So, "Gotham" has ended. Do tell! In all honesty, I can see more exploits coming: perhaps movies-of-the-week or a miniseries or two down the line. Would that be so unreasonable, so far-fetched? I mean, come on, who we kiddin'? The writing is on the wall.
Though the Dark Knight finale was engaging as heck, it's too bad we didn't get all we desired, even with that ten-year skip. For that matter, the Joker was only just warmin' up, but in truth, the same could be said of any of "Gotham'"s anguished eccentrics: the Penguin, the Riddler, Mr. Freeze, Mad Hatter, Scarecrow, Hugo Strange, Poison Ivy, Bane, "Theresa Walker" (wink, wink); Lee Thompkins...Barbara Kean, Sr and Jr. And though it was sure sweet to see Selina Kyle all grown up (albeit with an unavoidable casting switch) in full, Catwoman gear, we only got the tip of the claw, didn't we? Shoot...
At least the broad inconclusiveness reminds us that the door is open for other avenues, whether alternate-tracked retellings; big-screen epics; or those specialized passages within our multifaceted imaginations.
No matter what the haters claim, "Gotham" (the whole, inherent Batman concept, for that matter) was--and remains--superior to other current DC incarnations and not because of the unfettered violence or wacky characters, but rather its resonating, moral core: most of it enforced by Jim Gordon, Lucius Fox and Alfred Pennyworth. Harvey Bullock, despite a hazy start, plays into this groove, too. Still, what good is any moral message, or the characters who endorse it, if cut short?
Fans kept "Star Trek '66", "Beauty and the Beast '87" and "Alien Nation" on the air beyond their initial cancellations. If folks express how much they care, resurrection is never off the table.
"Gotham" doesn't need an end, but a new beginning, which in a way, the finale gave us, and fans ought to raise holy hell to express their stance. Perhaps if they did, Fox's execs would see the light, and if not, maybe those trailblazing pencil-pushers at Amazon, Hulu, Netflix (uh, never mind) or the should-be-obvious DC Universe Online would. Then there's EPIX: that hip, fee-attached source that's giving us "Pennyworth", but if it wants to galvanize the "Gotham" legacy, the path is sure clear.
Sure, one can speculate until the bats fly home whether more "Gotham" is in store, but one thing's for certain: The series might be "cancelled", but its luminous, dark spirit isn't likely to perish anytime soon.
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