Gotham: Worst Season One Episodes, Ranked By IMDb

Usually, the term “worst episode” means that an episode will be terrible beyond anything else, so much so that no one would ever want to talk or mention it again. However, sometimes, especially on IMDb, the worst just means mediocre.

Despite the episodes of the Batman prequel series Gotham first season having issues and definitely some bad episodes, not all of them are the worst of the series, ranked low due to the plot, character issues or simply just being unnecessary to the story or not adding anything to the season as a whole, making it somewhat frustrating for audiences.

10 Red Hood (8.1)

One of the more frustrating aspects of Gotham derives from arcs that are never really completed. Instead of the episode giving way to a new arc or influence on the world the series is creating, it’s instead shelved away, never to be seen again.

“Red Hood” is one such episode, an episode that could have had a great influence on the rest of the series, maybe even lead to the true joker, and yet, the Red Hood ended up being a one-off with an amazing and worthwhile cliffhanger going unfulfilled.

9 The Fearsome Doctor Crane (8.1)

There’s always a problem when going about origins series. While some series may be able to distinguish which characters should receive an origin and which shouldn’t, others like the Batman prequel fail to realize this notion.

When it was announced that the Scarecrow would be coming to Gotham, fans were excited… then somewhat disappointed when the two arc episodes ended up focusing on Jonathan Crane’s father and not the villain himself. Added with the subplots weighing down the episode and keeping it from living up to its full potential.

8 Arkham (8.1)

As iconic as Batman and his villains are, there’s another term that has become synonymous with the Dark Knight: Arkham Asylum. The home for the mentally ill and the worst of the worst in Arkham has always been a notable location.

So when Arkham popped up as a title for one episode, audiences assumed it would be about the classic prison. Instead, fans were treated to war in the Arkham district, plans for the city, and little of the asylum, disappointing many despite the excellent dynamic between Gordon and Cobblepot.

7 The Scarecrow (8)

Following the debut of the Scarecrow’s father, there was still a bit of home for the next week, when the two-arc introduction of the classic villain would conclude, with viewers expecting a gateway for later seasons.

Despite the promising ending, the episode as a whole was, like it’s predecessor, weighed down by the weak subplots that took away from the overall episode and as the rest of the series progressed with Jonathan Crane a no show until the fourth season, “The Scarecrow” (where he became one the shows best-dressed characters) felt more and more like a fluke even though the actor managed to do the Batman villain portrayal some kind of justice.

6 Selina Kyle (8)

Funny enough, the pilot of a great number of series can oftentimes be the weakest. There are definitely exceptions but it usually takes a while to get settled into a new series, with the following episodes allowing the series to click over a twenty-two episode season.

Even though “Selina Kyle”, the Catwoman centered episode that really didn’t deliver on making her an amazing villain and the second of the series, managed to build off of the first season, it was still a somewhat weak episode, with the process of establishing characters mudding the key story for the episode despite giving Selina some development and making some audiences even feel bad for her.

5 Pilot (8)

Three people walk down an alley. Two get shot by a robber and one becomes a vigilante. What sounds like a sick joke is a scene every Batman fan knows, the death of Bruce Wayne’s parents, a scene done so much, it feels like a joke.

Of course, if one is going to tell the story of Batman, they need to include the death of his parents, but the show could have done the opening a different way, perhaps introducing the audiences to the good-hearted and evil main characters instead of shoving Thomas and Martha Wayne’s deaths down the audience’s throats.

4 Welcome Back, Jim Gordon (7.9)

Often times, the pacing is key in crafting a solid episode. Without the right pacing to move an episode forward, audiences may feel lost and even tempted to change the channel or finding another show similar to Gotham to watch.

“Welcome Back, Jim Gordon” already starting off weakly with bringing Jim back to the GCPD after only two to three episodes, falls short of the mark with subplots once again dragging the series down with little action and lots of exposition, none of which any audience or fan really asked for or wanted.

3 Viper (7.9)

Leave it to a superhero based series to become a procedural based show. Instead of each episode following a singular storyline, most of the episodes follow a “new crime a week” type format, with “Viper” following into that category.

When a knockoff venom, the drug infamous Batman villain Bane uses(who doesn’t appear in the episode) hits the streets of Gotham, the show, beginning to find it’s footing, is taken off balance once more with weak character development and stereotypical plot points leading the episode.

2 Rogues Gallery (7.8)

Episode titles can oftentimes be misleading and, at times, act like clickbait. Usually, they tease one thing, getting the audience excited before giving them a lackluster episode that doesn’t deliver on what the studio promised or previewed.

With a title like “Rogues Gallery”, there should be no room for failure, and yet, the episode actually barley has any look into the rogue’s gallery of Gotham, with only the briefest of villains popping up and not providing nearly enough of the city or other characters for the episode to take off.

1 Harvey Dent (7.8)

Characters are always tricky to pull off in the right way. Sometimes, characters like Jim Gordon or Jerome Valeska can hit the ground running and never stop, while others, like “Harvey Dent”, never even seem to touch the ground at all.

Introduced partway through season one, District Attorney Harvey Dent was brought into the world of Gotham in a lackluster and exposition-heavy episode that many believe wasted Dent’s potentials in order to focus on Barbra Kean’s relationship(who slowly became one of the shows most hated supporting characters) and other subplots, with only a brief glimpse at the Two-Face persona.

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