Gotham was always going to have its work cut out to win over not only comic book fans, but general audiences that just plain failed to see the point of a Batman prequel series in which the caped crusader himself isn't a factor. Granted we do have young Bruce Wayne, and we were told from the start that the show would focus primarily on Jim Gordon and his mission to clean up the streets, but the general perception was that we were getting a "Batman show without Batman". It's fortunate, then, that the
Gotham pilot is (just) good enough to silence the majority of the naysayers.
We get right to the brutal murder of Thomas and Martha Wayne as the episode begins, which is smart really considering there isn't a single person out there that isn't aware of their fate. This plays out much the same as it has in all previous tellings, but this time we have another witness -- a young thief named Selina Kyle (Camren Bicondova). From there we meet the show's heroic, but deadly serious take on the young James Gordon (Ben McKenzie) and his older, gruffer partner Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue). Gordon promises the distraught Bruce Wayne (David Mazouz) that he will find the man who gunned his parents gown, but as the cops try to find the killer it becomes clear that this wasn't just a random mugging, and crime boss Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett Smith) may well know more than she's letting on.
This story unfolds very well, and the pacing is spot on. We have just enough time to establish the main characters and get to know what makes them tick, and also leave room for a few (arguably unnecessary) cameos from some future Bat-villains. The performances are all strong, standouts being McKenzie, Logue, Smith and Robin Lord-Taylor as a particularly vicious take on The Penguin. The show also looks very nice indeed, with some stunning work done to bring this crime-ridden city to life. The major problems really only lie with the tone, and some frankly amateurish editing.
Certain shots either seem to cut prematurely or linger on a character's bemused face for far longer than is necessary, and the "go-pro" style closeups on Gordon as he chases a crook through a building are woefully misjudged. This type of thing can be common with tv pilots however, and things do tend to iron themselves out as series progress, but I must say I found it pretty distracting. Everything is also a tad too stylized for
Gotham to get away with being as gritty as it would clearly like to be, and some scenes are just flat out bad. The introduction of a cartoonishly clad butcher/executioner as Gordon and Bullock squirm on the end of a hook seems like it belongs in horror spoof. But like I said, many shows suffer from a bit of "pilotistis" and go on to find their footing, and there is enough here to maintain interest for sure.
An uneven, but compelling start for
Gotham. Some may take issue with the changes to Bat-canon, but for those that don't mind some adaptation in their...adaptations, there's a lot to enjoy. I'll be tuning in next week for sure.