Seeing the fighting between them, Riddler decided to give out a contest to both Joker and Penguin that whoever captures Batman and discovers his true identity will own all of Gotham.
This episode provides examples of:
- Bad Boss: Rojas has learned nothing from his experiences with Ethan Bennett and uses tactics that'd make Gillian Loeb proud, firing Ellen Yin and practically taking her hostage to use as bait for a trap when he learns she was in alliance with Batman. The only thing stopping Rojas from rearresting Yin is Gordon pulling rank, and ordering him to release and reinstate Yin.
- Bring It: When Rojas has the police hold Batman at gunpoint, he tries to assert his authority by demanding Batman either take his mask off willfully or he'll come over and do it for him. Batman was unintimidated and silently gestures with his hand to come and try if he dares to.
- The Commissioner Gordon: The Trope Namer makes his debut, having already been in alliance with Batman off-screen and having recently been promoted to Police Commissioner.
- Defiant to the End: Riddler's henchmen are either knocked out or killed, his technology is sabotaged by Yin, and his allies Joker and Penguin are both taken out by Batman. His method of dealing with this issue? Scream that he's the last man standing and try one more attempt to defeat Batman. He failed, but it was pretty gutsy for the character.
- Enemy Mine: Penguin, Joker, and Riddler put off their turf war to deal with Batman once he finally shows himself to the three.Batman: You wanted me? Here I am.
- Establishing Character Moment: Commissioner Gordon clearly establishes the new direction for the Gotham police department when he tells Batman that he thinks chasing bats is counterproductive and a waste of police resources.
- Evil Versus Evil: The Joker, Penguin, and Riddler get into a turf war with each other in Gotham.
- He Who Fights Monsters: Rojas comes dangerously close to crossing the line here.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Yeah, Rojas canning Yin and using her as a hostage to trap Batman wasn't going to end well for him considering the Trope Namer for The Commissioner Gordon debuts in this episode and puts his foot down, considering right before he could re-arrest Yin, Gordon forces Rojas to back off, release, and rehire her. Given this is the last we see of Rojas — and unlike Yin, he doesn't get a mention afterward — it's possible Rojas suffered further Offscreen Karma, and Gordon either fired Rojas or forced him to resign afterward.
- Near-Villain Victory: Rojas has Batman dead to rights and almost unmasks him in one scene. Fortunately, Gordon is a bit more reasonable.
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Just as the Riddler was about to capture Batman and Detective Yin, Joker and Penguin show up and prevent that from happening.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Gordon, far more than the obsessive Rojas is.
- Remember the New Guy?: While
Jeff
Matsuda said Jim Gordon was the officer in the flashback in "Traction", Gordon hadn't appeared in the present day before this episode—yet Alfred says "James Gordon has loomed large over [Bruce's] life." Also, at the newly-installed Batsignal, Gordon says to Batman, "Thanks to all of your efforts, Batman, the time is finally right to take our alliance to the next step," implying Batman and Gordon had already formed their alliance off-screen some point before this episode. - Rivals Team Up: Joker and Penguin do this when the Riddler has plans on eliminating the competition, which is them.Penguin: You know, Jokester, maybe there is enough Gotham for two to share.
Joker: (grins) - Shut Up, Hannibal!: Gordon tells Rojas to clam it more than once here.
- Skewed Priorities: Despite the mayhem the turf war between Joker, Penguin, and Riddler was causing, Rojas continues to prioritize Batman's arrest as he for some dumb reason thinks taking him down will somehow stop the supervillains' rampaging.
- Sore Loser: Rojas was visibly angered when he was prevented by Gordon from arresting Yin then being forced to reinstate her.
- Villainous Rescue: When the cops have Batman surrounded, Riddler cuts power to the building, allowing Batman to escape and rescue Yin. They manage to get into a police car chase, and once again, Riddler hacks power to block off the police with a train to ensure they don't interfer with his business with Batman.
- Wham Shot: For Joker and Penguin when they stake out the place they see Batman entering, planning to make their own entrance to trap him. However, they were both surprised when they see the cops have quickly surrounded the place to trap Batman.Joker: Gotham PD beat us to the punch!?Penguin: You mean... no one wins this contest?
