‘Gotham’ Teasers Reveal Penguin’s Life Altering Visit To Arkham Asylum

Gotham is set to return with a new episode and, picking things up pretty much where they left off, fans will see that Penguin (Robin Lord Taylor) will be taking the fall for Theo Galavan’s murder. The first season saw an untarnished, unwavering Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie); but, along with other changes on Gotham, the writers have darkened McKenzie’s character to the point of making deals with villains and now it seems Gordon’s taking it a step further by backstabbing those same villains. Ordinarily, Penguin wouldn’t take kindly to this, but it seems he has bigger problems.

Gotham‘s Penguin Visits Arkham Asylum And, Unfortunately, The Doctor Is In

Even as Penguin stews in jail, he berates Gordon for letting him take the fall, when they played equal parts in Galavan’s murder — equal, according to Penguin. In any case, Taylor’s Gotham villain won’t have long to worry about prison or Detective Gordon, because he’ll soon be on his way to Arkham Asylum.

While there, Penguin will come under the care of Dr. Hugo Strange, played by B.D. Wong, who is using his position as Arkham psychiatrist to conduct experiments on his patients. Dr. Strange takes his subjects, Penguin included, to an underground laboratory, which is known as Indian Hill.

While Hugo is a villain himself, he’s perhaps more menacing than the average villain due to his experiments, which will be responsible for creating even more villains to roam the streets of Gotham. Possibly even more troublesome is Strange’s ability to push those Gotham villains already confined into even deeper depths of madness.

“…But Penguin’s life veers off in a totally unexpected direction that we’re very excited about,” says Gotham showrunner Bruno Heller. “Dr. Hugo Strange has a profound effect on Penguin. He makes a new man of him in many ways.”

Gotham Teases The Changing Face Of Villains

A new teaser for Gotham suggests a city under siege, as the Gotham police force comes up against a villain, Mr. Freeze (Nathan Darrow), who is impervious to bullets. Mr. Freeze first grabs the attention of Gotham’s finest, when he begins snatching up bodies; could this mean a return for Jerome Valeska (Cameron Monaghan)?

Yet, Bruno says Mr. Freeze isn’t really an evil villain in this story. If anything, he’s a tragic character.

“We’re taking it back to the roots of the origin story. It’s about him and his wife before he became a bad guy, how he became a bad guy,” says the Gotham showrunner.

“It’s very much a story of the heart rather than a story about technology and super-villainy. It’s a doomed romance. It will make people cry.”

Beyond chasing down these new villains with partner Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue), Gordon will have his own problems on Gotham, both at work and at home. Dealing with his own guilt over participating in the murder of Galavan may have its own consequences, including being drawn deeper into his dark side.

Captain Barnes (Michael Chiklis) will suspect that James is hiding something, concerning Theo Galavan’s death, forcing him to lie to a captain he once regarded with deep respect and admiration. It won’t be easy hiding the truth from Barnes, but Gordon knows he must for all of the same reasons he first admired his superior officer.

Meanwhile, the guilt over Galavan and the stress over lying to Barnes will even come to affect Jim’s home life. As things come to a head on Gotham, Lee (Morena Baccarin) becomes concerned over the frazzled look and demeanor James has been exhibiting. Trouble may be coming to this Gotham couple, as Gordon’s life comes closer to unraveling.

Season 2 of Gotham returns on Monday, February 29 on Fox.

[Image via Fox]