Legend of the Dark Knight: They Did What?

"You've spent your life protecting me. Now it's time for me to do the same. It's time for me to protect Gotham, even if there's nothing left to defend."

—Bruce Wayne to Alfred Pennyworth

"Legend of the Dark Knight: They Did What?" is the eleventh episode of the fifth season of Gotham.^[2] It aired on April 18, 2019.

Synopsis[]

As Bane enacts his final plan for Gotham’s destruction, Gordon rallies his former enemies to save the city. Meanwhile, Nyssa al Ghul kidnaps Barbara’s newborn daughter with ambitions to raise her as her own. Then, Bruce’s decision to leave Gotham points him to his destiny, while devastating Selina.^[3]

Plot[]

Notes[]

• "They Did What?" was originally written and produced as the ninth episode of season 5, but held back when the episode order was expanded from 10 to 12. The actual ninth episode, "Legend of the Dark Knight: The Trial of Jim Gordon", is written by Ben McKenzie^[4] and directed by Erin Richards.
• The title of this episode references the line that was said by Nyssa when Angel Vallelunga called to tell her about the greenzone destruction that was supposed to happen got halted by Bruce and Selina.
• This is the 97th episode to be produced (production code T40.10059) and the 99th to be aired.
• The episode retcons elements from the opening scene of "Year Zero".
  • The opening of "Year Zero" took place at night, whilst this episode takes place during the day.
  • In "Year Zero", Penguin is seen getting ready for the battle along with his gang at City Hall, however in this episode Penguin is on his own and doesn't get ready at City Hall as it has been taken over by Nyssa al Ghul.
• As confirmed by writer Tze Chun, the coat worn by Bruce Wayne in "They Did What?" and various other Season 5 episodes is a reference to the 1987 comic book story arc Batman: Year One by Frank Miller. In the Year One comic, Bruce Wayne was seen wearing a very similar coat.^[5]
• Nyssa tells Barbara "Soon, you and Bruce Wayne will see Gotham and Jim Gordon's precious Green Zone destroyed. Then I'll allow you to die." This is a reference to a line from the 2012 film The Dark Knight Rises, in which Bane tells Bruce Wayne "When Gotham is ashes you have my permission to die".
  • In fact, Nyssa al Ghul's whole revenge scheme in Gotham along with her partnership with Bane is very similar to Talia al Ghul from The Dark Knight Rises.
• The Nightwing Project is a homage to the DC Comics hero Nightwing, formerly known as Robin. The device is shown to illuminate a light-blue glow similar to the main color of the DC character, as well as have the side-effect of attracting mammals such as bats.
  • Batman uses a similar device to attract bats in the comics, which first appeared in the landmark Batman: Year One.
• Near the end of the episode, Nygma tells Penguin that Gordon still sees him as nothing more than the young umbrella boy that used to serve Fish Mooney. This was the final time Fish Mooney was ever mentioned on the show and the first time she was mentioned since "A Dark Knight: Things That Go Boom".
• The episode features the final appearance of Camren Bicondova as Selina Kyle. Lili Simmons takes over the role for the final episode.^[6]
• Near the end of the episode, Barbara Lee Gordon can be seen wearing a purle dress with a yellow bow. This is a reference to Batgirl's costume in the DC Rebirth relaunch.
• This is the first episode since "All Happy Families Are Alike" to use the original title card.

Deleted Scenes[]

Apparently, Nyssa al Ghul was originally going to die in a deleted scene. A scene featuring Oswald and Edward was included on the season 5 DVD and Blu-ray sets: After escaping from the army, Penguin and Riddler arrive back at the harbor in order to get the treasure from their submarine. However, they then see a giant explosion on the water in the distance, indicating that the submarine somehow exploded and sank.^[7] Oswald and Nygma were then originally able to recover their treasure from the bottom of the Gotham River, as revealed in an additional deleted scene from the home video release: In this scene set during the celebrations at Gotham City Hall, Cobblepot and Riddler secretly discuss how they are going to use the money to buy up judges in order to rebuild their power over Gotham's underworld. This storyline was entirely deleted and replaced with an alternate scene for the final aired episode. In this scene set at the Gotham City Public Library, Penguin and Riddler rant about the fact that Nyssa was able to escape with the submarine and their treasure, rendering the deleted scenes non-canon.

There was also at least one deleted scene featuring Lee and Jim. One scene was included on the home video release and indicates that the relationship between both characters was originally going to be portrayed in a more ambivalent and difficult way in the original cut of "They Did What?". This deleted scene would have taken place after the defeat of Bane and was set at GCPD Headquarters. Lee congratulates Gordon on his newborn daughter and then briefly discusses the awkwardness of the whole situation with him. She then says "So I guess this is it" and proceeds to give him a cold hug before leaving. This scene was written before the show was given two more episodes that later ended up becoming "Nothing's Shocking" and "The Trial of Jim Gordon", which were filmed after the series finale. The episode "The Trial of Jim Gordon" gave the producers more room to flesh out the relationship between Jim and Lee that was widely ignored in the other episodes due to the shortened episode count. Therefore, "The Trial of Jim Gordon" portrayed their relationship in a more affectionate way and also established that both characters married before the events of "I Am Bane" and "They Did What?". This retconned portrayal of their relationship contradicted their colder interaction in the previously mentioned deleted scene, which was most likely the reason why the scene ended up on the cutting room floor.

References[]