Gotham: Every Season Ranked Worst To Best
Which season of Batman's most bizarre origin story set itself apart from the rest?
Gotham brought the live-action Dark Knight back to the small screen for the first time in almost 50 years. Arriving on screens back in 2014, the series sought to rewrite Batman's classic origin story for a whole new generation - in that sense, not too dissimilar to what Smallville did with Superman a decade prior.
The Fox TV series was an immediate ratings hit, but it ultimately wound up having something of a tumultuous run on the network, attempting to figure out what it wanted to be while battling to hold onto its audience. And, to Gotham's credit, it largely managed to do that for five seasons, as the Batman prequel closed out its original interpretation of the World's Greatest Detective's beginnings.
Gotham may have started with the intention of retelling Batman's story, yet it eventually found a much more solid footing when it shed the shackles of expectations, threw caution to the wind, and told the most batsh*t Elseworlds tale you'll probably ever have the joy of watching.
Even though Gotham's five-season ran the roller coaster of highs and lows as it attempted to figure itself out, it did ultimately make for some damn good television when all's said and done.
Now then, let's see which of Gotham's seasons reigns supreme.
5. Season 2
The second season of Gotham marked something of a turning point for the show. While series' debut year was well-received, there was some tension directed towards the procedural format which often overshadowed the iconic stories the show was attempting to tell (or, y'know, retell). That allowed the writers more creative freedom for the second, and it's pretty clear from the offset.
This is the season which Gotham gained its batsh*t reputation from, because, honestly, so much erratic insanity happens in the space of just 22 episodes.
Season 2 of Gotham saw the rise of the mysterious Theo Galavan, as he attempted to take Gotham back for his disgraced ancestors - an act that starts a war with the new King of Gotham, The Penguin. Meanwhile, Gordon found himself committed to Arkham Asylum, where he discovered that Hugo Strange was experimenting on inmates and even resurrecting them, which in turn gave Gotham the keys to the supernatural.
Most tend to consider this an improvement over the first season, and while it certainly was in terms of identity, your writer wasn't a huge fan of the age-old 'can Jim Gordon be trusted?' arc the writers kept throwing our way. As such, that made it hard to fully enjoy Gordon's stint in Arkham Asylum - no matter how innovative it actually was.