The Introduction Of Father Creel Changed 'Gotham'

The chilling ending to the latest episode of Gotham was all about Theo Galavan and his plan, which is leading towards the murder of Bruce Wayne. But who is Father Creel, the new character who walked into Galavan's mansion, performing some sort of religious rite that deeply moved the Season 2 villain? While Galavan has faked many things, this does not seem to be one of them. He seemed passionate about seeing the Father, who treated him like a subject, not a leader, a direct contrast to how most of the characters act towards Theo.

The introduction of the mysterious cloaked figure changed the whole ending of "Scarification." The story of the Dumas family may have seemed like a long-over familial feud between two once-powerful groups of nobility, but clearly the Dumas family's banishment and transformation into an arcane religious order did not stay trapped in the past. And Father Creel intoned that there are "warriors" who will be coming to Gotham City to fight for the mayoral candidate as well.

In case you missed the rest of the season, that means just about everyone is working for Galavan whether they like him or not, from Bruce Wayne, who's smitten with his young niece, to Penguin, who's being forced because his beloved mother is in Galavan's clutches. Even Jim Gordon will probably be strong armed into becoming his mayoral running mate, despite his desires to stay apolitical.

Anyway, back to the mystery: who could this Father really be? As crazy as it might sound, there is some comics precedent for this. The Court of Owls is a robe-wearing cult made up of Gotham's most elite and wealthiest that has its own group of trained assassins called the "Talons." Perhaps Galavan is the leader of the Court, with Father Creel as the head Talon. Since in the comics the Court of Owls are a Gotham City legend, that could help explain how they made their way to the city's shores.

There's also an "Order of St. Dumas ," another vast conspiracy of control and assassinations, though this one is totally disconnected from Gotham City. But it could help explain how the Gotham writers arrived at the name "Dumas" — it implies comic book evil. Regardless of what they're planning, Galavan and Father Creel already make an intimidating team.