There Will Be Light

“Ugh.”

My leading thought every time someone asked me my opinion on the upcoming premiere of Gotham, the Jim Gordon-centric, Batman prequel that is now…  28 hours old.

 

Gotham title card

When first announced, Gotham was to be a Gotham City Police Department (GCPD) focused show that took place after Bruce Wayne had donned the cape and cowl.  I was stoked.  Like through the roof.  It was to be reminiscent of a comic series titled Gotham Central, written by Ed Brubaker & Greg Rucka. It makes sense, right?  Batman deals with Two-Face and Ra’s al Ghul while Gordon and the crew handle the small-time stuff (i.e. regular criminals, mafia, less grandiose super-villains like  Ratcatcher, Cluemaster, or the Ten-Eyed Man (yes, those are all real villains.  Also, can I use parenthesis inside parenthesis? Well, I just did.).)  I could not wait.

 

Gotham Central #1

Then it was announced that the show was to be set in a pre-Batman Gotham City.  My only problem with that is it ruins the Year One version of Jim Gordon’s backstory that I personally prefer.  In the 1987, Frank Miller written story Batman: Year One, the Dark Knight’s first calendar year as Batman is retold.  Equally, or perhaps even more so, the story tells Gordon’s origin literally from the time he comes to Gotham City, having transferred from Chicago, and joining the police force.  Bruce becoming Batman and Jim Gordon coming to Gotham City occur concurrently, which is the way I prefer it to be, but it seemed, at the time, that Gotham would take the Nolan-inspired version from Batman Begins-The Dark Knight-The Dark Knight Rises of having Gordon around when (literally, like at the crime scene) Thomas and Martha Wayne are gunned down.  Which is fine.  I guess.

 

Jim Gordon comforts young Bruce Wayne in Batman Begins

Then, it changed again.  Not only was this going to now be a prequel, but 8(ish)-year-old Bruce Wayne was going to be a recurring/main character?  I can’t hang with that.  I mean, how stupid?  Anakin Skywalker built C-3PO/Obi-Wan doesn’t remember having owned any droids/Jar Jar Binks levels of stupid.  So, I shut down and stopped caring about the show.  I didn’t watch trailers, I didn’t read (very many) articles, nothing.  I.  Did.  Not.  Care.  And I’d like to add that I’m not typically one of those guys.  You know, the ones that nitpick everything that is different from the comics and the movies/television shows.  I actually hate it when people do that.  But, I always said I’d at least give it a try.  So the premiere was last night and, due to a heavy schedule, I didn’t get to watch it until tonight.

I’d like to take a quick break so everyone who knows me personally can go grab a calendar.  Got one?  Great.  Now get a highlighter or a felt pen or something.  Okay, ready?  Find September 23^rd, 2014.  Circle it, highlight it, draw a unicorn, just do something to signify the date.  Okay.  Here goes:

 

I WAS WRONG.

You’ll likely never hear me say that again, so take it for what it’s worth.  On to the show.

Despite everything I’ve said to this point, I tried my best to go into the show with an open mind.  I caught myself at times being harsher than I needed to be, but that’s just kind of how it is sometimes.  I don’t want to go too spoiler heavy (if Bruce Wayne’s parents getting killed is a “spoiler” to you, please never speak to me again), so I’ll just graze over some of the key points in a very “stream of consciousness” way:

Fish Mooney, a mid-level mob boss portrayed by Jada Pinkett Smith, is not a character adapted from comics, but is an original to the show.  Similar to Daryl Dixon of Walking Dead fame, Mooney has the potential to be a breakout character simply due to not being tied to any particular destiny as the rest of the characters on the show are.

 

The newest addition to the Batman universe, Fish Mooney

I’ll chalk this up to not inundating myself with information on the show prior to watching, but I had no idea Carmine Falcone (pronounced “fal-kone-E”, not “fal-kone” as they were in the show) was going to be in the show.  Falcone will, seemingly, serve as the “Big Bad” of the show for at least the foreseeable future.  Similarly, the appearance of GCPD Detectives Renee Montoya and Crispus Allen, who have a tenuous working relationship with Gordon’s partner, Harvey Bullock, was a pleasant surprise.  Also, Montoya and Jim Gordon’s fiancée Barbara (that’s Batgirl’s mom for those keeping score) seem to have a past of a… Romantic nature.

 

Detectives Crispus Allen & Renee Montoya on Gotham

Compared to their comic counterparts

Villains galore.  Oswald “Penguin” Cobblepot as Fish Mooney’s lackey/umbrella holder/foot massager.  I believe Robin Lord Taylor will bring a “love to hate him” feel to the character.  Edward Nygma (AKA The Riddler) as a forensic something-or-other in the GCPD.  Cool little cameo in the first episode that saw one of his riddles shut down immediately by Jim Gordon much to Nygma’s chagrin.  “Ivy Pepper” who is clearly based on Poison Ivy.  Dumb and I don’t even want to go into it.  Selina “Catwoman” Kyle.  She’s actually the first character we see on the show.  Young Ms. Kyle goes from jumping from rooftops and stealing milk and wallets to witnessing the crime of the century (at least where Gothamites are concerned) in the murder of the Waynes.  She also reappears at the funeral and again at Wayne Manor at the end of the episode.  Next week’s episode is actually titled “Selina Kyle”, so we’ll no doubt get some backstory on the future Catwoman.

 

Slightly stalker-ish pre-Catwoman

Oh, and the guy giving a private stand-up comedy routine for Fish Mooney in her club?  This guy?

 

Joseph Kerr

Yeah, that’s the f***ing Joker.

I’m not sold on Alfred yet.  The actor (Sean Pertwee) did a great job, and he got a laugh out of me in one particular scene, but I may just need to see more of the character to become a fan.  Also, although Pertwee's isn't as overt, Alfred is not supposed to have a Cockney accent.  Michael Caine (who beautifully portrayed everyone’s favorite butler in the Dark Knight Trilogy) is the exception, not the rule.

 

Mr. Pennyworth

The scene with the Wayne’s murder, followed up by the scene with Bruce and Jim Gordon, moved me to tears.  Don’t know why, I guess the stars were aligned or something.  It was truly the best interpretation of the inciting moment of Batman’s career that has ever been put on screen.  Also, Bruce shows his inherent detective skills from the get-go as he provides Gordon with some clues to the identity of the killer.

 

An iconic image

The premiere pulled a 3.2 Nielsen Rating, which is not exactly Walking Dead numbers, but it’s nothing to sneeze at, especially for a network (as compared to cable) show.  The only programs to do better Monday night were the Bears/Jets Monday Night Football game (5.2) and the season premiere of The Big Bang Theory with an outstanding 5.4 Nielsen Rating.  I think the real indicator will be how Gotham fares next week after the premiere buzz has faded away.

All in all, I thought the show was good, the pros outweighed the cons, and my interest has been piqued, so I will be tuning in next week.

Thanks for reading!

-Josh

Sources: excerpts from primary source interviews; Wikipedia; Nielsen.com

Batman, related characters, and images in this blog are owned and trademarked by DC Comics, a division or Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.

A Goal Without a Plan is Just a Wish

Film-making is hard.  Just in its basest form, professional film-making is really, really difficult.  Compound that by having a vision for something that goes beyond picking up a digital camera on the Blue Light Special at Kmart for $149.95, filming your friends (who are not actors) without sets or costumes, and having a “screening” in your living room for seven people and you’ve got yourself nothing but stress.  Stress and a story to tell, that is.

I started writing a screenplay a few years ago.  I would write intensely for days or weeks, creating scenes and plot developments, and then I’d leave it for months.  This cycle repeated itself since then.  I have literally worked on this from February 2009, with massive gaps between stints, until about five minutes ago.  I’ve called myself a writer for the longest time, but I’ve never really felt like it.  I mean, I guess the definition of “being a writer” is that you write things and, in that sense, I do and I am.  But, my theory is that you aren’t really a thing until you succeed at that thing.  So, I made the effort to go from the guy that Stewie Griffin would make fun of (“Got a, got a nice little story you're working on there?”) to actually finishing the screenplay and moving the project forward.

 

So many rewritten scenes

More so than writing (but less than Batman, who is typically the subject of this blog), a large interest and passion of mine is the art of film-making and the film industry as a whole.  Anyone who has ever watched a movie with me in my home has probably had to sit through me watching each and every Special Feature on the Bluray immediately after the movie is over.  That or re-watching it with the Director’s Commentary turned on.  I can’t help it!  The process, from scripting, casting, and pre-production to principal photography, re-shoots, and post-production and editing, is all so fascinating.

In reality, wanting to (and having to, if we’re being honest) be Writer, Director, and Producer on my film will help the film-making process in the long run.  It will just mean switching hats all the time.  During the writing process in these last couple of months, I’ve been stuck in director mode.  “How will I be able to get that shot?” “That scene needs less dialogue.”  These are the things that have littered my thoughts at all the wrong times.  When I should be focusing on what Character X needs to say to get his point across in a particular scene, I’m thinking about which camera or editing software I want to use.  I’m sure when I’ll need to be giving direction to an actor on set, I’ll be second guessing scene placement, but I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.

The role that runs throughout the project, from concept to filming to editing and beyond is that of the Producer.  For those that aren’t entirely sure, the producer of a movie can be summed up in one line:  They make it happen.  Director wants a particular location for a shot, producer makes it happen.  The studio needs to cut the budget by a small margin, the producer makes it happen (without the quality suffering).  And, with the writing process (pretty much) complete, the tasks of creating a shooting schedule, making a budget, and finding actors begins.  Oh, and finding money to make this all happen.

Ultimately, the goal is to have this film prepared for screening(s) in Tulsa in Autumn 2015.  A lofty goal, I know, but “a goal without a plan is just a wish.”

I appreciate any and all support (moral or otherwise).

Thanks!

-Josh

P.S. Yes, I made a Family Guy reference.  Deal with it.

Batman: The Animated Series: My Top Five Episodes

Before being revamped and retitled The New Batman Adventures, the production run of Batman: The Animated Series contained 85 episodes. In revisiting B:TAS, I wanted to look at five of my favorite episodes of the series.  Not what I think are the five best (mainly because I’ve talked about a couple of those), but five of the ones I enjoy the most.  So, in no particular order, here they are:


#5- What Is Reality?

After making his first appearance in If You’re So Smart, Why Aren’t You Rich?, The Riddler returns to wreak havoc on Gotham.  As part of his new plot, The Riddler “abducts” Commissioner Gordon by linking him to a virtual reality program (super 90’s stuff here).  Batman and Robin must link themselves to the program as well in order to save Gordon.  The Dynamic Duo encounters a series of The Riddler’s trademark riddles in this virtual reality, ultimately ending with Batman riding a Pegasus and fighting a giant golden Minotaur.  I couldn’t make this up if I wanted to, but it’s this level of absurdity that oftentimes drew me toward this show in my childhood.


 #4- The Strange Secret of Bruce Wayne

When Professor Hugo Strange learns the true identity of Batman, he attempts to sell the information to the highest bidder.  Which makes for a tight situation for The Dark Knight when those bidders are The Joker, Two-Face, and The Penguin.  Batman is able to turn the villains against Strange using the professor’s own mind-reading device. When Strange attempts to reveal Batman’s identity as Bruce Wayne, the villains dismiss his claim, partly due to seeing Batman and Bruce Wayne in the same place (in reality, it was Robin disguised as Bruce using a mask and stilts).

The Joker, Two-Face, and Hugo Strange

Hugo Strange is a great villain, and one of Batman’s first, but he is severely underutilized, so his inclusion in B:TAS just goes to show the depth into the Batman Mythos that this show delves.


#3- Beware the Gray Ghost

This episode is fantastic.  I’m going to have a hard time explaining exactly why, just because of the emotional response it elicits from me.  Just to give a little background, while B:TAS is my favorite interpretation of the character and Kevin Conroy (the voice actor of The Dark Knight in the series) is my Batman, the other half of my exposure to the character in those formative years was from the 1960’s Batman series.  I can remember rushing home from school in kindergarten to catch that opening theme song that defines the character for a large majority of people.  I remember my Aunt Karen recording episodes of the show for me on VHS tapes (this was before DVR, kiddos) so I could watch them over and over again.  So, as campy and cheesy as it was, I loved the 60’s Batman as much as I did The Animated Series.  The plot of this episode involves Batman trying to track down the Mad Bomber, a villain that is imitating another villain from Batman’s favorite television show as a kid, The Gray Ghost, a crimefighter-detective show.  In doing this, Batman visits the retired actor who played the Gray Ghost, Simon Trent.  Here’s the tie-in: The voice actor who plays Gray Ghost/Simon Trent…

Adam West, Batman of the 60’s television show.  Wanting nothing to do with the case, as he is suffering from depression, Trent turns Batman away.  When Batman finally encounters the villain, he is overwhelmed by the Mad Bomber and his remote control planes, but is saved by Simon Trent in full Gray Ghost costume.  The two team up to defeat the villain and Trent is hailed as a hero with his career restarted by the release of The Gray Ghost on video and broadcast television and he is offered a part in a film. While signing autographs at a convention, he is approached by Bruce Wayne, who says that he the Gray Ghost was his hero... and he still is. Having heard these same words from Batman, Trent seems to suspect who Bruce Wayne really is, which he acknowledges with a smile.  I love the “full circle” sense this episode gives by having Adam West guest star.  Having West voice the character was so important to the creators of B:TAS that they have stated that they would not have done the episode without West.  The episode brought new found respect for West among Batman fans of the time who had turned their back on the 60’s interpretation of the character.  I, on the other hand, loved every minute of being able to see my childhood hero team with his childhood hero.


#2- The Demon's Quest

The 57^th and 58^th episodes of the series were a two-part story featuring the first full appearance of my all-time favorite Batman villain: Ra’s al Ghul.  His first appearance was a handful of episodes earlier in Off Balance, where Batman meets Ra’s daughter, Talia.  In that episode, Ra’s appears at the end in a brief cameo.  In this episode, however, Ra’s comes to Batman (breaking into the Batcave in the process) and asks for his help in locating Talia, who had been abducted several nights prior.  Ra’s reveals that the captors have custody of Robin as well, so Batman (or “Detective” as Ra’s calls him) agrees to help.  Highlights of the first episode include, Batman’s several run-ins with Ra’s bodyguard, Ubu, Batman hand-to-hand fighting a panther, and the reveal that the abductor of Talia and Robin was Ra’s all along.  Ra’s states that he did so to test Batman’s worth as a successor to himself and, by extension, as a mate for Talia.  When Batman refuses, Ra’s declares them enemies of one another, but collapses following that.  Talia says that Ra’s must be taken to the Lazarus Pit (a mysterious chemical pit that has kept Ra’s alive for six hundred years).  At the Lazarus Pit, Ra’s is submerged where he is rejuvenated and emerges in a crazed state (as is a side effect of the pit).  The second half of the story details Batman and Robin attempting to stop Ra’s plan of detonating bombs in Lazarus pits around the world causing them to overflow, covering the world in chemicals, killing a third of the Earth’s population and restoring most of the world's ecosystems.  The climax of the episode features (obviously Batman stopping the bombs, but also) a sword fight between Ra’s and The Dark Knight reminiscent of Ra’s first comic appearance in the 1970’s.

The Demon vs. The Detective

The appeal of this story to me is the involvement of Ra’s al Ghul who is not only my favorite villain, but also one of the more interesting of Batman’s villains in that his goal is not to gain money (he has more than almost anyone, including Batman), to learn Batman’s identity (he knows; doesn’t care), or to kill Batman (not necessarily, anyway), but is to rid Earth of those that do it harm.  He’s a true “eco terrorist” and that is an extreme departure from other Bat-villains (sans Poison Ivy).  But, in addition to all of that, I love the femme fatale nature of Talia al Ghul.  The story of her (almost, but not really) unrequited love for Batman is intriguing.  It’s almost Romeo & Juliet, in a way.  Plus, it allows for moments like this:

Talia and Batman share a kiss

Honorable Mention- Night of the Ninja & Day of the Samurai

I’m cheating a little bit and including two honorable mentions in my Top Five.  Night of the Ninja and Day of the Samurai are two episodes that, while they don’t occur back-to-back, are a continuation of the same story.  In the first episode, Batman encounters a ninja in Gotham City who is attempting to kill Bruce Wayne.  Batman learns that the ninja is Kyodai Ken, a fellow student from the dojo in Japan where Bruce was trained.  Seeking revenge for being kicked out of the dojo, Kyodai looks to fight Bruce Wayne, but gets Batman instead.

Kyodai vs. Batman

Airing almost six months later, the second appearance of Kyodai Ken sees the ninja abduct the star pupil of Yoro Sensei, the man who trained both Kyodai and Bruce Wayne.  Holding the girl for ransom, Kyodai looks to learn the technique of Kiba no Hoko or "The Way of the Fang", an ancient fighting style that has been kept secret by Yoro’s family for centuries due to it containing a maneuver that can kill a man with one touch.  After Kyodai is able to learn the location of the scrolls that detail Kiba no Hoko, he encounters Batman near an active volcano.  Batman is able to fake his death after Kyodai inflicts the fatal touch and uses the element of surprise to subdue the ninja.  When the volcano begins to erupt, Kyodai refuses help and is overcome by the lava, seemingly killing him.

Kyodai vs. Batman: Round Two

Similar to the Grey Ghost episode, I have a hard time explaining why I like these two episodes so much.  But different from that, it’s not due to some ethereal connection to concepts that I love.  Whatever the reason, these two episodes are essential to the experience of Batman: The Animated Series.


 #1- Almost Got 'Im

The number one episode on the list is so placed because it is probably the one episode I would refer any new B:TAS viewer (or new Batman fan in general) to if they were looking for a cool story featuring several villains.  Told mainly through flashbacks, the framework of the episode is a poker game in a seedy underground hangout.  During the poker game between Two-Face, Penguin, Poison Ivy, Killer Croc, and The Joker, each villain details the encounter in which they came the closest to defeating The Caped Crusader.  For Poison Ivy it was the use of poisoned pumpkins on Halloween, for Two-Face it was nearly crushing him with a giant penny (which is a popular piece of scenery in the Batcave), for Killer Croc states it was when "I threw a rock at him!", for Penguin it was poison-beaked hummingbirds and a cassowary (a really big bird).  The Joker states that his closest attempt came just the night before when he captured Batman, took over the studio of a late-night talk show, and attached Batman to a laugh-powered electric chair which would electrocute Batman the more the audience laughed. The Joker pumped the studio with laughing gas until "these people would laugh at the phone book" and had Harley Quinn read names out of the phone book to elicit more laughter from the crowd.  Batman is saved from electrocution by Catwoman, who is then herself captured by The Joker and Harley Quinn.

World's most dangerous poker game

The story jumps back to the poker game where Joker says that at the same time their game is going on, Catwoman is strapped to a conveyor belt in a cat food factory across town.  Killer Croc reveals himself to be Batman in disguise and the other gangsters occupying the room are truly Gotham City Police Officers.  With the villains in custody, Batman races to save Catwoman.  Once he does, she thanks him, begins to flirt with him, and tells him to remove his mask.  When Catwoman turns around, Batman is gone, prompting her to remark, "Hmm.  Almost got 'im".  This story has all of the things one could need:  Several villains, outlandish schemes by said villains, and Batman outsmarting them.  It has great comedy, exciting action, and makes references to about five other B:TAS episodes.  It is truly one of the best the show has to offer.


Next time I post, a character in the Batman Mythos will die…  I’m just going to leave it at that.

Thanks for reading!

-Josh

Sources: excerpts from primary source interviews; Wikipedia

Batman, related characters, and images in this blog are owned and trademarked by DC Comics, a division or Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.