Batwoman Review: Armed and Dangerous (Season 2 Episode 15)

Luke’s life flashes before his eyes and his fate is revealed on Batwoman Season 2 Episode 15, “Armed and Dangerous.”

We were expecting an emotional, triggering story — and that’s exactly what we get. However, it’s also a little too neat.

Police shootings don’t usually lead to justice, so it’s nice to see everyone involved in trying to kill Luke held responsible for their actions. The problem is, accountability and consequences are such a foreign concept, the episode feels uncharacteristically inauthentic.

The show handles Luke’s shooting, and its aftermath, with the care and respect it deserves, but we can’t feel happy or satisfied with the outcome because it’s too easy.

Following the worldwide protests against police violence and harassment, there was a lot of talk around the entertainment industry about how TV’s many procedurals would respond.

Some producers claimed they would take a more realistic approach to portray interactions between police and Black people. However, for the most part, it has been business as usual.

Batwoman Season 2 has stepped away from the pack, using its comic book fantasy setting to tell real stories of systemic racism.

That all came to a head-on Batwoman Season 2 Episode 14, “And Justice For All,” which ended with Luke being shot by the police when he was falsely accused of being a car thief.

Ryan, Sophie, and Mary are understandably upset, with Ryan wanting revenge on the Crow who pulled the trigger.

It’s no surprise that Taveroff is the guilty Crow. Long before he massacred all the snake bite victims in that church, we knew he was going to be a problem. He screamed villain from the minute he showed up.

He gives the usual “feared for his life” excuse, and the body cam footage is even altered to show Luke holding a gun from an armed robbery.

Ryan isn’t just mad because Luke is her friend, she’s also upset as a Black woman. A feeling that’s all too familiar for some of us. We’d love to put on a bulletproof suit and confront every bad cop too.

When he’s confronted by Jacob, Taveroff decides to kill him. This forces Batwoman to save Jacob instead of getting the real body cam footage. Between this and a serious talk from Sophie, Jacob turns in Taveroff and his cronies, disbanding the Crows.

So the bad cops are arrested, the system is dismantled, and all in just a few days. Wow, that was so simple. Guess we just need a leather-clad, black belt in a bat-suit to save the day.

Meanwhile, in Luke’s subconscious, he talks with Bruce about whether he wants to live or die. This provides Camrus Johnson with some spectacular work as he decides this world is too hard, and he wants to be with his dad, just as the Desert Rose brings him back.

Luke readjusting to life when he decided he was done has the potential to be a fascinating story. Will he find a new purpose in his work, or will he have a new attitude when it comes to crime-fighting? There are so many new possibilities for his character development.

This also gave us the first introduction to the real Bruce Wayne. We hope this means that he returns to Gotham sooner rather than later. We’re curious about how Bruce and Ryan would get along, as well as his reaction to what this new Batwoman means to Gotham.

Batwoman Season 2 has found new depth as it examines the long-held bias of the Crows and GCPD. It’s exploring the real effect years of supervillains and battles have had on the marginalized citizens of Gotham City. Something we haven’t gotten in 82 years.

What did you think of this episode of Batwoman? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Batwoman airs Sundays at 9/8c on The CW.

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