Gotham finished off its third season with a two-hour finale that was mind-blowing in every way possible. It was a thrilling end that took us places we never thought Gotham would go.

The show made some very bold decisions on Gotham Season 3 Episode 21 and Gotham Season 3 Episode 22, and I'm still trying to wrap my head around it.

So let's get started and discuss this epic finale.

After infecting himself with the virus to live on Gotham Season 3 Episode 20, Jim was facing an epic battle within himself.

It wasn't the first time Jim has taken a journey through darkness, but this was one of the most intense journeys he has taken so far.

With the virus coursing through his veins, it was getting harder for him to control it. At times, he just let it take over and others he was able to pull himself from the brink.

It wasn't a shock to hear the whispers tell him he was a killer. We've always known that. On Gotham Season 2 he killed Theo Galavan without a second thought.

This time he was even more violent. Slicing open Tetch's throat to get his blood for the antidote was over the top vicious, but as with Galavan, Jim had no regrets doing it.

How can Jim be considered a good guy if he's allowed to kill without consequences? Granted, stabbing Fish was an accident, but had Harvey not intervened, Jim would have killed Penguin, too. Did Jim decide he was going to be Barnes Lite and kill those he deemed unworthy? Is that why he spared Harvey?

Tabitha: You got the virus.
Lee: Wow. You're not as dumb as I heard. Are there any other glaringly obvious remarks you'd like to make?
Tabitha: How about I cut your lungs out and show them to you.
Lee: Wow. That's incredibly vivid. I'd like to see you try it, but I'm here for your boss. The crazy blonde?
Tabitha: She's not my boss.
Lee: Uh, huh. I may have a virus making me freakishly strong and mildly insane but even I know you were a sidekick to your brother and you're a sidekick to Barbara.

Permalink: Uh, huh. I may have a virus making me freakishly strong and mildly insane but even I know you...

Harvey was Jim's voice of reason, but he was more forgiving than he should have been considering everything he knew about Jim.

Lee leaving Gotham forever might seem like a good punishment for him, but hasn't that already happened? The only difference now is that Lee is willing to wait for Jim. Once he's saved Gotham, he can reconnect with her and live happily ever after.

I was never a big fan of Miss Goody-Goody because she was always an annoying distraction for Jim. So, it was a lot of fun seeing Lee transform into something dark. Morena Baccarin did a tremendous job bringing evil Lee to life. It's just too bad it was so short-lived.

But we now know why it had to be that way. Lee was never meant to be dark. She will always be the bright light of hope in Jim's life.

For her to have stayed dark would have meant the end of both her and Jim because even if they left Gotham together infected with the virus, it never would have worked. One of them would have killed the other eventually.

It was a shame there wasn't an opportunity for a battle between Barbara and Lee, but saving Gotham might happen sooner rather than later now that Bruce has taken the reins of his destiny. Some stories take precedence over others.

Like Bruce stabbing Alfred for instance. Did not see that one coming at all. Gotham deserves a round of applause for taking that step even if they knew Alfred was only going to stay dead for a few minutes.

It was heartbreaking hearing Alfred's speech before the dirty deed, but it did the trick. Stabbing Alfred was exactly what Bruce needed to knock that brainwashing right out of him.

For now, Ra's al Ghul has disappeared, but the man has a plan. If not, why let Bruce bring Alfred back to life?

Alfred might have been happy to see Bruce back to his old self, but there has to be a little part of him deeply hurt at what Bruce did. It's not something that would be easily forgotten or even forgiven despite the fact that Alfred encouraged Bruce to do it to save him.

Alfred has no idea that Bruce used the Lazarus Pit and there's nothing he can do about it, but there are going to be consequences.

Whatever those consequences, that's what will push Bruce to make Ra's al Ghul his number one enemy.

In the meantime, though, Bruce has taken his first steps towards wearing the real cape and cowl.

Sorry, but the cape Bruce wore when he saved that family looked like it came right off the rack at Walmart. So, please, Alfred hurry up and get well so that you can properly costume our little Dark Knight.

Despite the ridiculous cape, I still liked that Bruce connected with his secret identity, because, well, it's about time.

It's one of the most exciting things to look forward to on Gotham Season 4.

What we don't have to look forward to next season is Barbara. Barbara's character never made the kind of impact she should have. She went from innocent to crazy to even more insane, and sometimes it made no sense.

Don't worry sweetheart, the fun has just begun.
Fish

Permalink: Don't worry sweetheart, the fun has just begun.

Her quest to become Queen of Gotham never really got off the ground because Penguin and Nygma and whatever battle or love story was going on with them consistently overshadowed her.

Barbara would never have had the chance to become Queen even with Fish dead and The Riddler frozen in ice because Penguin is still around, so it seems reasonable that it was time to write off the character.

Besides, Selina needs to develop into Catwoman, and who better to teach her the ropes than Tabitha? Had Barbara stuck around, there wouldn't be an opportunity for this to happen because she'd keep getting in the way. I'm sad to say it, but it wouldn't have made for good TV.

There needed to be a clean break and the fight between Tabitha and Barbara leading to Barbara's death did the trick.

Another clean break was finally letting Fish go for good. While it's another sad departure, it was about time the show streamlined its stories and characters. Fish and Penguin ruling Gotham together, though interesting, would never have worked.

Eventually, the partnership would have fallen apart because they are both too headstrong to have been good partners. Penguin would have ended up as Fish's errand boy, and who would want to see that again? Penguin has developed too much to go back to those good old days.

So, I'm glad Gotham didn't give the Fish Mooney and Penguin empire a test run.

Still, seeing Fish die was shocking, and Penguin's reaction to it was heartbreaking. She was like a mother to him. She was responsible for creating Penguin and for that, we should be forever grateful. He will never forget her and neither should we.

While there were lots of people who didn't like Fish, Jada Pinkett Smith gave the character her all and gave Gotham a strong and intelligent female character that the show desperately needed.

We can only hope that Gotham gives us the same with Selina, Tabitha, and Ivy.

One final thing we must touch upon is the reveal that Butch is Cyrus Gold. The addition of Solomon Grundy to the Gotham Season 4 storyline is exciting. It's going to be interesting to see if he teams up with Tabitha again or if the bullet wound to the head has wiped his memory.

There was a lot to digest, but Gotham hit a grand slam with this season finale. It was the best of all seasons and making it a two-hour episode was a great decision. I don't think we would have been able to wait to see Alfred's fate.

We said goodbye to some old characters and hello to a few new ones, but the best part was that we saw great teases for the upcoming season. I know I can't wait.