Gotham recap: Season 5, Episode 11, “They Did What?” Aired April 18, 2019
In case you’ve forgotten where Gotham left us four weeks ago, pretty much everything was in terrible shape. The city of Gotham was under attack by the Army, led by Bane and Nyssa al Ghul. Alfred was left in critical condition after getting absolutely crushed by Bane. Oh, and Nyssa kidnapped Barbara and her baby.
It’s not new for things to look bleak for Gotham. Despite everything that went down, will the city be able to survive?
“For Gotham!”
An army of 30ish men and women made of refugees and GCPD versus an actual army of 700 led by Bane – I don’t like Gotham’s odds. Still, Jim Gordon led his loyal Gothamites, including Harvey, Bruce, Penguin, and Ed Nygma into battle. Some unlikely soldiers there, but I suppose there is something to be said for unwavering appreciation of one’s city.
In the end, when it looked like it was all over for Gotham, nearly the entire city’s population joined the fight against Bane, standing with Jim and his ever-smaller front line. With the entire city defending Gotham, the Army reconsidered their alliance to Bane, and the battle was won – for Gotham!
“There’s no other way”
Bruce did some fast thinking when Bane and his army made serious headway toward infiltrating the Green Zone. Jeremiah’s bomb was turned into a battery to power Gotham when the bridge fell, but by reversing it back to a bomb, Bruce figured strategic destruction could cut off the oncoming Army. The ideal placement of the bomb: Wayne Enterprises.
With Wayne Manor already gone, this action represented Bruce sacrificing everything for Gotham City, just like his parents.
“They did what?”
The title for Gotham 5×11 came from Nyssa in response to Bruce’s successful halting of the Army by collapsing Wayne Enterprises. That’s not where I expected that question to come in, but I think it worked.
Jim left his ragtag group of fighters to defend the Green Zone as he headed to City Hall to save Barbara and their child. When he got there, Nyssa was all too happy to show off her mad fighting skills. I suppose I shouldn’t have been so impressed. She is an al Ghul after all. However, despite her incredible fight, Jim and Barbara worked together to free themselves and stab Nyssa in the same way her father was stabbed.
Even stabbed by the same dagger as her father, Nyssa did not give up. She was determined to watch her legacy play out – the burning of Gotham. Unfortunately for her, Gotham didn’t burn. Fortunately for her, she stole Nygma and Penguin’s submarine and escaped. She’s still out there somewhere.
“It’s time for me to defend Gotham”
A Wayne cloaking device that accidentally acts as a beacon for bats – I see where this is going!
At the end of the episode, Bruce left Gotham, realizing that everything that’s happened was his fault. Before he left, he and Alfred had a heart-to-heart that had me tearing up.
Meanwhile, Ed Nygma is no more, as he fully embraced The Riddler. With a harsh talk to Penguin, the two created a pact against new Commissioner Jim Gordon and the citizens of Gotham. Most of the city celebrated Bane’s defeat and welcomed the rebuilding of Gotham, but these two intend to take the city for their own.
Also, just as almost everyone predicted, the name of baby Babs is Barbara – Barbara Lee Gordon. I like it!
The end of Gotham 5×11 felt like a real series ending. Gotham City came out on top, and the show tied up as many loose ends as it could – for the main characters, anyway.
Next week’s preview looked so amazingly epic! My jaw just kept dropping. I can’t wait to see what happens as Bruce comes back to Gotham (we all knew he would), Riddler and Penguin embrace their villainous personas, and Jeremiah – The Joker – finally makes his return. See you next Thursday for the final episode!
Next week:
What did you think of “They Did What?” Let us know at @PureFandom on Twitter!
Gotham airs Thursday nights on FOX at 8/7c.
