Fox’s Gotham
Season 3, Episode 12: “Ghosts”
Directed by Eagle Eglisson
Written by Danny Cannon

* For a recap & review of the previous episode, “Beware the Green-Eyed Monster” – click here
* For a recap & review of the next episode, “Smile Like You Mean It” – click here
Mario Falcone is laid to rest, his grieving widow Dr. Lee Thompkins (Morena Baccarin) left behind, his father Carmine (John Doman). Meanwhile, Dt. Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) is left behind feeling guilty, knowing he had to shoot, and Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue) tries to keep him from doing anything stupid like barging into the burial. Wonder what the old crime boss will do now, after having asked the detective to take his son in alive.
What are things like in the life of Mayor Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) currently? He’s doing well for the city. Penguin is loved. At least, for right now, anyway. He wonders exactly where Ed Nygma (Cory Michael Smith) has gone. Tarquin (Dave Quay) is filling in, booking him in for time with Margaret Hearst (Jan Maxwell) to get some further publicity.
At home, Jim finds Victor Zsasz (Anthony Carrigan) waiting for him, coming as “a messenger.” He’s bringing word of what’s going in the Falcone camp. He makes threats, believing it’s only a matter of time before a hit goes out on Dt. Gordon. The streets are going to get hot; again.
We’re seeing more of the reunion between Selina Kyle (Camren Bicondova) and her mother Maria (Ivana Milicevic). They’ve not seen each other in eleven years. Mom acts repentant, saying she had “no choice” but to leave the city. She talks about also being left by her parents as a child. Street life runs in the family, apparently. The daughter’s not interested in any of it. She’s clearly been damaged and hurt by her mother.
Penguin and Ms. Hearst take time for a private chat. She wants to interview him for the citizens of Gotham. He agrees to a live interview at City Hall. She also tells him that she doesn’t like him, so the interview might get really fun. “I have nothing to hide,” he tells her. Right as he starts seeing the ghost of father, Elijah Van Dahl (Paul Reubens). Perfect timing.
A woman zapped full of electricity turns up in the GCPD morgue. Lucius Fox (Chris Chalk) explains an extremely weird incident involving the woman, who was actually dead days before. Strange, no? He fills in acting captain Bullock and Dt. Gordon. Afterwards, Lee comes in to demand Jim be arrested for killing her husband. Yikes. She sees it as murder.
“You‘re the real virus, Jim. You seep into peoples lives until you destroy them.”
That night, Oswald experiences eerie goings-on at his big house. Again he’s seeing his father’s ghost, wandering the halls. Elijah whispers for help, whispering warnings. Not long until cops arrive to tell him somebody dug up his dad’s remains in the graveyard.
At the morgue, Dt. Gordon and Bullock talk to a man named Dwight Pollard (David Dastmalchian) about the missing dead girl; the dead girl, twice warmed over. Dwight, obviously, finds no body there. Simultaneously, the detective is a little jumpy, his senses on high alert. He should be, because behind his back Lee and Carmine are deciding on having him killed.
Bruce (David Mazouz) and Alfred (Sean Pertwee) wonder what to do with the crystal owl artifact they’ve stolen, unsure of what’s next in their plan. They get a visit at the mansion from Maria, she wants to drop off a box with them for her daughter; old parts of her life in Gotham, things she’d like to hand down.
On the street, Jim and Harvey follow Dwight from the morgue; he was a former Indian Hill disciple. This leads them to a rundown club where Dwight speaks to a crowd about the tax paying slaves of Gotham City, so on. They all worship a man with “no fear” – Mr. Jerome Valeska (Cameron Monaghan). This is only part of Jim’s worries. The hit is out, and Zsasz is gunning for him. A chase full of gunfire starts across a couple city blocks.
Still seeing his father, Penguin is having troubles. Dad is trying to warn him someone is not to be trusted. He says to watch out for the “birthday boy.” There are dark plots working against him. Just a horrific warning beyond the grave. Next day, he sees it’s Tarquin’s birthday. Oz looks around the office, only to see his Deputy Chief of Staff is hiding his father’s body in there. This sends the little man into a violent rage.
Was this all setup by Nygma? Either way, it’s not a good time, seeing as how he’s beating the guy to death while Ms. Hearst is ready for their chat. He goes on TV, paranoid, crazy, though nothing too unusual for him. It eventually goes completely off the rails, not to mention the missing body in the office. Oh, yes; all a Nygma-plotted series of events, using Clayface (Brian McManamon) to portray Van Dahl’s ghost.
Lee wants the hit called off on Jim after visiting Barnes (Michael Chiklis) in Arkham, seeing the Tetch virus has driven him insane. But before that can get done, Zsasz is busting through Jim’s door where the detective and Harvey are having a drink. Lucky for them, Carmine gets there to clear everything up. Not that he wants to, only because his brief daughter-in-law wants it done.
There’s a bit of trouble in Maria’s life, which Selina discovers. A guy named Cole (P.J. Marshall) is after her, part of mom’s past. Now, he knows the young Cat is involved with young billionaire Wayne. The plot thickens.
Formerly dead bodies in the streets aren’t a coincidence. Dwight and his friends are doing dark things. They’ve also got a big, big plan. They’re going to reanimate someone special: Jerome.
God, there’s huge things poised to happen! When Jerome comes back, it’s full-on Joker, basically. So I’m looking forward to seeing him take the Jerome personality up notches. Love Cameron Monaghan, I’m a huge fan of his work on Shameless. He’s great as this Joker character, can’t wait to see full-fledged madness.
“Smile Like You Mean It” is the following chapter.