It’s going to take Vic Mackey to clean up the streets of Gotham City! Or at least someone who looks a lot like him.
Former star of The Shield, Michael Chiklis has been tapped to join Gotham Season 2 as a series regular, as first reported by TVLine. Technically, this Chiklis’ second comic book adaptation, after appearing as The Thing in two Fantastic Four movies. But Chiklis was also the star of the comic bookish series, No Ordinary Family on ABC.
Chiklis’ character is Captain Nathaniel Barnes, who will be unique to the show since he has no counterpart in the Batman comics that spawned Gotham. The producers of Gotham could do anything with Barnes, but they decided to spoil his entire character trajectory in the following description.
“[Captain Nathaniel Barnes] lands on the GCPD like a tornado, ripping out the dead wood of Gotham’s police force. He is a law and order zealot; unafraid of making enemies – on either side of the law. For Gordon (Ben McKenzie), Barnes is a hero and a mentor, someone with whom he can share the burden of heroism. Captain Barnes proves himself to be a strong ally to Gordon… but one day he will make an equally powerful enemy.”
Why do that? Why signal that he’ll be Gordon’s enemy right after introducing him as Gordon’s biggest ally in the Gotham City PD?!
Related: First Look At Barry Allen’s New Flash Costume
With Chiklis, McKenzie, and Donal Logue, Gotham has three really terrific actors in heroic leading roles. They are perhaps even among the most talented trio on television. But the biggest problem that Gotham is facing is the horrible writing from Bruno Heller and his team. The tone of Gotham is so inconsistent, that it can go from aping Christopher Nolan in one scene and start imitating Batman ‘66 in the next!
If Chiklis is enough to turn Gotham around, no one will be happier than the CraveOnline team. But we don’t have a lot of faith in the series after that first season.
Gotham fans, weigh in on the casting of Michael Chiklis in the comment section below!
