'Gotham's Valeria Vale May Have A DC Connection

Gotham Season 3 has introduced its first original character, journalist Valerie Vale, whose name should sound familiar to Batman fans. Vicki Vale is a character from DC Comics who is probably best known as Batman's love interest in Tim Burton's 1989 film Batman, where she was portrayed by Kim Basinger, and clearly her name is quite similar to Gotham's new character. And if you compare the actual characters of Valerie and Vicki Vale, you'll notice that the two have a lot of similarities, though they are not supposed to be the same person. But that doesn't mean the shared last name is a coincidence. In fact, the two Vales reportedly have a very important connection.

On Gotham, Bruce Wayne is still a kid, which establishes Valerie as much older than Vicki and a source told TVLine that Valerie is actually Vicki's aunt. So far, Gotham has not announced whether Vicki will actually appear on the series, but it is possible that a young Vicki could turn out to be Bruce Wayne's next middle school crush, or that Valerie could casually mention a niece to Jim. But whether she eventually appears in Gotham or not, it seems like some of Vicki's qualities will be seen in Valerie, though they'll also diverge in a few ways.

1. They're Both Journalists

Valerie made her Gotham debut during a press conference about Fish Mooney and the other Indian Hill escapees, asking the tough questions and uncovering the truth with Jim Gordon. That's also Vicki's profession in the comics, so maybe she was inspired by her potential aunt's success.

2. Valerie's Casting Is A Step Forward

In the comics and the movie, Vicki Vale has been portrayed as a white woman with red hair, while Gotham cast Korean-American actress Jamie Chung as Valerie. This racially blind casting not only sets Valerie apart from Vicki, but is a great example of how comic book adaptations can have better representation than their source material.

3. Neither One Will End Up With Batman

Considering that Valerie is in her 20s while Bruce Wayne is still an adolescent, it's no wonder that he's not going to be falling in love with her. But in the comics, Vicki Vale was also not Batman's great love — more of a longtime flirtation and one of Bruce's girlfriends. And even in Burton's movie universe, Vicki was overshadowed by his bantering relationship with Michelle Pfeiffer's charmingly villainous Catwoman.

4. But Both Characters Do Have A Romantic Side

Even though Vicki has never been Bruce Wayne's soulmate, she has had both a relationship with him and, in the comics, been married to or dated other minor characters. And so far, while Valerie has seemed mostly focused on the job, she had some great chemistry with Jim Gordon and I wouldn't be surprised to see their relationship progress.

5. Both Are Naturally Suspicious

Vicki was canonically the person who investigated Batman's secret identity, kind of like the Batman version of Lois Lane. So far, Valerie has also demonstrated a willingness to go pretty deep for her story, including being possibly the first person to capture one of the Indian Hill experiments on film.

6. But They Could Have Different Fates

Gotham has never been too worried about keeping with DC Comics' original continuity. After all, in the comics Bruce Wayne didn't start fighting villains until he adopted his second identity, James Gordon is married to Barbara, and there's no Fish Mooney. But this is one time that you may want the FOX series to borrow from comic storylines, as Vicki Vale usually survives. But since Gotham has made a totally original character with Valerie, anything is possible. Let's hope this journalist has as much luck as Vicki and survives the mad city.

Images: Jeff Neumann, Nicole Rivelli/FOX (4); Giphy (2)