'Gotham': Who Shot Down the Helicopter?

Gotham's fifth and final season premiere certainly delivered on the thrilling, action-packed promises made by its cast and crew. In addition to an early death twist, the premiere included the shooting down of a helicopter in the middle of the city, perhaps one of the most expensive action sequences in the show's history.

Not only did this scene elevate Gotham in terms of flair and intensity, but it also created one of the season's early mysteries. Who shot down the helicopter?

The helicopter was carrying food and medical supplies to Gotham Central when it was shot down, and Penguin showed up on the scene to collect the spoils. Just like Jim Gordon suggested, Oswald shooting down the chopper would make the most sense, considering he has the ammunition to do so and he needed food just as badly as Jim's people. However, Penguin assured everyone that he didn't do it, which he backed up by admitting that he'd love to claim the crime as his own. The more you think about it, Penguin's message does hold some weight. He had no idea the helicopter was coming and, if he did shoot it down, he'd totally be the one to gloat about it.

So Penguin is out. While there are still plenty of villains running around in Gotham City, there are really just three solid answers to this mystery.

First is that the helicopter situation isn't a mystery at all, and it was truly a product of a chaotic city. Someone with a rocket launcher saw a bird in the sky and took it down just for the hell of it. This is the least likely of the three theories, considering the breadcrumbs Gotham loves to leave for viewers, but we can't rule it out.

The second plausible theory is that Barbara and Tabitha shot down the helicopter. While the Sirens had plenty of food in their part of town, Tabitha was dead-set on ending Penguin's life. If a helicopter went down in the middle of the city, both Babs and Tabs are smart enough to know Penguin would likely be first on the scene. This theory makes plenty of sense from a story perspective, but it there were a couple of moments earlier in the episode that come close to disproving it. Remember, Barbara heard the helicopter when it was flying into town, and she was in no position to get onto a rooftop and take it down. Also, it was made clear that Barbara was running low on ammunition, and she probably wouldn't be wasting a valuable explosive on a helicopter with who knows what inside.

So this leaves the third and most likely scenario, one that plenty of fans have already shared on social media. Jeremiah totally shot down that helicopter.

As mentioned in the episode, it's been nearly three months since No Man's Land began, and Jeremiah still has yet to be seen. The soon-to-be-Joker is biding his time in hiding while the rest of the city fights itself. What better way to accelerate that process by leaving a helicopter full of supplies unprotected in the heart of downtown? This kind of controlled chaos is bound to eliminate multiple opponents at once, the kind of controlled chaos that Jeremiah has a knack for. He likely had no idea who would show up, but he was certain not everyone would leave.

What makes an even bigger case for Jeremiah's involvement isn't the events following the helicopter crash, but the helicopter itself.

There's no one on the planet that Jeremiah cares more about than Bruce Wayne. Whether he wants to be his best friend or his mortal enemy, Jeremiah has made it clear that he and Bruce are eternally connected, and he will stop at nothing to assure that it stays that way. Did you notice the big Wayne Industries logo on the side of the chopper? It clearly had something to do with Bruce, providing an instant opportunity for Jeremiah to cause his rival to suffer, or at the very least, give him a massive headache.

Who do you think shot down the helicopter on Gotham? Let us know your theories in the comments!