Edward Nygma (Gotham)/Synopsis

Early life
Edward Nygma earned his degree at Gotham University, and won the Whippleburn Prize for excellence in criminal science writing for an article titled "What’s Wrong With This Right? Preventing False Positives at Crime Scenes". He later got employment at the Gotham City Police Department working on forensics.

Start of Darkness
Possessing a crush on his co-worker Kristen Kringle, towards the end of the season he discovers that her boyfriend, Tom Dougherty, is abusive. Confronting him to stop him from seeing her again, he ends up stabbing Dougherty multiple times. This event causes him to have a simultaneous remorse and breakdown. Using his position he manages to destroy Tom's body before anyone can find out that he is dead and creates his first ever Riddle, a forged note from Tom claiming he had just left town. However, if only the first letter of every line is read it spells out "NYGMA".

After Kristen solves the riddle and asks Edward if he knows anything about it Edward realizes that he has almost been discovered.

Breakdown
At the beginning of the season it appears he has a split personality and has conversations with a darker version of himself in the mirror. Ed gets upset by his alter egos presence and warns him to leave Kringle alone.

When Jerome Valeska and his teammates attack the Police Department, Ed saves Kringle by tackling her to the ground out of the way of the gunfire and ends up taking a bullet in his arm. Kringle appears to show appreciation to end and is later seen giving him medication after the bloody incident is over and as a doctor is wrapping up Ed's arm treating his wounded arm.

To confess his love to her, he practices his speech in the police archives. However, due to his split personality his evil part gains more and more influence over him. When telling Nygma that she owes him for saving her life, Edward walks to Kringle while she speaks to three other officers. He invites her to dinner and she agrees, saying that she would like that, much to the astonishment of the other cops.

When Kristen arrives at Nygma's house, she tells Edward that when his invite said "chez moi" she expected a restaurant. Edward apologized for being so unclear and tells her that he loves to cook. While inviting her in, she tells him to call her Kristen. While their dates continues, Kristen apologizes to Edward for being mean to him the whole time to which Edward replies by apologizing for annoying her for so long. Kirsten does not accept the apology, saying that she was mean while all he was was sweet. She also apologizes for implying that he wrote Dougherty's goodbye letter to her. While Kristen talks about Dougherty, Edward accidentally says that he is glad that Dougherty is dead. A confused Kristen replies that he only left town. Edward saves himself by stating that it was only a figure of speech, meaning that he is "dead to her". While Kristen apologizes and goes to the bathroom, the evil Edward congratulates Nygma for blowing it up. Edward tells his evil self to leave him alone, which Kristen hears and thinks that he meant her. She prepares to leave, but Edward admits that he is talking to himself and that the stronger version of himself inside his head prevents him from botching up everything. Kristen answers that she can understand that and tells him that they all have a voice like that. When Edward tells her that his inner voice was angry for spoiling the mood, she kisses him.

After dinner with Edward and Kristen, Leslie tells Gordon that strangely Nygma seems to maintains a sense of coolness, which Gordon cannot believe.

Killing Kringle
Edward later overhears Kristen talking to Leslie saying she wished he would be more open. Later that evening after having sex, Edward ends up confessing that he was responsible for killing Dougherty. Kristin gets angry and sees Edward as a sicko, however he insists he did it for her and didn't want her to be abused by him. When she tries to escape, he covers her mouth to stop her screaming in order to explain himself, however ends up strangling her to death unintentionally when holding her by the neck. Edward breaks down and cradles her body and screams in anguish.

The New Nygma
Edward awakens the next morning to discover Kringle's body gone. His split personality appears again via hallucination, where it is now revealed it is able to take over his body. The alternative personality took over Edward's body when he was unconscious and has now hidden Kringle's body, and gives Edward the task of finding it at the G.C.P.D. Edward heads over there and follows the clues and discovers Kringle's severed hand inside a vending machine.

Edward heads to the morgue, where he discovers her corpse. He attempts to remove it however Leslie walks in on him. Edward quickly explains he was trying to look for her, and claims that Kringle left him after an argument and he wants relationship advice over coffee. Leslie, taking sympathy, agrees and they both leave.

Later on Edward returns to the morgue alone. His hallucination appears and Edward asks him why he is doing this. The hallucination asks him how he felt about Leslie walking in and Edward admits he was terrified as she could have discovered the body. The hallucination continues on, telling Edward about how much a rush it was and tells him how it feels. Although previously conflicted, Edward replies "beautiful". Embracing his darker side, he begins to smile and proceeds to dismember Kringle's corpse.

Edward took her remains to a remote woodland and put the body in a type of coffin and dug a grave. He had prepared sandwiches and drinks in order to say a proper goodbye to Kringle. When a hunter came across him, Edward killed the man with a spade. Edward then noticed someone had taken his sandwiches and followed a blood trail. A while passes and Edward comes across a caravan in the woods, and when he approaches it the door flings open and he falls to the ground. Edward puts his glasses back on and is surprised to see it is Oswald Cobblepot (who he had briefly met some months prior at the GCPD headquarters) and is badly injured. Oswald begs Edward for help, before collapsing.

Teaming up with Penguin
"Remember I mentioned fate? Recently, I've been going through a sort of change... "What kind of change?" you ask....I started murdering people!"

- Edward Nygma to Oswald Cobblepot.

Edward brings Penguin to his home and nurses him back to health. When Penguin wakes up, he at first thinks that Nygma wants to kill him, but Edward assures that he has no ill will towards him. He tells Penguin that he has recently started murdering people, three in total. He asks Penguin, whom he sees as one of the best killers in town. However Penguin does not plan to stay because he sees his empire in ruins. While walking towards the door, Penguin faints.

When Penguin wakes up again, he sees that Edward has kidnapped a man. Nygma tells him that this man, named Mr. Leonard, worked for Theo Galavan before the latter was sent to prison. He tells Penguin that he kidnapped him as a gift for Penguin, as a kind of revenge. However, Penguin tells Nygma that he's "done" and will leave Gotham after a nap. After Penguin has gone to bed, Edward addresses Leonard, telling him that he really expected Penguin to like him. He then drags the tied up Leonard out of the room while humming.

Later, when Penguin awakens once again Nygma plays the piano and sings a song which he thinks has meaning for Penguin as he was humming it under his sheets. Penguin admits that his mother sang this song for him when he was small. Nygma then shows him the glasses of Kristen Kringle and says that these are the only things he has left of her. Penguin once again plans to leave but is stopped by Nygma who coldly tells him that his mother died because of his weakness because he did not realize his weakness was her. Penguin grabs a knife and puts it at Nygma's throat, tearfully exclaiming that his mother was a saint and was the only person who truly cared about him and she was everything he had. Nygma replies that a man who has nothing to lose can not be betrayed and will answer to no one but himself. He says that this man, a free man, is whom he sees before him. Penguin then sobbingly hands him the knife.

Later, while having dinner, Penguin asks Edward where he kept the lackey of Galavan he kidnapped. Edward smiles and pulls Leonard out of the cupboard.

Planning against Gordon
After some time, Leslie finds out that Kristin's last paychecks haven't been cashed in. Gordon promises to investigate and visits Nygma in the GCPD morgue. Nygma claims that he hasn't heard from Kristin in a while and that while she left him a goodbye note, he did not keep it. Gordon accepts this, but Nygma grows paranoid, believing that Gordon is on to him.

After the Malone case, Gordon returns to the GCPD. He is greeted by Nygma who asks if there are any news about Kristin. Gordon says that he was busy but will look into it. While Gordon returns to his office, Nygma viciously looks at him, saying to himself that Gordon surely must think that Nygma is a fool and tries to lure him into a false sense of security. He claims that while Gordon may plan against him, he can also make plans of his own. The same night, Nygma heads home to his flat and paints a green question mark on a newspaper article about Gordon.

Attack on Gordon
Nygma carries out his plans the next day. After forcing the evacuation of a museum due to a bomb threat, Nygma steals the painting "Mad Grey Dawn". When the police arrive they find a question mark sprayed to the wall in green paint. They also find that two much more valuable paintings were sprayed with the same paint. Once the police is alerted, Gordon and Bullock are sent to investigate. While the two policemen are leaving the precinct, they are approached by Edward who claims that he is ready to be interviewed by Gordon about Kringle's disappearance. Once more, Gordon brushes him off and heads to the museum with Bullock.

From the names of the artists who painted the two defiled paintings, Gordon gets the name "Market Street". As the stolen painting depicted a railway explosion, Gordon is worried that the culprit might blow up Union Station, which is located at Market Street. Indeed, Nygma is at the station and has placed a bomb in a locker. When Gordon and Bullock arrive they do not see him and walk right past him. Watching them from some distance, he sees Gordon find a locker sprayed with another question mark. He activates the bomb inside manually and watches Gordon break open the locker, grab the bomb and throw it inside an opening in a marble statue. The blast is reduced by the statue and while knocking down Gordon, does not deal too much damage. After Commissioner Barnes arrives, Gordon tells him that he thinks that the bomber is playing a game and wanted them to find the bomb.

Meanwhile, Nygma has a GCPD officer sign a custody form. He walks towards Gordon, congratulating him for saving the day. Gordon reveals to him that he is worried because he has no idea what the bomber might attempt next, much to the amusement of Nygma. Back at his apartment, Nygma is visited by Penguin who has been declared sane and released from Arkham Asylum. Nygma swiftly finds out that the doctors at Arkham did a good job on Penguin. While Penguin appeals to Nygma to change, Nygma reveals that he is thankful for everything Penguin taught him about Jim Gordon.

At night, Nygma visits the police officer whose signature he took earlier, claiming that Gordon will arrive soon and explain everything. After the policemen has invited him in, Nygma beats him to death with a crowbar. Gordon indeed arrives at the flat, having been told that the call activating the bomb at Union Station came from there. He finds his dead colleague and is faced by Comissioner Barnes, who had also been alerted by Nygma. Barnes, whom Nygma send a message from the officers phone, arrests Gordon believing him to be the murderer of Officer Pinkney. While Barnes interrogates Gordon, it is revealed how Nygma set up the trap from Gordon: He used the crowbar Gordon used to break up the locker at Union Station to kill Pinkney, thus securing Gordon's fingerprints on the murder weapon. He also stole the file about the phone call from the flat from Bullock's desk, thus erasing any reason for Gordon to be there. It is revealed that the form Nygma had Pinkney sign was a witness statement, claiming that Pinkney saw Gordon kill Theo Galavan.

With all odds against him, Gordon is arrested for killing Officer Pinkney in the intention to get rid of a witness. Gleefully, Nygma watches as Gordon is led out of the Police Precinct and brought to prison. Gordon is later found guilty and sentenced to forty years at Blackgate.

After Gordon has been imprisoned, Bullock desperately tries to find a way to get him back. After another failed attempt to schedule a retrial, Bullock talks to Nygma, revealing that he thinks that Gordon was set up. Nygma asks what Bullock intends to do but Bullock says that he wished he would know.

Caught out
After Gordon manages to escape from Blackgate in order to clear his name, he returns to Gotham where he manages to acquire a tape which recorded the person who had made the call saying Gordon was responsible for killing Theo. The tape is distorted but Gordon is able to filter out a chirping sound. He heads to Nygma's apartment, hoping that Nygma is able to clear the tape and identify the culprit. Although Nygma is horrified to see Gordon in his apartment, he agrees to help after he realizes that Gordon is still oblivious to his involvement. However, Nygma begins to get agitated and flustered, especially when Gordon refers to the suspect who killed Pinkney a "psychopath". When the tape is cleared, Gordon realizes that the chirping sound is in truth a cuckoo clock. From the sound and Nygma's odd behavior Gordon deduces that Nygma was the one to frame him. Having foreseen that Gordon would come to this conclusion, Nygma activates a trap he set beforehand and electrocutes the chair Gordon, thereby knocking him out. He drags Gordon towards his car, intending on taking him to the woods and burying him, but Gordon managed to escape. Nygma manages to shoot him in the leg and track him down to a warehouse. There Nygma tries to locate Gordon by revealing that he killed Kristen, hoping for a response. However, Gordon escapes and furthermore is now aware that Nygma killed Kristen.

Knowing that no one at GCPD would believe Gordon's story, Nygma returns to work. He watches when Selina Kyle arrives, claiming she has information that Jim is going to look for Penguin, who had information on the location of Kringle's body. Nygma heads to the wash room, begins talking to himself in the mirror, and calculates there is an 80% chance Gordon will find Penguin, an 80% chance Penguin will blab about the location of Kringle's body, and a 60% chance that Gordon will find the corpse.

Nygma heads to the woods intending on digging up the body and moving it before Gordon can find it. Gordon arrives and an amused Nygma believes Penguin had indeed told on him. But Gordon reveals that he had in fact tailed him, and Nygma realizes that the whole thing with Selina was a set up to make Nygma rush to the body's location. Nygma points his gun at Jim and reveals there is a monster in all of them, and that Jim wasn't truly his friend but only pitied him. Before Nygma can shoot Gordon however, Captain Nathaniel Barnes and the police arrive from their hideout behind the trees. They order Nygma to put the gun down. Nygma tries to fool them into thinking that he caught Jim but Barnes reveals that they overheard his entire confession. Nygma tries to run away but he trips on the snow and the officers surround Nygma and take him into custody.

Nygma is tried for the murders of Kristen Kringle and Carl Pickney, but because he shows obvious signs of insanity, he is sent to Arkham Asylum.

Arkham
At Arkham, Nygma de-escalates a fight between Aaron Helzinger and another inmate. After having done so, he sees Jim Gordon who has just finished a meeting with Hugo Strange. Nygma approaches the fence, much to Jim's disgust. Although Jim is confident that Nygma will rot in prison, Nygma reveals to him that he will be back soon as the prison is just a giant riddle - Nygma's specialty. After Gordon walks off, Nygma hears Strange and Peabody walking past and talking about Gordon. Nygma interrupts the discussion and Strange tells him that eavesdropping is unwise. Nygma immediately realizes that the conversation about Gordon has something to do with the release of Cobblepot and Barbara Kean. He offers Strange help in taking down Gordon but Strange refuses. Before Strange can walk of, Nygma reveals that he could be an asset as he can manipulate people, demonstrating it on various inmates including Helzinger. Listening to Nygma's explanations, Strange eventually realizes how he can solve another problem. He storms off, leaving a baffled Nygma behind.

Nygma is indeed able to escape the group cell mere hours later by putting his newspaper between the closing doors. He decides to find out what Strange is hiding and follows Ms. Peabody down the hallway leading to Indian Hills. He realizes that there is a hidden elevator and plans to use it to break out of Arkham. With help from the inmates he manipulated, Nygma manages to break into the elevator and enters Indian Hill, being utterly overwhelmed with his discovery.

After returning from the lab, he is discovered by a staff member and returned to his cell. There, he realizes that his cell has an air vent. While climbing through the ventilation shafts he meets Selina who is currently breaking into the asylum. The two recognize each other and Nygma tells her about the basement. In exchange for directions to the way out, Nygma tells her about the secret elevator. With the details provided by Selina, Nygma indeed manages to find the way out of the vents but is recaptured the moment he leaves them.

As a punishment for his escape attempt, Nygma is locked in a cell with a cannibalistic inmate. Nygma tries to appeal to Ms. Peabody and Strange's favor by telling them how to stop Jim Gordon, since he's been to Arkham twice and probably knows about the monsters being made in Indian Hill. Nygma tells Peabody if Strange wants to stop Gordon and the GCPD, he will need the former's help. Strange accepts Nygma's offer to provide a helping hand and when Bruce Wayne, Lucius Fox and Jim Gordon come to Indian Hill, Strange is able to capture them all and puts Bruce and Lucius in a secret room. Nygma tells the two that he's been appointed by Strange to interrogate them and find out how much they know about what Strange is doing and who they've told, threatening to release poisonous gas into the room if they don't comply.

Nygma decides to interrogate Bruce and Lucius through a game of "life or death". The first question Nygma asks is who runs Indian Hill. Bruce and Lucius answers that Wayne Enterprises runs Indian Hill, which Nygma deems correct. Nygma's second is who runs Wayne Enterprises. Bruce and Lucius struggle with this question. Lucius believes the answer is the Board of director, but Bruce thinks it's something else. With no other answer they go with Lucius' answer, but Nygma deems it wrong and releases gas into the room. It's revealed that the gas Nygma pumped into the room was just knockout gas and Bruce and Lucius are still alive. Nygma asks Strange who really runs Wayne Enterprises, but Strange chooses not to answer that question and puts Nygma back in his cell. When Hugo Strange sets a bomb to explode Indian Hill and possibly kill thousands of people. Jim and Lucius go down into Indian Hill and use Nygma's help to get activate the elevator. Nygma tries to negotiate with Jim for his service, but Jim says the only thing he'll get is his life and proceeds. Nygma is put back in his cell, completely unaware of what has transpired.

Assisting Penguin
6 months later, Nygma is visited by Oswald Cobblepot. Oswald brings Edward a gift, a puzzle box which Oswald claims is incredibly hard to open. While Oswald talks, Edward swiftly opens the box, much to Oswald's surprise. Oswald then confides in his old friend, claiming that he is worried about Fish and wonders, why she did not kill him when she had the chance. Edward tells Oswald not to worry, creates an origami penguin from the gift wrap, and reminds Oswald that penguins eat fish.

Edward is later released from Arkham when Oswald, due to his mayor candidacy in need for his old friend, blackmails the warden. When he is declared sane, Edward is suspicious but is delighted nonetheless when Penguin arrives to pick him up. Edward then joins Oswald's campaign for mayorship where he briefly clashes with Butch. He also reveals to Oswald that he believes that Arkham made both of them stronger.

Later, during a speech of Penguin, Edward watches Butch giving an envelope to a henchman. WIth Oswald's authority, Edward forces the man to show him the envelope which contains a lot of money. Edward in turn is watched by Butch, who orders a henchman to keep an eye on Nygma for the day. However, Nygma evades the henchman. Edward then heads to every city official bribed by Oswald and demands the money back, claiming that Oswald will run a clean election. When this is revealed, Butch grabs Nygma and throttles him, telling Oswald that Nygma just cost him the election. Oswald is disappointed in his friend but Nygma then points to the television, where it is revealed that Oswald won the election by a landslide. Oswald later appoints Nygma to his Chief of Staff, which Butch is not taking lightly.

After the Red Hood Gang has defiled a statue of Oswald's mother, Penguin sends Nygma to the GCPD to coordinate the search. The policemen in the precinct are shocked when they see their former colleague, who laughs confidently and claims that he missed all of them. Although Captain Barnes refuses, claiming that Nygma is a cop-killer and belongs into an asylum, Nygma threatens that Barnes will be fired should he continue to refuse.

Nygma visits Lucius Fox in the GCPD morgue and Fox dryly refers to the time Nygma threatened to poison him and Bruce with gas. Nygma replies that it was a sleeping agent but Fox interrupts, threatening to murder Nygma should he ever harm him or Bruce again. Nygma then looks into files on Red Hood evidence. When Leslie Thompkins crosses his way, she angrily hits him in the face for murdering Kristen. Nygma loses his confident demeanor for a moment, claiming that she should not have done this. Leslie tells him that she isn't afraid of him only because he works for Penguin. She reveals that she is engaged to the son of Carmine Falcone and that Falcone would end Nygma if Leslie would ask him for it.

Nygma later deduces the location of the warehouse where the Red Hood Gang are hiding. Penguin and his gang head there, but see that Butch has already killed all of the members. Although Penguin is more than happy, Nygma remains suspicious. Nygma continues his own investigation and is eventually able to link the suits of the Red Hood Gang and Butch's suits to the same tailor. He visits the tailor and finds out that the suits of the Red Hood Gang were bought by a big man with a metal hand. Having enough evidence, Nygma confronts Butch at Oswald's victory party. To Butch's surprise, Nygma offers Butch that he will remain silent and also reveals to Butch that he wants to kill Penguin as well, stating that he was not made to be number two. Nygma offers Butch to run Gotham together with him, hands Butch one of the hoods and tells him to kill Penguin, claiming that he will help Butch escape afterwards. Butch, however, declines, as he never wanted to harm Penguin in the first place. Nygma then brings Butch to the club's kitchens, revealing that some of Penguin's henchmen, including Zsasz, are on his side now and have also captured Tabitha. Once more, Nygma makes the offer to Butch.

After Butch, who cares for Tabitha too much, has agreed to kill Oswald, Nygma heads to the stage where Oswald is about to give his victory speech. Nygma wishes Oswald good luck and when Butch, now wearing the red hood, appears, Nygma grabs Oswald. However, when Butch shoots at Oswald, the gun he got from Zsasz is revealed to be filled with blanks. Nygma then loudly claims that the last member of the Red Hood gang has been caught red-handed, revealing that he only feigned his treason to manipulate Butch. Butch is shot down by Zsasz instead. While Butch is on his knees, Nygma approached him, calls him an idiot for believing Nygma and removes the hood. An outraged Penguin calls for the death of Butch. Penguin heads back to the stage, claiming that he is shocked and disturbed that he has been betrayed by one of his closest friends. His hate speech is interrupted when Tabitha storms the room, having escaped her captors. Without the leverage, Butch attacks Nygma and is nearly strangled him to death, but is stopped by Oswald who hits him over the head with a glass bottle, knocking him unconscious. Nygma was unconscious for a few minutes but woke up much to Penguin relief. The injured Nygma is brought to Penguin Manor where it is revealed that Nygma told Penguin about his ruse with Butch. Nygma tells him that Penguin's shock to see Butch's betrayal had to be genuine and that now, Penguin once more is seen as a hero.

Befriending Isabella
He later falls in love with a librarian named Isabella, much to Oswald's disagreement. Oswald secretly contacts Isabella in her library, revealing her what he has done to Kringle, and suggesting that he will kill her as well. Isabella later told him that she knows what happen. Edward said it was not from intention or any bad means, but only from anger. Isabella told him how much she loves him, and they started kissing, just as Oswald came into the scene. Oswald made an excuse he is tired, thus he went out of the scene, scheming how to separate Nygma and Isabella.

Facing his fears
Nygma makes a surprise breakfast for Isabella. Isabella tells Nygma that she'll be at a book council for two days, but Nygma makes out that she'll be gone for 42 hours which is less than two days. The pair enjoy their morning together, until Isabella puts on her reading glasses. Nygma is frightened by this because they look almost exactly like the pair Kringle used to wear. Nygma runs to the bathroom to calm himself down, but is haunted by a hallucination of Kristen Kringle in the bathroom mirror. Kringle tells Edward that he is falling for a woman that is almost exactly like her and it will only be a matter of time until Nygma kills Isabella. Nygma goes to Oswald to talk to about his situation. Oswald tries to convince Nygma to break up with Isabella and agrees to tell her for him. Despite telling Isabella the news that Nygma wants to end the relationship, Isabella knows that he's just saying that because he doesn't want to repeat what happened to his previous girlfriend and is determined to stay by Nygma's side. Nygma gets a letter from Isabella to come see her. Nygma tries to explain that breaking up would be for the best, but Isabella says that it isn't, knowing that Nygma is only afraid. Isabella walks into the room, thanks to old newspapers and photographs, Isabella made herself look like the spitting image of the late Kristen Kringle. Shocked at this, Nygma tries to leave, but Isabella stops him assuring him that he won't repeat the same actions he did in his previous relationship. Isabella puts Nygma's hand by her throat and proves to Edward that he is no longer the killer he once was. Now free of his past, Edward and Isabella embrace with a kiss now putting Kristen Kringle's memory behind him.

Avenging Isabella
When Nygma grows increasingly impatient for Isabella to call, Oswald assures him that Isabella would call soon. Nygma receives a call from the GCPD, telling him to come to the precinct, but not explaining why. After arriving, Edward and Oswald are told that Isabella is dead and see her lifeless body on the M.E. table. Oswald then revealed Ed that Isabella blew through a red light and crashed into an incoming train, most likely from falling asleep behind the wheel. Nygma cries on Oswald's shoulder assuring Nygma that he would be there for him. In trust and in much of sadness, Ed falls into a deep depression having once again lost the love of his life and decides to go to the railroad tracks where she was killed. After paying his respects, Nygma realizes that Isabella was only four blocks away from her apartment making it unbelievable that she doused off before she was hit by the train. Nygma then hears from a blind homeless man that he heard Isabella screaming for help before she was hit the previous night. He went to the crushed car and investigated it's pieces, as he saw the breaks were cut down, proving that Isabella's death was no accident. Nygma goes to Oswald, and tells him he sees Butch as the main suspect, as payback for exposing him as leader of The Red Hood Gang. Oswald fortunately agrees to help Edward in his quest for finding Butch promising to make him pay for what he's done.

Nygma eventually tracks Butch and Tabitha down to the apartment they've been staying at and drugs the food that was delivered to their place so he could kidnap them. Ed later receives a phone call from Oswald. Oswald warns Edward that Barbara Kean is now looking for Tabitha and that he needs to kill the two and get things over with, but Nygma tells Oswald that he needed to work through his grief his own way and hangs up. After Butch tells Nygma to have Oswald to settle the score face to face instead of using his friend to do it, Nygma tells Butch that the latter's feud with Oswald have nothing to do with why the former is torturing them as he is trying to avenge Isabella's murder, Butch replies that he has no idea who Isabella is, to which Nygma doesn't believe. Nygma begins to electrocute Butch as Tabitha, who is strapped in a chair remains powerless to stop it.

Tabitha demands for what Nygma wants to gain from this ordeal. Nygma tells Tabitha that before he kills Butch, he wants to break Butch's heart in order to spread the same pain he felt when Isabella was killed. Nygma decides as a way to test Butch and Tabitha's love, he put's Tabitha's hand in a mini guillotine. Nygma tells Tabitha that he has set a timer for the guillotine to let it's blade go and chop off, Tabitha's hand, but Nygma gives her a switch that will stop the blade from cutting her, but she'll have to sacrifice Butch because the when Tabitha presses the switch to save herself, it'll send enough shockwaves inside Butch to kill him. Butch persuades Nygma to change the situation as the latter is just going to kill the former regardless of what choice is made. Nygma decides that if Tabitha loves Butch enough to sacrifice her own hand, he'll set them both free, but only changes the deal because he knows Tabitha would be reluctant to chop her hand for Butch. Butch accepts the possibility that Tabitha will push the switch, telling her that he still loves her even if she doesn't feel the same. As a final taunt, Butch tells Edward that before he put a bullet in Isabella's head, she wished she had been with a real man. Upon hearing what Butch said Nygma realizes that he was not behind Isabella's accident, since her death was not by gunfire. Although Tabitha didn't share the same romantic feelings for Butch anymore, she drops the switch, saving Butch's life, but leaving Tabitha handless. As Barbara arrives to save Butch and Tabitha, Edward hardly responds to her presence and relinquishes Butch and Tabitha to Barbara as he ponders on who actually killed Isabella.

Nygma then meets Barbara, who tells him how Oswald had assassinated Isabella. Nygma pretends to ignore the truth, just so he could find out himself. Oswald, who doesn't want Nygma to realize the truth, pretends to encourage him. Nygma then resigns from his job for the the good of Isabella's library, however, Oswald manipulates him into staying. Nygma then gets shocked and asks Oswald to hire him as a partner, however, Oswald doesn't really agree. Later, Nygma thinks about killing Oswald, but as Oswald tells Nygma he is truely a friend, Nygma hugs him, and says that he was also a good friend once. Nygma then comes to apologize to Tabitha and to Butch, and teams up with them, under Barbara's leadership, to stop Oswald and destroy him completely.

Scheming against Penguin
"I loved her, Oswald...and you killed her!"

- Nygma before shooting Oswald Nygma quickly devices an elaborate scheme to destroy Oswald and his legacy. Aware of Oswald's relation to his deceased father, Elijah van Dahl, Edward hires the shape-shifter Basil Karlo to haunt Oswald as the ghost of Elijah. Successfully manipulating Penguin into believing that his father's ghost cannot rest, Edward then breaks into the Gotham City cemetery and digs up the corpse of Elijah. He hides the corpse in the office of Oswald's new chief of staff. Through the hints he gets by "Elijah", Oswald is tricked into believing that the chief of staff stole the corpse of his father and, as a result, brutally murders the man. Minutes later, Oswald has a live interview for national TV. During the interview, Nygma sends Karlo, again disguised as Elijah, into the room, causing Oswald to panic and break down on live TV. Afterwards, Karlo meets with Nygma, Tabitha and Barbara who congratulate him on his performance.

As part of the plan, he phones Oswald and claims he is captive in a chemical factory, and that he managed to sneak to a phone, and call him for help. Oswald immediately starts worrying about Nygma and intends to save him. Oswald and two henchmen immediately head to the warehouse Edward claims he's held. With his two henchmen, Oswald heads to the warehouse where they encounter Nygma. Oswald is overjoyed to see him, but when he tells Nygma that they've come alone Nygma shoots both of Oswald's guards. Oswald is shocked and claims that he doesn't understand to which Nygma replies that that has been half the fun. Nygma then reveals that he only staged his kidnapping and drags Oswald into a corner, where the destroyed car of Isabella is stored. Nygma angrily shouts that Isabella was his "everything" and that this is the reason why he took everything from Oswald except his life. Edward adds that he will take that too in the very night.

While preparing for Oswald's demise, Edward reveals to him how exactly he staged everything, including hiring Karlo. He also adds that he disposed of Elijah's remains in a dumpster behind a restaurant. When Oswald admits to having had Isabella killed, Nygma angrily accuses him of destroying his life, believing he would have lived a happy life with Isabella. Oswald replies that he did Nygma a favor because both of them know that, had Oswald not killed Isabella, Nygma would have done so. When Oswald then claims that Oswald did what he did because of his love for Edward, Edward angrily shuts him up by claiming that Oswald would sacrifice everything - even Nygma - to save his own life. Edward then fixes the ropes tying Oswald to the wreckage and reveals the trap he has put Oswald into. Over Oswald hangs a vat of acid which will pour down on him the moment the ice block which contains a frozen chain, melts. While Oswald screams that he will change, Edward walks away to leave Oswald alone in his last moments. However, just before the vat turns over, Oswald is saved by a policeman who happens to be nearby. Back at his manor, Oswald is confronted by Butch and Tabitha who have come to dispose of Nygma. Capturing him with his whip, Tabitha then taunts Oswald about the death of his mother before Butch knocks him out. The two decide to take him with them. Oswald is brought before Barbara, Tabitha and Butch who are now after Nygma, who was outlived his usefulness. They want to make a deal with Oswald, promising his life if he calls Nygma and convinces him to meet. However, remembering what Edward accused him of, Oswald refuses. After Oswald refuses to give up Nygma, Nygma reveals himself - having been in the room the entire time. Oswald realizes that all four of them have plotted against him and Nygma confirms this, adding that he wanted Oswald to die knowing that he was not capable of loving anything.

Nygma brings Oswald to the harbor, where he is supposed to shoot Oswald. However, by claiming that he was the one who created the true Oswald, and that the two cannot exist without each other, Oswald attempts to talk his way out of it. Despite this, Nygma shoots Oswald into the chest and pushes him into the harbor where Oswald sinks to the ground.