Sarah Essen

Narrows Gang (Formerly)
Cherry's (Formerly)
Gotham City Police Department (Formerly)

"*The Lazarus Pit helped clear my mind of that idiotic philosophy. I mean, I worked for the people that killed my father! This is the new me, Jim and frankly I like her a lot more than the old me.*"
—Sarah to Jim Gordon.[src]
**Sarah Marie Essen** (August 13, 1976 – May 15, 2014; resurrected January 29, 2015), formerly **Essen-Gordon**, is the ex-wife of Jim Gordon, ex-step-mother of Barbara Gordon and James Gordon Jr., twin sister of Alice Essen. After Jim divorced Barbara Kean, her and Jim were happily married and both worked in the Gotham City Police Department until Sarah was promoted to captain and made her husband and daughter proud. She was tragically later killed in a jealous rage by Barbara Kean with a stab through the heart, leaving Jim and his daughter devastated. She was later resurrected by Talia al Ghul in order to be used as a weapon against the war on Barbara Kean. However, Sarah then threw Talia into the crater of the Lazarus Pit and killed the remaining assassins, returning to Gotham. She was later defeated by Alice, Barbara and Talia and almost killed by them until Jim let her go. Several years later, she returned to Gotham City as a member of the mysterious Religion of Crime and the leader of the Daughters of Lilith, becoming known as **Mother Superior**. This caused her to encounter the vigilante, Batwoman.

## Biography

### Early Life

Sarah was born alongside her twin sister, Alice, on August 13, 1975 to an unnamed man and woman. When the sisters were young, their father was a well-known criminal in Gotham but was eventually gunned down by the cops. Unlike her sister, who grew to hate the cops of the city for killing their father, Sarah believed that it was for the best.

Alice then ran away from the household and fell out of touch with Sarah completely. She later went through police academy and became a detective in the GCPD. She later met the rookie detective from Chicago, Jim Gordon and happily welcomed him into the force.

### Falling in Love With Jim Gordon

After Jim Gordon's wife at the time, Barbara Kean was kidnapped and driven insane by Jason Skolimski, she murdered both her parents and was sent to Arkham Asylum. During this time Jim was highly supported by Sarah and she even drove him to Arkham in his attempt to talk Barbara out of her trance. However, to no avail he finally realised he needed to get a divorce. During this tough time, Sarah was there for him and the two eventually fell in love and began dating.

Somehow, word of their relationship got to Barbara and in a jealous rage she broke out, travelled to Sarah's apartment and waited for her to get home. When she finally arrived home, Barbara jumped out at her with a kitchen knife and attempted to stab her only for Sarah to duck and hit Barbara's head against a mirror, she then managed to grab her gun and run into the bathroom. However, Barbara began to use the tip of the knife to break down the door and Sarah was at a dead end. When the door was down, before Barbara could stab her, Sarah shot her in the shoulder and tackled her to the floor. She then proceeded to beat Barbara's head against the wooden floor until she was knocked unconscious. After doing this, Sarah handcuffed her and brought her into the GCPD. Barbara was later sent back to Arkham.

After two years of dating, Sarah and Jim finally married and she changed her last name to "Essen-Gordon". At some point, Sarah was also promoted to be Captain of the GCPD.

After Jim electrocuted and finally killed Barbara, Sarah made sure no charges were put against him and, even though he felt guilty, she convinced him that she was a toxic human being beyond redemption and that he had done the right thing.

### Barbara's Return

In October 2013, Sarah and Jim were still happily married and his daughter even welcomed Sarah as her new mother. However, Sarah began to suspect that Jim was keeping a secret from her and eventually called him into her office in the GCPD and questioned him about it. Whilst he tried to shrug it off, Sarah used her detective skills to deduce that he was still lying. She finally made him confess that Barbara Kean had somehow returned, causing Sarah to be taken aback with shock and also causing her to reminisce about the time Barbara physically attacked her.

She promised Jim that she would not look into it but as he left she immediately began work on researching where she had set up shop. Hours later, she managed to find the building and travelled there, expecting to be able to gun Barbara down but ended up coming across a man named "Leland McCauley", who claimed to be Barbara's lawyer and explained to Sarah that all charges against her had been dropped before her death and that she was never charged with theft. Before she could ask further questions, Jim had tracked her down, took her out of the building and questioned her actions.

She retaliated but eventually confessed to him that she was terrified of what Barbara could do to her. Jim swore to her that she was stronger than Barbara could've ever been and she could beat her anytime. The two then shared a hug. Later, when Sarah arrived back to her office in the GCPD, she came across a gift wrapped on her desk with a card that read, "*Got you a little something, for old times sake. Kisses - B*". She tried to open it with caution but greatly panicked when she saw it was a bomb and attempted to run out of the door, barely making it with the blast pushing her over the railing.

## Personality

### Pre-Resurrection

Sarah was a kind, loving and understanding woman. When her step-daughter was traumatised by a visit from her biological mother, Sarah comforted her and even stayed with her as she fell asleep that night. She also comforted Jim Gordon after he was forced to kill Barbara Kean. Additionally, she was diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after being attacked by Barbara Kean, clearly showing after Barbara's return.

### Post-Resurrection

After being resurrected by Talia al Ghul, all of Sarah's previous personality was wiped. She was reborn as a cold and ruthless killer, forcing the League to chain her up due to her previously murdering several other members. She also holds an extremely large grudge against Barbara Kean after recognising her as the woman who took her life.

## Abilities

* **High-Level Intellect/Expert Tactician/Expert Leader:** Sarah was extremely smart and was even capable of planning out a complete tactic for GCPD officers who were about to go out onto the field. She was also able to successfully lead the GCPD after becoming the captain herself.
	+ **Expert Markswoman:** Being a former GCPD officer and captain, Sarah was greatly trained in the art of using guns and could easily shoot someone in a direct spot from a very large distance.

* **Peak of Human-Physical Condition:** Whilst still in the GCPD, Sarah was trained and kept herself in great shape in order to go out on successful missions in the field.
* **Expert Combatant:** When in the police force, Sarah was trained in the art of fighting and could handle herself against multiple assailants at a time.

## Equipment

* **Guns:** When in the GCPD, Sarah always kept a gun holstered on her right leg and used it regularly. After becoming a crime lord, Sarah still kept a gun close and used it to threaten people.

## Appearances

### *Batman: Anarky*

Season 1
* "Pilot" (phone call)
* "Hey, Diddle Diddle"
* "Die One, Die All"
* "Venom"
* "Night of the Pyg"
* "Shattered Bloodline"
* "Cold, Cold Heart"
* "Curiosity" (mentioned)
* "Treat Them Mean, Keep Them Kean"
* "Legacies"
* "The Secret Six"
* "Past Sins" (mentioned)
* "Heir"
* "Battle for Gotham"

Season 2
* "Fallout" (flashback; corpse)
* "Loyalty" (mentioned)
* "Lost Love" (mentioned)
* "Bat Family" (mentioned)
* "Vengeance"
* "Arkham Has Fallen"

Season 3
* "New Beginnings"
* "Narrows Rising"
* "A Woman Scorned"
* "Born On a Monday"
* "Family Matters"
* "Pain Is Weakness Leaving the Body"
* "Eye For an Eye"
* "Demons" (mentioned)
* "Jokes On You" (mentioned)

Season 4
* "Blood Is Thicker Than Water" (photograph)

Season 5
* "Judgement Day, Part 1"
* "Judgement Day, Part 2"

Season 6
* "No Man's Land" (mentioned)

### *Batwoman*

Season 1
* "Pilot"
* "Drink Me"
* "Sister, Sister"
* "A Mad Tea-Party" (mentioned)
* "No Use Going Back To Yesterday"
* "The Duchess! The Duchess!"
* "Off With Her Head"

## Behind the Scenes

* In DC Comics, **Sarah Essen** was the second wife of Jim Gordon after the two were discovered having an affair while he was still married to Barbara Eileen Gordon. She was later murdered by The Joker in order to torture Gordon.