New Gotham Video Plays Up Jeremiah's Impact On No Man's Land

Gotham's promotional lead-up to its fifth and final season has been quite the interesting one, with each video set a different point in the aftermath of Season 4's No Man's Land finale. The latest, at Day 151, hints at very Bane, er, big things going down thanks to one Jeremiah Valeska. Can we just please call him The Joker already?

While previous Season 5 trailers have been focused on other Gotham entities like Scarecrow's crucifixion crew and the hint of Batman hiding in the shadows. But here, Cameron Monaghan's standout villain is the focus, and boy, does his time get used wisely. Let's get obsessive by going over every frame, shall we?

First up is an overtly ominous shot of Jeremiah's face with his eyes closed. Meant to bring about memories of his dead(???) brother Jerome, perhaps? Or maybe it's meant to get viewers in the mindset that Jeremiah might not survive the duration of Season 5. Of course, it might just be the only shot of Jeremiah all season that evokes peace and silence.

Next, we have a shot of what looks like Jim Gordon hauling ass through an alley. That moment looks like it was filmed in P.O.V., and Jim looks like he's being chased, so I'm going with the assumption that Jeremiah is the one hunting the GCPD stalwart down.

Perhaps tellingly, the next shot is of Francesca Root-Dodson's Ecco, who serves as Jeremiah's creepy second banana. She looks to be getting a slightly larger role in Season 5, and we may see some of the character's more Harley-esque qualities emerge, even if she never gets the HQ tag. (I do need to hear her say "Mr. J," though.)

gotham map joker hahaha

This map shot is possibly sign of just how much of an influence Jeremiah will have over Gotham City in its current state. I could try to go into detail about what sections are behind the eyes, and what that could mean, but really, I think it all amounts to one sentiment: Gotham City is boned.

The most substantial moment in the teaser promo hints at Alfred once again finding himself facing certain doom.He's just out and about on a road where people can be seen in the distance warming their hands over a trash fire that's in the middle of the street. There's no highly advanced Bat-tech needed to tell someone that particular situation is less than ideal.

Kudos to the editing here, as the moment where Jeremiah starts to rise up behind Alfred is pretty chilling. I'm hoping that moment subverts expectations and doesn't just set Bruce's trusted butler/enforcer up for another hostage situation. That said, I would be down for Bruce going through another intense hallucinatory journey in order to track Alfred down.

The fun caps off with the white-faced Jeremiah quoting the video's title, "Today's the big day." What's so special about the 151st day after Gotham City's bridges blew up? A special anniversary of some kind? Or has Jeremiah been working on something behind the scenes that is finally ready to be revealed? What else can he possibly do to cause more chaos in this cursed town?

Find out when Gotham Season 5 hits Fox on Thursday, January 3, at 8:00 p.m. ET. Make sure to keep your holiday weeks busy by keeping track of all the new and returning primetime entries with our fall TV schedule and our midseason premiere rundown.

Nick Venable
Assistant Managing Editor

Nick is a Cajun Country native and an Assistant Managing Editor with a focus on TV and features. His humble origin story with CinemaBlend began all the way back in the pre-streaming era, circa 2009, as a freelancing DVD reviewer and TV recapper.  Nick leapfrogged over to the small screen to cover more and more television news and interviews, eventually taking over the section for the current era and covering topics like Yellowstone, The Walking Dead and horror. Born in Louisiana and currently living in Texas — Who Dat Nation over America’s Team all day, all night — Nick spent several years in the hospitality industry, and also worked as a 911 operator. If you ever happened to hear his music or read his comics/short stories, you have his sympathy.