Gotham's Spring Premiere Trailer Is Riddled With Batman Movie Easter Eggs

Are you ready for the moment when Gotham returns, Batman begins, and a Dark Knight rises? If not, you's better get ready, as the new teaser for the Spring Premiere of Fox's Bat-prequel is riddled with Easter eggs from the movies -- as well as teases for what's coming up in the final run of the third season.

Let's break down the moments that made our Bat signals light up with glee, shall we?

First, there's this shot of Selina Kyle (Camren Bicondova) lying on the ground as cats surround her:

No, you're not dealing with the after-effects of mistletoe poisoning (besides, a kiss is deadlier if you mean it)... That's a reference to a shot from 1992's Batman Returns, when that Selina Kyle (Michelle Pfeiffer) is thrown from a window, only to be resurrected by some sandpaper cat licks.

Does this mean that the younger Ms. Kyle is finally moving towards her destiny, becoming Catwoman -- rather than just a street-wise thief with goggles that kind of look like cat ears?

Gotham: Will Selina ever forgive Bruce?

Then there's the dialogue from someone we're guessing could be Batman arch-enemy Ra's al Ghul (Alexander Siddig), who is joining the cast as the man pulling the strings behind the villainous Court of Owls. In the trailer, the unseen man tells what looks like Bruce Wayne's (David Mazouz) evil clone that, "out of the ashes, a dark hero will rise."

[Ed. Note: if you haven't been watching the show, there's an evil double of Bruce Wayne running around who is teamed up with the Court of Owls. That's basically all you need to know.]

With his deep, growling voice, and talk of things rises from the ashes, it certainly brings to mind Bane's (Tom Hardy) dialogue from The Dark Knight Rises.

And in case all of that was too subtle for you, the trailer includes the words "returns" and "begins" in big, bold type to kick off the last sequence, which we dug more than chicks dig Batman's car. "If this is my destiny, I do not want to fail," says Bruce Wayne.

Yep, after three seasons of asking, "why don't they just make Bruce Wayne Batman?" it looks like we're finally going to see Batman begin(s). Not only that, but a tease of a green "?" over the Gotham skyline in the final title card shows that, even as "heroes rise," we're going to see the rise of a prominent villain, too: The Riddler (Cory Michael Smith).

All that, plus the return of Jada Pinkett Smith, a crazed Michael Chiklis, B.D. Wong's delightfully arch Hugo Strange, and more? I don't know about you, Miss Kitty, but the final episodes of Gotham's third season feel so much yummier.

Watch the full trailer here:

Gotham airs Mondays at 8/7c on FOX.