Power is shifting yet again on Gotham. According to TVLine, on Monday night's Gotham episode "Welcome Back, Jim Gordon," the Penguin will seize Fish Mooney's club. With that, it's time we reviewed the power dynamics of Gotham's crime bosses. There are at least three major players, and the Penguin seems to be playing all three. How many crime organizations do we have in this city? Who is informing what about who? Remember when Cobblepot and Mooney used to be friends? Everyone is so twisted and riddled with Italian-American stereotypes that it's sometimes difficult to remember who all of their friends and foes are. With Liza dead, a big secret and source of collateral has been let go as well. Once that shakes out, the different families are going to need new sources of blackmail.
Of course, the crime in Gotham City doesn't start or end with the mafia. Should I even include Dick Lovecraft's people, the up and coming Harvey Dent, or Mayor James? That's the thing about Gotham. Everyone is so corrupt that you might as well just call yourself a crime boss and get it over with. In the meantime, here is a quick rundown of the major players, their allies, and their enemies.
Don Carmine Falcone
Employees: Oswald Cobblepot, Liza (RIP), Fish Mooney, Butch, Victor Zsasz, Bannion, Nikolai (RIP), Saviano (RIP)Double Crossing Him: Liza (RIP), Fish Mooney, Nikolai, Oswald Cobblepot?
Falcone is, for all intents and purposes, "in charge" of the crime scene in Gotham. He even has the Mayor under his thumb. The Falcone family also has a stake in a housing development associated with Arkham Asylum. The Penguin, as you remember, made a deal with Falcone and Jim Gordon to go undercover as a double agent in the Maroni family after Gordon faked his execution. However, whether Oswald has his own agenda remains to be seen (and seems very likely).
Fish Mooney
Employees: Butch Gilzean, Liza (RIP), formerly Oswald Cobblepot, Nikolai (RIP)Double Crossing Her: Oswald Cobblepot (sort of)
Fish is hell bent on destroying Falcone and is losing people fast. Right now, it's pretty much just her and Butch. I could think of a worse duo, but I root for Fish Mooney and I'm starting to get worried about her. If she loses her club in the theatre district, there's not much left for Fish. That's her whole organization. However, if you remember from the pilot, it was alluded that she has connections with the scrappy youth of Gotham. Perhaps we'll finally see her take Selina Kyle and Ivy Pepper under her wing and form the "Fish Mooney Academy For Girls In Crime."
However, I do find it refreshing that Cobblepot is openly antagonistic towards Fish Mooney. At least we know where he stands with his former boss. We know where they stand, right?
Sal Maroni
Employees: Oswald Cobblepot, hitman Richard Gladwell, Frankie Carbone (RIP)
Double Crossing Him: Oswald Cobblepot
The Maroni crime family is Gotham's rising threat. It's run out of Maroni's restaurant, where Penguin works. The Maroni family has a stake in what happens to the refurbishment of Arkham Asylum. We're not entirely sure what Cobblepot's plan for Maroni is just yet. They seem to get along just fine. Maroni definitely takes better care of him than Fish Mooney did while he was under her employ.
Nikolai (RIP)
Employees: Gregor Kasyanov (RIP), Unnamed Russian GangDouble Crossing Him: Fish Mooney
The Russian crime family is diminishing in Gotham. Their leader is dead, and after Butch framed them for blowing up Falcone's money, most of them are in jail. Unless they have some tricks up their sleeves, that chess piece has been knocked over.
Images: Jessica Miglio/FOX (4)
