Batman: Every Live-Action Riddler Ranked Worst To Best

Gotham is a show that very much divided the DC fanbase. Many found it an enjoyable holiday from the regular Batman canon, whereas others thought it was a cheap and often poorly executed mess. Still, one thing it certainly got right was casting Cory Michael Smith as a young Riddler.

One thing that Smith captured for arguably the first time in Edward Nygma was his genius intellect. The other iterations played up more to his goofiness and love of puzzles than his high intelligence, but that wasn't the case here. You could fully believe that he was a mental foil to Gotham City's police force, even though he was in his early stages. Plus, having him start out as a forensic scientist working for Gotham City PD was a solid move.

Of course, as with many things in Gotham, *cough* Jerome *cough*, the character wasn't as realised as he could have been, and the show dropped the ball with him many times. However, Smith's performance still toed the line wonderfully between a creepy criminal, goofy nerd and charming bad guy. Thus, he's very deserving of this, almost, top place.