Gotham hit a series low last week in the ratings for what was a rather subpar episode. We finally got the return of Bruce Wayne only to watch him get his heart crushed when Serena told him she was lying about witnessing his parent's murder. Gordon went after a very well connected cop by becoming a bit more like the cops he's trying to stop and Fish left Gotham after Butch surrendered himself while the duo were fleeing from Victor Zsasz. So what comes next? It seems like Gotham is just too afraid to take any steps forward when it comes to advancing plot. My big question is, is it supposed to? Jim Gordon can't win, or else there is no need for Batman, but at the very least can we see the mob storylines develop? Can we see something happen that at least is along the lines of game changing or character defining and not back away from it? This week at least delivers on one of these fronts.
File Name: The Fearsome Dr. Crane
Case File: Season One, Episode 14
Study Originated by: Bruno Heller
Conducted By: John Behring
On the flip side, Nygma has gotten himself in a bit of trouble. A few weeks ago we saw Nygma get chased out of the Medical Examiner's lab by a very angry ME. Turns out this isn't the first time and despite the Captain's warning otherwise he just can't help himself from doing it again. This prompts Ed to temporarily lose his job and in his warped mind, Kristin Kringle. Ed then does what a desperate man would do and hatches a plan to get his job back so he can spend more time with Kristen. This week provides us with a bit more insight into just how desperate Nygma is to be right and just how close to a psychotic break this guy could be. We also get to see that there may truly be something there for him and Miss Kringle.
You know who is having quite the week this week? Jim Gordon. He and Bullock are department pariahs for getting Detective Flass arrested, and he can't find his ex-girlfriend. He goes to drop off his keys and finds a squatter there. A squatter who happens to be a key witness in one of the biggest murders in Gotham, who also tells him they aren't really a witness and was just using their supposed testimony to escape jail. (Um, what?) He tries to do the honorable thing and ensure Bruce that he will still find his parent's killer despite their setback at Selina's hands, only he doesn't quite get the reception he expected. He later butches his attempt to start dating again. At least he catches this week's killer...oh, wait. Fortunately, it looks likes he's got a little something on his plate to help take his mind off of things.
Conclusive Findings: What a pile of "MEH". I just think if you are going to go with a pseudo Scarecrow, then you should just go for it. Maybe since he got away there is something bigger coming, but I know I was really excited to see where this was headed and I was really let down. The case, like last week, felt really slow and boring. I know I think the show could be a little less procedural, but if it's going to do it, it should at least be entertaining. I say, don't walk into this hour expecting a creepy and sadistic killer. Dr Crane is more like a timid, obsessive scientist. Overall, this week the show seems to be looking to advance some of it's more serialized aspects such as Maroni discovering the truth about Penguin, the Leslie and Jim romance, and the fallout of Selina's confession to Bruce. Maybe now that some of these quieter plots are being addressed, we can hopefully move forward with something a bit more exciting. Fish being on the outs making her way back in feels like a retread of the Penguin plot from earlier this season, as does Penguin being called for being a snitch, again. Hopefully, while the story appears to be a bit of the same, the journeys end up being different. Though, on a positive note, I did like the banter and chemistry between Leslie and Jim this week, and the hour as a whole was fulfilling. Things happened, they were just a bit more quiet which, in Gotham's case, seems to be more of the same.
The Fearsome Dr. Crane airs Monday 2/5 on Fox.
Is Selina only in 1 scene?
ReplyDeleteYou realize this is a two part episode right?
ReplyDeleteIt really hurts my eyes to watch these eps, when I already watched the great things the show has done in a couple of their episodes. This is just staling and I hate nothing more than staling. Last week had a solid conclusion, I liked the dilemma Jim was put into but that is it.
ReplyDeleteI'll watch through the season but doubt I'll come back for a 2nd season.
I am aware. But for the first part of a two part episode, it was just okay.
ReplyDeleteYeah.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the show is stalling. I feel like this week is just filler to bide time until next week.
ReplyDeleteThat's a shame. Shows they've got too many characters. No need for her to even be on the show if she and Bruce are only going to get cameos.
ReplyDeleteAwful. I just don't know when they intend to get back on the right track. The finale episodes could be too late.
ReplyDeleteI hate to be the one to give bad news....But lil Bruce is a bit...Passive aggressive this week.
ReplyDeleteI agree like the random Ivy pepper cameos.... I think the over saturation of characters is one of the main drawbacks, too much trying to develop at once. Which is why certain episodes that are more focused on one singular plot end up yielding better results in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteIt's just trying to do to much at once I think and tries to be too much at once. If it could narrow it's sights just a bit, it could be solid. The problem is how patient will viewers be with the pace?
ReplyDeleteare we in for another heartbreak with Gordon and Bruce? i hope not
ReplyDeletewell Bruce is on the show WAY more than Selina
ReplyDeleteTo many characters, to many unneeded villains appearing instead of dealing with what they already have. Really don't know how much longer people will keep up with this. I'll watch the season till the end and than decide if I'll give up.
ReplyDeleteThere's a lot of talk with concern about the direction of the show. I'm curious: what do people want to see? What are you expecting or hoping to happen? I'm not sure I fully understand the disappointment some people have. Do people want to see more Bruce and Selina chasing each other on rooftops? Do people want to see actual Batman villains in costume? Do people expect a resolution to the who killed the Waynes murder mystery? I'm just really curious. I know what my ideas and opinions are but i'd like to know what others want.
ReplyDeleteThat's a bit concerning. Bruce Wayne at this point shouldn't be passive aggressive anything. And he shouldn't be crying over a girl. He should be a tightly wound, unfocused ball of rage. And his anger is directed at one thing: "criminal scum". I gotta say up to this point Bruce has been a bit of a wuss.
ReplyDeletegreat!, i completely hate passive aggressiveness. Looks like another relationship is going down the drain, that's three right?: Gordon and Barbara, Bruce and Selina and now Bruce and Gordon, crap why are they doing this? ARRRRRRGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!
ReplyDeleteLol well there's always Bruce and Leslie right?
ReplyDeleteWell, I think Selina's confession was the first step in hardening him, so when Gordon comes to see him, it seems like he's trying to present a steel resolve, but it just felt like passive aggressive manipulation to me.
ReplyDeletehonestly i don't even think she lied to say the trurh
ReplyDeletehey this ain't Pretty Little Liars LOL
ReplyDeletehow is being in controlled rage being a wuss, it's very mature for his age, being "a tightly wound, unfocused ball of rage" is childish
ReplyDeleteYeah, I feel this would be a great approach. That way the hour doesn't feel too crowded and everyone gets their due until such a point where they have built to a convergence.
ReplyDeleteOh, I don't believe her for a second, the problem is they do.
ReplyDeleteI've seen so many people on Twitter and Tumblr and IMDb mention this, so I'll just add it in here. What they seem to have wanted was the show starting out with the Crime Alley scene where the Waynes are killed (no Selina witnessing it), and then spend the rest of the episode setting up Bruce's relationships with Gordon and Alfred. Bruce gets sent away by Alfred to get away from Gotham. Then, starting with Episode 2, we move ahead in time and see him as an 18 year old who's coming back to Gotham. He's frustrated at the lack of progress the cops have made about his parents' deaths, so he starts investigating things himself and learning how Gotham works. That's how he meets teen Selina, and several other people who he'll run into again when he becomes Batman.
ReplyDeleteSounds interesting in theory, and while I like this show (I like anything associated with Batman), I think that idea would go over better with people because the show would be centered on Bruce Wayne, rather than centering it on Gordon, who has always been a very boring character.
It's not as if he's crying over some random girl. It's Selina Kyle. In every canon, she's very important to him, and in this canon she's his first kiss and someone he hopes will help the cops catch who killed his parents. He's like 12, for God's sake. Even in Nolan's canon Bruce is devastated by the death of Rachel and loved her, and then later loves Selina.
ReplyDeleteNot disputing that. Just saying neither has much to do. Fits in with what Heller said about needing to add certain character for the sake of marketing and showing the audience that it's not just a procedural cop show.
ReplyDeleteI think the show is just working from a doomed aspect. It can't give Gordon and Gotham any major breaks at this point because we all know what's fated to happen(Batman).It's just we are a long ways from that ever happening, so we are just watching villains develop, knowing that Jim will never really stop them. just like we know Jim and Barb are fated, so why this tired storyline with him and Barb and leslie. I think it's probably just a frustrating concept to wrap your head around. Your series protagonist will lose.
ReplyDeleteWith this show I know what we see is what we get, it's just that some episodes feel like extreme filler and then some don't. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy the show, you just have to enjoy it for what it is. I just know certain arcs are way more enjoyable than others. Jim is not connected to the mob arc really, and he hasn't done much to fight corruption in Gotham at this point. I feel those are the show's best moments. How far is Jim willing to go to save Gotham from it's own corruption, (Like what we saw last week with him going to Penguin) and how nothing he does is really worth it in the end. I wish they stuck with a shorter season plan so we'd have less filler case of the week.
I enjoy a lot about the show, I just want there to be a bit more focus when it comes to keeping it consistent. Does that make any sense?
If I was the showrunner I would have gone with a Walking dead type approach. One week it's all about Penguin and his dealings with the mob. Then the next week we see Bruce and Selina on an adventure with maybe Alfred popping in here and there but we don't see any of the other regulars. Then the next week it's Gordon and Bullock.
ReplyDeleteFinally somebody says it. Gordon is just a boring character, and it's hard to do anything with him that feels like it could carry a show.
ReplyDeleteExactly. The straight-laced by the rules cop character never makes for a good main character. The cops we as an audience love as the main character are people like John McClaine. And Gordon is no John McClaine. I recall an interview with Heller where he mentioned that because the show was centered on Gordon, they needed to include more notable comic book characters like Selina and Penguin and Ivy to remind the audience it's not just a regular cop show. That's why I agree with those people who say the show should have centered on Bruce. For many, Bruce is just as interesting as his Batman alter-ego.
ReplyDeleteLol I meant Jim and Leslie...But Leslie in the comics is a close confidant of Bruce...so you never know.....
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you're saying. In this show Selina Kyle is very important to young Bruce and he is rightfully upset. I get that.
ReplyDeleteI have to disagree however with your usage of the term "canon". There is no this canon or that canon. There is simply "CANON".
The application of the term has many variations: most of which are used to justify changes but that's a different argument. Briefly for our purposes in this topic I'll simply say that "Canon" is what happens when the creator decides it or if it happens in the original medium that the creator of the work first published it in. For example: nothing in Harry Potter is canon unless JK Rowling herself writes it on paper because she is around and still publishing.
Another example using Batman and Superman are: Krypton exploded and Kal-el was sent to Earth. That's canon. Period. Regardless of what medium the story shows up in: film, tv etc. Bruce Wayne's parents were shot to death in crime alley by Joe Chill. That's canon. They didn't die in a car accident in a tv show and that becomes the TV canon, nor did the Joker kill them when he was Jack Napier and that became the movie canon. Canon for Batman, Superman and any other comic book hero is what happens when their story is published in the comic book (the original media that it was first published by the creator of the work).
In 1989's "Batman" with Michael Keaton: Tim Burton and Samm Hamm knowingly violated canon when they made Jack Napier (the Joker) the murderer of Thomas and Martha Wayne. No big deal there. The movie went on to be quite entertaining and was a success. Comic fans from all over the world knew however that canon was violated but we all lived with it.
Back to Gotham. This show is violating canon. Batman and Catwoman meet and begin their cat and mouse relationship on the rooftops as adults. That is canon. Why? Because that is how it's presented in the original medium that it's creator first published it in: in a comic book. Until such time as a DC Comics Batman title publishes an edition that shows that Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle met as children and had a relationship: what is happening in Gotham is violating Batman canon. Period. But again: so what? Canon isn't the end all and be all. It's up to the individual reader/viewer to determine how much they wish to tolerate. But people should just start by admitting that was is being shown isn't canon.
Nice preview Winston!
ReplyDeleteThanks.
ReplyDeleteI don't know. I don't find Jim Gordon boring at all. He's trying to do the right thing but he's constantly being pulled into the mud. I say let him get into the mud. Let him take down the mob from the inside using their tactics. Or at least try to. Let him get really dirty and hate himself for it. Let him get into a hot and heavy relationship with Leslie; then have him screw up by having a mistaken night of crazy sex with Barbara one night that ends with her getting pregnant with you know who. Jim Gordon is an honorable man. He'll reluctantly marry Barbara for the sake of the child but will always recall his one true love: Leslie. He'll fall into despair by not being able to do right by his wife, child and the city until one night reports start coming of terrified street thugs. What's this about a giant bat preying on criminals at night?! The rest is history.
ReplyDeleteIf only this was the direction they would head, i just don't think they will. This would be too serialized and they want to keep it semi-procedural. But Love this.
ReplyDeleteQuestion, do you think they are trying to create new canon without really altering it too much? If so, do you think that hurts or helps the show?
ReplyDeleteSome people won't find him boring of course. But historically, most audiences find the straight laced goody goody cop characters to be too boring to be leads. That's why we love rebel cops from movies like Lethal weapon and Die Hard.
ReplyDeleteThere are different canons. It's not just the canon of the creator of the story, especially if that creator is dead. For example, Nolan's Batman world is canon for those movies.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they're trying to create new canon. More so they're trying to see where they can push and pull just enough to make it more compelling in certain places. But its clear that they are aware of the origin story and have a reverence for it. The origin story being Frank Miller's Batman Year One from 1987. Sarah Essen, Commissioner Loeb, Detective Flass: they all come from Batman Year One. They clearly have respect for it (as did Nolan). Some of the small changes helps the show. I like that Alfred helped Bruce beat up the bully at school. It adds depth to his character and shows us that Batman will be a monster of his own creation and he will one day very much regret it. I like that Leslie is being given a back story and a rather soapy one with Jim Gordon of all people. Changes like that are great. They help the show. But big changes to the major "pillars". Like Batman and Catwoman meeting as kids; thats up for debate and in my opinion hurts the show.
ReplyDeleteI've heard the exact opposite from the talk I've seen on twitter, etc. The number 1 flaw people point out is that it's too much like a regular cop procedural and that Gordon just isn't interesting. The Bruce/Selina stuff seems to have gone over very well, especially with females. Penguin is also very well liked.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the Leslie and Jim dynamic is really great. And give the characters a bit more to do. Re: Alfred, i have to agree, watching him last week basically pushing Bruce to stop crying seemed far cry from how Alfred is usually portrayed in film. I like that he is having a hand in making Bruce into the bat.
ReplyDeleteI do feel the Selina, Bruce and ivy as kids things just push things a little too far for me. And I do think they are trying to reinforce the two are meant to be...
I think that being too afraid to tweak anything major is hurting the show a bit though. I fear they are trying to act within the confines of certain things and it's holding back some storytelling.
Nope. Canon is canon. Nolan's movies included. Rachel Dawes in Batman Begins was outside of canon. That falls under "so what" because it didn't hurt the overall narrative or change it dramatically.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the creator's works: I didn't say its only the creator's influence that defines canon. I said if it shows up on the original MEDIA that the creator of the work first published it in. Bob Kane is the creator of Batman and he first published in a comic book. Bob Kane is no longer around but Batman is still published in comic book magazines today. That means for a Batman plot point to be considered canon: it must be published in a DC Comics title who now owns the rights to the story.
Star Wars. Until Disney bought the rights, Star Wars canon is what happened in: The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, Revenge of the Sith, A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Period. Why? Because it's what George Lucas wrote that was shown in it's original medium: film. Now that Disney bought the property canon will be going foward what goes into the new films. Tragically that means that all of the novels are at risk. If the narrative in Episode Seven contradicts anything in the novels and expanded universe, like the existence of Mara Jade for example: then they will cease to exist in favor of the new canon narrative in the new films.
Comic book hero origin stories on TV love to force notions of fate. "It was always meant to be" and the the like. I think its cheesy and necessary.
ReplyDeleteFair enough but story telling and the integrity of established stories shouldn't be a matter of democracy based on twitter trends or online polls.
ReplyDeleteI don't get your logic. He's angry. He's not yet determined to destroy crime: which makes him unfocused. None of that is childish. Bruce Wayne should be a raw, exposed nerve. He should be seething. Its this single obsession: to destroy crime, that will drive him to become the world's greatest detective. The world's greatest escapeologist and the world's great martial artist. There's no room for that kind of anger and obsession for him to be whimpering about losing his girlfriend.
ReplyDelete