Series Review : Gotham
I watched Gotham when it first aired in the US (Internet is truly a god-sent for me :P). The pilot episode was the same old "Batman's parents getting killed in the dark alleyway" affair for the most part and therefore, I was indifferent towards it. I wasn't too impressed with the pilot and I gave up. Several months later and they aired Gotham on Zee cafe. So I thought, "Meh, why not?" and now I regret passing it up in the first place.
Needless to say, the show was a drag during the first few episodes. It feels like your average crime drama with Batman villains thrown into the mix. Nothing happens, Jim Gordon and Harvey Bullock do their thing, people get back-stabbed - the usual stuff (for a crime drama anyway). But about halfway through, things heat up and it is all uphill from there.
I always wondered how the villains started out in the Batman universe since in most of the films/shows that we have seen, the villains already exist. The concept is very interesting as every character's back-story is established such as Selina Kyle, Edward Nygma, Cobblepot and the like. And speaking of Cobblepot, there are 4 characters that I absolutely loved watching - obviously Jim Gordon, the main star of the show. Jim's a boy-scout through and through but he is actually very likable. You get to see why Bruce Wayne admires him. He actually is the superhero in this show. Let me put it like this - if I were Bruce Wayne, Jim would be my hero.
Harvey Bullock is another character that I found to be entertaining. Harvey walks the thin line between good and bad. You start to suspect him at the beginning. Your doubts of Harvey Bullock being a corrupt cop remains throughout the show and that is how it should be. Jim and Harvey have their differences much like in any buddy-cop adventure but you can just see and feel the level of respect that Bullock has over Gordon. And thus Bullock, irrespective of him being crooked or straight, has my respect. Bromance all the way!
Penguin - this guy I'm telling you, THE BEST PENGUIN EVAR! DeVito's Penguin was okay but Tim Burton took the character too literally and therefore, he was disgusting to watch. I actually felt sorry for him instead of hating the character, which I admit, was intended. But this Penguin on the other hand, I loved every second of his appearance on the screen. He speaks like a true gentleman, but you can tell this guy is all about schemes and backstabbing. They are schemers, eh? A true double-crosser who is, as weird as it sounds, likable. I never missed The Joker (he is not my favorite villain anyway) because of this guy and most of the credit goes to the actor who plays him.
Alfred is one bad-arse butler. In the previous iterations, Alfred was always this well-mannered, dull-looking assistant/Butler to Bruce Wayne. But here, Alfred is literally, a father/commanding officer to Bruce Wayne. He shouts at Bruce for not behaving, teaches him boxing and even goes camping with him! We also get to see some of his backstory, which I never expected to see. There was even one instance where Alfie does CQC. I mean, HOW AWESOME IS THAT!? I absolutely adored Alfred. Sean Pertwee plays him extremely well and I think Michael Caine just lost to him.
And finally and ironically, the least important character in the show - Bruce Wayne. At this point in time, Bruce Wayne is a kid who doesn't know the world (yet). But he slowly learns on his own. School doesn't work out for him as his classmates mock at him and he comes home crying like a little baby (but the score is settled, thanks to Alfie). You can see the slow and gradual development of the character who will later go on to become the legend we all know and love. And the child-actor who plays him is really, really good. The relationship between Bruce and Alfred is well developed. There were some instances were I was about to cry out of joy for both of these guys. I just hope the same actor plays adult Bruce later in the series (if that is plausible). Overall, Bruce Wayne was likable too.
There is one character who I absolutely loathe - Fish Mooney. Mrs. Smith tries too hard to look and act smart but that just doesn't work out. She is plain weird. I just don't get why Fish had to be in the series as the character does not exist in the original universe. I wanted to skip the show whenever she came on-screen. Absolutely hated the character. Speaking of things that I didn't like - pan-shots. The directors apparently got high with pan-shots as for every minute or so, there is one. We know the show takes place in Gotham. You don't need to pan the camera across the city frequently to establish that!
Overall, the show is actually pretty good. It has the cheesy-ness of the 60s series, the Noir feel of the 90's movies/the animated show, and the realism of Nolan's trilogy. I know I am going to offend many out there and I don't care if I do by saying this (this is my review anyway) but, this show is better than Nolan's trilogy *instantly gets death-threats from Nolan fans*. If you are a Batmaniac, there is absolutely no reason to skip this one. Now if you'll excuse me, I have the Arkham games to playthrough once again.
Needless to say, the show was a drag during the first few episodes. It feels like your average crime drama with Batman villains thrown into the mix. Nothing happens, Jim Gordon and Harvey Bullock do their thing, people get back-stabbed - the usual stuff (for a crime drama anyway). But about halfway through, things heat up and it is all uphill from there.
I always wondered how the villains started out in the Batman universe since in most of the films/shows that we have seen, the villains already exist. The concept is very interesting as every character's back-story is established such as Selina Kyle, Edward Nygma, Cobblepot and the like. And speaking of Cobblepot, there are 4 characters that I absolutely loved watching - obviously Jim Gordon, the main star of the show. Jim's a boy-scout through and through but he is actually very likable. You get to see why Bruce Wayne admires him. He actually is the superhero in this show. Let me put it like this - if I were Bruce Wayne, Jim would be my hero.
Harvey Bullock is another character that I found to be entertaining. Harvey walks the thin line between good and bad. You start to suspect him at the beginning. Your doubts of Harvey Bullock being a corrupt cop remains throughout the show and that is how it should be. Jim and Harvey have their differences much like in any buddy-cop adventure but you can just see and feel the level of respect that Bullock has over Gordon. And thus Bullock, irrespective of him being crooked or straight, has my respect. Bromance all the way!
Penguin - this guy I'm telling you, THE BEST PENGUIN EVAR! DeVito's Penguin was okay but Tim Burton took the character too literally and therefore, he was disgusting to watch. I actually felt sorry for him instead of hating the character, which I admit, was intended. But this Penguin on the other hand, I loved every second of his appearance on the screen. He speaks like a true gentleman, but you can tell this guy is all about schemes and backstabbing. They are schemers, eh? A true double-crosser who is, as weird as it sounds, likable. I never missed The Joker (he is not my favorite villain anyway) because of this guy and most of the credit goes to the actor who plays him.Alfred is one bad-arse butler. In the previous iterations, Alfred was always this well-mannered, dull-looking assistant/Butler to Bruce Wayne. But here, Alfred is literally, a father/commanding officer to Bruce Wayne. He shouts at Bruce for not behaving, teaches him boxing and even goes camping with him! We also get to see some of his backstory, which I never expected to see. There was even one instance where Alfie does CQC. I mean, HOW AWESOME IS THAT!? I absolutely adored Alfred. Sean Pertwee plays him extremely well and I think Michael Caine just lost to him.
And finally and ironically, the least important character in the show - Bruce Wayne. At this point in time, Bruce Wayne is a kid who doesn't know the world (yet). But he slowly learns on his own. School doesn't work out for him as his classmates mock at him and he comes home crying like a little baby (but the score is settled, thanks to Alfie). You can see the slow and gradual development of the character who will later go on to become the legend we all know and love. And the child-actor who plays him is really, really good. The relationship between Bruce and Alfred is well developed. There were some instances were I was about to cry out of joy for both of these guys. I just hope the same actor plays adult Bruce later in the series (if that is plausible). Overall, Bruce Wayne was likable too.
There is one character who I absolutely loathe - Fish Mooney. Mrs. Smith tries too hard to look and act smart but that just doesn't work out. She is plain weird. I just don't get why Fish had to be in the series as the character does not exist in the original universe. I wanted to skip the show whenever she came on-screen. Absolutely hated the character. Speaking of things that I didn't like - pan-shots. The directors apparently got high with pan-shots as for every minute or so, there is one. We know the show takes place in Gotham. You don't need to pan the camera across the city frequently to establish that!
Overall, the show is actually pretty good. It has the cheesy-ness of the 60s series, the Noir feel of the 90's movies/the animated show, and the realism of Nolan's trilogy. I know I am going to offend many out there and I don't care if I do by saying this (this is my review anyway) but, this show is better than Nolan's trilogy *instantly gets death-threats from Nolan fans*. If you are a Batmaniac, there is absolutely no reason to skip this one. Now if you'll excuse me, I have the Arkham games to playthrough once again.
Score - 7.5/10
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