Paul Edwards

The reach for epic status sets Once Upon a Time apart; one hopes that reach will result in more grasp during the upcoming sophomore season.

The stars still deliver, the supporting cast (especially Collins and Mark A. Sheppard as demon Crowley) remains prized, and the writers keep coming up with witty variations on the show's Route 66-meets-The X Files premise.

A week-in, weak-out study in same-y procedural storytelling and mythology stalling that's powered by the usual salacious crime exploitation and the unusual lead performance of James Spader.

At times suffers from dull, dunderheaded, or dead-end plotlines [but]...There's enough here to keep hope alive that Gotham could grow into more of a weekly treat than a fanboy obligation.