HDTGM Special Edition: Gotham pilot

[rootbeercomics.com 10]

i know this is a strange request, but i'd love to see the HDTGM crew eviscerate the terrible pilot for the new batman series, Gotham.

 

so far i haven't seen a review that i felt articulated just how thoroughly inept this idea was executed.

 

i know it's a long shot, and i'm probably making a forum faux pas, but i'd love to hear the team give this shitty piece of art what it has coming to it. i'd at least buy a t-shirt as a thank you. i might even make a big donation.

[seanotron 2307]

It had problems but I really didn't think it was HDTGM levels of badness.

[rootbeercomics.com 10]

i'm not a superfan who had specific demands one way or the other; i would have been fine with them changing the story as much or as little as they wanted. i went into this thing with low expectations, and i had no huge issues with the basic plot they chose or the world-building, but the details of the execution itself were laughable.

 

it felt like someone programmed a robot to mix and match cliche scenes from other police procedurals in order to generate a script.

 

- a criminal steals a cop's gun in the police station.

- the partner asks to be reassigned.

- the main character's father is a hero.

- the good cop is told to commit the murder.

 

and since we have it, why not cast the script robot in the lead role?

 

i also want to point out that the co-executive producer and director of the pilot is they guy who made Judge Dredd and I Still Know What You Did Last Summer.

[hypnotizingchickens 1025]

somewhat related... is it just me or does anyone else see Scott Aukerman every time the Penguin is on screen? not sure why other than them looking vaguely similar in appearance... specifically the scene where he's narcing in the backseat with a shit-eating smirk on his face. all I could think was BATDANCE!

 

but seriously, the Penguin and, to a lesser extent, Bruce were the only interesting characters for me... and for basic cable, it was a little darker than I was expecting (then again, I don't watch much television except for a handful of shows... none of which are procedurals). the scene where Penguin was beating the guy in the alley was pretty brutal, and even better when contrasted with the guy smiling and giving a thumbs up when Gordon approached them. as with most pilots, it had plenty of inconsistencies but it was just compelling enough to get me to keep watching.

[RyanSz 3140]

- a criminal steals a cop's gun in the police station.

- the partner asks to be reassigned.

- the main character's father is a hero.

- the good cop is told to commit the murder.

 

Those were all basically pulled from Batman stories in one way or another as to give them a more procedural feel to the cop drama of the stories. The only thing I found unsettling was that they shoehorned in six comic villains and altered the timeline of characters incredibly. Other than that the show was okay but not worthy of HDTGM.

[VajayjayLeno 336]

On the one hand, it'd be cool if they could do this show while sticking to actual comic book origins, but on the other hand why if you can make a better show by not doing it? I'm not saying they have made a better show by any means, but I'm assuming they think they can so whatever.

 

It's not the worst TV I've ever watched by a long shot. Yet.

[PlanBFromOuterSpace 3138]

I thought it was fine, but I'm not a fan of all the name-dropping of minor or supporting characters that, if they trusted the audience a little more, the audience could probably figure out on their own. If not right away, maybe after a couple of appearances. We get it, it's the world of BATMAN. Not everybody needs to be a somebody in the first episode.

[RyanSz 3140]

What I found funny reading comments on other sites about the show were from people who really only knew Batman from the movies, especially when it came to Montoya's character. Since casual fans or those who haven't read Gotham Central don't know that she is a lesbian, there were already complaints that the show was going to "throw in a gay character just because" or that the comedian from the club was "too obvious at being the Joker" even though his jokes were taken from the comic. I'm waiting to see how the show develops before deciding if im gonna continue to watch.