Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne’s longstanding servant and bodyguard, would appear to go a leap extra deep in the prologue category. But Alfred’s biography was rendered more compelling by how he was depicted in Gotham; his fighting and murdering abilities are excellent, and his connection with the Wayne household goes far beyond merely bringing them drinks.
So Pennyworth, from the creators of Gotham, must be a reasonably good narrative. Unfortunately, Pennyworth, EPIX’s Batman precursor drama show, seemed useless as quickly as it was introduced, and it demonstrated to be just that throughout its debut run. Pennyworth might very simply be a solo, 1960s-set spy book, with just a few allusions and familiar characters to the greater DC Universe.
Pennyworth is returning for a series 2 following a perplexing first series conclusion, and if the opener is any indication, the sitcom hasn’t learned from its errors.
Should You Stream It or Skip It (Entire Season)?
To the tune of “Paint It Black,” we witness a fox’s chase, complete with nobles in equestrian attire, ponies, and dogs tearing apart a vixen. The crux: When the property lord stumbles upon a blonde girl in a vehicle on his property, she has her henchman yank him off his saddle and kidnap him.
Bet Sykes (P. Faith) is a student of the Raven Society, a top-secret organization with participants in the uppermost echelons of the nobility and administration. And this specific nobleman has given a bank forensics researcher crucial material.
Elsewhere, A. Pennyworth (J. Bannon) has just returned to London after a ten-year stint in the English air force, where he was forced to murder civilians in the cause of the monarch in conflict areas. The exact year is uncertain, although it appears to be the mid-1960s. He still has horrible memories of those killings, but he preserves a hard top lip.
Alfred wants to create his own protection business since his comrades Wallace “Dave Boy” MacDougal (R. Fletcher) and Deon “Bazza'” Bashford (H.L. Bennett) are having trouble adapting to peacetime. But, even though it’s a decent job, he doesn’t want to be a servant like his father (Ian Puleston-Davies).
He gets stuck in the face while assisting an American dump his inebriated cousin into a cab while working as security at a bar. The man hands him his business id, which reads: T. Wayne (B. Aldridge). A ballerina called Esme (E Corrin) offers him a box of tissues for his wounded face when he returns indoors.
The returning of the tissue box provides Alfred with an opportunity to ask her out. They hit it off on their meeting when she learns he’s a serial killer, and he learns she aspires to be an actress.
What Our Critic Has To Say?
Cannon and B. Heller, both Gotham vets, are helming Pennyworth, and while the new movie’s style is ’60 mod — and a little lighter — than the gloomy Gotham, the narrative fundamentals remain the same. The purpose of this program is to recount Alfred’s origin, which is a prelude to Gotham’s narrative of B. Wayne’s servant and guardian, S. Pertwee.
Our Request
Listen to it online. Pennyworth is an excellent intro to Gotham, and there’s plenty of opportunity in the plot for us to learn much about the character we used to recognize as Batman’s valet.
