Having been resurrected by Hugo Strange (B. D. Wong), Theo Galavan (James Frain) is suffering from almost complete memory loss and reciting the sacred book of the Order of Saint Dumas.
But Nygma's attempt to prove his worth inspires Strange to provide Galavan with a story to give his fractured state of mind a sense of self.
Angered by this, Bruce reveals that he knows Gordon is responsible for killing Galavan, pushing his belief that the law is ineffective at bringing him true justice.
Likewise, Butch (Drew Powell), Tabitha (Jessica Lucas) and Barbara (Erin Richards) watch the report from their mansion, to their shock.
In April 2016, it was announced that the nineteenth episode of the season would be titled "Azrael", and was to be written by Jim Barnes and Ken Woodruff, with Larysa Kondracki directing.
In April 2016, it was announced that the guest cast for the episode would include B. D. Wong as Professor Hugo Strange, Tonya Pinkins as Ethel Peabody and Stink Fisher as Aaron Helzinger.
[3] With this ratings, Gotham ranked first for FOX, beating Houdini & Doyle, fourth on its timeslot and ninth for the night on the 18-49 demographics, behind Blindspot, The Odd Couple, two episodes of Mike & Molly, NCIS: Los Angeles, a rerun of The Big Bang Theory, Dancing with the Stars and The Voice.
[7] Matt Fowler of IGN gave the episode a "good" 7.3 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict, "Gotham's version of Azrael was fun, even if it was a bit on-the-nose from a 'Gordon's sins coming back to haunt him' standpoint.
Club's Kyle Fowle gave the episode a "B+" grade and wrote, "One of the longest-running issues with Gotham has been its futile search for an identity.
That last point is especially significant in today's TV climate, where superhero shows are treated with the same amount of reverence afforded so-called prestige dramas; in fact, the age of Peak TV seems to make superhero shows even more popular, as their blend of episodic and serialized storytelling perfectly fit into models of both binge watching and week-to-week appointment viewing.
There's no easy answer, but 'Azrael' at least suggests that Gotham does have some redeeming qualities mixed into its failed attempts at being a police procedural, superhero show, and lengthy origin story.