‘Batwoman’ Season 2 Rundown

The Cinema Spot’s Batwoman Season 2 rundown.

Batwoman finally returns to our screens on January 17th, 2021 at 8PM EST after being one of the very many affected shows to delay their premieres due to COVID-19. So what do we know about the new season? Well this rundown should help prepare you for everything we do know about season 2 as of January 15th,2021.

Cast:

\We sadly lost series lead Ruby Rose who played the titular character Kate Kane/Batwoman, having left the series for undisclosed reasons. Despite Ruby leaving, we do know everyone else from the previous season is set to return! Among those returning include Camrus Johnson (Luke Fox), Rachel Skarsten (Beth Kane/Alice), Meagan Tandy (Sophie Moore), Nicole Kang (Mary Hamilton), and Dougray Scot t(Jacob Kane). Joining them is Christina Wolfe (Julia Pennyworth), who has been bumped up from a recurring guest star to a series regular according to The Vulcan Reporter.

So who is our new series lead if Ruby is gone, and will we see Kate Kane recast? The answer to that comes with our new series lead Javicia Leslie, who is set to play a completely original character Ryan Wilder that will be taking up the mantle of Batwoman.

Plot:

Season 2 Synopsis:

In season two of Batwoman, when Ryan Wilder (Javicia Leslie) first discovers Kate Kane’s Batsuit, she has no idea how drastically her life is about to change. A sassy, smart lesbian with a difficult past, Ryan sees the suit as her chance to finally be powerful and no longer a victim as she survives in the tough streets of the city.While Ryan goes rogue in the shadows, Gotham grapples with their missing hero, believing Batwoman has fled the city after a public stand-off with Commander Jacob Kane (Dougray Scott) and the Crows. But Kate Kane’s disappearance hits hardest at home where Jacob, Sophie (Meagan Tandy), Luke (Camrus Johnson), Mary (Nicole Kang) and even Alice (Rachel Skarsten) each struggle with the devastating news in their own way. Meanwhile, the False Face Society tightens its grip on Gotham, distributing a perilous new drug known as Snakebite, “Bruce Wayne” (Warren Christie) finds his way home to wreak havoc, Safiyah (Shivaani Ghai) surfaces with plans for revenge, and a new set of villains descends on the city.It’s not long before Ryan realizes how much the symbol on the suit means to Gotham, launching her on a personal journey that takes her from fledgling substitute to confident caped crusader, from living in her van with her plant to chasing villains in the Batmobile. Ryan Wilder becomes a very different Batwoman than Kate Kane – her own Batwoman – but with the same understanding of what it means to be a hero.

The Rise of Ryan Wilder/Batwoman 2.0:

One of the season’s big stories going forward is the rise of our new Batwoman aka Ryan Wilder played by new series lead Javicia Leslie. Both Ryan and Javicia are “goofy meets badass meets a person who doesn’t like to be told what to do, a person who does not like to follow the rules,” as described by Javicia at DCFandome.

From the moment Ryan was born the system has been against her growing up in an overlooked community in Gotham. That fight will only continue as she becomes Batwoman. When we meet Ryan she will just have gotten out of prison for a crime she took the fall for involving her drug abusing lover. 

Taking over the mantle also means that Ryan will be indeed getting a brand-new batsuit which you can see below:

At first Ryan will don Kate’s old suit for at least the first couple of episodes. Later on, we will see her redesign the suit to better fit for who she is. Executive producer, Caroline Dries explained:

Ryan’s journey starts from a place of ‘What can this Batsuit do for me?’ But it’s not long before she realizes the power of its symbol and what it can do for everyone else in Gotham City,” said executive producer Caroline Dries. “As Ryan embraces everything that makes her special, she adjusts the suit to fit her physically and figuratively. This meant creating a new body design and new cowl that was undeniably a statement that screamed ‘powerful.’

Kate Kane’s Absence:

The second big story going into the season will be “where and what happened to Kate,” and each character will have a different reaction to her absence. In regards to Mary she at first will be hesitant of Ryan but the two will bond together as they both look out for the community. She will see the need to give Gotham City hope again with a new Batwoman even if that person is no longer Kate Kane. Luke will struggle to deal with having accepted that Kate was Batwoman and now having to start all over again with giving the mantle to Ryan. 

Sophie will have one of the most difficult times with Ryan as the new Batwoman. Both Sophie and Jacob will refuse to believe that Kate is dead going on a manhunt for the former Crimson Knight. Meagan Tandy explained that Sophie at first will struggle with Ryan being Batwoman as Sophie understands the importance of having Batwoman stay masked. It has also been confirmed in an article by TV Line that Ryan and Sophie have a complicated past together as Ryan has arrested Ryan on multiple occasions. Ryan however will help Sophie grow “out of her shell” as a character leading her to start branching out more. 

With Kate gone that leaves Alice’s whole plans in shambles as she vowed to kill her sister after being locked up in Arkham by her in the previous season. As her agenda was ripped right from her Alice will be going through a whole rollercoaster of emotions as she finds her purpose again. She will be peeved seeing Ryan take up the mantle of her sister as the whole point of her plan was to get rid of Kate. In addition, with Kate gone as the buffer between Mary and Alice we will see how their relationship goes on as step-sisters. Alice’s backstory will also be explored in a way we have not seen yet with the introduction of Safiyah Sohail. 

The Villains:

Teased heavily throughout the first season one of the antagonists for season 2 of Batwoman will be Safiyah Sohail (Shivaani Ghai) the leader of the organization known as “The Many Arms of Death” in the comics. Described as ”the fiercely protective ruler of a small community on the island of Coryana. A woman with as many enemies as aliases, she is compassionate and charismatic with both physical and psychological prowess. She is beloved by her people and will stop at nothing to protect what’s hers. No one goes unnoticed by Safiyah, specifically when it comes to those who have encountered the Desert Rose.” As you may recall from season 1, the Desert Rose was the cure to the rare poison administered to Mary Hamilton and her mother Catherine by the ruthless Alice. It seems like both Alice and Mary will be the main targets for Safiyah because of this.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Shivaani explained:

She’s not what we expected from season 1,” “She does come across as someone who is quite charming and kind. She has a definite soft spot for Alice. You will learn as we go on that there’s definitely a much deeper relationship there.”

Showrunner Caroline Dries also revealed in that same interview:

In season 2, Alice starts the season with nothing left to lose, so her perspective of Safiyah shifts a little bit. She’s less afraid because she’s got [Safiyah] in her sights, and what does she have to lose? Her whole plan for killing her sister went down the drain. Dries is particularly excited for audiences to see Ghai and Skarsten’s first scene together. “Their dynamic is amazing, because Alice is [normally] the strongest, most manipulative person in the room. And when she’s with Safiyah, she’s a little differential to Safiyah,” says the producer. “It’s a new dynamic and it’s very intriguing to watch.”

Despite Alice’s plans being foiled with wanting to kill her sister Kate Kane she still will wreck havoc for the Bat-Family and The Crows with Thomas Elliot/”Bruce Wayne”. We will see Ryan go head to head with “Bruce Wayne” in the season premiere entitled “Whatever Happened to Kate Kane”.  In the photos for the premiere we see him face to face with Luke Fox inside the Batcave under Wayne Enterprises. Other then appearing in the season premiere we don’t know what’s in store for this iconic Batman villain. Will we see him reunite with the real Bruce Wayne at some point this season? Or will he be more involved with the next major antagonists for the season……….

Also revealed in the season synopsis the organization known as the False Face Society will be prominent in the season. The False Face Society is led by none other then the famous DC comics villain known as Roman Sionis/Black Mask who has been confirmed to be another one of the “big bads” this season that will appear later in the season. The inclusion of Black Mask will be very personal for Ryan in particular as the distribution of their drug “snakebite” caused Ryan’s unnamed love interest to fall under substance abuse. Additional villains include The Whisper (Leah Gibson) and Victor Zsasz (Alex Morf). The Whisper is described as “a skilled assassin, unflappable and cold as ice in the face of danger. She is one of Safiyah’s most important henchwomen and still harbors feelings for her powerful boss.” With guest star Victor Zsasz his character description reads, “a  charismatic, skilled hitman with high, unpredictable energy. He proudly carves tally marks onto his skin for every victim he kills.” 

John Diggle Returns to The Arrowverse:

David Ramsey has been announced to reprise his role as John Diggle from ‘Arrow’ and as a mysterious character(Legends of Tomorrow) across all Arrowverse series based in Vancouver (Batwoman, Superman and Lois, The Flash, and Supergirl). Not only will he be returning as Diggle but he will also be directing an episode of each of those respective series. The last we saw of Diggle he discovered a Green Lantern ring and that he was moving to Metropolis with his family Lyla, Sara Diggle, and John Diggle Jr. We can expect to see his arc as a Green Lantern continue throughout each of these series. 

Episode Titles/Descriptions:

2.01-Whatever Happened to Kate Kane?

Kate’s friends and family hold on to hope that Kate may still be found, a homeless 25-year-old named Ryan Wilder stumbles upon Kate’s Batsuit. Focused on no longer being a victim, Ryan takes the suit to use as armor and goes rogue in the streets of Gotham, taking out various members of a new gang called the False Face Society. Meanwhile, both Jacob Kane and Luke Fox launch searches for Kate, Mary Hamilton grapples with losing yet another family member, Sophie Moore struggles with things left unsaid to her first love, and Alice is furious that someone got to Kate before she could exact her revenge. At the same time, “Bruce Wayne” returns under the pretense of searching for Kate, but the truth is he wants his suit back and it becomes the clash of imposters as “Batwoman” and “Bruce” square off in the action-packed season premiere. Original airdate 1/17/2021.

Photo Gallery:https://www.spoilertv.com/2020/12/batwoman-episode-201-whatever-happened.html

2.02-Prior Criminal History

After her quick spin in the Batgear, Ryan Wilder (Javicia Leslie) is back to facing the daily challenges of life as herself. Meanwhile, Alice (Rachel Skarsten) has a new, devious plan to get the attention of both Gotham and Safiyah (guest star Shivaani Ghai). With Kate still missing and the city in an uprising, Luke (Camrus Johnson) and Mary (Nicole Kang) are desperate to find a stand in. In a pinch, Ryan dons the suit again and comes face-to-face with Alice for the first time. Back at Crows Headquarters, Sophie and Commander Kane try to uncover who may have had a vendetta against Kate. Carl Seaton directed the episode written by James Stoteraux and Chad Fiveash (#202). Original airdate 1/24/2021.

Photo Gallery: https://www.spoilertv.com/2021/01/batwoman-episode-202-prior-criminal.html

2.03-Bat Girl Magic!

As Ryan Wilder continues to prove herself as Batwoman, she encounters the challenge of every superhero – living a double life. Mary is still Team Ryan, while Luke continues to have reservations – especially when Ryan makes some alterations and unveils a new Batsuit! Meanwhile, Victor Szasz is slashing his way through the city streets, and Commander Kane has The Crows trying to stop the flow of Snakebite through Gotham. Safiyah takes notice of Alice’s antics and Sophie finds herself in unexpected circumstances. Original airdate 1/31/2021.

2.04-Fair Skin, Blue Eyes
2.05-Gore on Canvas

Other Tidbits:

• One of the major themes of this season is “destiny”.
• Ryan will be the catalyst in reuniting the Kane family together after Kate mysteriously vanished as confirmed at DC Fandome.
• Nathan Owens will play “Ocean” described as “a zen gardner and thinker with a complicated past. A loyal soldier and fighter, Ocean moves to Gotham looking for a new beginning.”
• Bevin Bru is listed as Angelique Martin according to IMDB and in episode 2.04 we will see a young Angelique (Kerensa Cooper) and a young Ryan Wilder (Ava Augustin). She could potentially be Ryan’s love interest that they have teased.
• Despite dying in the season 1 finale we will see Sam Littlefield return as Mouse to some extent in at least the premiere of season 2. Most likely will be a hallucination inside Alice’s head throughout the episode.
• In an article with TV Line it was teased that “Bruce Wayne”/Hush should stay away from Julia Pennyworth.
• There was going to be a two-episode crossover with ‘Superman and Lois’ but it was announced to no longer be happening due to safety concerns thanks to COVID-19.
• Both Javicia Leslie and Ryan Wilder love plants.
• Javicia Leslie does majority of her stunts as Batwoman.
• We could potentially see Mary suit up as Flamebird this season as teased with this clip Nicole Kang shared.
• Entertainment Weekly will have a weekly postmordem behind the scenes series starting every Monday after episodes air featuring the cast and showrunner of the show.
• Check out this very in depth interview done by Entertainment Weekly about the brand new season.
• We may already be getting a third season as teased in this article by Deadline.
• The Bat-Mobile will be Ryan’s prominent form of transportation and we will see it appear in Episode 1. They initially planned to bring the Bat-Mobile in season 1 but were unable to due to the COVID-19 shutdown that happened. We can expect to see alot of (CGI Placed) gadgets on the vehicle.

Batwoman Promo Material:

 

 

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CI9UFcHA9n9/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DzCobbdkqbU&list=PL6abPzY300GXjyDASlCjpE7cImbjMjnTb&index=4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6jlfVE1g88&list=PL6abPzY300GXjyDASlCjpE7cImbjMjnTb&index=2

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EklKyqFPNo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LO8VrUgPz60

 

Are you excited for the new season of Batwoman? I personally am excited to see this series continue as there’s a lot they can do with a completely original character taking up the lead. 

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