Gotham Knights: Easter Eggs and References in “A Chill in Gotham”

Gotham Knights returns this week with “A Chill in Gotham,” an episode steeped in mythology and a twisting, turning mystery. As we have done with every episode this season, executive producers Natalie Abrams, James Stoteraux, and Chad Fiveash, who have provided ComicBook.com with a guide to the Easter eggs and DC Comics references found in the episode, to see what you saw, what you missed, and give a little taste of what’s to come.

Here’s the episode’s synopsis: 

THE LAST REQUEST — As Joe Chill (guest star Doug Bradley) is set to be executed for the murder of Bruce Wayne’s parents, he turns to Harvey (Misha Collins) to make one final request — to speak with Turner (Oscar Morgan).  Meanwhile, Stephanie (Anna Lore) seeks help from her dad Arthur Brown (guest star Ethan Embry) when she has trouble cracking a code, and Carrie (Navia Robinson) is forced to help at the hospital after her secret life of vigilantism lands her in hot water with her mom.  Olivia Rose Keegan, Fallon Smythe, Tyler DiChiara and Rahart Adams also star.  Alexandra La Roche directed the episode written by Nicki Holcomb & Nate Gualtieri

You can see the breakdown of the Easter eggs and references below.

Gotham Knights airs on Tuesday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT, following episodes of Superman & Lois.

Cluemaster

Arthur Brown calls himself the “Master of Clues”, foreshadowing his future alias, “Cluemaster”. You can also hear a reference to this moniker on the news in Episode 103, when the anchor mentions a special celebrity edition of Quiz Bowl – a direct nod to the Batman Eternal run of comics.

Gotham General Hospital

Carrie helps her mom, Dr. Lisa Kelley, at her workplace, Gotham General Hospital, the most prominent healthcare institution in Gotham City in the comics. It is most famously known as the hospital the Joker blows up in The Dark Knight (2008).

Arthur and Harper

Arthur Brown says his trademark comic book catchphrase from when he hosted Quiz Bowl during the broadcast – “I’ll give you a clue,” something Harper, a fan of the show, later references.

Joe Chill is here

Joe Chill theorizes that, just like Turner, he was framed by the Court of Owls and that they were the true culprits of Thomas and Martha Wayne’s murders. In Batman: Court of Owls, Bruce tells Dick Grayson that after his parents’ murder, he suspected something bigger than Joe Chill had been behind their untimely fate: the Court of Owls. However, he ultimately never found definitive proof of this fact or the Court’s existence, and even after he found out the Court was real, this theory was never confirmed.

Charon’s Obol

Joe Chill details that the ancient Athenian coin The Court has been leaving behind for its victims is Charon’s obol, which is an ancient Athenian tradition of providing payment for the ferryman in order to be transported across the river diving the land of the living and the dead. The Court is taunting their victims, offering to pay their fee for the ferryman because there’s nothing the victim can do to stop them.

Give him the chair

Joe Chill’s death sentence is carried out with an electric chair. We’ve seen this method of execution in Gotham City before. In Detective Comics #64, this is how Joker’s (temporarily) killed after being sentenced to Death by a judge in Gotham City.

Gettin’ Stabby

Lincoln getting stabbed by the Talon while he’s with Harvey is directly inspired by the events of Batman: Court of Owls, where Lincoln gets stabbed by the Talon when he comes after Bruce Wayne. 

Two-Face

twoThe blood smeared on one cheek and the cracked mirror splitting Harvey’s face down the middle allude to his future transformation into Two-Face.

Spoiler alert

sStephanie offers to join the Knights on their mission, but Harper tries to prevent her from doing so. This marks the first instance where Stephanie – one of the original Gotham Knights in the comics – is actively joining the team in the field. (In Ep. 103, she was already on location at the gala.) And we see her efforts go awry during the mission, as we’re slowly telling the origin story of her eventual alter ego, Spoiler.

Street Demonz

The Gotham Knights are led by the ledger to the drug-smuggling den of a gang called Street Demonz. In the comic books and Batman videogames, the Street Demonz are a motorcycle gang operating out of Gotham.