Five things to like and not like about GOTHAM

The ratings are in and Gotham premiered strong.  If you haven't watched the pilot yet, here's a spoiler-free* review of FIVE things you might like or dislike about it.  I'll start with the things I didn't like, and then I'll proceed to talk of the things I did like. 

*This review assumes you've seen promotion of the show and know who will appear in it, so if you haven't, then it contains *mild* spoilers. 


 
Things I didn't like:


1. Selina Kyle roaming around every freaking shot (i'm exaggerating but it did feel THAT way). 
 
2. Too much with *wink wink*. I can buy the argument of it being a hook for some people (I guess), but there were too many villain appearances.  I couldn't stand Ivy being pushed in there. I hope we never see her again. 
 
The excessive use of the “penguin” moniker was annoying, it’s inexplicably used (it fits well in the promo for next week, but NOT this week).
 
I didn't hate all of “winks”, but overall this was a huge issue for me.
 
3. The pacing.  It was a mixed bagged, felt like different shows split somewhere in the middle.
 
4. Penguin and Nigma coming off as emasculated. You almost question their sexuality, which is fine for Montoya, but it shouldn't be the case with these two. Strong character development could really turn this into a positive.  It's a big question mark whether or not the writers are capable of doing this convincingly going forward.  I'm not sure how much villainy we'll see out of Nigma though.
 
5. The music.  Wtf was that??? It was all over the place, as if they couldn't settle on a tone.  Sometimes the score was good, but some of it felt totally out of place (like the music playing during an interrogation montage).  Not a show killer by any means, but this could hint at directional issues.
 
Honorary mention:
Intensity and violence - not gritty enough, not graphic and evil enough for me.

Often over the top acting and lines - not enough to sink it though, but cringe worthy as with most comic book media, be it TV or movies.

Child actors: the pilot could've done with less of them.  I hope we never see Ivy again, and very little of Selina.

 
Things I did like:


1. Lots of gray / grey (or at least enough of it). 
 
I like it when it's not all cut clear black & white; when villains aren't all bad... when some may even elicit some sympathy or have a good argument for their cause.  The varying degree of “evil” with villains against villains is great. 
 
Likewise, the element of varying degrees of "good" guys, and good against lesser “good” is great.  Even Alfred needs to grow into the Alfred with come to know and like.  This in turn makes Gordon shine more and be more acceptable as the focus.
 
Can't say enough of this concept of varying degrees of good and evil, this is an area that the show can use to grow and build its strength.
 
2. Gotham, the city.  While the design was clearly TV, I liked this Gotham far better than Nolan's Gotham.  Snyder, from the little that I've seen will share this same concept but better with cinematic production values.  Still, Gotham was your run of the mill city we're used to seeing in cop shows, it was nice to look at in a weird way. 
 
3. Bullock and Gordon were excellent for the most part. Ben Mckenzie was perfect as Gordon... he really embodies the goodness of the character. Donal Logue was great, especially his grayness really shined. 
 
4. Penguin and E. Nigma... their roles worked seamlessly within the fabric of the show for me.  All this despite my complaints about those actors themselves, I can see each working perfectly within their respective roles.  So they don't come off as in the "just too coincidental" category as Selina Kyle and Ivy were in the pilot.
 
Of all the *wink wink*, I actually liked Gordon's interaction with Enigma. Edward finding pleasure in helping to solve crimes just fits right with his affinity for puzzles. It's a shame we never saw a proper treatment of the character done by Christopher and Jonathan Nolan.
 
5. The Fish Mooney character was a positive. Who would’ve thought? The actress playing her didn't kill it for me as I expected.  There were some line deliveries I didn't like, but overall her sadism and her future interaction with Falcone are a positive for the show.  Her relationship with the Penguin will be very appealing.
 
Honorable mention:
Intensity and violence - yeah I listed it in the things as an honorable mention above, but partly because I couldn't make my mind what to think of it.  It wasn't violent or gritty enough for me, but it was more than I expected, which is why I also mention it here.
 
Nuances - Small things were you can see complexity to the writing:  Falcone's history with Gordon’s dad and the idea that he’s not a stereotypical bad guy.  Montoya's link with Barbara.  How Bruce interacted with Alfred in at the very end of the episode as opposed to the beginning... possibly showing how coping with the crisis was changing him.

 
OVERALL ASSESSMENT:
 
The show will live or die next week, if it didn't die after last night's slow 1st half.  This is one show that I was skeptical about early on when it was announced, then warmed up to it only to cool down significantly the more I saw of it.  However, I can certainly see the show's potential now.  It doesn’t seem like I would have a tough time sticking with it for the rest of the season.

Unfortunately, the creators picked the worst possible spot to do a Selina centered episode (next week). Selina's intro was okay despite it being new, but showing up at times unexpected times was not.  Maybe next week they'll give us a reason why she was so interested in Bruce (if they're going with her own parental death), but that context wasn't there in the pilot for her to have been so prominent.
 
It could be that getting an episode of the kid out of the way might actually be a good thing if it delivers, but with a kid actor with no real acting experience... don't count on it!


Score:


That is it folks.  You might share some of these points, then again you might not.  Let me know below.