Gotham

Ah, yes, Gotham. How could I forget DC Comics and Warner Brothers big television adaptation of Commissioner James Gordon’s time in Gotham city prior to Batman’s arrival? It might be because I’m well and truly burnt out out from the squandering of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. potential last season. And I’ll be the first to admit that I was wrong in hyping up the show. But I still maintain that it could have been better and that’s really not a feeling I want to have again with Gotham.

That’s not to say that I’m not excited for Gotham because I am. I would label myself as quietly optimistic. Part of that optimism comes from the fact that the show will air on Fox. As I explained in my pre-Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. blog post, Disney owns the ABC network as Warner Bros. owns The CW. It makes sense that when Disney have a big TV project based off of a film series they would air it on ABC, which is one of the big four American networks along with NBC, CBS and Fox. The CW, where Warner Bros. airs The Flash and Arrow, doesn’t pull in the same options. It shows an incredible amount of faith in the product to go the hard way and present Gotham to another network, rather than taking the easy route and airing it on The CW.

Of course, Warner Bros. are getting increased exposure in the deal. Not that they probably need to promote Gotham much. Batman has become such a badass icon to millions of internet users that they’d probably flock to a television adaptation. But creator Bruno Heller should be commended for not relying on the name value alone. In fact, it seems that Batman will probably not feature in the show constantly but more as a recurring character because the caped crusader is still a child at this point. It is an interesting concept to see Bruce Wayne become the Dark Knight through the eyes of James Gordon. Cop shows and nerd culture are the two big staples of modern television and Gotham manages to draw on both.

The many faces of Gotham’s heroes and villains.

The question then is how does Gotham avoid becoming like Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Actually, that’s pretty easy because Gotham has already evaded Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s biggest flaw: Joss Whedon. For the record, I like Joss Whedon. Buffy the Vampire Slayer defined a generation and formed a lot of the tropes that modern television series’ abuse. Angel  was great too because for as much as it borrowed from Buffy it also carved its own path. That those were two shows that weaved seamlessly through each other. But none of Whedon’s other projects like Dollhouse or Firefly have come close to replicating that success and that’s really part of the problem; it feels like Whedon is trying to replicate Buffy.

So Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s greatest burden was never going to be Gotham’s problem anyway. And not having a pre-existing legacy to live up to will allow Gotham to forge its own path. Heller’s previous works include co-creating Rome and his own solo creation, The Mentalist. His work on those shows reflects clear experience with unorthodox police procedural shows and programs with more highly sexualised and violent content. What really works in his favour though is that Heller is not a household name in the same way that Whedon is. Gotham could quite possibly put him on the map but few people are likely to compare Gotham to The Mentalist or Rome whereas everyone was comparing Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. with Buffy the Vampire Slayer before the first episode was over.

It is unfair to nail all of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s faults and failures on to Joss Whedon and it is equally unjust to analyse Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. based entirely on its similarities to Buffy. That said, however, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn’t stand well on its own merits either. The show forces it does our throat that Chloe Bennet’s computer hacker Skye is special when she was really just annoying and stealing screentime from far more interesting and charming characters. Trying to intertwine the series with the cinematic universe utterly failed too. Rather than feeling rooted and connected to a wider world it felt segregated. And when it did tie into the films it was arbitrary and irrelevant, like ‘oh, look, we’re standing where Thor was standing.’ The response was a resounding meh.

Hopefully Gordon gives Bruce better advice than Clark received from Pa Kent.

Again, these are problems that Gotham should avoid by just being Gotham. As far as we know, this series won’t tie into the upcoming Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice film, although who knows, maybe David Mazouz could grow up to be Ben Affleck. That could happen and it still wouldn’t affect the show’s ability to just be itself. And we know for a fact that James Gordon isn’t special so he won’t get the Skye treatment. He’ll rise to Commissioner but for Batman’s presence to be necessary in Gotham City, crime and corruption must continue to run rampant.

What might put people off Gotham is possibly the casting of Ben McKenzie in the lead role. Most people will remember McKenzie as troubled teen Ryan Atwood in The O.C. That probably isn’t the first image that comes to mind when you imagine Commissioner Gordon. However, he’s also had roles as a cop in NBC/TNT’s Southland and voiced Batman and Bruce Wayne in the animated film, Batman: Year One. It’s safe to say then that he has both experience and a familiarity with the source material.

At the end of the day though, it’ll come down to the episode to episode content and whether the writing and acting can draw the viewer into these character’s lives. This has all the makings of a great television show but I’ve said that before and been wrong. Still, it is hard not to be excited for this series and when September 22nd rolls around I will definitely be watching.

Line-Up

August is drawing to a close with September being literally only a day away so it’s just about time to set our attention on the 2014 fall television line-up. I did this last year as well, looking at shows such as Chicago P.D., Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Intelligence. Some I liked, some I didn’t like and some I thought would be hits and some I thought wouldn’t last. Read that article and decide for yourself how on target I was with my assessments but I think I was on the button for most of my analysis.

For some, like Betrayal, I was disappointed that my predictions came to pass, but that is just the nature of television. Heck, Us and Them didn’t even make it on air. On paper, there might be obvious flaws but in the watching the show takes on endearing qualities. But they don’t fix the faults, so ultimately the show runs it course. No doubt some of the shows on this list will meet that same fate.  Unfortunately, there is also not enough space here to cover all of the shows available, much like how The 100 was absent from last years list. If I miss any amazing shows, please let me know. I’m always on the look out for good television shows to watch.

Anyway, that’s enough of an introduction. Here’s what is coming up this fall:

A to Z

The premise sounds cringe worthy. An online dating company details the A to Z’s of romance. Sounds like a show with a gimmick which will quickly wear thin and awkwardly titled episodes as they try to shove the letters Q and Z in an arbitrary attempt at a full check-list.  What might save it is the cast, which includes Ben Feldman, incase you’re dying to see him again since he was carted off to the loony bin in Mad Men, and Cristin Milioti, the mother from How Your Mother Played Second Fiddle to Robin (regionally known as How I Met Your Mother). It’s also narrated by Katey Sagal. Might be worth a look for the cast but it probably won’t be sticking around.

Who wore it better, Amy Pond or Nebula?

Selfie

The great thing about Selfie, aside from giving Karen Gillan a job between Doctor Who  and Guardians of the Galaxy, is that the first episode was already released on twitter. Audiences can already watch and make up their minds about the show before the season starts. Bold move. For me, it got a few laughs here and there but it’s not hilarious and I think the character would fall flat without Gillan behind the role, really throwing herself into the portrayal. It’s also good to see John Cho as well, but it already feels like know where this show is headed. Maybe it’ll prove me wrong and for the meantime, I’ll probably keep watching but I don’t see it being another breakout hit like Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Black-ish

I like Anthony Anderson but he has not had a lot of luck with television since leaving Law & Order in 2010. Guys With Kids was charming but it didn’t last so I’m hoping, for Anthony’s sake, that this one sticks. With Lawrence Fishburne in a recurring role, it’s got that little bit of extra star power to bring in viewers but if it wants those viewers to stick around for more than one episode it’s got to be funny. Dealing with cultural identities within a modern black family has real potential to be poiyant as well as humorous. Whether it matches that potential remains to be seen.

Constantine

If you’re looking for something as dark and morally ambiguous as the comic book, you’d probably be best served to look elsewhere. This John Constantine, played by Matt Ryan, is much more likely to be a rogue with a heart of gold, probably having the abilities of a con-man but eventually using them for good. I don’t really trust David S. Goyer to write anything so complex given his scripts for Batman and Superman in the past. Daniel Cerone, having served as showrunner for Dexter, might be able to bring Constantine to life on the small screen but this is airing on NBC not Showtime. Adjust your expectations appropriately.

Gracepoint trades Sophie Chapman for Skyler White.

Gracepoint

Incase you didn’t know, this is the American remake of the British show, Broadchurch. That fact doesn’t make it any better or worse, and it doesn’t even mean that British fans will know what to expect because American remakes have a habit of changing things. What will set this apart from crappy remakes is that it’s written by Chris Chibnall who also wrote the original Broadchurch. If that’s not enough enough for you, the cast includes recent Emmy winner, Anna Gunn, and another import from the original series, David Tennant.

Marry Me

When I read the premise for this show I thought it was about the difficulties of an engaged couple, which sounded a little too simplistic and broad. After some research, it turns out that the show is about a couple trying to get engaged following some botched proposals. This feels like Betrayed or Mixology from last season. There’s an inevitable outcome to the show, the main couple are going to get married, and there’s really only so long that they hold out on that. If it’s your cup of tea, great, but beware the expiry date.

How to Get Away With Murder

In what appears to be the strangest idea for a television show, a law professor teaches her students how to get away with murder and then someone on campus is killed. So long as each episode isn’t punctuated with a lesson by their professor then this could be a gripping thriller. I’m already intrigued because I don’t know where they’re going with the premise but there is no point to a good hook if the writing that follows isn’t as equally strong.

Agent Carter could be the show to restore our faith in Marvel TV shows.

Agent Carter

This won’t air until the midseason, along with shows such as IZombie and Empire but it is worth mentioning because last year ABC had Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and that turned out to be far less entertaining than many, myself included, hoped. So why should we care about Peggy Carter? Well, firstly I think not having a direct tie to the main cinematic universe will actually allow the series to grow and flourish in its own way. Furthermore, although not directly involved, the creation of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the past will create a nice parallel to the rebuilding of S.H.I.E.L.D. as it happens in Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. this season.

Alright, so I know I missed some other shows that are coming out this season such as The Flash, Stalker, Madam Secretary, Red Band Society, Scorpion, The Mysteries of Laura and Katherine Heigl’s return to television in State of Affairs. The above is far from a comprehensive list and mostly contains shows that stuck out to me as weird, wonderful or just plain bad. Still, I feel like I’m forgetting something again. I remembered Agent Carter. What could it be?

September

With only a week to go until it is officially September, it is about that time again to sit down and consider what new television shows are deserving of your attention. Or at least it is if you are like me. Admittedly, most people have better things to do with their time but let me analyzing the new run of television shows so that you don’t have to and can spend all that extra time having picnics or playing volleyball, or whatever people do outside these days. Unfortunately, there are a lot of new shows and not all of them are worthy of your time, so I’m only going to be commenting on the ones, good or bad, that caught my attention.

Chicago PD

Chicago Fire wasn’t brilliant but it was good and it was consistent with that quality. Honestly, the main reason I started watching was because of Jesse Spenser but the show’s cast was endearing. It appears Dick Wolf is set on creating another Law and Oder type franchise with this police centred spin-off. I’ll be watching because I think Chicago Fire set up Hank Voight fantastically, and it has the first of four Lost actors appearing in this article, Tania Raymonde.

Dracula

NBC are attempting to latch on to the vampire craze a couple years late but it appears that the vampire show they’ve picked up will be aesthetically different from shows such as HBO’s True Blood or The CW’s The Vampire Diaries. Unlike its modern kin, this show is more classically inspired, drawing from Bram Stoker’s novel of the same name and is set in the Victorian period. Yet it promises gothic horror that the recent 666 Park Avenue failed to deliver, along with all the lust, violence and political intrigue that goes with it. Worth a look.

A news anchor with Parkinson’s disease goes back to work…I see what you did there.

The Michael J Fox Show

Also on NBC, is Michael J Fox’s return to television. Following his retirement from Spin City, he has only made guest appearances on shows such as Scrubs and Rescue Me. However, in this comedy, Fox will step back into a lead role for a show that will loosely draw from his own struggles with Parkinson Disease. Breaking Bad’s Betsy Brant will play his wife and while this show will likely be funny, there is every chance it will be heart wrenching too. If you don’t mind laughing and crying in the space of twenty minutes, check this out.

About a Boy

Another NBC comedy, although one that doesn’t make quite the same impression. The film was alright, with Hugh Grant playing pretty much the same character he always plays in a romcom, and although it is was probably the first time most people saw Nicholas Hoult on screen, Hoult has done better things since. And none of those actors have any role in this TV series. I don’t see much need to rehash the film in a prolonged TV series. Thank goodness it is only a mid-season replacement.

The Crazy Ones

Over on CBS, we are going to get the craziest comedy pairing in a long time. Robin Williams will team with Sarah Michelle Gellar as a father and daughter who work at an advertising agency. I’m on the fence about this one. Robin Williams will most certainly be good, but I have less confidence in Gellar’s comedy chops. This will likely be one of the more ‘wait and see’ prospects for next month.

Bad ass in a sweater.

Intelligence

Josh Holloway graces our television screens again in his first main series role since Lost. The premise of the show is something from the mind of Hideo Kojima; an intelligence operative is equipped with a microchip in his mind allowing him access information systems. So it’s like Person of Interest if the machine was in Reese’s head and Finch was a pretty, secret service agent. Sign me up.

Gang Related

Competing with Holloway on Fox is fellow Lost actor Terry O’Quinn. Unlike Holloway, O’Quinn has attempted other TV shows, such as his recurring role on Hawaii Five-0 and most recently 666 Park Avenue. This show about the L.A.P.D. elite task force couldn’t be further from his last TV role, which may help to wash the taste of cancellation from his palette. Gang Related looks cool and has some potential but it will have to work hard to compete with all the other police procedural shows out there that don’t have to focus entirely on gang warfare.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Bringing up Fox’s comedy front line is another competitor for strangest comedy pairing. Brooklyn Nine-Nine has brought together Andy Samberg, Andre Braugher and Terry Crews. Crews is hilarious and Braugher is very intense but the only film I’ve seen Samberg in is Hot Rod. Apparently he was in Friends with Benefits (the movie, not the short lived TV show) as well, but I don’t remember him. I think this will be his first time in a main role on a television series. Crews and Braugher have lured me in, but I’ll be keeping an eye on Samberg.

The chicken dance is serious business.

Us and Them

Otherwise known as the American remake of Gavin & Stacy. A lot of people have been complaining about this but I found John Ritter and Alexis Bledel to be engaging and charming leads. From the trailer alone they appear to have chemistry and it got a couple of laughs from me. Eh, we will have to wait and see but I’m optimistic.

Tomorrow People

The CW has no comedies. Maybe it thinks young people don’t like to laugh or perhaps the studio is finally embracing its cult TV show status. This remake of a 70’s UK series by the same name would suggest the latter. Think Heroes but aimed at a slightly younger target demographic. The acting in the trailer didn’t do the show any favours, although I did spot Peyton List. Clearly, she shouldn’t have divorced Roger Sterling. Our fourth Lost actor appears in the form of Mark Pellegrino as the man hunting the ‘homo superior’, although his talents are being wasted on this.

Reign

Without any big name actors, the main draw of Reign appears to be that the historical intrigue, which is odd for The CW. Taking on the story of Mary, Queen of Scots, and channelling the likes of Game of Thrones and The Tudors, this appears to the The CW’s stab at something more intelligent than their youth orientated cult shows. Maybe worth a look to see if it succeeds or fails.

Can an affair work as the main plot of a drama?

Resurrection

I’m unsure if ABC’s new show about a boy who wakes up from being dead is intentionally trying to rip off the recent French television show about resurrected people, Les Revenants, but it certainly feels similar. From the trailer, I’m not sure it will work. It doesn’t seem to have that spark that Les Revenants has. If it does succeed it will be on the acting strength of Omar Epps and Kurtwood Smith, not the premise.

Betrayal

Speaking of spark, ABC’s newest drama is about an affair between a woman and a man who turns out the opposing lawyer in murder trial her fiancé is working. Normally, adultery like this is a sub-plot, so it is interesting that this series will attempt to deal with this kind of relationship and what draws people to it. The trailer was a bit cheesy though, with all the finishing of each other’s sentences and her almost cheating on her other half because he was too busy for coffee. Past that, my main problem is whether this can survive past one season. Realistically, how long can one guy be oblivious to his fiancée sexing it up with a rival lawyer?

Mixology

If you thought Betrayal sounded strung out, Mixology follows ten different people over the course of one single night. That single night will last the entire season. Presumably, each episode will cover one character’s individual story, with clips of what’s to come from the rest of the ensemble. I can’t hate on it too much though because I did get a few laughs from the trailer. Mostly though, I only found myself caring about one or two characters and like Betrayal, I’m left questioning the longevity of such a show.

With that I think I have covered all the major, noteworthy shows that will be hitting the networks within the 2013/14 calendar. Haven’t I? I feel like I’m missing something. Something big and potentially amazing…

Nothing

There’s a problem with going to the cinema in October. There’s nothing good showing. This is because we’ve hit the Halloween lull. September, or at least early September has the summer blockbusters that just weren’t big enough to actually make it into summer. November to Christmas has a lot of winter classics, as in films to watch because no one likes the cold and the rain, (although perhaps this is just a British thing. I’m sure this isn’t the case in America.) So you get the feeling that, in mid October, nothing good is going to come out.

For instance, Final Destination 5, which should really be in October due to its connection to death and the supernatural, was properly released UK wide back in late August. Perhaps the spectacle of the film has become so wondrous that it needed to be seen in summer, but far more likely is that the franchise has moved so away from any kind of emotion even remotely related to fear and no one can justify showing it in October anymore. Fair enough, but then you get Apollo 18 and Fright Night both released in September. Realistically, shouldn’t all of these films be released in October either on or the week preceding Halloween? Even if you’re expecting all audiences to be out partying while dressed as a sexy Joker or a zombie nurse, releasing the film the week before would still attract the right kind of audience. People like to get in the mood for an occasion before it arrives. A month seems excessive.

Some men just want to watch good films

One might argue however, that pushing all these movies into October would just move the lull earlier into the year, like a huge cut to black after the summer months. I’d disagree because there are film which would probably benefit from coming out in September; those films with a blockbuster premise but just won’t draw a crowd against the big names like Harry Potter and Transformers. Films such as Johnny English Reborn, The Three Musketeers, Footloose or Real Steel could all have gotten much better publicity in September rather than October. I realise most of these films just came out within the last week and I’m currently complaining about the lack of good films. That is precisely the point however, these films aren’t good. They’re decent or alright. In a word, for the modern society, ‘meh’.

The problem is that even decent films could probably generate some interest if you show them at an appropriate time. Transformers feature duelling robots, as does Real Steel. Transformers was released in late August, so Real Steel could have picked up some interest from anyone coming out of Transformers and thinking that they liked the robot action genre. As it is, I’m fairly sure Real Steel is only going to bring in a bit of profit from children who are always excited about robots. The same applies to The Three Musketeers or Footloose. Pirates of the Caribbean came out quite early this year, since I expected it to get a more summery release rather than the late spring release that it did get. Releasing The Three Musketeers in early September could have picked up any of the lingering Jack Sparrow fans as well as any children looking for one more day out before school began. Footloose should have got a summer release based solely on the fact that dancing is more of a summer activity. I mean you can dance all year around, but it seems like it’d do well closer to summer.

So, I think a little bit of reshuffling of the film release schedule could possibly increase profits for a few film genres. Of course, if all you’re concerned about is awards, then you’re more likely to just throw a film when you can to make sure you’re in the running. Not to mention that other factors also enter into how well a film is received in cinemas. For instance, Scott Pilgrim verses the World was a great film but lacked any significant promotion, so when it came to watching it in the cinema, it only had about 12 people watching. On opening night, I should add. So, I’m not going to blame the time of the year completely for lack of interest in certain films. There are other factors to consider.

What do you mean no one saw us being awesome?

Not that any of those films interested me or I’d have been in the cinema this weekend. Instead, I’m opting to wait, because there are a lot of good films on their way. First of all is Tintin, which I expect to be amazing. Hopefully it can live up to that hype. November has a few interesting films, although I’m not sure if I’ll have the time to actually go see any of them. In Time features Justin Timberlake as an action hero in a setting where time is a currency. Imagine, if you can, Doctor Who meets Robin Hood; an eccentric hero that steals time and gives it to the poor and the needy. Justin Timberlake seems like a strange choice as an action hero though. There’s also the release of Wuthering Heights. Jane Eyre was released in September. Perhaps we’ll see The Tenant of Wildfell Hall in January?

December has the most exciting line up. The list includes Happy Feet 2, Sherlock Holmes: Game of Shadows and the English adaptation of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. I imagine there’s a debate already about whether the adaptation will be met with the same acclaim that has been showered upon the Swedish version. I’m fairly certain that will do nothing to deter crowds however, and in fact may actually increase viewership due to the pure desire to compare the two films. So maybe I just won’t be in the cinema very much until December, although that’s not really down to choice. If the cinemas and the film companies want my money, they’re going to have to start filling up the middling months between summer and Christmas with some genuinely good films.