#gotham season 3 episode 12

[fanfic-the-wish-your-heart-makes]

Revenge Can Hurt More Than the Person It's Aimed at - An Angsty Nygmobblepot x Reader Hurt/Comfort Fix-it Fic

Chapter 1: Late Messages and Phone Calls

(I made a cover for this, whaat? With text messages from the fic edited onto flip phones? Yes, I did 😄🤗)

Word count: 1757

Reader: gender-neutral (no pronouns)

Spoilers: season 3 episode 12 (& in later chapters for at least S03 E15) Stop reading here if you want to avoid the spoilers :)

Plot: After Ed left his position, seemingly due to Oswald's love for him, the mayor's left with no one but his other best friend, you, who comforts him as best as possible, all while Oswald tries not to lose you as well - or accidentally tell you that he's in love with not just Ed but you.

Meanwhile Ed hopes to destroy Oswald from within, making him doubt his own perception by playing evil tricks on him.

At least he tries to do so. There's still you, who he's kept in the dark so that he could hurt Oswald unexpectedly.

However, he'll soon ask himself whether it's worth seeing you hurt by Oswald's poor state.

Warnings: canon betrayal (including gaslighting & intimidation) & poor mental state, a lot of angst (Ed's hate for Oswald)

Author's note: I originally just wanted to write some comfort for Oswald for this episode and well, Ed needed to be there for the original hurt to be there, so I made it Nygmobs x reader 🥰

Also on AO3

_____________________________________

Ed had chosen not to tell you his plans. You would only confront Oswald, ask him whether he had truly killed Isabella, acceleratung the process and taking away from Oswald's suffering, and oh, how Ed wanted him to suffer!

He'd tell you in time, when he had captured Oswald. Once you knew that Oswald had killed her, you wouldn't like him anymore, and then Ed could take Oswald's life.

You'd be sadder about his betrayal of Ed than about his death. After all, Ed's relationship with Oswald's was just as good as yours to the mayor, so wouldn't your reaction be the same?

Ed didn't know for sure and it was plaguing him. He didn't want to hurt you.

Everyone you love gets hurt sooner or later, he heard a familiar voice inside his head whisper. It had been piping up more over these last weeks, at least more than it had when everything had been alright. When Oswald's concern had been a lie.

What a pretty lie it had been: spending time with his best friends, going on dates with Kris-Isabella, even before her, life had been like a daydream.

Not anymore. Oswald just had to go and destroy everything!

Ed balled his hands into fists. He had to be quiet, otherwise his whole plan might blow up.

Checking his muted phone one last time, he read your message from before again:

No, I won't be at the manor tonight. Why do you ask? Are you coming back?

Or just for a visit? You can call us anytime. Or just me.

Whatever it is that made you leave, I'm sure we can find a way to make things work.

No, we can't, he thought grimly, when a new message popped up that made his heart clench:

If this is about Isabella, it's okay too.

What is it about her? he thought alarmed. Did you know about her murder?!

A new message appeared:

Don't let what Oswald said bring you down. Even if you only knew her for a short time, it's alright to still grieve.

Did he still grieve? Ever since turning his ideas into plans he had thought about her less and less. All that was on his mind was his revenge, Oswald and you.

Thinking of: he started typing but then figured it would be best to wait until later. That way he could stall for time, make you expect less from him, only seeing the grieving boyfriend.

He was about to close his phone when he saw one last message:

Can we meet sometime? I want to make sure you're alright. Plus I haven't seen a friend for a long time.

He closed the phone. He hadn't seen you in too long indeed. And it was all Oswald's fault. He stood ready in the Van Dahl Mansion near the switch for his illusion. Oswald would pay.

Until the finale however, there would be many more a step.

For the ones tomorrow, he'd text you this evening. He was already thinking of the phrasing.

_________________

After Oswald's encounter with what he was sure was his late father's ghost, he wanted nothing more than to be held by the two people he loved the most.

Unfortunately he was so shaken that it took him a minute to even walk to the bathroom to splash water onto his face.

That didn't help much and so he just stood there, frozen on the spot for half an hour, both of his legs stiffened uncomfortably, until he finally had to move to shake the feeling back into them.

He dialled your number first, not wanting to alienate Ed and knowing that you had already been ready to comfort him in the last weeks, without even knowing why exactly he was so sad.

The only thing you knew was that it had to have to do with Ed, who had resigned from his position as chief of staff and left the manor to live elsewhere.

When you asked, Oswald had merely said that it didn't matter, that it was criminals' business you needn't worry about.

You worried about it. Just a few weeks ago, you had believed Edward, Oswald and you to be be an inseparable trio, but now it was weeks since you had last seen the brown-haired man.

Oswald worried as well. After calling you four times, he decided to ignore his fear of annoying Ed, and called him. Twice. Then he waited until the hour was early instead of late to call again. Ed would simply have to see it as the emergency that it was.

After all, reciprocating Oswald's feelings or not, Ed still treasured their friendship...didn't he?

He had looked so shocked when he had heard Oswald confess his love, his hand raised so defensively.

But then in the library..."You're my best friend as well, Oswald" resonated in his head. If only he was more than that.

_________________

As soon as Oswald had gone to the bathroom, Ed had quickly gotten himself and the paid actor out of the mansion, and texted you when he was alone again.

I'm free tomorrow but after that I'm not available at all. Can you keep the day free?

He knew for a fact that you could. Lately Oswald had been clearing your schedule so that he could be comforted by you at any time.

You responded soon after:

Yes, I have the day off

When are you free?

Ed replied immediately:

I don't know when I'll be free yet, but maybe early on. He'd try to choose a time that would keep you away from Oswald for as long as possible.

He could tell you tomorrow that he didn't have time in the morning. Or for lunch or in the afternoon and so on and so on. Most importantly: you wouldn't be there to support Oswald when Ed's plan to make him freak out on Margaret Hearst's live show came into action.

The phone ringing mere seconds after Ed texted you made him light up at seeing that you were obviously waiting for him to respond.

Ok, I could always wait for you.

Ed smiled at your eagerness to see him. Your meeting would be wholesome. Unlike Oswald's bad, selfish possessiveness.

Wonderful! I hope he can spare you for a few seconds, I've missed you ;) Ed typed with a similar jealousy, not realizing his own hypocrisy...and not thinking about the hope that wink would elicit in you.

_________________

A wink... Had Ed mistyped? Edward Nygma, the man who sometimes sent comically formal messages? The man who had once asked whether this was "an adequate symbol for philandering via text" when he had dated Isabella?

In the last days his texts had lacked any trace of humour. Maybe he was feeling better.

I probably shouldn't interpret anything into a single letter. Maybe he tried to write a smiley and missed.... but he'd told Oswald once that he tried to proofread all of his messages just in case. Maybe he hadn't been wearing his glasses...which he almost always wore. Maybe he was...maybe he had had tears in his eyes?

Your heart ached at the thought. Seeing him so heartbroken after Isabella's death was horrible, add to that not seeing him at all, not even receiving written riddles...

You felt with him...and yet at the same time there was that insistent piece of jealousy, which was questioning why he would think more about a dead woman he had known for little more than a week than about his two best friends.

Of course you understood that he wasn't merely mourning the librarian but also his chance at a new chance of love. So despite it not feeling right on first thought, you'd let him grieve for as long as it helped him.

Just because there was someone else in love with him didn't mean that he was considering to give them a chance. It would be selfish of you to assume that.

Even if you were almost certain that you weren't just assuming. Before he had met Isabella, you could have sworn that there had been something else than friendship between him, Oswald and you.

He'd give each of you compliments with a lot more admiration than necessary, throw admiring glances your ways and lean towards the two of you as if he was being pulled in by a magical force.

Perhaps you were just projecting your love for them onto him; maybe he had only been beaming with joy because he treasured this friendships, which you definitely did as well.

It could be that he only got so close because he didn't understand the idea of personal space...even if he had once made a very hurtful jab at a politician who had stepped too close during an argument.

Still, maybe he just didn't have any previous examples of good friendship to base his behavior on.

When you thought about these things individually, the chance of him having had a crush on Oswald or you didn't seem big and there was almost always an excuse, but adding all the looks, compliments, leans, touches, smiles and talk of fate together, you couldn't help but think about your secret hope: that he had been, maybe even was, in love with you and Oswald.

Then the day he had handed in his resignation, you had been afraid that you'd lose him, that it had maybe just been living together and that he'd forget about you once he no longer saw you.

Yet he proved you otherwise when he texted you after leaving the manor, explaining that he needed time away from anywhere he had been with Isabella and that he hoped you would be alright without him.

He asked a lot about that, about whether you were doing okay, whether he could do anything for you.

What he didn't ask about was Oswald, at least not beyond inquieries of how he was doing, which only proved to you that something bad had happened between them: otherwise Ed would have already heard from Oswald himself and Oswald wouldn't constantly ask you about Ed.

It seemed a hopeless case. You should let go of it already. He and Oswald didn't even talk anymore.

Just then your cellphone lit up. Ed had sent you a new message:

I've really missed you.

You could almost hear his voice, low and comforting.

I've missed you too, you wrote back. Oh, how you still loved him!

Missed you a *lot*, you added.

Author's note:

To be continued.

If you have any comfort regarding this episode and the ones before it, please share, seeing Oswald so down was very hard for me to watch and still hurts after writing this! 🥺😓

And of course let me know what you think of this, and let me know if you want to be tagged :)

Chapter 2->

[it-happened-once-in-a-meme]

Edward Nygma x Ides of March 😂 (Incorrect Quote with a Little Nygmobblepot)

Tumblr really is that weird little social media platform that makes you edit a long-dead historical figure into a DC show and think "Yup, people will definitely like this" 🤭😂

Spoilers for Gotham S03 E12:

Edward Nygma: Why should Oswald get to hobble around like an emperor penguin while the rest of us try not to get smushed under his feet? What's so great about Oswald, hm? Isabella was just as smart as Oswald. OK, Isabella was just as...cute as Oswald.

I totally liked Isabella just as much as I liked Oswald. And when did it become OK for one person to be the boss of everybody, huh? Because that's not what being mayor is about! We should totally just stab Oswald!

Bonus: My previous attempts:

And this gem, with a very memeable Caesar:

[it-happened-once-in-a-meme]

Or alternatively:

Spoilers for season 3 episode 12! (And warning, cause this joke's a bit dark)

Sorry 🤪💀

No but how do you think he handled that body, keeping in mind that he has often talked to corpses?

Do you think he complained about Oswald to him?

Screw it since my shitposts tend to do well.

[nevereverthem]

Gotham quotes :

I love myself a callback.

Oswald getting Edward out of Arkham in 3×3 "Hello, old friend."

&

Oswald picking Edward up in his limousine when he is dragged out of the Wayne event in 5×12 "Edward Nygma, it is very good to see you."

[mydarlingbat]

Do you know how many times The Batman saved The Joker? If you do not know, then ignore this message pls.

So i actually been ask this question before, but I'll add a few more to the list. I'm just updating the list. Death of the family. Batman unhinged 13 #14 Batman gotham after midnight #6. Legends of the dark knight annual #1. Batman adventures continue #12. Batman the max. Arkham dreams #2. Batman confidential #11. batman ninja turtles 3 # 5. hitman #3. Batman The shadow #4 ( league of justice. Tales from the dark multiverse the death of Superman #1 ) Batman White knight present generations of Joker #6. Batman #353. Batman damned #3. Batman #7. Batman #1. Batman adventures #16. the Batman strikes #9. Batman fun house of evil. Batman death by design. The batman who laughs #1 the Batman who laughs # 2 Batman secrets. Batman cacophony #3. Legends of the dark Knight # 200. Batman legends of the dark Knight # 145. Batman Gotham Knights #73. Batman dredd / die laughing. The Joker mask. Batman Gotham adventures #31. Detective comics annual #5. Batman vs the punisher. Two face year one #2. Batman #544 Batman Arkham unhinged #29 #30 Batman unhinged # 28 Batman 1992 annual. Batman Arkham knight. Batman #649. Batman #719. Batman Europe #2 legends of the dark Knight #195 detective comics #1058 2024 ) catwoman #63. Legend of the dark Knight #16. Batman adventures #1. Batman adventures #3. Batman and catwoman #6. Batman adventures #30. Batman secrets #1. Batman 2016 #48. Batman the white knight #7. The spectre #51. Batman annual #1. Joker switch. Wonder woman #165 #167 elseworlds finest. Batman Gotham after midnight #8 Batman gotham adventures #31 dc super friends. Batman / Harley and ivy #1 Batman #146 Batman #37. The Joker last laugh #6. Batman last knight on earth. Legends of the dark knight #10 2012. Batman and Superman / world finest #11. Batman legends of the dark Knight. #50 batman Odyessy # 6 #2. injustice ground zero #6. Batman ego. Batman deadly duo #1 Joker devils advocate. Action comics. #719. Legends of the dark Knight 2020 #2 . Batman #139 2024. Batman brave and the bold #118. Batman 2016 #123. Batman adventures continue season two #7. Batman and Spiderman crossover. The fortress #1 Batman #16 The Batman animated series ( Christmas with JOKER ) ( the Phantasm ) The Jokers favor ) Harlequinade ) legends of the dark Knight #2 2023. Joker's Millions ) make 'em laugh and that's all I recall. Batman Arkham origins. Batman under the red hood. The dark Knight 2008 ) The Batman vs. Dracula. Batman Ninja. Scooby-Doo & Batman: The Brave and the Bold (2018) Batman telltale series # episode 5 Batman tomorrow the game. Gotham the series. the Batman series 2005 The Bat in the Belfry )( Rumors ) The Clayface of Tragedy (Part 2) The Metal Face of Comedy) Batman #66

I can't say them all, but he saved the Joker 77 times in comics. How many times he attempted to save the Joker 14 times in comics. 92 times i guess. Not including the movies and series, but all together 118 times i can recall. Thank you so much for asking though.

[wanderingmind867]

I promised I'd share my ideas for a hypothetical fourth season of batman 66. So here it is. All 60 episodes of my season four (although some episodes have more detail than others). I planned to write notes for a season five, six and seven. And I'd have each season introduce more and more characters. But I don't know if my attention span will last long enough for me to write all of that. Or if my fancasting website even works anymore. But at least I have all of this written down?

Season 4: Season Four would get 60-70 episodes, max. A full season of 60 episodes, split into part one and part two, or something like that.

Episodes 1 and 2: A two parter based on the events of the Batman '66 Comic, Issue #1. A story involving The Riddler (Frank Gorshin) and Catwoman (Julie Newmar).

Episodes 3 and 4: A story involving The Joker (as played by Cesar Romero). Not much else to say beyond that right now.

Episodes 5 and 6: A story featuring The Penguin (Burgess Meredith) and Mister Freeze (either George Sanders or Eli Wallach). They team up, only to get busted by the dynamic duo!

Episodes 7 and 8: Introducing Signalman to the world of Batman '66! Signalman uses his gimmicks to try and trap Batman and Robin, while stealing as many symbols of good fortune as he possibly can.

Episode 9: A Batgirl solo episode, focusing on her and her new partner (who she meets in this episode): Jason Bard. Together, her and Jason end up investigating the appearance of a new catwoman on the scene (Eartha Kitt). Together, Batgirl and her private detective partner manage to learn that this new Catwoman is an old friend of the first Catwoman, and they're friendly rivals who compete for the thrill of the chase.

Episodes 10 and 11: Batman and Robin are preparing to leave for London on Vacation, but they're held up by The Bookworm and his criminal gang, who planned to rob Gotham City of a priceless manuscript stored deep within Gotham City Hall. Only the dynamic duo can stop this marvelous mastermind before it's too late!

Episodes 12, 13 and 14: Batman and Robin end up in London on vacation, and they end up needing to bust up two different capers in England; one involving The Mad Hatter (David Wayne) and the other involving The Clock King (Walter Slezak). It turns out these two villians have some negative history together, but it's unclear just what this history entails…

Episode 15: While Batman and Robin are off in Europe, Batgirl and Jason Bard run into Cluemaster, a strange new villian who seems to have an odd vendetta against The Riddler. Although The Riddler doesn't actually show up in this episode, we learn that Cluemaster is a minor villain who's always held a grudge. He wants to take the title of world's biggest riddle/clue/puzzle themed supervillian away from The Riddler! Only Batgirl can stop him now!

Episodes 16 and 17: Batman and Robin end up on a cruise heading back to Gotham, but the cruise ends up being held up by Penguin, who's decided to take to high seas felony after being constantly foiled on land. But he didn't count on finding Batman and Robin on one of his captive vessels…

Episodes 18 and 19: Batman and Robin return to Gotham, just in time for a late september scheme hatched by Egghead, that diabolical master of eggs-pert larceny! Batman and Robin need to enlist the end of Batgirl and Jason Bard just to get him to be defeated before he commits the greatest crime of our time and era!

Episodes 20 and 21: In the brisk early October air, False Face steals a new chemical designed to make a human being shapeshift. But one of his men steals it away from him! Matt Hagen (Rich Little), a greedy henchmen of the dastardly False Face, uses the machine and turns himself into a hideous being made of Clay! Remembering the case of an old villian Batman tangled with named Clayface, Matt Hagen decides to embrace his evil side and become Clayface the second!

Episodes 22 and 23: Batman, Robin and Batgirl all end up tangling with The Scarecrow (Anthony Perkins) on Halloween Night! A washed up former psychology teacher with a love for fear, Jonathan Crane has come to haunt Gotham as the one and only Scarecrow!

Episodes 24 and 25: Batman and Robin tangle with Blockbuster, a menace who's too mindless to actually mean any harm to anyone or anything. He's being used by his mad scientist brother Roland, but the dynamic duo don't figure that out until it's nearly too late…

Episodes 25 and 26: While hosting a Gotham City Beauty Contest to mark the beginning of November and the subsequent colder season, Batman and Robin tangle with Poison Ivy (Ann Margret), that powerful sorceress of seduction! Using her brilliant botanical wisdom, she snares Batman and Robin inside of a horrible death trap. But they escape, and successfully bring her to Justice.

Episodes 27 and 28: Batman and Robin deal with the Polka Dot Man, a bizarre new criminal capable of using polka dots as tools for committing new crimes to bedevil and beguile the people of Gotham City!

Episodes 29 and 30: Batman and Batgirl have to work together to fight off a mad team up of The Penguin and The Riddler. Robin is sick with the flu, so he's unable to help them. So it's up to Batman and Batgirl to save the day this time around!

Episodes 31 and 32: A Christmas Special, featuring a mall santa who gets victimized by The Joker and Clayface, a bizarre new duo of cookery! Batman, Robin, Batgirl and Jason Bard all have to team up to defeat the foe this time. And in the end, it's rather unclear if the mall santa was just a mall santa, or if they were the real santa all along…

Episodes 33, 34 and 35: Batman is challenged by his most dastardly foes yet; a terrible trio of crooks from Gotham's distant past! The Eraser, The Getaway Genius and Killer Moth! Batman hasn't tangled with them in years, not since the days of… Batwoman. Back when Robin was younger (a few years before the show started), Kathy Kane was a rich socialite who teamed up with Batman to fight crime. But she retired after an awful case involving Killer Moth. Yet now, she may be Gotham's only hope for surviving the Triumvirate's terror!

Episodes 36 and 37: Batman was set on edge by the Triumvirate (and by Batwoman's return), so he's gone on vacation. While he's off on vacation, two different teams have to protect Gotham from ill will. Robin and Catwoman are who we're gonna focus on first. While Batman's away, they end up having to deal with Doctor Double-X, a horrible foe from years past, capable of creating duplicates of himself to fight his battles for him!

Episodes 38 and 39: While Batman is off on vacation, Batgirl and Jason Bard end up having to call a truce with Catwoman II (Eartha Kitt), as she's being pursued by an old rival. Catman, a big game hunter who prowled the jungles of africa. He feels that Catwoman gives the noble beauty of the jungle cat a bad name, and so he's out for revenge. Batgirl, Catwoman and Jason Bard have to save Gotham from the deranged anger of Catman, before it's too late!

Episodes 40 and 41: Batman was on vacation in Europe, exploring the beautiful balkans. But he accidentally stumbles upon a plot by Olga, Queen of the Cossacks, and he has to come back out of temporary retirement to stop her.

Episodes 42 and 43: Robin and Batwoman team up to fight against Shane and his wife Calamity Jan.

Episodes 44 and 45: Batgirl and Jason Bard team up to fight off Louie the Lilac and The Siren, a strange duo who've teamed up to try and take down Poison Ivy (for "stealing their gimmicks"). At the end of this two parter, batman finally returns from his vacation.

Episodes 46 and 47: Batman's first case after coming back from vacation involves dealing with The Sandman, Gotham's strange sultan of the sands, a man capable of putting people to sleep (and now even capable of messing with them as they sleep and dream)!

Episodes 48 and 49: Batman's newest case leads him to have to fight against Mister Freeze yet again, who's sprung himself from jail, all to work on an elaborate scheme involving freezing gotham in with perpetual winter!

Episodes 50, 51 and 52: Batman has to go up against The Riddler, Cluemaster and The Puzzler, all of whom have gone on the attack against each other. There can only be one king of puzzles/riddles/clues, and they won't stop until one of them has successfully defeated the other!

Episodes 53 and 54: While Batman deals with the three puzzling champions, Batgirl and Robin end up fighting against The Bookworm and Scarecrow, both of whom have teamed up to try and steal some rare manuscripts for old time classic horror novels. It might be in this story that we get the first hints that robin is beginning to feel stifled by batman's authority. He wants to fly somewhat independently. To prove himself to Batman.

Episodes 55 and 56: Batman and Robin have to defeat The Joker, when he decides to challenge them to a game of wits. He commits crimes using the gimmicks of other criminals, and thusly tries to lure them off his trail. It almost works, until Batman and Robin finally get wise to the scheme.

Episodes 57 and 58: Batman and Robin team up to fight against The Minstrel, their old musically inclined foe. He's come to Gotham to commit more musical thefts, and only the dynamic duo is capable of stopping him.

Episodes 59 and 60: Batman and Robin have to deal with King Tut, who's once again relapsed into his horrible criminal ways.

After this, Season Four ends. Then we'd have the two animated movies (The Return of the Caped Crusaders and Batman vs Two-Face), and we'd also have the third movie which we were promised but which Adam West died before he could film (we were promised a film project with Harley Quinn, according to the Batman vs Two Face wikipedia page). So we'd have the Harley Quinn story (which might also feature Hugo Strange), and then we'd have Robin leave Batman to go do his own thing, the same way he did in the mainstream comics. And that would be the lead in for Season Five, which is all about Batman on his own.

[poisonousquinzel]

Batman: The Animated Series Harley Quinn being the Blueprint for Modern Harley Quinn

my actual version of this post

Working On The Side Of / With The Batfam

Harlequinade (EP) • "Batman and Robin have no time to spare in stopping the Joker from detonating an atomic bomb, so they enlist the help of Harley Quinn to hunt the Joker down."

Batgirl Adventures • "When Poison Ivy is captured by mobsters, Harley Quinn must act quickly to save her, so she turns to the only hero she can find: Batgirl!"

Batman: Gotham Adventures #43 • "Who's out to get Harley Quinn? Batman has to take her on as a sidekick to find out. The answer awaits deep in Harley's history...that is, if she and the Dark Knight survive the traps set for them all over Gotham!"

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 1 (2020) #12 | Season 3 #2, #5, #7

-

Also before anyone comes @ me all "oh but what about her participating in the Death in the Family storyline", I've made a post here talking about the exacts of Harley's involvement in Jason's death.

Trying To Have A Better, Reformed Life / Redemption Arc

Batman: The Animated Series "Harley's Holiday"

Batman: Gotham Adventures #10

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 3 (2023) #2

Ending Scene In Batman Beyond: Return Of The Joker

Being A Little Goofy Gal

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 2 (2020) #7

Batman: The Animated Series • "Holiday Knights", "Harlequinade", "The Man Who Killed Batman"

Dressing Revealingly / Being Sexual

Batman: The Animated Series • "Harley & Ivy", "Harley's Holiday", "Holiday Knights", "Beware The Creeper"

The Batman Adventures: Mad Love

Being Bisexual (cry about it♡)

Paul Dini: When Bruce and I did the Harley and Ivy miniseries, it was certainly implied that [Ivy and Harley] had a relationship with each other—they shared hugs and kisses. I didn��t want that to overpower what the story was, but the relationship between them is so natural.

Paul Dini: The more I worked with [Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy], the more I could see [a romantic relationship] happening. Unfortunately, at the time, in an animated kids cartoon, you really couldn’t get into the complexity of that or honor what a relationship like that could really be. We just showed them together as friends and on fairly intimate terms when they were out of the costume, but nothing was implicit because if we couldn’t do that relationship properly then we didn’t want to do it at all.

Batman: The Animated Series • "Holiday Knights"

Batgirl Adventures (1997)

Love Is Love (2016)

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 3 #2-7

Breaking The Fourth Wall

Batman: The Animated Series • "Harley's Holiday"

HQ, turning her head towards the camera: "Talk about grasping at straws. Oh, well, at least I'm going out on a joke."

Being A Domestic Violence Victim (And That Being A Prevalent Aspect Of Her Story)

"Everyone else sees the Joker laugh, only Harley has ever seen him cry. It's the only reason she stays with him.

Harleen, having once been a therapist, has touched onto his vulnerability. She knows who he is underneath. That’s what keeps her there."

- Arleen Sorkin [Batman: Animated | Interview Add-On Comment]

Batman: The Animated Series • "The Laughing Fish", "Harley & Ivy", "Mad Love"

Justice League • "Wild Cards"

The Batman Adventures: Mad Love (comic)

Harley Quinn: Mad Love (Novel)

Batman: The Animated Series | The New Batman Adventures Episodes

Harlequinade Aired: May 23, 1994 Writer: Paul Dini Director: Kevin Altieri

Harley's Holiday Aired: October 15, 1994 Writer: Paul Dini Director: Kevin Altieri

Holiday Knights Aired: September 13, 1997 Writer: Paul Dini Director: Dan Riba

The Man Who Killed Batman Aired: February 1, 1993 Writer: Paul Dini Director: Bruce Timm

Harley & Ivy Aired: January 18, 1993 Writer: Paul Dini Director: Boyd Kirkland

Beware The Creeper Aired: November 7, 1998 Writer: Rich Fogel Story by: Steve Gerber Director: Dan Riba

The Laughing Fish Aired: January 10, 1993 Writer: Paul Dini Director: Bruce Timm

Mad Love Aired: January 16, 1999 Writer: Paul Dini Story by: Bruce Timm & Paul Dini Director: Butch Lukic

Justice League Wild Cards Aired: December 6, 2003 Writer: Stan Berkowitz and Dwayne McDuffie Director: Butch Lukic

Ending Scene In Batman Beyond: Return Of The Joker Story: Paul Dini, Glen Murakami, Bruce Timm Screenplay: Paul Dini Director: Curt Geda

The Batman Adventures: Mad Love Writers: Paul Dini, Bruce Timm Pencilers: Bruce Timm Inkers: Bruce Timm Colorists: Bruce Timm, Rick Taylor Letterers: Tim Harkins Editors: Scott Peterson, Darren Vincenzo

Batman: Gotham Adventures #43 Writers: Scott Peterson Pencilers: Tim Levins Inkers: Terry Beatty Colorists: Lee Loughridge Letterers: Albert DeGuzman Editors: Joan Hilty, Harvey Richards

Batman: Gotham Adventures #10 Writers: Ty Templeton Pencilers: Rick Burchett Inkers: Terry Beatty Colorists: Lee Loughridge Letterers: Tim Harkins Editors: Darren Vincenzo

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 1 #12 Writers: Alan Burnett, Paul Dini Pencilers: Ty Templeton Inkers: Ty Templeton Colorists: Monica Kubina Letterers: Josh Reed Editors: Andrew Marino

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 2 #7 Writers: Alan Burnett, Paul Dini Pencilers: Rick Burchett Inkers: Rick Burchett Colorists: Monica Kubina Letterers: Josh Reed Editors: Andrew Marino

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 3 #2 Writers: Alan Burnett, Paul Dini Pencilers: Kevin Altieri Inkers: Kevin Altieri Colorists: Monica Kubina Letterers: Josh Reed Editors: Andrew Marino, Ben Meares, Katie Kubert

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 3 #5 Writers: Alan Burnett, Paul Dini Pencilers: Ty Templeton Inkers: Ty Templeton Colorists: Monica Kubina Letterers: Josh Reed Editors: Ben Meares, Andrew Marino, Katie Kubert

Batman: The Adventures Continue Season 3 #7 Writers: Alan Burnett, Paul Dini Pencilers: Ty Templeton Inkers: Ty Templeton Colorists: Monica Kubina Letterers: Josh Reed Editors: Ben Meares, Andrew Marino, Katie Kubert

Batgirl Adventures (1997) Writers: Paul Dini Pencilers: Rick Burchett Inkers: Rick Burchett Colourists: Rick Taylor Letterers: Albert DeGuzman Editors: Scott Peterson, Darren Vincenzo

Love is Love (2016) Writer: Paul Dini Illustrator: Bill Morrison Colourist: Robert Stanley Letterer: Sal Cipriano

Harley Quinn: Mad Love (Novel) Written By: Pat Cadigan and Paul Dini

I am aware this last one isn't technically in the BTAS universe, but later on in the novel, it blends into the Mad Love comic/episode and then goes past it. I only used scenes that were originally featured in the comic/episode as they are just those scenes in a purely written form.

Harley Quinn: Mad Love (Novel) Pg. 261 He lowered his head and slumped, the very picture of dejection. Harley couldn’t stand to see him that way. She cuddled up next to him and took him in her arms. “I know how to make some smiles, puddin’,” she said in a playful, sultry voice. His whole body stiffened under her touch. “Puddin’?” But she knew it was hopeless; she’d done the wrong thing again. A moment later, he was leading her down the stairs by her nose, pinching it so hard between his thumb and forefinger that she cried out on every step. “Ow-ow-ow-ow-ow! That hurts! It really, really hurts! Please, puddin’—” He pinched even harder as he led her to the door, opened it, then turned her around. “How many times do I have to tell you?” he roared, applying his foot to her backside. “Don’t call me puddin’!” Harley scrambled to her feet just as he slammed the door in her face. She started to beg him to let her in but suddenly all the fight went out of her and she sank down to sit cross-legged in front of the door. Thrown out again; how many times was this? She’d lost count. No, she hadn’t. This was the twenty-fifth time. That averaged out at roughly three times a week for the past two months. - Harley Quinn: Mad Love (Novel) Pg. 255 “Hey, that’s a real gasser, ain’t it, Mistah J?” she said between giggles. In the next moment, Gordon thought the nitrous was making him hallucinate as events took a sharp turn into the surreal. The Joker grabbed the floppy points on Harley’s hat, pulling her to him so they were nose to nose. “I deliver the punchlines around here!” he bellowed into her face. “Got that?” “Yessir,” Harley Quinn said, her voice tiny and fearful. The Joker shoved her aside and the jolly Clown Prince of Crime persona was back.

[longlivefiction]

Jeremiah, and how he's so.. Jeremiah.

This is quite long, so get ready..

Never believed there's an insanity Jeremiah was scaping at all. more like putting inside a box his dark nature and closed the door. The gas was just a key for it. In simple terms, the gas changed nothing, didn't alterated his mind or gave extra things.

The problem with Jeremiah is that he was a contrasted character, on one had, he hated the idea of being ordinary:

- He was the smart kid of the circus who got away to go in a elite family.

- He was the guy who graduated of college at 13 or 17.

- He was the man who lived in a maze bunker during 6 years.

- He would be the man who made a revolution on the engineering science.

We all believed he was adopted by Wilde family, but maybe Wildes doesn't exist at all, and Jeremiah created Xander Wilde alias to completely separate of his family, for the sake of his megalomania: This, genius mastermind mysterious legendary figure behind the new era of evolment.

The problem is that precisasly in his desire to be special, he can't support the idea of be like Jerome cause that will means he's not unique at all. That's why he never allowed himself to be just as extravagant as Jerome.

I am sure Jeremiah killed alley cats, by beating them up or something, while believed Jerome was just a funny imaginative innocent kid, different to the weird exotic prodigical guy he was. When discovered that Jerome kill alley cats as well, Jeremiah just can't toleate it.

So he made up lies on him, betrayed him and sending to a path HE KNEW that would make him even worst and in the end causing Jerome to desire to hunt him.

Jerome admits that as a teenager he wanted to kill everything in sight, however, the fact is that Jeremiah left the circus at age 8, so even Jerome's murderous desires could very well be a consequence of Jeremiah's actions.

"Teenagers, am I right? Oh, I remember those days, you just want to kill everything you see."

- Jerome Valeska in season 3.

Until I know, teenage years starts at 12. Meaning Jerome suffered at least 5 years of abuse at that point.

Now, why I believe Jeremiah WANTED Jerome to get to him like they're are in some game or something?

Mandatory Brunch Meeting:

Jeremiah wanted Jerome to get to him, so he could capture him. So he deliberately endangered his uncle Zachary Trumble, and his boss Allan Heyes. For the first one knew about St Ignatius and the second one knew about the address of Ecco.

Once Jerome is captured, it can be seen by the condition of the room he is in that Jeremiah intended to starve his brother to death as he watched.

Let's be honest, the only reason Jerome could scaped was because Crane and Tech; see Jeremiah is SO narcisist that he believed that Jerome could be the only menace that mattered and valued the effort since he is his twin, do you get that?

That's entertainment:

Once Jim Gordon, Lucius Fox and Bruce Wayne arrives, with Gordon telling him the situation, even before, aware of the possible consecuences for Gotham people Jeremiah decided to stay, not like he cares on some few people suffering. Yeah, he didn't stop Jerome before and all, but in this case, was different cause Jer puted a conditional, he was the way to avoid mayhem.

Game's over, maybe he can try to kill Jerome next time.

Until Jeremiah Valeska meets Batman-

Yes, I didn't writted that wrong. He met BATMAN.

In the conversation he had with Bruce, about hope and fight fear, Jeremiah realized that was something inside Bruce that was comparable to the darkness he felt every day of his life, so mysterious and profundently violent that was like watching to the abysm. As we know, Batman manifistated to Bruce some episodes ago before, doing the bond between the bat and the man more strong. Is BATMAN who with Jeremiah felt in love with, just that he can't determ a propial name to Bruce's madness so he just interprates it as Bruce himself, not so far of reality.

He feels fascnination at encontering someone not only intellectually similar, that share his own utterly unbeatable conviction for his goals, and even shared the same level of madness he hiddes, a level of madness not even Jerome got after all those years.

This is how his obsession begings.

When Jerome's followers kill the polices upside the buildings, Jeremiah just look up indifferently, he cares a shit on people dying around him, and just show anger when Jerome calls him.

When Jerome brings him up on stage and proceeds to tell everything he went through because of his lies, Jeremiah rolls his eyes, not caring about the damage he caused.

Even with the excuse that Jerome is telling it in a humorous way, reacting so indifferently to a horrible situation for which one himself is perhaps directly responsible is still quite inhumane.

When Jerome shows the knife to Jeremiah, despite briefly having doubts, he screams in anger and attempts to kill him on the spot, despite having failed, the desire was there.

He doesn't even care about Jerome's death. In fact he "wipes his tears" only after Jim Gordon watches him approach the corpse of his brother, indicate that his sadness was just an image he showed to Gordon in order to avoid any suspicious of his previously mentioned crazy tendencies. The most near to a dissapoinment feeling is perphaps that he couldn't kill him by his own terms.

After recieve Jerome's special gas, Jeremiah listens a recording of Jerome while the gas is making effect, Jerome confess that his days were numbered, and at Jeremiah hears this, he gives a delighted smile.

[afaims100arrowversefavs]

My 250 Favorite Arrowverse Episodes: Part 10: 25-1

Taken from „Arrow“, „The Flash“, „Supergirl“, „Legends of Tomorrow“, „Constantine“, „Black Lightning“, „Batwoman“, „Stargirl“ and Season 1-3 of „Superman & Lois“:

In honor of Seaosn 4 of "Superman & Lois" being the end of the Arrrowverse, the end of DCTV like we knew it and the end of The CW like we knew it, a final time before the final season all Seasons ends of all the 250 best Arrowverse Episodes (according to me):

I did include "Stargirl" this time, since it has as much connection as "Superman & Lois" to the rest of the Arrowverse, but One Hit Shows like "Gotham Knights" and "Naomi" (anyone still remember this one?) are not on this list, neither are Arrowverse unrelated DC shows:

25. Haunted (Arrow 4x5)

The One in which: John Constantine gives Sara her soul back.

74, Written by: Brian Ford Sullivan, Oscar Balderrama, Directed by: John Badham

 24. Kapishon (Arrow 5x17)

The One in which: Adrian breaks Oliver.

109, Written By: Brian Ford Sullivan, Emilo Ortega Aldrich,Directed By: Kevin Tancharoen

23. WVRDR_Error_100 Not Found (Legends of Tomorrow 7x3)

The One in which: Gideon’s memory is corrupted.

100, Written by: Phil Klemmer, Matthew Maala, Directed by: Caity Lotz

22. The Bottle Episode (Supergirl 5x10)

The One in which: There are multiple Brainys.

97, Written by: Derek Simon, Directed by: Tawnia McKiernan

21. Welcome to Earth-2/Escape from Earth-2 (The Flash 2x13-14)

The Ones in which: Barry and Cisco go to Earth-2.

36-37, 36: Written By: Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Katherine Walczak, Directed By: Millicent Shelton, 37: Written By: Aaron Helbing, Todd Helbing, David Kob, Directed By: J. J. Makaro

20. Out of Time (The Flash 1x15)

The One in which: A tidal wave hits.

15, Written By: Aaron Helbing, Todd Helbing, Directed By: Thor Freudenthal

19. Bizarros in a Bizarro World (Superman & Lois 2x10)

The One in which: We see what the other half lives like.

25, Written by: Brent Fletcher, Todd Helbing, Directed by: Louis Milito

18.  Starling City (Arrow 8x1)

The One in which: Oliver is back in Starling City.

161, Written by: Beth Schwartz und Marc Guggenheim, Directed by: James Bamford

17. Flash VS Arrow (The Flash 1x8)

The One in which: Oliver comes to Central City just in time for Barry to break bad.

8, Written By: Ben Sokoloswki,m Brooke Eikmeier, Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Directed By: Glen Winter

 16. Worlds Finest (Supergirl 1x18)

The One in which: The Flash lands on Supergirl’s earth.

18, Written by: Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Michael Grassi, Directed by: Nick Gomez

15. Myriad/Better Angles (Supergirl 1x19-20)

The Ones in which: Maxwell, Cat and Kara team up.

19/20, Written By: Yahling Chang, Caitlin Parrish; Ali Adler, Andrew Kreisberg, Robert Rovner, Jessica Queller Directed By: Adam Kane; Larry Teng

14. Camelot 3000 (Legends of Tomorrow 2x12)

The One in which: Ray becomes a knight of the round table.

28, Written by: Anderson Mackenzie, Directed by: Antonio Negret

13. Meet the Legends (Legends of Tomorrow 5x1)

The One in which: There is a documentary about the Legends.

69, Written by: Grainne Godfree, James Eagan, Directed by: Kevin Mock

12. Invasion! (Arrow 5x8)

The One in which: Every dream comes true.

100, Written by: Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim, Wendy Mericle, Directed by: James Bamford

11. Raiders of the Lost Art (Legends of Tomorrow 2x9)

The One in which: Phil is very confused.

25, Written by: Keto Shimizu, Chris Fedak, Directed by: Dermott Downs

10. Beebo the God of War (Legends of Tomorrow 3x9)

The One in which: The blue god is hungry.

42, Written by: Grainne Goodfree und James Eagan, Directed by: Kevin Mock

9. Elseworlds 1-3

The Ones in which: Oliver and Barry switch idenities and meet Batwoman.

Part 1: The Flash Episode 5.9/101, Written By: Eric Wallace und Sam Chalsen, Directed By: Kevin Tancharoen und Tom Cavanagh, Part 2: Arrow Episode 7.9/147,  Written by: Marc Guggenheim und Caroline Dries, Directed by: James Bamford, Part 3: Supergirl Episode 4.9/74, Written by: Mac Guggenheim, Derek Simon und Rob Rovner, Directed by: Jesse Warn

8. Legends of To-Meow-Meow (Legends of Tomorrow 4x8)

The One in which: John and Charlie break time. More than once.

59, Written by: James Eagan und Ray Utarnachitt, Directed by: Ben Bray

7. The Scientist/Three Ghosts (Arrow 2x8-9)

The Ones in which: Barry Allen comes to Starling City.

31/32 Written by: Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Geoff Johns, Ben Sokolowski, Directed by: Michael Schultz, John Behring

6. Resist/Nevertheless she Persisted (Supergirl 2.21-22)

The Ones in which: Cat returns just in time for an invasion.

41/42, Written by: Derek Simon, Jessica Queller, Andrew Kreisberg, Robert Rovner, Caitlin Parrish, Directed by: Milicent Shelton, Glen Winter

5. Reset (Arrow 8x6)

The One in which: Oliver has to watch Quentin die a lot.

166, Written by: Onalee Hunter Hughes und Maya Houston, Directed by: David Ramsey

4. Fast Enough (The Flash 1x23)

The One in which: Barry makes a decision.

23, Written By: Greg Berlanti, Andrew Kreisberg, Gabrielle Stanton, Directed By: Dermott Downs

3. The Faithful (Supergirl 3x4)

The One in which: Supergirl learns there is cult that sees her as a goodess.

46, Written By: Paula Yoo, Katie Rose Rogers, Directed by: Jesse Warn

2. Duet (The Flash 3x17)

The One in which: There is a Crossover Muscial.

63, Written By: Aaron Helbing, Todd Helbing, Greg Berlani, Andrew Kreisberg, Directed By: Dermott Daniels Downs

The One Where We're trapped on TV (Legends of Tomorrow 5x13)

The One in which: Charlie put the Legends in our TV.

81, Written by: Grainne Godfree, James Eagan, Directed by: Marc Guggenheim

[always-outlander]

The Outlander 31 Day Challenge: Day 1

Shoutout to @gotham-ruaidh

Day 1: Favorite Season 1-3 Episode:

For me it would have to be episode 12, “Lallybroch”

Season 1 in so many ways is my comfort season, but this episode in particular provided so much. These two had been working towards this moment, and finding this place and time of peace since we first met them in episode one. To finally reach this one goal of theirs together was a monumental moment in their relationship.

And even though it is short lived, this glimpse into what their life here is like and could be is such a much needed pause in the larger story of their lives. Jamie and Claire love each other deeply at this point, but do not verbalize it until this episode. They have shown their love with their actions and commitment, but to hear the words spoken between them was so beautiful to watch.

For Jamie, this episode is paramount. This place shaped who he is entirely. He was raised here yes, but he carry’s the weight of his home and the people who inhabit it with him daily. The loss of his father was profoundly significant to everyone at Lallybroch and in his family. Jamie feels guilty for his fathers death, remorse that he was unable to see him buried or mourn him properly. Ashamed that he has been unable to return home and live there as the proud son and laird he was destined to become. To bring Claire home to Lallybroch was his singular goal since he met her. To give her a simple life that he longed for, in the place he longs for. He made her ring from his key because it is the only thing he can offer her. Lallybroch will always be home for him, but sharing it with Claire? That would make him whole. But as we see in this episode, it is because Jamie is unable to stay and become Laird, that the weight of the household falls on Ian and Jenny.

Jenny Fraser might be one of my favorite characters in the series, and this episode she truly shines. She proves her mettle in more ways than one, and exposes Jamie’s weak points in subtle but effective ways. She has held their home and family together without him, created a family of her own, and has loved and supported Jamie from afar in her own way. The two siblings deeply love one another, and their stubborn natures are what make their dynamics so fiery and intense at times. But at the end of the day, you can see parts of each other reflected in both of them. Jamie was so young when his mother passed, when Jenny was attacked, when his father died. They both had to grow up earlier than what was fair. Because of that, they have taken different approaches to their healing. Jenny has taken on responsibilities Jamie is both unaware of and disinterested in. He believes that he is able to step into the role of Laird with ease, and Jenny makes sure to point out that being a Laird is more than a title. She teaches Jamie so much in this one episode, and makes an immeasurable impact on Claire.

Claire says it herself in this episode, that being at Lallybroch makes her feel like she actually might belong there. “There” can mean many things; there, in that house with Jamie, Jenny and Ian. Or there, in that time period, back 200 years in the past…with Jamie. She is happy and contented and in love. It’s the first episode that we as viewers see and know without a doubt that her love for Jamie is real and worth it to her. And it’s also when we see her allow other people close to her and Jamie to imprint on her, particularly Jenny. She never had a sister, she never had a family beyond her uncle. These people are wary at first, but you can see in this episode that they are willing to accept her and will love her, and she loves them. Claire’s first true introduction of her new, accepted life in the past takes place in this episode. She looks around and knows she will be happy to stay here, with Jamie and his family. By the end of the episode we know that they are once again thrust into danger, but for now it’s a much needed moment of reprieve.

Ian Murray is hugely important in this episode, and makes a palpable impact on the viewer and Claire. He’s the first person who can give Claire and the viewer insight into Jamie’s life before we first see him in the opening episode. He was with him in France, he was Jamie’s closest childhood friend, and he represents the life Jamie would be living had he not become an outlaw. I think we see that in some ways Jamie looks at Ian and pity’s the simple life he leads (while recognizing a lot of that has to do with his leg). Jamie craves a life of adventure and enjoys the mischief and excitement of being an outlaw. But Ian shows Jamie what a contented life with the woman you love looks like. With kids, with a home and community around you. Now that Jamie has Claire, his whole world has changed. He can envision a life with kids, and we see how heartbroken he is when Claire reveals she cannot provide them with that life he’s spent the episode envisioning. Ian also is the window into Jenny for the viewers and for Claire. He softens Jenny’s personality and interprets her actions for her so that the viewers (and Claire) understand that despite her stubborn exterior, she has a heart of gold just like her brother. She’s a fighter, and she is fierce. Ian is the anchor for both of the Frasers, it seems. His impact was huge in this one episode. It also serves a duel purpose, because when we eventually meet young Ian, we can understand his character due in large part to understanding who his father is.

This little home is the cornerstone of this show in many ways, and this episode always makes me smile when I watch it. It might not be the most action packed, or have the most important moments in regards to moving the plot along, but in many ways it is the real turning point of the story. A break amongst the cruel realities that plague this couple, and a window into the souls of some of our favorite characters, especially Jamie.

[fanfic-the-wish-your-heart-makes]

Chapter 2 of Revenge Can Hurt More Than the Person It's Aimed at - An Angsty Nygmobblepot x Reader Hurt/Comfort Fix-it Fic

Chapter 2: Comfort Before the Interview

<-Previous Chapter

Word count: 2996

Chapter summary: The next day, you try to be there for Oswald on the day of his big interview.

Warnings: canon betrayal (including gaslighting & intimidation) & poor mental state, a lot of angst (Oswald feeling miserable, fear of abandonment)

_____________________________________

Wow, I actually made a second picture just for this story?!

_____________________________________

The next morning there were no less than fourteen missed calls from Oswald on your phone but you couldn't reach his phone or landline.

You texted him, What is it,Oswald? Are you ok? and got dressed quickly.

When he finally called back, you immediately asked what was wrong.

He was incredibly anxious and hesitant, "It-it's nothing more than nerves. I've got that big interview today. You know the one. P-plus, I accidentally hit the button a few times when my hands were jittery. Silly me, haha. They still do that sometimes, out of Arkham or not." Oswald paused to catch his breath, "I-I would still greatly appreciate your presence, of course." He laughed with a shaky edge, and you instantly recognized the hidden desperation in it.

You mentally said your goodbye to the idea of finally seeing Ed again today.

I'm so sorry, something has come up. you wrote, then decided to add a little something to make Ed think about breaking off contact with Oswald:

Oswald really needs me. He hasn't been feeling well since you left. I hope we can talk about it.

_________________

Ed left his phone in the car. Right now he had a mayor's reputation to damage. And what better way than to let him damage it himself?

_________________

Since Oswald was almost running late, the car he sent drove you directly to City Hall.

On your way there, you kept checking your telephone but Ed hadn't responded yet.

Well, if he hasn't seen my message, maybe he doesn't have time after all.

Trying to distract yourself, you looked outside through the darkened windows and saw that you were arriving.

You quickly left the car, and marveled at the pleasant breeze of fresh air and the chirping of birds. The sun was even shining and bringing such a welcome warmth onto the streets of Gotham that you craned your neck to bask in it for a moment after looking for Oswald. He wasn't outside but he must have noticed today's wheather too, the completely unclouded blue sky. You smiled. Maybe it would cheer him up.

It was a beautiful day...counting only the weather.

You treaded to the entrance. As soon as you saw Oswald, your smile disappeared.

He looked terrible.

His head hung low as if he wanted to confront nothing but the floor, he was slouching and clinging to his cane, leaning to the side, dangerously close to tilting over.

Your footsteps made him jerk and look up with wide eyes. He called your name repeatedly, his voice hoarse and just as shaky as the rest of him.

"Oswald!" You approached him quickly so that he wouldn't have to walk over, and he welcomed you with open arms and hugged you firmly, indulging in your touch. His hands padded over your back, thankful for your presence.

"I'd say I missed you", you murmered close to his head, "but that might be a little over the top since we've only seen each other yesterday afternoon."

He didn't giggle as you'd hoped he would.

You pulled away, lightly tugged on his sleeve and whispered, "Do you want to talk before the interview?"

He nodded eagerly, already turning away from the woman who was trying to get his attention, "Remember, Mr. Cobblepot, in 20 minutes-" She tried to sound nice but it was clear how stressed she was, especially when he wavd her off.

"Don't worry", you told her with sympathy, "I'll make sure he's there on time."

You hurried after Oswald and followed him to a secluded corner.

"Why did you call me?" You looked him over again. His hair was spiked as usual, if possibly a little greasy, but it might just be styling gel.

He looked at you with tired eyes, "What? What did you say?"

"Why you called me so many times." You put a hand to his shoulder, knowing that it usually calmed him down. "You seemed a bit off on the phone."

"Oh." He gaped and looked at you with wide sad eyes. "I didn't mean to disturb you, it's just that..."

No, he'd sound crazy saying it. He didn't want you to leave him too.

"I-it..." He gestured helplessly and looked down.

It was a pitiful sight: his need for you not to see him as pathetic translated into a pleading expression that made you want to take his hands into yours and look down at them instead of into his watery eyes to make him feel less observed.

Oswald's balled fists almost disappeared in his blazer, relaxing when he became aware of you looking at them.

When you touched the tips of his fingers probingly, he responded by tucking up his sleeves to give you more access, so you stroked over his hands soothingly, spotting bits of polish still clinging to his nails, as if he had forgotten about redoing them or removing the coat. This really wasn't his day, his week, really.

"You can tell me anything."

Oswald was looking down at your joined hands. Tell you? No, he decided. He had already told Ed that he loved him, and it had cost him their friendship.

Maybe what he should have done is confess to you both before that damned blonde woman whose name he still refused to pronounce correctly had-

"Ozzie?"

He came back to reality and noticed that he was clutching your hand too tightly.

"Sorry! Uh, I didn't mean to! I, uh..." He took his hands away but you caught them and gently brought them into yours again, "It's okay. Do you want to talk about it later?"

He shook his head. "It was just a nightmare. A very bad one."He sniffed and you searched in your pocket for a tissue and handed it to him. "What did you dream about? Only if you want to tell me, of course."

Oswald shook his head. "It doesn't matter. It just felt very real."

Perhaps that was the best way to put it. He was almost completely sure that he had seen the ghost of his father. There had been ghosts in the mansion before, Charles had told him so himself, so it wasn't too unrealistic that his own father appeared to Oswald, right? But if he had, who was the Birthday Boy? He had too many questions!

"Oswald?"

"Hm-what?" He had been absent again, hadn't he?

"Is something else bothering you? You can tell me. Whatever it's about. If you don't want to tell me the details, just tell me the core of what's concerning you, okay? You can also tell me all the details if you want to."

Tell you everything? Oswald wanted to cry and laugh at the same time.

Ed told me he wanted us to be more than friends, and for a moment I had the hope that he loved you too and that we could all be together forever, so I confessed but then he said it was all a misunderstanding, and now he's gone and I'm seeing ghosts. You ask me what's wrong but if I tell you about my father, you might see me as a madman and leave too, but if I tell you about Ed, I'll have to confess that I love you or else you'll think that I only love him. If I confess however, I will destroy the last shred of hope left in me!

"Oswald? It pains me to see you unhappy. I-I love you, you can trust me with anything."

'I love you' brought him out of the sea of unsaid words, "I-I love you too."

His words and expression full of honesty touched your heart.

He may never confess his love to you but at least you knew that he loved you as a friend.

In return he'd hear you say that you loved him too.

At this point you doubted whether you'd ever tell him. Thoughts raced through your head: you were well aware that he had no one else like you. Not since Ed left.

While Oswald wouldn't disdain you if your love wasn't reciprocated, in his current state he might think that you were only such a good friend because you wanted to make him fall for you.

You couldn't let that happen. You loved him and if supporting him meant not getting to find out whether your love was reciprocatdd, you'd keep it a secret. Maybe Ed would come back-no. If Ed came back and you confessed that you loved them both, he might distance himself from Oswald again.

Your attention was pulled to Oswald's hunched form, "I'm sorry, y-you shouldn't suffer because of me. It's...It's my father...a-and my mother, I miss them so much...", his eyes filled with more water, "and my duties as mayor, as well as the pending interview with such a famous figure, it's all just...I'm overwhelmed. I-" Tears fell down. "I don't know how to continue..." He looked down again, shaken in a bent position, and you gently padded his back and put your other hand on his arm.

"I'm here. I will support you", you said, soon feeling Oswald pressing into your body.

"Nhths mmnt", he muttered into your clothes.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing is permanent." He pulled back to look at you. "Everyone leaves me or dies a gruesome death eventually!"

This was Gotham. Betrayal and death were everyday occurrences.

"I won't leave you", you said, immediately regretting the stress on "I". You wouldn't ask him about Ed today, but eventually you'd have to ask.

"I'll stay by your side."

He stared at you with big eyes.

"And Oswald?"

"Yes?" He had stopped crying.

"Your parents would be proud of you. You're the mayor. Not just the way Aubrey James used to be, no, you've actually improved Gotham a lot! Not to mention how well you treat your friends."

There. You shouldn't have reminded him of Ed. His eyes were already watering again! Seeing them filled with tears of despair was heartbreaking.

"I love to be in your company," not a love confession but you wanted him to hear the word love again, "you care for those close to you and clearly do everything in your power to keep them happy", it was true: he had given Ed and you many a thoughtful gift, "and not to forget, your hugs are amazing!" You smiled. They really were.

"You have done so many things right and you're capable of continuing to do so. Maybe you don't know how to continue: so what? You're in a difficult position. Was mayor James the King of Gotham as well? No. Just being mayor is a huge responsibility on its own, don't forget that, Oswald. You're doing so much already."

You looked at him expectantly, searching his face for a sign of agreement.

His normally sharp hair streaks looked more greasy than styled today and dark make-up had gathered under his eyes, giving the normally fabulous-looking Penguin panda eyes.

"Ozzie?"

"What, d-yes?" He looked at you frightened. Did you know that he had just been about to call you "dear"? Perhaps you knew and didn't want to ask. Maybe you were like Ed. Uninterested.

"You...you asked for a next step. How about you go freshen up your make-up? Clear it up and wash the tears away? They smudged it a bit."

Honestly, you doubted whether all that had been smeared today, a part of it had already been smudged when you had welcomed him a few minutes ago.

"Looking better will give you more confidence for the interview. But in any case: don't worry, you've got this."

You looked him over to find something to compliment and your eyes landed on his purple tie with light blue flowers.

"Oh, and by the way: nice tie." You smoothed down his shirt collar a little, trying to make it look like mere gesturing. "Your fashion never disappoints." It was true. Not only was he a very handsome man but a well-dressed one.

When you saw that though he was no longer crying, he still looked sad, you squeezed his hand one last time and noted relieved that at least his hands were clean.

"Do you want me to wait here?"

Oswald lifted his head and attempted a smile, "No thank you, that's not necessary. You will be there for the interview though, won't you? It would be nice to have you there." This time his smile was more convincing.

"Of course I will be. Being with you is nice too."

Oswald's face lit up. He made sure to give you a smile, then went towards the staff's bathrooms.

_________________

While Oswald was away you found a quiet corner on the floor the interview would take place in.

Figuring that you owed Ed more of an explanation, you opened your telephone and typed:

Hopefully you don't think I'm ditching you for Oswald. I just had to be there for him, this day is extremely important. He has an interview with Margaret Hearst, can you believe that?

I hope we can still meet :) When do you have time to spare? Just a quick heads-up: I don't know how the interview will go and if it doesn't Oswald, might need someone to be there for him, and well, we know how much trust he puts in other people, right xD?

Thinking about those last two letters brought back memories of a happier time. If Oswald wasn't so troubled today, you might've even smiled. Now you were frowning.

"What does 'xD' stand for?" Ed had asked you one day.

"Oh, it's for laughing", you had explained, "The 'D' is the mouth."

"And the 'x' for...?"

"For when you laugh so hard you close your eyes."

"Who laughs like that?" Ed didn't have many experiences with making people laugh. At him, yes, but not because of his jokes. "I mean who would think closed eyes are more probably than open ones and make the eyes, say...a colon?"

"Probably people outside of Gotham. Trust is hard to find here."

Ed had laughed at that.

The memory dissolved your frown. It was a very happy one.

On that same evening, Ed had made a hilarious comment and you and Oswald guffawed, the latter's eyes flitting between Ed's and yours, saying that anymore laughing and he'd land on the floor all helpless.

Then someone important called and Oswald tried to calm down and closed his eyes to distract himself, giggling for a good minute.

Ed and you shared wide knowing smiles. Oswald trusted you both, trusted you enough to show his true emotions in front of you, to laugh so hard he almost fell to the floor, and to close his eyes, fully trusting you not to stab him.

In another city it might have sounded like little but in Gotham it more than a lot of people could say. It had been everything until something had happened. Only a very bad thing could have disunited the two. The thought made your muscles tense.

You checked the time: Oswald would have to hurry, he only had about eight minutes left. Margaret Hearst was already getting angry.

She was acting as if her time was more precious than his. A huff escaped you. As if the hard-working mayor of Gotham owed her his full attention, as if he didn't already have enough stress in his life. She knew nothing about him!

Oswald had fought hard for his place, lost and rebuilt it. He lost his mother and continued to believe in the power of love, ignoring what Ed had initially said: that love was a weekness for people like Oswald and him.

This made you think again: after meeting Oswald and you, Ed hadn't mentioned this opinion on love again. On the contrary: he had used Oswald's mother to motivate the kingpin frequently, and thrived in the time you three had spent together, at least until Isabella's death.

You looked at Ed's name on your phone, imagining how he felt now that his second chance at love had died. Maybe that was the reason he hadn't texted back yet.

Suddenly you became aware of a familiar walking pattern. Oswald was back, walking over quicker than he had before.

You figured you shouldn't distract him with the notion of Ed, so you quickly shut the phone and gave him your full attention.

He had wiped off most of the smudged mascara and wasn't as bent over anymore.

"Hey, you look good! How are you feeling?"

Oswald stepped closer, "Better, thank you. You look good too, by the way." Much better than him. He looked to the ground, then grew cold from shock. There were footsteps, muddy ones: like those of someone risen from their grave.

He tensed and tried not to make the change too obvious. He needed to investigate this on his own.

"What is it?" You tried to turn to look at the spot he was staring at but his frantic movements distracted you.

"I..uh, there-being here isn't, uh...I need to..." His voice wavered, "I still have a few minutes left, right?"

"Y-yeah, six. Should I accompany-"

"-no!" He gaped at you, shocked at the mere idea of it, then  "No," now less panicky, but avoiding your eyes, "that won't be necessary. I need...There's something that needs to be done." He hurried off.

You frowned letting him go, but stopping him would only compromise his timetable. Instead of going after him, you went around the room to check that everything was as comfortable as it could be for him: a chair at the right height, artificial lighting not too warm, you even put a new glass of water on the table next to his chair just in case it was poisoned.

It seemed like everything was ready for a good interview.

Until you he returned and you saw how feeble he looked. _____________________________________

Author's note: Me, nearly crying: I want Ozzie to have comfort in this episode but for that there needs to be hurt 😢😭

Let me know if you want to be tagged in this series 😙

->next chapter (chapter 3)

[somereaderinblue]

The Batman (2004) Season 6

A/N: This is purely fanmade. I do not own The Batman (2004). I’m just a fan who wishes this underrated gem of a cartoon got another season.

Episode 1: Batgirl in Wonderland

Blonde girls are disappearing throughout Gotham. Determined to help, Batgirl volunteers to use herself as bait to lure out the kidnapper. Unfortunately, she finds herself going down a rabbit hole she might not come out of.

(Appearance: Mad Hatter)

Episode 2: What’s Darker than Vengeance? Fear

After Commissioner Gordon is injured on a botched raid, Batman begins to hallucinate his worst fears and falls into depression. Can the Dark Knight overcome his self-doubt before Gotham turns into a living nightmare?

(Appearance: Scarecrow) 

Episode 3: Game On

A seemingly reformed Riddler enters a partnership with Simon Stagg to develop advanced virtual-reality. Unfortunately, it’s a ploy to trap Gotham’s wealthiest and access their fortunes. Robin has to level up fast or it’s game over for Gotham’s Elite, including Bruce Wayne.

Episode 4: Cheshire’s Grin

Detective Yin returns as a dangerous assassin appears in Gotham. Her target? The Batman.

(Appearance: Cheshire)

Episode 5: Oh, Shiny!

With Batman still recovering from the attempt on his life, it’s up to Batgirl and Robin to get to the bottom of a series of jewelry heists across town.

(Appearance: Magpie)

Episode 6: Girl’s Day Out

Detective Yin is assigned to keep an eye on Harley after the former-Rogue is released on parole. Things get hairy when Poison Ivy is thrown into the mix. Yin has to think fast before this bad day ends in the worst way possible. 

Episode 7: Beyond Time

A daily checkup of the Watchtower’s systems takes an interesting turn when the Batfamily stumbles upon a teen in need of help. The kicker isn’t the time-travelling villain, but the fact that the teen is Batman too!

(Appearance: Chronos)

Episode 8: World’s Finest Mess

A glitch in Luthor’s latest invention causes Batman and Superman to swap bodies! Both caped crusaders have to juggle their new powers (or lack thereof) and new personas both in and out of the costume.

Episode 9: Take Your Best Shot

Batman teams up with Green Arrow and a mysterious woman named Talia to stop Count Vertigo. As if the count’s hypnosis isn’t bad enough, he’s guarded by an archer that rivals Green Arrow in skill but outmatches him in ruthlessness.

(Appearance: Talia al Ghul, Count Vertigo & Merlyn)

Episode 10: Zoilist

Bitter over the loss of his job, former police chief Angel Rojas forms his own ‘task force’ to clean the streets of Gotham. Unfortunately, his teammate, Deathstroke, has other plans.

(Appearance: Deathstroke)

Episode 11: The Man-Bats Strike!

An army of Man-Bats have invaded Gotham! Although reformed, Kirk Langstrom’s sudden disappearance causes many to point fingers. However, Batman believes there’s more to it than meets the eye.

(Appearance: Killer Croc & Terrible Trio)

Episodes 12 & 13 (season finale): The Demon’s Quest

When Barbara is kidnapped on campus & Robin disappears in the middle of patrol, Batman begins a fruitless search. At the same time, an old mentor appears in the Batcave to ask for help as his daughter, Talia has been abducted as well. Left with no leads, Batman forms an uneasy alliance with Ra’s al-Ghul.

[rewriting-thearrowverse]

Season 1 Arrow Rewrite Progress list

✅ Means already completed

❌ Not done or even started yet

📝 Currently writing

- Episode 1: Pilot (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 1: Pilot (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 2: Honor Thy Father (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 2: Honor Thy Father (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 3: Lone Gunman (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 3: Lone Gunman (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 4: An Innocent Man (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 4: An Innocent Man (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 5: Damaged (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 5: Damaged (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 6: Legacies (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 6: Legacies (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 7: Muse of Fire (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 7: Muse of Fire (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 8: Vendetta (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 8: Vendetta (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 9: Year's End (Part 1) ✅

- Episode 9: Year's End (Part 2) ✅

- Episode 10: Burned (Part 1) 📝

- Episode 10: Burned (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 11: Gotham Night Lights (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 11: Gotham Night Lights (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 12:  Trust but Verify (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 12: Trust But Verify (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 13: Vertigo (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 13: Vertigo (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 14: Betrayal (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 14: Betrayal (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 15: The Odyssey (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 15: The Odyssey (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 16: Dodger (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 16: Dodger (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 17: Dead to Rights (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 17: Dead to Rights (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 18: The Huntress Returns (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 18: The Huntress Returns (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 19: Salvation (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 19: Salvation (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 20: Unfinished Business (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 20: Unfinished Business (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 21: Home Invasion (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 21: Home Invasion (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 22: The Undertaking (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 22: The Undertaking (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 23: Darkness On The Edge of Town (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 23: Darkness On The Edge of Town (Part 2) ❌

- Episode 24: Sacrifice (Part 1) ❌

- Episode 24: Sacrifice (Part 2) ❌

[tankgotstuckinthecircusgate]

hii i wanna hear about your fav barbara momentss

(also hope you feel better soon <3)

ohhh i love this question sm !!! i actually have a lot of them. anyway here's the list in random order:

1. all barbara + montoya scenes in s1. they're so fucked up and i was amazed that there's canonical bisexual character in the show. also in love w Barbara smoking weed in Montoya's apartment. she was so real for this (not for weed but depression) 2. that little dialogue between Oz and Barbara, when Oz shows at Barbara's flat to see Gordon. like "Men 🙄" "Don't i know🤗" THESE LOSERS DESERVED TO BE BESTIESSSSS!!! 3. when she visits her parents and they ask her about Jim and Barbara answers that they're happy. for the love of god MY WOMAN IS B RO K EN!!!! i love her. also i love this strain between her and her parents. i wish we saw more of their interactions 4. of course. of fucking course: barbara's psychotherapy session w lee. GREATEST WLW SCENE EVER FILMED!!!

5. okay there's super fucked up scene i don't even remember episode or season (i think it was s3?) anyway. jim had massive hallucination and there was elevator and barbara was in elevator boy uniform AND FOR THE LOVE OF GOD I DIDN'T KNEW I NEED IT SO BADDDD. oh my god she looked awesome in this scene. also im in love with barbara being character who leads the mc through his consciousness. my girl was the narrative in this scene upd: i found screenshot of this scene!!! it's s3 ep7. i need to rewatch it. probably download and make edit. idk i love her sm here for no reason

6. scene where barbara shot butch at the end of s3. like this is literally peak of female rage and this is so cool that they show that barbara haven't forgot him for assaulting in s1. such a snake move from her. she was waiting this for so long. and she looked so satisfied w herself there. im prod of u girl🙏 7. everything related to her duo with Edward in s3. look at these sneaky pricks. i loved their duo so much i miss them (ofc i felt sorry for Oswald. but they had such chaotic bi swag it's amazing) "let's make gotham BEG" YASSSSSSSSSSSS YOU GO GIRL!!!

8. SCENE IN THE NARROWS. SCENE IN THE NARROWS. SCENE IN THE NARROWS. IN S4. dear god im eating this scene FOREVER. it makes me feel THINGS. im insane about Lee and Barbara's interaction here. Im insane about Lee here. Im insane about Barbara here. i love their transformation here. both character's and relationship (they almost handled conversation w/o mentioning Jim). also peak of romance. to me. (and kind of. "im a fool to want you" by frank sinatra vibes. to me) and. GREATEST WLW SCENE EVER FILMED N2!!!

9. "Barbara Queen! 🥰" scene. my girl slayed SO HARD. (also it took me to play m2 to understand what "capiche?" means lmao) look. look at her. she's a queen indeed

10. i posted this scene several days ago, anyway. jim visits barbara's club and shots smth, then tabitha raises a gun at him in return. and barbara's annoyed "seriously?" brings me so much joy lmao. she's so done with them

11. her arrival in s4. I LOVEEEEE HER SM IN S4 ITS INSANEEEE. i love everything about her. she's so cold. she looks gorgeus. she's depressed. she's my everything (my pfp speaks for itself lmao😭)

12. and when she visits Oswald in s4. i don't remember what happened in this scene but im talking bout this one:

i loooove how calm she is here. and how sassy oswald is she's observing things. she's calculating. i love her

13. of course. of courrrse: bride scene in s2. not to say that i like her in s2 much buuut. this is a certifed thompkean scene and barbara is obviously having psychotic & obsessive episode here and it's so interesting to watch

14. also i remembered scene in gcpd, i believe it was s2? anyway barbara comes to gcpd and calls jim and asks him "how do i look?" i love her outfit and that she beat up Jim after this. also i see parallels w virus!lee coming at gspd in s3. they're so girlfriends (i need to draw this au where they unite against jim ohgodddd) upd. i found someone's edit with this scene:

15. "this woman isabella. nygma said she was a librarian, right? who kills a librarian, i mean what's the motive?" and then she realizes oswald killed isabella. she looks SO HAPPY with herself. "you kn.. you know them!!! 😦😦😃😃" and i think she thought "omg bestie i've done the same thing to my ex!!!!" back then 16. scene in s5 "honey, im still amazing😌" IM IN LOVVVVVE WITH HER THERE. LIKE. OH MY HER VOICE SOUNDS SOOOOOO LOW AND KINDA HOARSELY. YOU CAN TAKE ME NOW. IM ON MY KNEES OH MY GOD. also she looks so good in red 17. s4: "did you guys ordered thai?" "no" "good, cause i don't have any" *shots everyone in the room* i love her being rough and cold sm ohhh 18. when she's entering arkham in s2 having lana del rey vibes. queen 19. also i love these scenes in s1 when she discovers that selina and ivy was living in her apartment. idk there's something so soft about that 20. "disco vampire haircut" of course. iconic scene 21. "remember me?" when Nygma n Barbara took mayor Aubrey hostage. she's so sassy 22. this certifed thompkean scene. ofc. girl youre not fucking normal

23. and this one from s5 which i still haven't watched BUUUT ughhh THEM. wives.

there's more but im tired lmao. anyway i think i love almost every scene w her (except for s2. idk idk her psychotic episode portrayed a lil bit too cartoonish i think? idk this shit is actually way more scary in real life. also highly sexualized relationships w tabitha. i mean its ok if they had mostly sexual relationship and i aprecciate this as aro but y know. it could be portrayed way mooore elegant and subtle. or rough, doesn't matter) and THANK YOU SO MUCH for this ask. she's my comfort character and it's always nice to think about her😫😫💞💞💥💥 and i hope you're doing well too!!! actually thank you for this ask once again thinking bout her made me feel better lmao 😭😭😭

[wanderingmind867]

These are some of my ideas for a possible season five of the Batman (1966) tv series. I already shared my post with ideas for season four of the tv show. So now i felt it's only fair to try and share all the stuff i had written down here. I think I really took inspiration from some post online where I read about how the League of Assassins was nearly in the Batman '66 comic book. And so that led to me taking Batman in the direction of some sort of spy adventure series for a while. I did manage to work in Man Bat though, so that's a positive for me.

Season 5: Season Five is almost all about Batman on his own. Robin and Batgirl make cameos occasionally, but Batman is now the leading star. Since Madge Blake would definitely be dead by Season 5, I'd have Aunt Harriet be written out too, and I'd replace her with Leslie Thompkins. I know this would all be a comic or animated show if adapted now, but I still want to have some small amount of realism.

This season would be split into two halves, just like the last season. Part One involves the first 30-40 episodes, and it focuses on the League of Assassins. It takes Batman all across the globe, playing the role of international man of mystery. And Part Two (which involves the last 30 or so episodes) focuses more on Batman back in Gotham. The show would get a bit more back to its lighthearted roots, but there'd still be elements of deep drama to the storytelling.

Episodes 1 and 2: Batman (now dealing with the loss of Robin, who left for University) ends up having to face off against The Riddler all alone. In a parallel to how season one of show opened with a dramatic episode involving The Riddler, this episode would reuse that theming to try and show the new direction the show would be taking.

Episodes 3 and 4: Batman deals with The Archer, an old villian who tried to act like a modern day Robin Hood. Now he's gotten even more blatant with his thefts, and he tries to rob Wayne Manor of all it's valuables (since he learned the Manor had less occupants since Dick Grayson and his Aunt left). Batman still manages to stop him, but The Archer really puts up a strong challenge.

Episode 5: Shortly after dealing with The Riddler and The Archer, Batman ends up running into Man Bat for the very first time. It's very much a one for one retelling of Man Bat's first comic story, including the fact that Man Bat escapes Batman's clutches at the very last moment.

Episodes 6 and 7: Batman runs into The Penguin and Egghead, both of whom are competing to steal different rare bird and/or egg themed objects. Batman goes out on the hunt for both of them, and he does eventually manage to capture them. But batman never even realized that these villians had more to their rivalry than just wanting the same objects. No, they were competing for the rights to join the League of Assassins, a prestigious criminal guild looking to expand it's tendrils into Gotham. Lola Lasagne was the one who came to them with the proposal, and she was using them as pawns in the league's schemes. Since she escaped punishment here, she'll be back to menace Batman some other time.

Episode 8: Batman encounters Man Bat again, and this time finally managed to subdue him. But is this really the end of the Man Bat story? Not quite, as there's one more part. But we won't get to see that part until after one more story, sad to say.

Episodes 9, 10 and 11: Batman runs into The Scarecrow, who's looking to break into a science lab to expand the power range of his fear toxin. Batman is too late to stop him, as The Scarecrow successfully tests the fear toxin on him. That's why this is a three parter, by the way. It's because part two is just one long flashback, finally introducing us to all the core events in Bruce Wayne's past. Losing his parents, being raised by his Uncle Phillip, deciding to become batman, etc. But in the end, Batman still manages to defeat Scarecrow.

Episode 12: The conclusion to the long Man Bat saga, wherein Batman has to cure both Kirk Langstrom and his wife Francine of their Bat transformations and mental afflictions. By crashing their wedding, Batman successfully manages to get to them in time to save them from themselves.

Episodes 13 and 14: The Cluemaster and Marsha, Queen of Diamonds team up to commit a series of deadly crimes involving magic and puzzling clues. Batman is almost defeated and killed by this mad team, but he eventually manages to capture them. And once he has them in custody, he learns that they were brought together by the League of Assassins, who had many agents and allies in the Gotham area. Marsha and Cluemaster refuse to rat on their allies, besides giving Batman a clue to investigate in London.

Episode 15: Batman takes off on an cruise to London, little dreaming that Catwoman (Julie Newmar) is also on the boat, planning to hold it for ransom. Her and Batman end up getting in a scuffle over it, but by the time their fight is over, the boat has been utterly ruined. So Batman sends her to jail, and then prepares to take a flight to London instead of a cruise.

Episode 16: With Batman leaving for London, someone has to guard Gotham. So Robin and Batgirl return to Gotham to guard it while Batman is away. While in Gotham, they end up having to deal with both The Joker and The Bookworm, who are competing to steal a rare copy of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, which has recently been acquired by a famous antiquarian living in Gotham.

Episodes 17 and 18: Arriving in London, Batman ends up fighting off against some old enemies of his: Lord Marmaduke Ffogg and Lady Penelope Peasoup. It turns out that they're the ones responsible for testing Cluemaster and Marsha to see if they were worthy to join the League. But before Batman can get to them, they distract him by sending The Puzzler (yet another of the league's operatives) to bait him into a trap.

The Puzzler leads Batman to a castle near Loch Ness, where him and another of the league's operatives, the young socialite known as Lady Ophelia Keswick bait Batman into a trap involving illusions and drugged food. Batman manages to escape from their trap in the castle dungeons, but he's too late to capture Lord Ffogg and Lady Peasoup. They escaped. But at least Batman can take The Puzzler and Lady Keswick to Scotland Yard. Then it's back to the United States, where Batman has to await news of the League's activities.

Episodes 19 and 20: Batman returns to Gotham City, only to find it's now been taken over by the combined forces of Nora Clavicle, Poison Ivy and The Siren. Turns out Nora Clavicle was an agent of the League too, and now she's planning an extra special trap for Batman and his allies. Locking him in jail and manipulating most of the city's women, it ends up falling on Batgirl and Batwoman's soldiers to save the day and rescue Gotham from the evils of these three villainesses.

Episodes 21 and 22: Robin comes to visit Batman (since he's gotten a two week break from university), and he shows up just in time to help Batman defeat Two Face and his newest scheme to cleave gotham in two (so everything is going to be deformed, like him).

Episode 23 and 24: Lola Lasagne is back, and this time she's gotten Catman to do her will. She's persuaded him that killing Batman would be the perfect way for him to get into the League of Assassins, and the League would be glad to let him continue his illicit big game hunting. So Catman gets involved, and ends up going after Batman, Robin and Catwoman. This is when Batman finally tells Robin about The League of Assassins. After this adventure, Robin goes back to University, leaving Batman alone once again in Gotham.

Episode 25: Batman and Man-Bat end up teaming up to defeat the Getaway Genius (who's broken off from Killer Moth since we last saw him). Only through their combined skills do Batman and Man-Bat manage to bring this crook to justice.

Episodes 26 and 27: Batman has finally found an informant willing to reveal the whereabouts of Lord Marmaduke Ffogg and Lady Penelope Peasoup to him, but just as he gets the info his informant is killed. Now Batman has to stop the last, seemingly desperate scheme of the League of Assassins: Sending Deadshot (one of the world's best hired assassins) out to challenge him. But Batman still defeats him, and then he heads off for Europe to find Lord Ffogg.

Episodes 28, 29 and 30: Batman heads to a small country nestled in the Balkans, where he finally manages to confront Lord Ffogg and Lady Peasoup. But before he can defeat them, they reveal their new ally in the form of Doctor Cassandra Spellcraft and her husband, Cabala. Yes, these two old foes of Batman were also members of the League of Assassins, and Batman has walked right into their trap!

Now trapped in a dungeon, unmasked and at the league's mercy, Batman ends up meeting Talia al Ghul (played by Sophia Loren), daughter of Ra's al Ghul, the head of The League. Teaming up with her, the two of them successfully manage to escape from the dungeon and confront our four antagonists. But in the middle of the scuffle, Lord Ffogg attacks Talia with a blade. And in retaliation, Talia shoots Lord Ffogg in cold blood.

After Batman comforts her for a little while, Talia leaves without a word. She leaves Batman to report Lord Ffogg's death, and to get the other three criminals to jail safely. But now that Batman has made himself known to the highest echelons of this secret society, it's only a matter of time before their leader comes looking for him…

[philosopherking1887]

since you finished Gotham, the people must know... what did you think of sid's character in it

Much like his character on Game of Thrones: tragically, even criminally under-utilized. Siddig was in the credits for all of season 4, but he was only actually in half of the episodes, and many of those appearances were very brief, and/or in the form of other people's hallucinations rather than the actual character. I don't know that much about the Batman mythos, but my sense is that Ra's al Ghul is kind of a big deal? So it seems weird to introduce him and cast a really great (and hot) actor in the role and then keep him off-screen most of the time.

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT (in case anyone out there might watch the show and cares about spoilers...)

They did this weird thing where he was in the last two episodes of season 3 (briefly) and then first few episodes of season 4, then he gets (apparently) killed in episode 5 and only appears in flashbacks or hallucinations a couple times, until his crazy followers bring him back to life in episode 19. At first he comes back as a creepy skeleton-zombie thing hidden under a hooded cloak, but fortunately he gets de-zombified partway through the episode (so we get to actually see Sid as well as hearing his voice). Then most of the remaining 3 episodes are taken up with thwarting the evil plans of the second proto-Joker character (there are twin brothers... it's pretty baroque). Sid isn't in episode 20 at all, pops up very briefly toward the end of 4.21 to ally himself with the Joker, then has a little more presence in 4.22 (the season finale), but gets definitively killed -- as in, crumbles into ash and disappears -- 2/3 of the way through the episode.

In all of seasons 2-4 -- which are the mature, complete seasons; in season 1 they were still figuring out the format, and season 5 was a half-season with only 12 episodes -- Gotham almost always has multiple storylines and major antagonists. In fact, they started naming the story arcs in season 2, with each of seasons 2 and 3 divided into two distinct but semi-continuous arcs, each with a different main antagonist. Season 4 is named as a single arc ("A Dark Knight"), but there are a lot of separate strands, some of which aren't connected at all. Ra's al Ghul is one of the main antagonists at the beginning of season 4, but he's also kind of a spillover from the second half of season 3, when we find out that the Court of Owls (the sinister group that controls Gotham) is in turn controlled by the League of Shadows, led by Ra's al Ghul. His obsession with Bruce Wayne, who he thinks is his heir, carries over into early season 4, but then Bruce (apparently/temporarily) kills him 5 episodes in, which leads into a character arc where baby Bruce temporarily turns into the dissolute asshole playboy that he'll pretend to be as cover when he's an adult moonlighting as Batman.

This is happening at the same time that Jim Gordon has brought Carmine Falcone's daughter, Sofia, back to Gotham to try to wrest control of the criminal underworld away from Penguin. That storyline is the main one until it wraps up in 4.15, and has no intersection at all with the Ra's al Ghul stuff, or indeed with anything that Bruce is involved in, which includes some weird shit with Poison Ivy killing people with magic plants. It's unusual for two major, partly simultaneous storylines in a season to be so completely isolated from each other, and I think that's part of why season 4 feels so messy and all over the place -- it's trying to pack in too much stuff that doesn't fit together neatly, if at all, and doesn't quite keep track of it all or manage to wrap it all up in a satisfying way. If they had figured out a way to integrate the competing storylines, they might have been able to give Sid a more substantial role. I personally consider it a tragedy that he never really got to interact with Penguin, as played brilliantly by Robin Lord Taylor... though I suppose they do exist in two very different parts of the Batman world: Ra's al Ghul lives in the mystical, magical, unfortunately Orientalist world of secret ninja societies and Lazarus Water that resurrects people and makes them immortal; while Penguin lives in the largely mundane world of organized crime, inhabited by some oddball characters but generally non-magical.

Writing this (unnecessarily long) answer made me think more about the narrative structure of Gotham, and it occurred to me that Bruce almost never interacts with Penguin, which is kind of odd considering that Penguin is being established as one of Batman's future antagonists, as well as an occasional source of information. In season 1, Gordon and Oswald/Penguin are decidedly the show's deuteragonists, and Bruce is more of a side character, but in later seasons it can be envisioned as a triangle missing a side (like this symbol: ^ ), where Jim Gordon is the central 'hinge' character, whose storylines connect with both those of Bruce on one side and Oswald on the other, but their storylines are running on parallel tracks, linked only by Gordon and/or the current main antagonist.