Batwoman and Pennyworth pilots lead DC's SDCC premiere showcase

Kicking off San Diego Comic-Con with a bang, Warner Bros. decided to use their opening night dominance to show off seemingly every new show that they have coming down the pike, and almost all of them involve DC superheroes. We're talking Ruby Rose's solo debut as Batwoman, Jack Bannon's young sexy Alfred in Pennyworth, and much more — and SYFY WIRE was there to see it all.

First off: Batwoman. Kate Kane herself showed off her alter-ego's stuff as the Batwoman pilot gave attendees that dose of Bat-goodness that Gotham spent so long denying them.

**SPOILER WARNING! Minor spoilers for Batwoman and Pennyworth pilots below!**

Rose's gruff vigilante was just what the doctor ordered during her crossover debut in the Arrowverse's last special, so it was exciting to see her own the screen. Showing off all of Gotham (aka Chicago), the pilot/origin story documented how Kane stumbled upon her cousin Bruce Wayne's secret, assumed her superhero identity, and came back home where her father runs a security company and her sister... well, her sister isn't where she's expected to be.

Camrus Johnson's Luke Fox is pitch perfect as a comic foil while Nicole Kang is a cheery surprise as Mary Hamilton. Both get some snarky lines while Rose focused on action, drama, and romance. That's right, romance.

Leaning into the open lesbian Kane's queerness, Batwoman utilizes its hero's sexuality early in the pilot, and appears to be factoring it into her character at large. Oh, and she's got short hair in her costume this time around. We're getting serious '80s movie Batman feels in a fun, fun way.

Batwoman hits The CW on Oct. 6.

Next up was the butler prequel that deals in spycraft, Pennyworth. Fans have already seen how cool Batman's manservant used to be in the show's trailer, but tonight, WB showed off the entire pilot episode at SDCC. 

Bannon's Alfred, young and hot as promised, is as Michael Caine-y as possible throughout the hour-plus premiere, which sees the ex-military, current bouncer meeting Thomas Wayne (Ben Eldridge), hooking up with a girl from work, and generally being as edgy as can be. But Wayne doesn't seem to be a doctor in this version, instead sounding like he's wrapped up in some fishy intelligence work which will likely involve Alfred soon enough. And no superpowers, despite having a few posh villains. Perhaps fans left them all behind in that other Batman prequel show from these creators, Gotham.

As Alfred guns down some baddies, gets the girl, and makes some enemies in the process, the strange version of a post-war U.K. only leaves us with more questions at the end of the first episode.

Pennyworth hits Epix on July 28.

As for the rest of the panel, alongside Rooster Teeth's upcoming slate and the thriller Prodigal Son, Harley Quinn's new animated adventures and a check-in with the goofballs of Teen Titans GO! were also on the agenda, although the latter didn't screen. Instead, the event ended by showing off the Batwoman pilot once again. This wasn't part of the plan, as Harley Quinn EP Justin Halpern confirmed to SYFY WIRE:

Thankfully, fans will still be able to catch some actual footage of the DC Universe cartoon during Saturday's DC Universe Series Sneak Previews and Q&A panel from 7 - 9 p.m. PT in the Indigo Ballroom.

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