Gotham - Series Premiere - Recap: There Will Be Light

However, there are drawbacks to this pilot. In doing a prequel series like Gotham, narrative issues are introduced that can often undermine whatever narrative advantages you might get from doing a prequel series in the first place. For example, many of the characters in such a world can't be dispensed with, since they have predetermined futures that can't be rewritten without violating the spirit of the property being adapted. Equally troublesome is the fact that some characters don't really get to exist as their own, independent characters, because audiences are likely to bring their own preconceived notions to the show. Basically, the show doesn't need to do the legwork of telling us that Jim Gordon (Ben McKenzie) is an indefatigably honest cop, because we've spent countless movies, comic books, cartoons, and video games getting beaten over the head with it. Similarly, we don't need to spend a whole lot of time establishing that Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor) is an ambitious outsider struggling for acceptance. We don't need to see it anymore than we need to see the rehashed version of the murder of Thomas and Martha Wayne, or how it has traumatized Bruce (David Mazouz) to the point that he will one day dedicate his life to the pursuit of justice as Batman. It's all a part of the cultural consciousness, so to detail the origin stories of Gotham's best-known characters seems kind of redundant.

Credit: Jessica Miglio/FOX

And yet, where the show succeeds is in defining these characters anyway even though it doesn't have to. Gotham should be able to stand on its own and work, regardless of whether you've ever had any meaningful culture contact with the Batman mythos. By and large, this pilot is a gripping hour, as it focuses on the only first case it possibly could focus on: the aforementioned murder of Thomas and Martha Wayne. The show uses this as the crux to establish several key facets of the series: that Jim Gordon is perhaps the last truly honest cop in the city; that Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue) has been worn down by the demands of the job and the lack of good his work actually does, such that he becomes "lackadaisical" and even open to criminal persuasion; and, perhaps most importantly of all, that Gotham is a crooked city, with a crooked police force and criminals who basically have the run of the place. However, the show suggests that Gotham isn't inherently a bad place. As Jim explains to the grieving Bruce in the aftermath of his parents' death, "However dark or scary the world might be now, there will be light. There will be light." Gotham may be overrun with crime, but there is the potential for goodness here. Yes, it's kind of a lousy place, but it's still a place worth saving. And that seems to be more the story of Gotham than any one case.

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Of course, this is more of a theme that's told to us than shown, as we are yet to be given any real indication as to why Gotham deserves saving beyond Jim's inexplicable faith in the city. He's relentless goodness makes him an easy and welcome character to follow through the seedy underbelly of the city as the investigation continues into the murder of the Waynes. Although Jim and Harvey seemingly close the case by killing a man named Mario Pepper, a low-level thug who happened to have Martha Wayne's necklace in his possession. However, it turns out he was framed by Falcone crime dyndicate member Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett-Smith), with the help of Harvey. Although Harvey likes Jim, he doesn't see the purpose behind his principles, rationalizing that it's better for the people of Gotham to believe the Waynes's killer is dead, even if that trade-off means the killer is still out there. It's a case of moral relativism, in being a good guy within the parameters of one's circumstances. Yet nothing is ever that easy, as Harvey and Jim and up getting strung up by Mooney's men in revenge for reopening the investigation. It's only when Falcone himself comes to the rescue that Jim begins to see how deep the corruption in Gotham City runs, as it's revealed that the crime boss, who knew Jim's late D.A. father, owns the police department. And so there's a real sense of inertia here, of Jim pushing against a brick wall. He hardly has any hope of affecting change, but he's committed to not only catching the real Wayne killer, he's dedicated to cleaning up the police department from the inside out, making a vow to Bruce Wayne that he will make things right, if it's the last thing he does.

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Yet, once again, that's easier said than done. One of the interesting aspects of the pilot is the implication that Jim will somehow be indirectly involved in creating the villains he is later tasked with apprehending. For example, in causing Pepper's death, Jim and Harvey have left Pepper's daughter without her father, which could shape her eventual transformation into the villainous Poison Ivy. Meanwhile, Jim's refusal to kill Penguin, in order to prove to Falcone that he's "part of the program", will likely lead to countless deaths as the Penguin rises to power. We even get a brief scene with Edward Nygma (Cory Michael Smith), a colleague of Jim and Harvey's. It's not inconceivable that Jim will eventually have something to do with creating the circumstances by which Nygma becomes The Riddler, given the obsession with causality that many prequel series tend to have. Really, it's the only kind of agency a show can have when so many of the character outcomes are predetermined. Jim can't kill The Penguin, so hey, let's have him become responsible for creating him! It's a problem the show is always going to have, unless they do a bunch of time jumps in subsequent seasons to advance us past the point where Jim is Commissioner Gordon, and Bruce Wayne is Batman. Until then, the only villain who's really expendable is Fish Mooney, since she's the show's only original creation in its rogues gallery.

Credit: Jessica Miglio/FOX

The cast is uniformly solid, as Ben McKenzie has the understated charisma of a gritty hero in a hard-boiled detective novel or noir film from the 40s. His goodness contrasts with Logue's Harvey Bullock, who is more of the world-weary, "seen it all, would rather not put up with it anymore" type. Yet, as in the Batman movies, it's the villains who steal the show. Pinkett-Smith is delightful as Fish Mooney, hamming it up and savoring every line as if she's the only person who knows she's in an adaptation of a comic book. Similarly, Taylor is great as Oswald Cobblepot, displaying the manic energy of a guy looking to get rid of the massive chip on his shoulder by rising above his place in the world. I'm interested to see where this show is headed as each of these characters rise or fall. Honestly, I didn't know I could be this excited for the season ahead, as I expected Gotham simply to be okay. But it's actively good. And worth your time. Whatever qualms I might have about the predetermined nature of prequel stories, the fact remains that Gotham maintains a striking sense of atmosphere, and a cynicism that's spliced with hope. Gotham might be more about a city than a man, but the stories about the men, women, and children of Gotham are every bit as compelling, and help frame the narrative as a tale that asks the question of whether a man can change a city before the city changes him. Give Gotham a shot. If you dig procedurals or crime dramas, odds are you're not going to regret it.