The episode was watched by 4.33 million viewers but received mixed-to-positive reviews with critics debating whether the plot twist was surprising or disappointing.
With the GCPD recovering from the massacre and death of Commissioner Sarah Essen, Gordon (Benjamin McKenzie) and Bullock (Donal Logue) start questioning people on the street for info on Jerome (Cameron Monaghan).
Bruce (David Mazouz) and Alfred (Sean Pertwee) attend the Gotham Children's Hospital Gala and run into Leslie (Morena Baccarin).
When assistant Deputy Mayor Kane (Norm Lewis) is called to the stage, Jerome throws a knife to his chest and reveals himself and Barbara, holding everyone hostage.
While Jerome is terrifying the hostages, Barbara ties Leslie to a spinning wheel, taunting her about how she and Jim will get back together in a year, and will tell their grandchildren that a "man eating harpie" almost tore them apart.
Unwilling to let his only family die, Bruce gets on the stage, and Jerome holds a knife to his neck until Jim and Alfred start shooting the henchmen.
On killing Jerome, showrunner Bruno Heller talked in an interview for ComicBook.com: "We always knew, it's one of those things, when we saw Cameron's performance and how brilliant he was, there was a moment of 'oh hell, this guy is genius!'
[2] When asked about Jerome returning, writer John Stephens stated that "if you watch the episodes closely, as they go forward this year you'll start seeing the seeds of the way that story will continue to develop.
The episode received a rating of 64% with an average score of 6.1 out of 10 on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, with the site's consensus stating: "Gotham successfully delivers on a fun origin story, even if the big twist at the end of "The Last Laugh" feels unearned.
"[6] Matt Fowler of IGN gave the episode a "great" 8.0 out of 10 and wrote in his verdict: "'The Last Laugh,' while kicking things off with a gala premise that one really needed to stretch in order to believe, got more right than it did wrong.
Barbara's new relationship with Tabitha fits her flighty, craziness, though I don't know how up I am for a whole sibling jealousy story to take root given how little we know, at this point, about the Galavans.