'Gotham's Tabitha Galavan Has Some Comic Origins

As we already know, Gotham belongs to its villains. This season has already introduced a couple of really tough ones, too— namely, Theo and Tabitha Galavan, a brother/sister combination that seems hellbent on taking the the city by storm. The cool thing about their dynamic is that he seems to be the brains behind the operation, while she's the muscle, flipping the traditional dynamic. What I want to know: did Gotham come up with that idea all by itself, or was it already cemented in DC lore? In other words, is Gotham 's Tabitha Galavan from the comics, and what is her character like there?

The answer is kind of a mix. The character of Tabitha Galavan is new for the TV series, but Tabitha's villainous alter-ego, Tigress, is from DC Comics. That gives Gotham a lot of wiggle room. The show can mine the comics for some ideas if it needs to, but since she's technically a new character, it doesn't have to stick with Tigress' backstory if it wants to go in a new direction. Still, learning about the character of Tigress as she is in the comics might give us some clues as to what's going to happen this season on Gotham. Here's what you need to know.

There Have Been A Few Versions Of Tigress In The Comics

The first Tigress was such a small character in the DC universe that she didn't seem to have her own backstory; she was mainly the villain who ran a gang of thieves and menaced magician hero Giovanni Zatara. The second Tigress is Paula Brooks, who later goes on to become Huntress — Arrow fans might find that name familiar, even if the CW series used a different alter-ego for her. Brooks is mother to Artemis Crock, the third and most famous in the line of Tigresses. Tabitha marks the fourth incarnation in a long line of tigers.

She Has Something In Common With Katniss Everdeen

Her weapon of choice? Gotham may have Tigress wielding a whip, but the Tigress in the comics is usually seen with a bow and arrows — a crossbow, to be exact.

Her Powers

This one is kind of obvious; in the comics, in addition to her crossbow marksmanship, Tigress's powers are tiger-like. She's strong, she's good in a fight, and she can track people with her sense of smell. This works well with the Gotham vibe, since she doesn't have any crazy, fantastical superpowers, which fits in with the mostly-grounded nature of the show. Still, citizens of Gotham better watch out.

Her BF

Artemis Crock was the on-again, off-again girlfriend of a comics character named Icicle. Gotham producers have confirmed that they're bringing in Mr. Freeze — if Tigress is into cold dudes, could there be a love connection?

There Is No Brother

This villain/sibling dynamic is pretty new for Artemis Crock's Tigress; Paula Brooks did not give her a brother. They both seem pretty vicious, so I think she can hold her own in this sibling dynamic.

She's Kept a Low Profile

The coolest thing about Tigress is that she hasn't really made much of an appearance in many Batman TV series or movies. She hasn't been in any of the movies at all, and only really appeared as a (heroic!) TV character on the Cartoon Network series Young Justice, which lasted for one season in 2013. For a while, I thought that Gotham was relying too much on only the most famous villains: The Penguin, The Riddler, Catwoman, Harvey Dent. With Tigress, the show can really branch out and make the character its own.

Images: Nicole Rivelli/FOX; Giphy (4); youngjustice/Tumblr