Chicago Comic Con: ‘Gotham’ Screening

Wizard World Chicago Comic Con featured an advanced screening of Fox’s new TV series, Gotham, intended to tell the story of the city before Bruce Wayne became Batman. The panel started 15 minutes late, and so the audience was antsy by the time Cameron Bicandova (Selina Kyle) and Cory Michael Smith (Edward Nygma) came out to introduce it.

Smith talked about how cool of a show it was going to be, saying that it was interesting because it is a procedural but also a serialized TV show. He also mentioned that they are doing some very interesting things on the current episode they are filming, episode 7, and that provided you can stick it out to that episode it becomes a really good show–not entirely reassuring.

Finally, they started the show. Without giving away any spoilers, this is what can be said about the pilot epsiode of FOX’s Gotham:

While there is a significant cast of color (both members of the major crimes unit and the police captain, two of which are women of color), besides Jada Pinkett-Smith, who plays a character called Fish Mooney, none of our main goodies or baddies are such. The acting ranges from quite good to bearable, though certain characters seem to be going in a different direction that we might be used to from other films/shows that feature them.

Gotham has a grim look, but to the point of over stylization. It gives a feeling of almost trying too hard with certain plot lines (SPOILERS: Rather than hinting at the Penguin’s character and just heavily implying it, they go so far as to literally nickname him ‘Penguin’). Despite claiming to be a procedural, it didn’t really feel like the crime was solved in the end.

At almost the end of the panel, a huge storm knocked out sound and then picture was struggling to fix itself, so I couldn’t spoil the very end of the episode if I wanted to.

It’s worth giving the pilot episode a watch, especially if you’re into DC/Batman.