Gotham Episode 1: Pilot Review

*Note: Full Spoilers Below in the Review

I will be honest and upfront in this review, I am  a HUGE Batman fan, and I had lofty expectations for this show.  This is potentially a huge  glance into the world of the surrounding cast of Batman, being put on a large display and I really wanted this to be good. The truth is though I was initially very worried in how this was all going to play out, and honestly thought it was a huge money grab after the relative success of Arrow and it would be a disaster. However after watching the debut Pilot I must admit that all those worries have been put to ease and I can actually say the show was very good. Perhaps even worthy of all they hype it was getting.

Right off the bat the episode starts with a bang, literally with the first scene of the first episode being the death of the Waynes. With whatever liberties the show was going to take with the established continuity , I am glad that the scene with Joe Chill , the pearls, and all that, was left pretty much exactly as it should be. This murder however does more than just play homage to what will be the catalyst in the creation of the Batman, it serves as the plot device to move the main cast of the characters in this episode. I believe this was a great decision of the writers, to make it have the Batman-esque feel, but give it good reason to be in the episode.

Some classics must not be tinkered with

We then cut to the young James Gordon ( Ben Mckenzie), who is the junior partner to Harvey Bullock (Donald Logue), who are the detectives assigned to the Wayne homicide. We get to see moments with Bullock and Gordon which ring true to the characters we are already familiar with. Bullock is less noble in his job as he strays more in the gray , while Gordon is definitely one who always strives to do what is right no matter what. We get a early interaction with Gordon and Bruce, which becomes the first of what will be many in the future, and it is very nice to see these moments. The creators of the show are definitely banking on some of that sentimental impact amongst fans, and the moments are well placed.

In the meanwhile  this is a Gordon show, not a Batman show, and we have a pretty good episode from this opening tragedy. The pilot is entirely focused around the initial response to the Wayne murder, and there is immense public pressure on the GCPD to complete this case and fast. The lack of evidence leads Bullock to turn to known underworld big shot Fish Mooney ( Jada Pinkett-Smith), who unbeknownst to Gordon, devises a frame up of a low life convict on parole , in order for the case to go away. Things however go south, when Oswald Copplepot (Robin Lord Taylor), a low level Mooney thug, tells Major Crimes detectives about the frame up, in order to try and muscle out Mooney. This leads to Gordon finding out about the frame up and he gets in trouble while trying to confront Mooney. The episodes conclusion in particular is really intense with Carmine Falcone (Jon Doman) basically letting Gordon knows that he runs the city, and certain things must go the way he intends for order to be fulfilled. This leaves the young Gordon making his first pact with the eventual Batman, telling the boy they did not find his parents killer, and his intention to do so, but also clean up the city from the inside. This was a great way of giving the episode a nice finality to it, but also establishing a great ongoing plot as well, which will undoubtedly drive the show further.

The plot in my opinion was pretty good, especially for a pilot. What I particularly liked was that tone was established early on. We can all gleam the type of city that Gotham is and how people operate. Gordon’s character is also pretty spot on, however I like how they basically have him as a diamond in the rough. Right now he does not quite have the juice to operate the way he would like to, so he is making unfortunate compromise’s here and there. The scene at the docks is a PERFECT example of how a man like Gordon will adapt to the corrupt environment, he will play along , but only to an extent and never truly giving in. Mckenzie does a nice job in this episode, he is able to have the qualities of the lead of a show. If he were a pitcher, I’d say he had a good start, but we still have yet to see a complete game from him yet, and I am curious to see how he progresses as the show moves forward, since the plot will kind of ride on him.

Jim Gordon..and hes does not smoke or have a mustache!

Another characterization I was fascinated by going into this show was Harvey Bullock’s. This is the first live adaptation of the Bullock character , who was made very popular in the Batman The Animated Series from the early 90’s.  That Bullock was a cop who was a good cop, but was a little rough around the edges. This one however is a little too rough..or just plain corrupt. In all honesty I do not mind any potential character changes or liberties ( I also do not care at all about appearance differences such as no mustache on Gorodon, or the fact Bullock is slender), but the Bullock I have come to known would not be basically a mob enforcer who would frame somebody. His character in the past has had some problems and interpretations where he has been less than a good cop, but in general I think this is a bit of a liberty with the character.  Logue did a great job, and he played the role well, but the role may be just a tad to extreme in this case. However I do not mind that in general, just a bit with this particular character. But going forward I admire the fact the show will not be afraid to mix things up a bit, hopefully to the benefit of the story.

The Harvey we all probably remember

A even rougher interpretation of Harvey Bullock

Amongst the other actors a standout for my money was Robin Lord Taylo’s Copplepot…. or as we all know the man who will be become the Penguin ( they do refer to him as a Penguin in two instances actually). The Penguin for those who have read his recent characterization is a man of great savy, who is not afraid to play all sides and ultimately is looking out for himself at all times. He is power hungry, but more of a opportunist waiting for his chance to strike as opposed to being head on. Taylor did a great job of embodying this, with adding the feel of a man who is still unsure of his capabilities being so young. You get the feel of the man who has the napoleon complex and also just a weasel of a guy. His character going forward will be very interesting to see.

It could be worse my nose could be gushing blood…….*hopes the 20 year old reference is not dated

Other actors such as Jada Pinkett Smith, did a good job, she really established that crime boss presence. David Mazouz also did a very nice job as the young Bruce Wayne. We see the kid so grief stricken, then put on the earliest , faintest beginning of his trail to becoming the Dark Knight. His line that really sold me was when he said ” Don’t be, I’m glad he’s alive, I want to see him again.” (referring to Gordon apologizing for not catching the real killer), just a small glimpse of the boy who has already started his transformation. Erin Richards as Brabara Kean was not seen to much in this episode though her role as a escape for Jim is quite apparent. Also Sean Pertwee’s Alfred definitely seems to be from the mold established in Batman Earth One, with a kind of “bad-ass” feel to him.

As for little fan bits and character drops there are plenty to be found. We see characters such as Renee Montoya, Edward Nygma, Ivy Pepper ( a clear new name for Pamela Isely) and Selina Kyle. Eddy likes riddles, Ivy likes plants and Selina has a cat. The little throw ins are nice for the fans and do not take you out of the experience by any means. Though it should be interesting to see which ones of these characters grows into something as the season goes on.

Going off that though, this is a episode that is accessible to fans and non fans alike. Yes a Batman fan will enjoy some of the little tidbits that are sprinkled throughout the show, but it could easily be its on drama if these were not pre established characters. In other words its new user friendly and no one should find it a daunting task to follow the characters and plot.

Overall Gotham is a show that has much hype around it, and the Pilot was a very good episode. For a opening start, we got a great established tone, with a nice plot and  good acting. I believe this has met the hype and am excited to see where we go from here. Be