8 Reasons Gotham's Second Season Could Fail Miserably
2. Wasting Leslie Thompkins
Gotham's diverse and nuanced women include precociously defiant Selina Kyle, the privileged alcoholic Barbara Kean, Captain Sarah Essen, and mousy sexpot Kristen Kringle, who literally drives "riddle man" Edward Nygma mad.
Perhaps it was inevitable that Gotham introduce what is arguably its most two-dimensional female character to date: Leslie Thompkins, who means far more in the comics. Created by writer/editor Dennis O'Neil, Leslie is a friend and colleague of Thomas and Martha Wayne who not only runs a shelter and free clinic, but is so close to Bruce that she eventually knows he's Batman.
On Gotham, she meets Gordon while working as a physician in Arkham and takes the GCPD coroner's job to be near him. This would be fine save for the missed opportunity to better connect the Wayne family and Bruce's story to the rest of the show. For the first time on any screen, we could have already seen something new in young Bruce dealing with a surrogate mother figure!
Instead, we likely have a temporary companion for Gordon until future wife Barbara dodges a life sentence and returns to sanity. As faithfully depicted in shows like Batman: The Animated Series, Gotham's Leslie Thompkins could have enriched young Bruce's story, giving him as well as the show another, perhaps clearer perspective on Bruce's function going forward and his evolution into the dark knight.