WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for Season 2, Episode 6, of Pennyworth, "The Rose and Thorn," which aired Sunday on EPIX.
In last week's episode of Pennyworth, Alfred (Jack Bannon) once again joined his old SAS Captain Gulliver Troy (James Purefoy) and his band of thieves in order to secure enough money to travel to America. Now, in "The Rose and Thorn," Alfred finally has the amount required, and he takes it directly to Thomas Wayne (Ben Aldridge) who, thanks to the CIA's help, will get him, his mother and Dave Boy (Ryan Fletcher) on a plane to Gotham. Thomas is surprised that Alfred was able to get such a large amount of money on short notice, which is why he had a well-paying job all lined up for him. Only, Alfred isn't interested.
The job, however, is of pressing concern. Lucius Fox (Simon Manyonda), a CIA agent acting undercover inside the Raven Union headquarters, has asked to be extracted as soon as possible -- a job perfect for Alfred and his particular set of skills. But although Alfred doesn't want the job, he ends up taking it anyway.
Indeed, the English League's new Prime Minister, Inspector Aziz (Ramon Tikaram), calls Thomas Wayne, and the two exchange favors: Aziz wants Wayne to deliver a message to Aleister Crowley (Jonjo O'Neill) and, in return, Thomas asks the League to hire Alfred to extract Lucius Fox. Therefore, Aziz and the Queen of England (Jessica Ellerby) herself visit Alfred at his nightclub, threatening to make his affair with Melanie Troy (Jessica de Gouw) public. In order to protect his new love interest, Alfred reluctantly agrees to take the job.
Alfred, Dave Boy and Martha Kane (Emma Paetz) set up the extraction at a small diner where the Union takes Fox for a meal. While Alfred hopes to avoid bloodshed, he and his team have no choice but to open fire. Thankfully, they are successful, and Lucius Fox is safely taken back to the CIA headquarters. There, he tells Thomas Wayne all about Project "Stormcloud," the Raven Union's chemical weapon. Fox took part in the weapon's testing, and he is determined to prevent it from ever being used. He shows that he's willing to go to great lengths to achieve his goal.
As for Prime Minister Aziz, he decides that it's time for him to eliminate his opponent inside the English League, John Ripper (Danny Webb). Aziz plays an intricate game using Thomas Wayne and an anonymous letter to start a war between Ripper and Aleister Crowley. The battle between the two ends with Ripper dosed with some sort of fear toxin, just as he meets with the Queen. Ripper is deemed unfit to remain on the English League's council, and Aziz stands victorious over his rival.
Meanwhile at the Raven Union headquarters, Colonel John Salt (Edward Hogg) makes a powerplay in order to take control of the entire organization. While Lord Harwood (Jason Flemyng) has been in charge of the Union, he's been growing increasingly erratic. In "The Rose and Thorn," Salt uses Frances Gaunt's recent betrayal as an opportunity to rise in the Union's ranks. Indeed, he manipulates Harwood into giving him a promotion -- and he doesn't stop there. When a young soldier proves loyal to Gaunt, he further influences Harwood to make certain that he lashes out. When the soldier expresses his support of Gaunt, Harwood completely loses it and brutally beats him to death with his cane in front of his officers.
His military forces take him into custody, leaving the recently promoted Colonel Salt as the next in line to take control of the Raven Union. Now, the villain has reached the organization's head, and he will finally be able to do what he's always wanted to do: deploy project "Stormcloud."
Finally, although Thomas and Martha's relationship has hit a rough patch, Martha learns that she is pregnant. While she doesn't want to know if the baby is a boy or girl just yet, it seems all but apparent Bruce Wayne is coming to the series soon.
Developed by former Gotham collaborators Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon, Pennyworth stars Jack Bannon as Alfred Pennyworth, Ben Aldridge as Thomas Wayne, Jason Flemyng as Lord Harwood, Paloma Faith as Bet Sykes, Ryan Fletcher as Dave Boy, Hainsley Lloyd Bennett as Bazza, Jessica Ellerby as the Queen and Simon Manyonda as Lucius Fox.
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