The latest trailer for the final season of Gotham gives audiences an extended look back at the life of Bruce Wayne, just as he’s on the cusp of becoming the Dark Knight. FOX is going all out in terms of the marketing for the last go-round for its Batman prequel series, and it’s not at all shy about fulfilling the promise producers made about a certain Caped Crusader making his anticipated appearance when the series was ready to call it a day. As such, the new trailer would like to give audiences a lengthy recap of the difficult journey that has brought David Mazouz’s Bruce to where he’ll eventually end up in the final season.
The marketing for season 5 has been hard at work teasing the arrival of Shane West’s Bane, as well as the fact that Gotham itself has been declared a no-man’s land from the rest of the country. The result has left the inmates in charge of the asylum, and in the case of Batman’s rogue’s gallery, that’s a truly frightening proposition. As such, audiences have been treated to a bevy of criminal activity from the likes of the Riddler, Penguin, and the show’s proto-Joker, all of whom are looking to make a splash before their worst nightmare shows up.
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Essentially, Gotham has created a scenario in which Batman’s greatest enemies are the reason for his creation, instead of the other way around. Usually, the Dark Knight’s foes are a direct result of his running around the city, punching bad guys and whatnot. This time, Gotham’s going to do things a little differently. Check out the four-minute trailer for the final season below:
That Gotham is unabashedly calling this promo the “movie trailer” is kind of curious, and perhaps indicative of the series’ desire to be held in the same esteem as the many Batman films out there — especially those from Christopher Nolan, which set an incredibly high bar for all things Dark Knight, and from which this final season is clearly drawing a huge amount of inspiration.
Perhaps what’s most surprising about the trailer is how much footage it’s willing to share with viewers. Everything from Bruce’s battle with Jeremiah (which looks very similar to the Batman/Jack Napier brawl from Tim Burton’s 1989 effort) to Selina’s transformation into a more feline-like Catwoman is on display. And that’s saying nothing of West’s connection to Jim Gordon prior to becoming the man who broke the Bat. All in all, it’s a long trailer, but it just might get you excited about the final season of Gotham.
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Gotham season 5 premieres Thursday, January 3, 2019 @8pm on FOX.