Before Comic-Con International, there was a lot of mystery surrounding the third season of "Gotham." -- especially after the Season 2 cliffhanger that saw glimpses of Dr. Hugo Strange's "monsters" we'll get a taste of in Season 3. Luckily, CBR was at the convention to get some answers.

While there are a lot of new faces coming to "Gotham" for Season 3, there's still plenty in store for classic characters like the Penguin, Tabitha Galavan and Butch Gilzean as things heat up with the Court of Owls. CBR's Kiel Phegley spoke with Robin Lord Taylor (Penguin), Jessica Lucas (Tabitha Galavan) and Drew Powell (Butch Gilzean) about the direction of their characters in the third season, and what sets the show apart from other DC Comics-based TV series.

RELATED: Everything We Know About "Gotham" Season 3 (So Far)

"Penguin has found himself again after going through Arkham Asylum and all of that," Lord Taylor said. "And then, also, with the emergence of the monsters and Fish Mooney, it gives him a direction -- in a way it got him to focus on something, so now he's back to himself, he has a purpose. To rid Gotham of the monsters."

Lord Taylor went on to tease a "unifying mission" for "Gotham's," foes, saying, "Going forward, it's an interesting storyline in the sense that now all of the villains have a unifying mission -- which is, again, to get rid of the monsters. And you'll see our three characters reconcile each other - and they need each other in order to accomplish this. Alliances, as they have been since the beginning of 'Gotham,' have been changing, and we're all working together now for this unified call."

As for Tabitha's path in Season 3, Lucas teased, "...Tabitha and Barbara unite this year, and they have their own..."

Interrupting, Powell remarked, "Girl Power!"

Lucas continued, "They have their own lair called Siren, it's a night club. So they have some power now -- the two of them together."

Powell added about his character, "Butch and Penguin are together, but this time without mind control."

Lord Taylor also praised the dimensions of "Gotham's" characters, crediting the series' writing staff. "As actors we want to play the entire human experience. And the brilliant thing that Danny Cannon and Bruno Heller have done is that they've created these larger than life characters but actually given them soul in a heartbeat in the sense that you could actually see these characters walking around Ne York City. It's incredibly liberating for us, as actors."

Powell added, "It's Gotham City, so it's not real life. So we still get to live in the greys, and it can be a little 'Goodfellas,' and then it can be a little superhero-y. But I think at its core - there is a through line. That's why I think it stands out from the other ones, that we are unique in our genre show."

Starring Ben McKenzie, Donal Logue, David Mazouz, Sean Pertwee, Robin Lord Taylor and Cory Michael Smith, "Gotham" returns Monday, September 19 at 8pm ET on FOX.