Gotham, at its core, is vastly different from previous DC television shows. While other shows like Smallville and Arrow are dedicated to showing off super-heroics, Gotham plays out much more closely to a crime drama than anything else. So far, that formula has worked out well: Gotham City feels like a real place full of real people, and even though famous super-villains make regular appearances, everything still feels grounded in reality.

The series began on an extremely high note, and Fox is doing everything it can to keep people excited as Gotham enters its mid-season stretch. For the upcoming episode, "The Balloonman," Fox has debuted two new clips featuring some extremely big names.

The first features Jim Gordon interviewing Selina Kyle (who will eventually become the master thief Catwoman) about the night Bruce Wayne's parents were killed. As expected, the partnership between a cop and a petty thief doesn't exactly go well, but at least Gordon seems to be closing in on the killer's identity:

The second clip features Oswald Cobblepot's return to Gotham. If the name doesn't ring a bell, Oswald Cobblepot is the Penguin's real name, though at this point in the series, young Oswald is far from becoming the master of the Gotham City underworld:

Though the story has been told before, Gotham's approach to the early years of the Batman mythos still feels fresh. Comics like Batman: Year One are obviously an influence, but the show has gone back much further than most stories ever have. While Bruce Wayne plays a major role in the series, it's nice to see the origins of characters other than Batman for a change. With Gotham's first season about to hit its halfway point, it'll be interesting to see where the storyline goes from here and how it diverges from what comic fans already know.

So far, Gotham has been a huge hit for Fox. Critics unanimously praised the series premiere, citing the cast and the production designs as high points for the show. The second episode has nearly as many viewers as the first, and if the numbers continue to hold strong, it's extremely likely that Gotham could return to television after its first season ends.

Gotham airs Monday nights at 8pm on Fox.