Gotham‘s fifth season is set to air in 2019 and it’s sounding like it’s going to live up the series’ reputation for presenting a seriously weird take on the Batman mythos, and given that this is the final outing, we may even see Bruce suit up in the last episode.
Along the way though, we’re promised the Gotham spin on a number of classic Batman villains, including Man-Bat, Bane, the mysterious ‘Mother’ and a version of the Mutant Leader from Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns. But that’s not all, as we can now add another name to that rogues gallery in the form of the terrifying and sinister Magpie.
Okay, cards on the table folks. I know a lot about Batman and I know a lot about obscure DC villains, but I have literally no idea who Magpie is. The Batman fan wiki says she debuted in 1985 though and her real name is Margaret Pye (eesh). Also, she’s got an insatiable appetite for shiny things. This led her to a career as the curator of the Gotham City Museum of Antiquities, only for her to go insane when she realized she could never own the shiny antiques around her.
Following that, she puts on bondage gear, a spiky wig and a big pair of red sunglasses and embarks on a life of crime. Sadly, however, this didn’t go that well for her and, after a stint in Arkham Asylum, she ends up murdered (and then reanimated as a spooky Black Lantern in Blackest Night).
All things considered, Magpie sounds like she’d have fit perfectly into the campy adventures of the 1960s Batman TV show, though given that Gotham has showcased such Batman deep cuts as Professor Pyg, the Executioner, the Electrocutioner and Balloon Man, she’ll probably fit right in.
No word on who’s set to play Magpie yet, but given that the fifth and final season of Gotham is looking to air on Fox in early 2019, we should find out soon enough. And once we do, we’ll be sure to let you know.