FOX Extends ‘Gotham’ Season 1 to a Full 22 Episodes

There are two shows that I DVR every week to watch the next day because doing the Hawk Morning Show means an early bedtime for this girl. Those two are FOX's 'Gotham' and NBC's 'The Blacklist.'

I don't really understand why so many critics have been so hard on 'Gotham' because I've been reeled in by the show. I love the back-story and everything about the show. And apparently I'm not the only one loving the show because ratings have been notably strong. Strong enough that FOX has officially decided to extend the Batman prequel drama to a full 22 episodes for its first run.

'Gotham' has been granted an additional 6 episodes to its first season run, rather than an early renewal as 'Sleepy Hollow' had last year. Curiously, ousted FOX president Kevin Reilly had repeatedly said that 'Gotham''s 16-episode order would keep the season's quality at manageable levels, something even series lead Ben McKenzie had expressed relief for in a recent HitFix interview.

Says FOX of the news:

'Gotham' debuted as one of the most buzzed-about shows of the fall, and with good reason. Bruno Heller and Danny Cannon have created an incredibly rich world, with characters that draw you in and a cast that brings to life these heroes and villains in a way we’ve never seen before. We are so excited to see where Bruno, Danny and the entire 'Gotham' team take this story over the course of this season, and so thankful to all the fans who have embraced it this fall.

If you're not familiar with 'Gotham,'  the show stars 'Masters of Sex' star Nicholas D'Agosto as a young Harvey Dent and explores “the origin stories of Commissioner James Gordon (Ben McKenzie) and the villains that made Gotham famous,” initially focusing on Gordon’s investigation of the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne. The pilot was written and executive produced by Bruno Heller (‘The Mentalist’), along with Warner Bros. Television, and directed by ‘Judge Dredd’ helmer Danny Cannon.

Time will tell if FOX's 'Gotham' can win over critics, but this fan is holding out hope that it will.