Gotham: “The Last Laugh” Review

By Matt Fowler

Warning: Full spoilers for the episode follow…

Hey, so I also liked this episode of Gotham. Two for two now. Solid start to Season 2, though the Jerome arc now ending doesn’t exactly bode well for the future since that character brought a solid amount of energy and lunacy to the series while arch-villain Theo Galavan tends to make everything feel a bit drowsy.

Let me get my gripe out of the way first though. While I feel that, overall, the show is finding itself (honestly though, through brutality and violence) and these preliminary Season 2 episodes were good, a big part of me couldn’t get past the fact that this episode featured a giant fancy gala event in the midst of a city under siege from terrorizing maniacs who are out to make very public displays of atrocity. No one thought they’d strike the big fancy party? And to make that situation even worse, Gordon freely allowed Leslie to attend this big public event with not even one thought about the soirée, or her, being a possible target. That was ridiculous. Sorry. Barbara’s on the loose and she specifically has it out for Leslie. It was a dumb set up.

But, I’m still giving this one an “8.” Essentially keeping it in line with last week’s adventure. Yes, despite the implausibility of the overall premise, I enjoyed the madhouse proceedings. Especially the Joker/Harley dynamic of it all. By the end, obviously, it was made clear that Jerome wasn’t to be the actual Joker. As we could easily assume, though the show certainly hadn’t held back behavior parallels. Likewise, Barbara couldn’t be Harley Quinn, but the show had been taking similar steps with her, turning her into a sort of a porto-Harley. Bottom line: “The Last Laugh” featured the absolute closest this show will probably ever get to a live-action Joker/Harley dynamic. And it was pretty cool.

The whole magician/sexy assistant ruse. The spinning knife wheel. Barbara casually knocking out Theo with the hammer and saying “Bo-ring.” It was a big, bold cheat of sorts. Giving us known villains via surrogates. And it’s a tactic I won’t deny this series. After all, I’ve been saying that canon should be thrown out the window (like so many of Jim Gordon’s suspects) since the show too often becomes one giant set-up for a story we’ll never get to witness.

And through Jerome we even caught a glimpse of a future Batman/Joker dynamic when he specifically called out Master Wayne and brought up how they were both orphans. The “one bad day” crossroads theme that remains forever prevalent in the Batman saga. Even deeper still, it’s interesting to see how both Barbara and Leslie deal with being captured and victimized. Barbara’s trauma last season worked to turn her into a dangerous nut while Leslie doesn’t seem to have any emotional scars from the two times Barbara’s tried to kill her.

And while Theo may not be as initially interesting as the cavalcade of crazies Season 2 has sprung on us, his betrayal of Jerome (a plot he’d let Barbara in on beforehand) made for a nice, shocking moment. One that also revealed a bit of vulnerability in Jerome as it became clear that he’d actually looked up to Theo as a father figure and took his approval to heart.

The “curse upon Gotham” ending was an interesting spin on things. Remember, executive producer Bruno Heller had pretty much stated that Jerome was only a “tap on the door” with regards to the real Joker’s story. A seed planted. And here, at the end, we were shown a few crazed faces smiling and laughing at Jerome’s insane escapades on TV. Insinuating that someone out there (not even anyone we necessarily saw) will use Jerome as an inspiration/template when they eventually morph into Joker.

Again, an interesting take, though one I have mixed feelings about. On the one had, it’s hard not to imagine someone like Jerome having a lasting effect on the sick minds who inhabit Gotham. And that, in a sense, we were watching The Joker through his actions. On the other hand, it also pretty much sets up future Joker as someone who was already crazy. Like Jerome. With no real chance for a sympathetic “one bad day” backstory. And worst of all, they’d just be a copycat. Making me imagine future TV conversations between Batman and Joker where Batman accuses his arch-nemesis of just being a “Jerome Valeska” knock off.

Anyhow, “The Last Laugh” still delivered overall I felt. The team up between Alfred, Bruce, and Gordon in the end to thwart Jerome (though Theo would still the victory). Alfred’s immediate crush on Leslie (who actually seemed like she might go out with him if it meant going to a certain five star restaurant). Harvey’s visit to (a rather drunk) Penguin, and Penguin’s disapproval of Jerome’s “chaos for chaos’ sake.” There were a lot of things that worked here.