It’s a shame that the series finale of Gotham got a little lost in the mind-blowing excitement of Endgame. It may have been described (many, many, many, times,) as being flat-out bonkers, but there was some stuff in Gotham I really enjoyed. (And some stuff that didn’t really work, of course.) Spoilers ahead! Read on for a few thoughts on the series in general, and the finale in particular.
Seriously, lots of spoilers below.
I felt like the final episode could’ve used a tighter edit, but they were trying to get a lot done, and there were a ton of loose threads to wrap up, so I guess editing it down any further would’ve been tough. I feel like the whole lead up, with the Asylum guard and Bullock refusing to say what happened and Edward kidnapping the mayor, could’ve been reworked a bit, it seemed an over-complicated way to set things up, but they got us there in the end.
I’ll be honest, I never expected Barbara Kean to make it all the way to the end of the series. (Goodness knows she died enough times.) I would’ve bet money that the second Barbara Junior was born, Barbara Senior would have a tragic, character-redeeming, absolutely final death and the baby would be named in her honor. Nope, Barbara Senior’s doing just fine, and I’m okay with that. I like that she wanted to give her daughter her own name too. That’s canon, but considering the Barbara we know from Gotham, of course she’d want her daughter to have her name, that fits.
Having Lee Thompkins end up, really and truly, with Gordon at the end of the series was an interesting touch, I wasn’t sure it would ever really “take,” since she’s never been linked to him in any of the comics (that I know of: comic experts feel free to chime in if I’m wrong.) Hilariously, she has been linked to Alfred a couple times in the comics, which makes Alfred’s early attempts to flirt with her even more fun.
While the Lee/Jim pairing was very sweet, after the first few seasons I didn’t really buy it as a passionate love affair, I’m not sure why. (I actually enjoyed the brief fling between Lee and Ed, I thought the actors sold some pretty delicious I-hate-you-but-I-want-you chemistry there, but I digress.)
Side note, I was inclined to think that giving Jim a mustache for a minute was fan-servicey and unnecessary, but I’ll admit it; when he immediately shaved it off I laughed. Nicely done.
I had scribbled in my notes “Harley Quinn, dead?” But I think we all know she’d be back. (If there was still a show I mean.) Comic books in general bring characters back from the dead, but Gotham in particular stopped even attempting to be subtle about it. (On that note, I would’ve liked for Tabitha to have made it back one more time, but maybe it’s good she gets to stay a tragic figure forever.)
Regarding a different actress taking on the role of Catwoman for one lousy episode, I have to agree with the choice. It’s enough of a stretch to have Erin Richards and Morena Baccarin supposedly be ten years older (though I’m sure they’ll both look fabulous in ten years of real time) but the difference between 19 and 29 is a lot bigger than the difference between thirty-something and forty-something, it would’ve been a little unrealistic. And Lili Simmons really does look like she could be related to Camren Bicondova, the resemblance is striking (props to the hair and makeup department too.)
That being said, the various news sites are reposting Camren’s letter about how it was her decision. I hope it was, I keep wondering if it was actually the studio’s decision and she (extremely gracefully) went along with it. But that’s just speculation on my part, and she’s handled the decision very professionally, and I do think it was the right call.
I wish they’d made that decision with Batman too, if I’m being honest. I enjoyed David Mazouz’s Bruce Wayne (watching him play the spoiled bad-boy for half a season was fun too) but hearing his artificially-lowered voice took me out of the moment, just a little. And while I think most fans would have come at the studio with torches and pitchforks if they hadn’t clearly shown Batman at the end, I’m not sure the zoom in of Mazouz’s head pasted on to an older actor’s body was really the best image to leave us with. I would’ve liked Jim, Harvey and Alfred to have looked up and seen a shadow, or a silhouette, or just the glimpse of him we got from behind. Or kept everything and just made the final shot be Jim saying “a friend.”
(However, armchair directing is easy, and any way a director chooses to end a five-year show is always going to have some people wishing they’d done it differently. Moving on.)
Speaking of Alfred, different network, but I saw the trailer for the Pennyworth spinoff, and I don’t think it’s a terrible idea. I absolutely hands down loved Sean Pertwee’s Alfred, I think he did a fantastic job (aside from that one time he slapped the hell out of Catwoman, and that wasn’t the actor so much as a REALLY POOR DECISION by the writers. In my opinion. The Alfred I know and love just doesn’t hit kids.) So I was hoping the spinoff featured him, but I guess a prequel show will be interesting, I’ll definitely check out the first episode.
I would’ve liked to have seen Victor Zsasz one more time, Anthony Carrigan is a hell of a good actor. Keep an eye on him when he’s just in the background of a scene, he is always working, and has a subtle reaction shot to anything going on in the screen. I think he got more and more fun to watch as the series went on.
I was happy to see Lucius Fox and Harvey Bullock one more time too, though they didn’t have many of the super humorous lines that made them so fun in earlier episodes. (The episode where Lucius is under the spell of Ivy’s love chemicals is one of my favorites.) I’m glad Harvey ends up being a good guy, his character in the comics and the movies isn’t always very nice, but he’s completely redeemed by the end of the finale, and that’s a nice place to leave him.
But the one thing I took away from the entire series? The ship I didn’t know I wanted until they gave it to me: Oswald and Edward. Who the heck knew I’d be so fascinated by a possible Penguin/Riddler relationship?
It’s partly the writing; I think the writers were always very good with the dialog between Oswald and Edward. But the actors were also a delight to watch. Their interactions are some of my favorites of the entire series, especially when they’re on absolutely the same wavelength. (Like when they immediately agreed there was no way in hell they were waiting for Barbara to get back from the hospital.)
But it was season three, episode five, “Anything For You” that did it for me. Edward sets up a complicated plot to make Oswald the hero, and is almost killed for it. Oswald is incredibly grateful and is getting Edward ginger tea for his half-strangled throat, and Edward looks up at him and says sincerely “I hope you know, Oswald, I would do anything for you.”
That line just killed me. The way he said it and how you could see Oswald falling in love with him at that exact moment, I was left staring at the screen in shock going “…I think…I think I’m really into all of that.”
Credit to the writers again, but also massive props to Robin Lord Taylor and Cory Michael Smith for playing them so well.
Of course they never actually got together, because Ed seems to prefer the ladies (see my earlier comments about the Lee/Ed pairing) and they’re both a little too psychopathic to be in a decent relationship. (EDIT: And it’s also unlikely DC or Fox would ever be that brave.) But those unrequited feelings were always there, and it added so many layers to each of their scenes. In the second-to-last episode they agree to work together to become the rulers of Gotham. Ed holds out his hand to shake on it, but Penguin says they’re brothers, and insists on a hug. They do, each holding a knife behind the other’s back, each ready to kill the other if they have to. But they don’t, they both sigh, relieved, and hug for real. It shows how far gone I am, that I would look at that scene and go “they didn’t stab each other in the back! IT’S LOVE.”
And if it’s one thing I was really happy with in the finale, it was their final scene. It wasn’t shippy or romantic, but I liked it anyway. The two of them, blustering and beaten but definitely not broken, give a final glare at Batman, turn away from the camera, and walk into the shadows, together.