Pilot Review: Gotham -- Enjoyable tv experience, but will it survive the FOX ax?
I watched the pilot on premiere night and I quite enjoyed it. Granted I feel Arrow and Smallville had stronger pilots, but that's neither here nor there. Since it does take a while to get into one's footing. For instance, Arrow had a strong pilot, but it seriously took me several episodes to where I was finally hooked. Agents of SHIELD had a decent pilot, but then it also took a little while for that show to find its footing too. Plus SHIELD was waiting for the big HYDRA reveal and destruction of SHIELD in Captain America: The Winter Soldier. So I'm willing to continue to watch Gotham, but I am still weary of FOX since they are notorious for cancelling shows that I enjoy hehe.
The cinematography of Gotham City was great, and I loved how it is a centerpiece of this world. Ben was a decent Gordon, and I liked that the writers emphasized Gordon's strong moral code. Little Bruce is intriguing to watch because the younger actor is actually pretty decent. There were moments where you can see the scowl under the cowl already. I also really enjoyed seeing the origin of Poison Ivy in the episode. The Riddler was a nice cameo, but the Penguin and Detective Bullock totally stole the episode for me. The only person I'm still concerned about is Jada Smith. I don't know if she was suppose to ham it up, or they just let her go in certain moments. I'm also a little mixed about Barbara too. I can't pinpoint exactly why yet. Plus if that means we get to see Gordon's offsprings on the show (as long as FOX doesn't cancel it), then I don't mind lol.
Perhaps I'm used to the pacing on my other superhero shows, but I don't know how they are going to slow down the pacing of the villains to intertwine with Bruce's age. Oswald is already acting like the Penguin, and Edward is already making riddles. At least Poison Ivy and Catwoman are quite young in their psychological process. I just don't know how the pacing of the villains will work considering Bruce's age. I guess those massive time jumps between seasons will come in handy as previously discussed in promotional interviews. I'm just kinda iffy on the pacing of the famous villains.
Regardless, I'm curious to see how this all pans out on the show. I will definitely continue to watch this show this tv season even if means there is a chance FOX will cancel it.