GOTHAM SEASON 2

Well it's over. I mean not like OVER over but season one of Gotham has come and gone. It was a bit uneven there for a while but it seemed to find its groove there along the way. It was a fun, dark, twisted view of a city that was falling into chaos and Jim Gordon seemed to be the only one that could stop it.

Come and get it, ladies!

If the ending of Gotham season one is any indication then season two is gonna be a wild ride! What do I want to see in Gotham Season 2? Well first of all let’s talk about what Gotham did right:

JIM GORDON:

 I’ll just admit it, I’ve never been a huge Jim Gordon fan. I mean he’s a good character, but I think I was tainted by the original Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher films where Gordon was useless. Nolan and Gary Oldman made Jim Gordon a really awesome character throughout their films but ya know . . . I still wasn’t rooting for him when I heard he was gonna be the focus of the Gotham TV show. The more I thought about it the more I really got excited. I recently rewatched the pilot and Ben McKenzie really gives a great performance as Gordon. You see him show up and be this cocksure cop that’s gonna clean up Gotham and throughout the episode he realizes that it’s not gonna be easy and it may not even be possible. The whole season was really good at keeping Jim as a stand up guy but having to compromise on his ethics and the toll it took on him. I’m looking forward to what happens to him in season 2. We know that it’s only gonna get worse, to the point where he’s willing to team up with a vigilante to protect the law in Gotham.

BRUCE WAYNE: 

Pre-teen Bruce Wayne was always going to be a tough sell. I always figured the way to do it would be to show this angry, awkward kid who’s trying to make sense of the world. Much to my surprise that’s exactly what they did with him. They didn’t try to make him “kid Batman” or anything like that. 

This show would be fucking awesome

He was a traumatized boy learning that the world around him was getting darker and scarier. Plus David Mazouz was perfect as Bruce. You could see the seeds of Batman being born in his performance but it didn’t overshadow his arc this season. I'm looking forward to see what happens next year. 

THE WAYNE MURDER IS NEVER SOLVED:

I realized this after rewatching the pilot that they never actually catch the real killer behind the Wayne murders. That’s a pretty bold choice for the show. We’re given hints and references, but for the most part it’s left unresolved for Gordon and Bruce. It’s also fitting with the comic books that in some stories Bruce never found out who killed his parents. I’m actually glad that this story took a backseat for the season. I hope it does come back up though because it will need to be addressed at some point. For now though, a little bit of non-closure is good.

Now I could go into what else Gotham did right and wrong (but I don’t like dwelling on what was wrong) but instead I’ll give my predictions/hopes for season 2:

DR. THOMPKINS (LEE) MEETING BRUCE WAYNE:

I think this is essential. Some of my favorite episodes of Batman the Animated Series were ones that dealt with Lee and Bruce. She knew Bruce’s secret and helped patch him up when he was injured in the field. The story was that she was the first person outside of Wayne Manor to show Bruce love and support after his parents were killed. Lee mentioned how she has some trauma counseling and I think it would be awesome if an arc was devoted to her counseling Bruce. I mean let’s face it, he hasn’t had ANY in season one and that’s just . . . dangerous . . . 

I mean shit! Who knows how this fucked up kid will turn out!

THE RISE OF THE RIDDLER:

I mentioned before how I thought that season 2 would focus on Nygma and his rise to villainy. Or is it descent into villainy? Either way, the season finale pretty much proved me right. He was talking to himself and going a little bonkers after murdering that dick cop and trying to subliminally seduce his love interest Ms. Kringle. By the way, with a name like that is she Santa’s daughter? Is this also a prequel series for Mr. and Mrs. Claus? I dunno . . . Anyway, it was a great moment and had me super excited to see where he’ll go next year. Maybe he’ll start wearing green suits? Maybe his question mark doodles will become more prominent. Maybe he’ll have to kill Ms. Kringle’s estranged brother Kris. Who knows!

ARKHAM ASYLUM'S NEWEST RESIDENT:

I never cared for Barbara’s story arc in the series. It didn’t bother me that she had a secret history and all that. Heck, these types of shows thrive on that in order to give their characters depth and have interesting stories to tell. All that dumb shit! Anyway, Barbara was always just super annoying to me and I didn’t mind one bit when she left and Gordon started dating Lee. Her whole story with the Ogre was good but it should’ve ended with her going to Arkham or somewhere else right away for trauma counseling. When she said Lee should do it I groaned. Now she’s confirmed to be a crazy murderer and will probably be spending a good chunk of season 2 in Arkham. But hey . . . That’s what we do in Gotham. We send all the crazies to Arkham and the non crazies . . . to prison (aka Arkham). Barbara being in Arkham would open up some great new territory for the show and expand on the Arkham stories that were started in season one. 

MORE VILLAINS:

One thing a lot of fans were concerned about during Gotham season one were all the villains that were hinted at or shown throughout. I think (for the most part) the villains were done really well and had interesting stories to tell. It’s been confirmed that we’ll be seeing the Joker and Mr. Freeze next year but I’m sure we’ll be getting more than that. Harvey Dent will be a regular cast member and his story will definitely be fleshed out. We could even get a reappearance of the Red Hood Gang (one of the season’s best episodes in my opinion). I'm definitely excited to see more of these characters introduced to make Gotham miserable. But also we should see a meeting between Oswald and Bruce. One of my favorite moments from the show was when Oswald and Nygma met. It made my inner and outer geek very happy. However, we still have yet to see Oswald and Bruce meet. I think it would be great to see them in an episode or at least a scene together. And maybe Bruce can meet that weirdo kid Jerome . . . 

What a troubled young man . . . 

THE BATCAVE:

Perhaps the biggest shock of the season finale was seeing Bruce discover a hidden room under his father’s study. It certainly LOOKED like a cave and it SOUNDED like there were bats down there. Perhaps his father was preparing to take the law into his own hands? Maybe he just had a weird thing for bats? Or maybe he was grooming Bruce to become Batman similar to Robert Queen with Oliver on Arrow. Either way, I’m thinking we’ll be seeing Bruce start his training (in some form) on his way to becoming Batman. It's also a safe bet that Bruce has just seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to his father's secrets . . . 

Oh! And one last thing:

NO MORE FISH:

We’re done. She’s done. Just keep her away. Please. I’m begging you.

I'm very excited to see Gotham season two. Hopefully the show will have better pacing and keep up the best part of the series so far - the rich characters.

Till Next Time!

JJ - The Comic Junkie!