Gotham S04E19 "To Our Deaths and Beyond" Recap

Tabitha lures Bruce and Selina to the lair where she has teamed up with an outside faction of the League of Shadows. They are preparing a ritual in order resurrect Ra's al Ghul but require Bruce's blood to do it because he was the one to kill Ra's.

Back at the Narrows, Nygma has robbed several banks and brought back the bounties in order to distribute wealth to the inhabitants of the Narrows. Ed/Riddler wants to know what Lee sees him as and she says he's a friend though it's implied there's something more. Oswald arrives with Butch/Grundy, wanting to be brought along on the next robbery. Oswald also accuses Lee of stringing Riddler along with the promise of affection.

Ra's is angry at being brought back after all the work he did to finally be able to die, even going so far as to rip the throat out of one of his followers. They criticise Barbara's limited scope of what she wants to use her power for. Tabitha is horrified to learn that the Demon's Head doesn't automatically return to Ra's when he's resurrected and that he intends to rip it from her dead body if she doesn't give it back willingly.

When Ra's is reunited with Barbara he is disappointed by what he sees as her limited ambitions. He demands the return of the Demon's Head since she hasn't even unlocked the secrets it holds. He demeans her accomplishments and the two get into a fight before Ra's is forced to fight off the various women in the League that serve Barbara. Ra's kill and injure many of her followers before chasing her out into the street where Barbara gets away with the help of Bruce driving up in his new luxury car with Selina and Tabitha along for the rescue mission. They reconvene at Wayne Manor and Bruce deduces that he needs to be the one to kill Ra's since he was the one to kill him before. Barbara also theorises that she needs to be the one to kill him while having the Demon's Head in her hand, believing that this could be the key to unlocking her power.

Alfred tries to get the mystical knife back that Bruce used to kill Ra's from the historical society they had returned it to. When the man refuses to give it back, Alfred and Tabitha create a rouse that distracts all parties present so Selina can steal the knife and swap it for a decoy. Bruce and Barbara argue over who Selina should give the knife to and she only hands it over to Barbara after she holds Alfred at gunpoint. Selina feels defeated and leaves with Barbara and Tabitha after they shoot out Bruce's tire.

Riddler agrees to bring Oswald and Grundy along on his next robbery, claiming that the presence of Ed's lovestruck feelings is interfering with his criminal efficiency. Riddler promises that this next score will get each of them 100 million dollars and that they need to help him kill Lee.

Selina leaves Barbara and Tabitha upon learning that they don't have a more sophisticated plan, given Barbara's inability to control the Demon's Head or know a deeper purpose to using it. Selina returns to Bruce and Alfred to ask them for help to prevent Barbara from getting herself killed. When Barbara faces off against Ra's, she tries to stab him with the knife but it does nothing to kill him. The two fight briefly but then he gets the upper hand and starts to drain her. Bruce arrives and knocks them aside but is quickly pulled out of the commotion from the other members of the League. Barbara is impaled by the dagger but manages to unlock the secrets of the Demon's Head. She is able to master it but then Ra's threatens the life of Tabitha. Barbara willingly gives up the Demon's Head to save Tabitha's life and afterwards the female League members still recognise Barbara's worth as a leader and decide to continue serving her. Ra's is restored to his former state instead of his zombie-like condition. Bruce asks him to turn over the knife so he can kill him again but Ra's says today is not the day he will die and snaps the knife in half before disappearing. Barbara finally reconciles with Tabitha after all of their falling outs.

Riddler seemingly traps Lee with the intent to kill her but instead betrays Oswald and Grundy by leaving them trapped in a bank vault to be apprehended by the police. Riddler tells Lee that he knows she is using him but he will make her fall in love with him nonetheless because he understands her. The GCPD arrive sooner than expected and Lee declares that she will give herself up to them while Riddler will get away.

Finally, it's revealed that Ra's has had a vision of a cataclysmic even that will bring incalculable destruction to the city. This is the reason he has decided to stay alive for the time being in order to use the impending disaster to shape Bruce into a "dark knight of Gotham."

Gotham airs on Thursdays on FOX at 8/7c.