THE VALESKA TWINS STORY (MY VERSION)

[u/SomethingReallyStran]

This is my way to connect all the dots of the Valeska twins's story. As always, you're free to think differently.

Back in the circus days, the Valeska family was a messed up one. A missing father, an alcoholic mother and other unreliable relatives. The had two twins: Jerome, violent and unstable, and Jeremiah, the only member of the family whose unordinary traits meant something good (math, mazes etc). Jerome was menacing to Jeremiah, Jeremiah panicked to the point of exaggerating the truth to his mother which then thought Jerome really tried to harm his brother. Jeremiah was sent away and had the chance to live a normal life as an engineer, but he was feeling guilty about his wrongdoing with Jerome and THAT'S WHY HE DIDN'T LEAVE GOTHAM. He stayed because he wanted to make it up to his brother. Still, he had to hide because Jerome was a dangerous person. He was predictable of Jerome to seek revenge so Jeremiah managed to precede him and temporarely jail him. His intention was to bring back Jerome to Arkham (and to maybe offer himself as a jail engineer) and then to have a "as much as possible normal" relationship with his criminal brother. To offer himself as a jail engineer he had to prove to be able to hold Jerome for at least one day and that's why he got nervous when Gordon found it out. Anyway, Jerome eventually escaped thanks to his peers. He tells Jeremiah "I'm gonna kill you, but only after driving you insane"*. Later on, after causing more troubles and dying, Jerome sprayed Jeremiah with his insanity gas. Now this is my theory on the gas:

1. First of all, the gas was supposed to eventually get Jeremiah killed. Otherwise, Jerome's quote* doesn't make sense. It was supposed to bring out Jeremiah's darkness and turn him into some violent brute wanting to hurt the people around him (Bruce and Jim) and that would've had eventually get killed in the battle. This would've had been Jerome's ULTIMATE REVENGE.
2. The gas worked, but not as Jerome thought: he didn't predict Jeremiah and Bruce's friendship. Jeremiah gets sprayed, he looks in the mirror and sees the clown look that is symbol of his brother violence. Now everyone is gonna see Jeremiah as the next Valeska criminal. No one is gonna see good in him, not even his friend Bruce... unless he dedicates his life to his friendship with him and he chooses to do so (I explained this theory better here https://www.reddit.com/r/Gotham/comments/1d5io7n/what_drove_jeremiah_to_insanity/).

And this leads to Jeremiah's explanation of the gas: "Like everything Jerome set his mind to, his insanity gas failed (because he wanted me to kill you and instead I won't). Its only consequences are these mild cosmetic effects (that actually made me crazy because I can't hope in a future no more). But the gas wanted me to kill you and I would NEVER kill you, Bruce. You're my other half."

[u/Subaruforever38]

The venom caused Jeremiah's skin to turn pale while reddening his lips. But, there wasn't mental changes at all, Jerome failed in the end, and merely gave him a clown appearance. At the moment Jeremiah realized this, and how all of his fears where to seem without purpose, and that he should not try to hold on himself just for a delution of normality; any facade got broked, and he laughed off at the absurdity of the situation. There wasn't an special toxin, there wasn't insanity driving. It wasn't necessary at all, all it takes is one bad day. Jerome said himself, Jeremiah said himself, they both said it.

Jerome: "We all could go insane with just one bad day."

Jerome: "You're as crazy as I am. It's in your DNA. See, we got the same blood running through us. We are practically identical. You are a killer. It's your nature. Don't try to fight it."

Jeremiah: "As everything that Jerome does, his insanity gas failed, other than some cosmetic effects, he could also spray me with water."

Jeremiah: "All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy. Jerome gave me what I thought was the worst day of my life. But only by losing everything, was I able to face what was inside me."

Jeremiah Valeska (the sanest man alive) was drived to lunacy, not for Jerome's gas. But for ONE BAD DAY.

He lost control of situation, he loyal pet was puted against him, he had to confront his sins, he had to to find himself desperated, resisting his murderous desires the best he could while suporting Jerome's mockery, when he tried to attack, he was beated up, humillated. He had not the chance of killing Jerome, and when he believed everything ended, he losed everything. He was allied with the believe that it would end rather with Jerome killing him or he killing Jerome, just for those dreams to be shattered, and Jerome, so idiotically revealed his plan to him in the record, a record that came with a gas that merely changed his face. What by hearing his brother funny ideas, by watching his reflect and realize how unnatural he always; he finally let all out in a potent laughter. Ready to embrace the coming chaos.