I waited for the first couple of episodes to write this so that I could give the season a shot with the changing of the guard.
Season 1 was the freshman season for Batwoman. As such, I expected some growing pains for the show. Ruby Rose did well and Kate Kane had a good dynamic with her co-stars. Rachel Skarsten did a wonderful job and stole every scene she was in. The rest of the cast did well for the most part. Was hoping that Season 2 would get better with better writing.
Season 2 was also the freshman season for this show due to the loss of Ruby Rose. Bringing in a new actress as a new character was the wrong way to go. And, bringing in Javicia Leslie was a huge error in casting. I've never seen anything with Javicia Leslie in it, so I'm not sure if she is a better actress than she seems from this show. If she is a better actress, she needs to bring that to the table because her version of Batwoman has no presence at all. Leslie's portrayal of Batwoman, from the start, is that of a pre-teen who just got a new toy. She has all the emotional maturity of a 12 year old. Of course, this can in part be lain at the feet of the writers in such scenes as when Batwoman gets into an argument with Luke because he won't tell her what to say to a bad guy who insulted her. Just like two kids fighting over the ice cream.
It would have been better had the showrunners recast the character of Kate Kane. It wouldn't have been ideal, but it would have been better than what is being televised now. There would not be the gaping plot holes that have been made in trying to force a new Batwoman onto viewers. An example was when Luke said that they were letting Ryan be Batwoman because she fit the suit. Go back to S1E1 and apparently that was not a problem when Kate said that they needed to make it fit a woman, since the suit was in fact made for a man who is over 6'0" tall. They could do it then, they could do it now.
Lastly, the recent episodes are just re-written ideas for Batwoman from Arrow. An island, trained assassins, a cure everything flower, etc.
The writers, with the new storyline, have left the door open for the return of Kate Kane, whether that will be Ruby Rose or another actress is yet to be revealed. I hope that they do bring her back as Leslie cannot fill the shoes left by Ruby Rose. But, it may be too late for anything to save this show. I say this as a longstanding viewer of the CW DC superhero shows, good luck, and probably, good-bye.
