Fox's Batman Origin Series 'Gotham' Gets Its First Trailer

Fox officially picked up Gotham, the series that will look at Batman's infamous city before there was a Batman, on Monday. Based on how much Fox has already been promoting Gotham, we should have only been surprised if the network didn't greenlight the series.

Gotham will focus on the origins of future Police Commissioner James Gordon, who will be played by The OC alum Benjamin McKenzie. While trying to track down the man who killed Thomas and Martha Wayne, Gordon meets a young Bruce Wayne and witnesses the rise of several iconic Batman villains. David Mazouz plays the young Bruce, Robin Lord Taylor plays Oswald Cobblepot (the future Penguin), Camren Bicondova plays Selena Kyle (the future Catwoman) and Cory Michael Smith plays Edward Nigma (the future Riddler). Donal Logue, Jada Pinkett Smith, Zabryna Guevara and Sean Pertwee round out the cast.

Fox released the first trailer for Gotham on Monday night. Based on the trailer, this series has potential, but I'm still worried about the idea of cramming so much Batman lore into an origin story. Penguin, Catwoman and the Riddler just happened to be around pre-Batman? As Popculturology's Charlie Bielinski said awhile ago, "The problem is that even if we encounter some of Batman’s most-feared foes in the run of this show, it will be difficult to explain how the police department can handle supervillains." If Gordon can fight the Penguin on his own, why does Gotham need Batman?