnes that he's discovered that Jim has betrayed her and will now undo what they both seek. She wants Barnes to kill Jim before he can do that. Barnes tears free of his restraints and declares Jim is guilty... and he will be his executioner.

Written by Gadfly on May 16, 2017

Try 30 days of free premium.