WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for "Bat Girl Magic," the latest episode of Batwoman, which aired Sunday on The CW.
Inspiration can come from the unlikeliest places, as evidenced by the latest episode of Batwoman. In "Bat Girl Magic," Ryan's encounter with Victor Zsasz led her to make some alterations to the Batsuit, making the mantle all her own.
Throughout the episode, Ryan really struggled to adjust to her new life as a vigilante. Although she was rearing and ready to protect the streets of Gotham, something just didn't feel right to her. She stumbled when she attempted her epic superhero landings; she couldn't figure out which pockets had her Batarangs and which had her bow staff.
"I would have stuck the landing if the boots actually fit," she snapped at Luke after he made a snide remark about her trouble with the suit -- and she had a point. After all, the Batsuit was tailored to fit someone else entirely, which made it uncomfortable and ungainly for poor Ryan. "Luke said I'm only keeping the suit warm till Kate gets back," she later explained to Mary.
This did not go unnoticed by Zsasz, who commented on Ryan's unease when she showed up to his apartment as Batwoman. At first, she thought she had arrived there while he was out. However, he managed to slip into the room unnoticed and startled her by greeting her with, "You must be the new girl."
Zsasz watched with some curiosity as she searched her pockets for a weapon. "Did you find what you're looking for?" he asked, as she realized she was out of Batarangs and pulled out her bow staff. As she figured out how to operate that, he moved behind the bar and began to put some drinks together, chatting idly about what happened to "the other one."
"Not gonna sweat some freak who uses his skin as a knife sharpener," Ryan spat. Zsasz scoffed in response, saying, "Well, at least its my skin, because -- and I'm only being honest -- you don't seem very comfortable in yours. It's like trying to pass for somebody else."
"I didn't design the damn suit," Ryan shot back, shifting her weight from one foot to the other.
Zsasz chuckled. "I can tell, because I don't see the Batwoman in you, and maybe that's because I don't see the you in Batwoman," he mused. With that, he pulled a missile launcher out from behind the bar and leveled it at Ryan, who beat a hasty retreat out the window just before he fired it.
Ryan already knew Kate's Batsuit design was holding her back, but Zsasz's comments seemed to spur her into action. Looking for forgiveness rather than permission, Ryan made some changes to the suit without Luke's notice and only warned him about it when she set out to save Mary from Zsasz, who had been hired by Safiyah to kill her.
"Don't kill me, but I made some alterations," Ryan said as they rushed to the Batcave. When Luke protested, she interrupted with, "I know. It's Kate's. But if I'm going to be Batwoman, I'm doing it my way."
"But the suit is perfect!" he insisted, only for her to retort, "Have you seen the damn wig?!"
With that, Ryan brought her new Batsuit into the field. She descended gracefully into the alley in front of Zsasz, putting her body between him and Mary. "New look!" he gasped, impressed. "New Batwoman," she replied, then launched into action with a roundhouse kick to his face.
"Okay, now that was really something," he crowed. "Real confidence behind it! I haven't been kicked like that since, well, Batman."
"Not trying to pass for him either," she announced. They exchanged a few more blows, but Ryan was ultimately able to knock him out by quickly locating and deploying her bow staff. This final fight reasserted that the new suit not only improved her performance as Batwoman, but also gave her new confidence and attitude.
Ryan began her Batwoman journey when she discovered Kate's suit in the wreckage of a plane crash. Initially, she put it on to exact revenge against Alice, who was responsible for her mother's death. However, she soon found herself pulled into the Bat's world and ultimately agreed to fill Kate's shoes until such time as she returns -- if she ever returns. Now, Ryan has made the mantle her own, as promised by the episode synopsis and some official portraits. This latest move further cements Ryan's position as Gotham's new Scarlet Knight.
Airing Sundays at 8 pm ET/PT on The CW, Batwoman stars Javicia Leslie as Ryan Wilder, Rachel Skarsten as Alice, Meagan Tandy as Sophie Moore, Camrus Johnson as Luke Fox, Dougray Scott as Jacob Kane and Nicole Kang as Mary Hamilton-Kane.
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