Batwoman
The Arrowverse is the CW's cash cow. Ever since "Arrow" premiered it has introduced spin-off after spin-off. You'd think with "Arrow" ending this season that things would be slowing down. But they are not. When she was introduced in last years "Elseworlds" crossover, Batwoman was a fan favorite. It wasn't a huge surprise when it was announced that they were producing a pilot and that the pilot was picked up. Last Sunday, Kate Kane made her auspicious debut into the Arrowverse. How did it go? Read on to find out.
Episode 1: "Pilot"
Luke Fox: "The suit is literal perfection."
Kate Kane: "It will be... when it fits a woman."
Kate Kane is running from her past and preparing for her future. She's called back to Gotham when an employee of her dad, Jacob's, security firm is kidnapped by a crazy woman calling herself Alice as in "Alice In Wonderland." Kate is forced to confront a lot of things by being back in Gotham. The deaths of her sister, Beth and mother. Her strained relationship with Jacob. Her discharge from the army for being gay and failed relationship with, Sophie, who just happens to be her father's kidnapped employee. Kate also finds herself connecting to Batman's disappearance from Gotham. Kate believed that Batman failed to save her family but when she finds out that Batman is her cousin, Bruce Wayne, will she change her mind? And will Kate embrace her familial legacy to stop Alice?
 |
| Batwoman Smash! |
"Batwoman" is the sixth DC show to be developed on the CW. They have a formula and for the most part, "Batwoman" sticks to it. It is relatively paint-by-numbers, but there is some really great, unique things happening here. So, let's start with them.
"Batwoman" is telling a story that we haven't really seen in superhero tv series or movies. The main character is out and unapologetically queer. There's no hand wringing about her sexuality. No coming out. Kate Kane may be growing and learning about other parts of herself, but her sexuality is not one of those things. It's super refreshing and I think of the queer kids watching this show and think of the positive impact it's going to have on them. It's really awesome. The show doesn't shy away from Kate's queer identity. The show embraces it. There is no ambiguity in her relationship with Sophie. It's treated just like every other hetero relationship on any of the other shows.
There are some great performances here. Ruby Rose does stellar work. Honestly, I wasn't totally sold in her appearances on "Elseworlds," but she is much improved here. She has chances to spread her wings and I'm excited to see where she takes Kate. Dougray Scott, the man who was almost Wolverine, is another choice I wasn't into at first. He's not who I saw as Jacob Kane, but he sells it and he has great father/daughter chemistry with Rose. Rachel Skarsten aka Dinah Lance from "Birds of Prey" is an interesting choice for Alice. At first, I wasn't a fan. She was giving me generic crazy person, but there are some flashes that make me excited for what's to come.
The actions scenes are top notch. The fight choreography when Kate breaks into Alice's lair is amazing and Rose sells every bit of it.
That brings my to my major gripe. There's not enough action in this pilot. The pacing is way off. There is so much exposition. Did all of this need to be dumped into the first episode? Did we need to know that Kate's stereotypical, social media obsessed step sister is running a rogue clinic in Gotham? We barely get anything with Kate in the batsuit! The resolution to the episode is super pat too. It barely takes any time for Kate to subdue Alice and her goons. It really brings down the entire episode.
That being said, I'm really excited for "Batwoman." I love another female led superhero show being added to the Arrowverse. I love that we have a World's Finest team and it's two women. I just hope that the show can find that right balance of action and interpersonal drama.
Grade: B
What did you guys think? Did you enjoy "Batwoman?" Are the pacing issues better in episode 2? Let me know in the comments.
No comments:
Post a Comment