To say that Gotham has a lot of threads to wrap up whenever it returns from hiatus is an understatement. In short, it has to deal with the escalating Jim Gordon-Penguin-Sofia Falcon situation, Bruce Wayne continuing going off the rails, and the return of Jerome, to name but a few. To put it mildly, the writers have a lot on their plate.
Much like many of you reading this, my attention is captured whenever Jerome Valeska puts in an appearance. Having already showered actor Cameron Monaghan’s fantastic performances with a litany of compliments in the past, this time, I’ll instead place the focus on his evolving appearance.
When we last saw him in season 3, it was obvious that the creative minds behind the series were paying homage to Batman: Death of the Family by having Jerome wear his face as a mask of sorts. But after having it punched off by Jim Gordon (yeah, it actually happened on network television), it was said the young knave was returned to Arkham Asylum where he’d have his face reattached.
Now, we see Jerome looking more Joker-ish than ever as his skin is getting all the more pale: He has a scarred smile permanently affixed to his face, the area around his eyes has become discolored, and he’s sporting a haircut right out of Batman: Endgame, yet another story crafted by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo.
To help ring in the new year, Fox is utilizing what is perhaps the show’s best ace up its sleeve by circulating promo material featuring Jerome on social media. In this instance, it’s a chilling GIF showing Arkham’s most dangerous resident in the midst of a fit of laughter. Suffice it to say, we can’t wait to see what happens next.
Gotham returns with new episodes this spring.