Batwoman Episode 13 Review: Drink Me

This Batwoman review contains spoilers. 

Batwoman Episode 13

Did a mandate go out that only great things could happen in this episode? Because from Luke’s little light-up tie to the Bat in the bellfry callback, it felt like every inch of this episode Batwoman was dialed up to eleven. There were several smart surprises, and I don’t mean Mary’s realization about how Kate spends her evenings or that rooftop smooch. Swerving to have Nocturna go after Alice was a great move to keep our favorite villain in the action.

Even better, this set up a paradigm flip where Kate’s no longer pursuing her sister in the hope of bringing out the best in her. I’m looking forward to seeing Alice try to force Kate not to give up on her, with all her demons still very much present. I’m still with Alice in that I think deep down inside Kate feels guilty, especially after that incredibly moving scene where Kate sat with Alice, expecting her to die. It’s just that right now, those feelings are covered in grief for Beth. In the meantime, I’m looking forward to finding out how Alice and Mouse got out from under August Cartwright’s thumb, and if perhaps it lines up with when he took over that doctor’s life six years ago.

This week’s villain, Nocturna, comes from the pages of Batwoman and made it look like the show was finally headed for the supernatural. Alas, the TV iteration is more grounded and less terrifying. In the comics Kate Kane was essentially in an unwitting, abusive relationship with Nocturna and carried out crimes for her, but those changes make sense for the tone of the show. As Luke mentioned, they need something lighter after losing Beth.

The opening to this episode, with Luke, Mary, and Kate all mourning Beth’s death made me realize retroactively that last episode was the first true team-up of Team Batwoman! Finally, the crew is all working together. Even better, our resident genius Mary figured out Kate’s secret all on her own! Having Mary figure it out is perfect for the character introduced as someone perpetually underestimated, and I’m curious to see whether she confronts Kate straight off or toys with her a bit to see if she’ll ‘fess up, as she’s sometimes done in the past.

Either way, I’m happy that Mary is not only on the team but in the know. The only downside is that we’ll no longer hear her adorably talking about how Batwoman has a soft spot for her. There are many positives, but at least one of them has to be more Luke and Mary screen time.

Batwoman really provided for the thirsty among us this episode. First, Sophie and Batwoman worked their way through some lowkey rope play, nice and slow. The costume department blessed us with Kate Kane in a deconstructed tux, taking their cues from many glorious formalwear looks in the comics. In fact, Kate’s bar The Hold Up is basically full of every kind of hot person you can imagine, from drag queens to Delia Deetz lookalikes, and wall-to-wall jumpsuits.

The pièce de resistance, of course, is Sophie kissing Batwoman on the roof. Let’s break this great moment down for a minute. Sophie has been suspended by her surrogate father due to her relationship with Batwoman and builds up to the kiss by outlining all the ways in which it would be unreasonable to throw away her career for Batwoman, paralleling what happened at the Academy when she chose her career over Kate. Those events really did a number on Kate (something the show has yet to show use the full scope of) because her immediate assumption is that of course Sophie wouldn’t choose her.

Sophie’s fiancé? Yeah, me neither.

A few more important aspects to that rooftop kiss: 1) it’s between Sophie and Batwoman, not Sophie and Kate; and 2) it’s the first sign of Sophie actually making a choice about her life. Sophie has to know that’s Kate, right? And if she didn’t before the kiss, she should now. I’m pulling for a You’ve Got Mail-style “I wanted it to be you.” Even if things don’t immediately work out between herself and any incarnation of Kate Kane/Batwoman, it’s hard to walk back your own liberation. It seems likely we’ll see Sophie break up with her fiancée and come out, in her own time and whatever that means to her.

Finally, Sophie is pushing back against Jake Kane and the Crows’ dangerous infringement of peoples’ rights like due process. It feels quite rich for a private security firm to be mad about vigilantism not having the true priorities of “protect and serve” in mind. Jake is being just aggressive and weird enough that we have to least consider he might be Mouse. It seems more likely August took Mouse for some other, more nefarious purpose, Jake Kane’s exoneration came awful quick and without a hook, so it had to be said.

Other notes:

• Luke saved Beth’s ruby necklace for Kate and I’m not crying, you’re crying!
• I’m really here for Vesper’s goofy puns and the newspaper’s “Nosfera-two” Nocturna headline
• How long do we think Mary’s magic Coryanna desert rose blood will last? And when will we finally get to meet Kate’s ex Safiyah?
• This episode cheekily shaded vampires a few times, which is pretty bold for a CW show. “For the record killing people, not sexy.”
• Rachel Skarsten continues unparalleled. The line delivery on “Running around town drinking gas station whiskey when there is a beautiful $500 Beaujolais just sitting on the shelf.”
• I’m loving Kate in dad sweaters and denim this episode.
• Mary: “The idea of Batwoman going into a c-store to buy me cookies is priceless.”
• I do LOVE how many people are carrying around copies of Batwoman’s magazine. Is it considered a collector’s issue?
• Sophie using the Bat signal to call her girl is very hot.

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