Welcome back to the blog readers. You may remember from way back to one of my very first posts on this blog that I had ranked The Batman (2022) as my eighth-best film of 2022, where I called it a "tonally dark and brooding film that allowed Gotham City to become a living, breathing character in of itself and differentiate itself from what has come before." I paraphrased what I said, but you get what I mean. So when I found out we were getting a spin-off of that film focused on a C-level Batman villain who wasn't even the main or secondary villain of that film, I was both intrigued and nervous that the creators would not be able to pull it off. Would I be proven wrong? Stick around to find out.
The Penguin was created for television by Lauren LeFranc, who also served as showrunner, based on characters from DC Comics and the Matt Reeves film The Batman. This series also features direction from Craig Zobel, Helen Shaver, Kevin Bray, and Jennifer Getzinger. The series stars Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz, Deirdre O'Connell, Clancy Brown, Carmen Ejogo, Michael Zegen, Michael Kelly, Mark Strong, Scott Cohen, Theo Rossi, and Louis Cancelmi. In the series, set a week after the events of The Batman, Oswald Cobb begins his rise to power in the criminal underworld of Gotham where he is forced to confront forces from his past.
NOTE: I will be using spoilers for my thoughts, so DO NOT read ahead if you have not seen the series.
Like I mentioned previously, I loved The Batman and I got my hopes up when I had heard about this series because Oz was a standout character in that film. But what concerned me was the emphasis on the third-string villain from that film. I purposefully stayed away from trailers because I did not want to get my hopes up to inevitably be let down, but this was HBO after all. Nothing could ever be like The Idol (2023)…right? Well fortunately this series is no Idol, in fact it is utterly fantastic. I was intrigued by everything this show had to offer. The main performances from Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, and Rhenzy Feliz were breathtaking. The backstabbing and "front-stabbing" were on the level of House of the Dragon (2022-). I just fucking loved this show.
I need, NEED to first talk about Colin Farrell's performance as Oswald Cobb. Farrell has been around for a long time and has been charming audiences with that Irish swagger he has, but I think 2022 was his best year. He stunned us all in The Batman as Oz and then gave my favorite performance of that year in The Banshees of Inisherin (2022), one in which he was nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars. But we get a completely different side to Farrell in this show, one that I have never seen before. And yes, this series does try to make you sympathize with Farrell's Oz, but for every moment of sympathy there is a moment of darkness that reminds you that Oz is a villain and he is a real asshole. He definitely gets a whole lot of moments in this series to show off his acting prowess. A few examples include the subtlety of the entire scene at (and outside of) the Iceberg Lounge in the premiere episode, his framing of Sofia's henchman as the mole, his (many) conversations with Victor Aguilar in this series, the deaths of Nadia and Taj Maroni at his hands, and basically everything he did in the finale. From continually denying responsibility for the deaths of his brothers to the heart-shattering final conversation he had with his mother to his killing of Victor (the jaw-dropping moment of this series). Colin Farrell is going to get an Emmy nomination for Best Actor in a Limited Series or Television Film, and I will be behind his campaign to get him that trophy.
I next want to talk about Cristin Milioti's performance as Sofia Gigante (nee Falcone). Now I do want to admit that I have not seen any of her previous work like How I Met Your Mother (2005-14) or Palm Springs (2020) or any of her stage work (for obvious reasons). But hearing she was a part of this show made me a little hesitant because I did not know if she had it in her to be able to hang with Colin Farrell as Oz. But when she stood behind him menacingly in the premiere episode, I was instantly hooked. By the end of that episode, I knew we had struck lightning in a bottle. But by the end of this series, I cannot envision anybody else playing this twisted psychopath. Milioti was absolutely brilliant as Sofia as the most sympathetic character on this show. Just take her turn in the fourth episode to see what I mean. If you want to see someone morphed into who they wind up becoming, Sofia is truly a tragic figure. Someone who was accused of something they were not, and sent away because they had the balls to stand up for themselves and the unjust. But this is what she needed to become exactly what she was accused of doing, and Sofia's time in Arkham molded her into the person she resented. Psychological torture was key in this, and Milioti plays these complex emotions to utter perfection. Especially in the back half of this series is when she gets to let loose and be completely maniacal. If she is not nominated for an Emmy for Best Actress in a Limited Series or Television Film for her performance in this show, I will riot. In fact, you better start etching her name into the trophy now. And keep it clean for her while you're at it.
Finally, we need to talk about Rhenzy Feliz's performance as Victor Aguilar. Like Milioti, Feliz is a relative newcomer to me because I honestly never heard of the kid before. And I have not seen any of his stuff like Marvel's Runaways (2017-19) or Encanto (2021), so I had no idea what he would bring to the table. And come on, the main cast around him is freaking Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti. Would he even be able to hold a candle to those two mega talents? And in my honest opinion, I think he not only held a candle to those two, but he also endeared the hell out of himself to me. Portraying someone with a stutter is not an easy feat to accomplish, and Feliz does that brilliantly, but we also see Victor as the most pure character in this show get corrupted by Oz's self. I think we see him as the most pure character by the end of the series, and getting to see him discover a sense of purpose was extremely satisfying to watch. When we first meet Vic, he is just a street kind who is looking for a purpose (since the events we see in the third episode) when he meets Oz, and the terror Feliz is able to bring in this crucial moment is admirable. When we get to see what Vic is really capable of and he sets off the events of the entire series, you are left to wonder if he can really be corrupted or if he will break away from Oz's influence. But the chemistry on display between Feliz and Farrell is unmistakable, and they bring it until Feliz's final scene as Vic. It is a heartbreaking and infuriating scene (for the right reasons) that really highlights this kid's talents and answers my question at the top of this paragraph. This kid should get Supporting Actor in a Limited Series like pronto.
The story of this series, in my humble opinion, rivals that of House of the Dragon in terms of wow factor, in terms of development of characters, and overall enjoyment. I will discuss the development of the three main characters and where they end up by series end. I want to first talk about the titular man: Oswald Cobb, aka the Penguin. We learn through his backstory that he loves his mother Frances deeply and yearns to be the only one who can give her his love. Jealous of his brothers, he has an opportunity to lock them in a storm drain which leads to the boys drowning. We later find out Francis knew the entire time and arranges for local mobster Rex Calabrese to kill Oz, but cannot capitalize. This really allows Oz to become the man we later see him become, someone who is willing to turn on anyone at the drop of a "top hat" (pun definitely intended here). Just look at all the people he backstabbed in this show alone: Alberto Falcone, Sofia Falcone, Salvatore Maroni, Nadia Maroni, Taj Maroni, Victor Aguilar. The list goes on for Oz. I am surprised he didn't kill his mother based on her recent situation, but maybe him holding her in his penthouse is a good thing for him. Oz has become the ultimate douchebag throughout Gotham, and it will be so satisfying to see Batman punch his face in a bunch of times. #JusticeForVic.
Next, I want to talk about the story of Sofia Falcone and how she goes from heiress of the Falcone name to one of the most devious people in the Gotham underworld. I definitely think that while Vic's story is more heart-shattering, Sofia's story is more tragic because she literally became everything that she tried to say she was not. When we first see Sofia, she is a young girl who loves her father Carmine and her brother Alberto very much, and wants to carve her own path away from her father's influence and grasp. But she gets caught up in a string of murders that Carmine committed and when she questioned her father, he sold her out and pinned the murders on her, ending her bid to be the heir to the Falcone legacy. While in Arkham, she is molded into the cutthroat and power-hungry individual that we see in the present day. Now, there is no stone that she will leave unturned to get exactly what she wants, and she does not care just who is in her way. She undergoes a character shift in the back half of the series, becoming more ruthless and careless with what she does. She eventually becomes unsatisfied with continuing her father's legacy and decides to both figuratively and literally burn it to the ground to carve her own legacy. She is double-crossed again by the gangs of Gotham and sent back to Arkham, the only place that scares her. I think this is a fitting end to this character, and her eventual meeting of Selena Kyle may set the stage for something greater to come later down the line for both of them.
Finally, I want to talk about the development of Victor Aguilar and the tragic journey that he takes in this series. Like I said, I think Vic's story is one of great loss and heartache, and the one that I felt the most attached to by the end of the show. When we first see Vic, he is a family-oriented kid who somewhat gets along with his sister and parents. But one day, he decides to go hang out with his friends. Little does he know, that day is the day of the Riddler's attack, which kills his entire family. Now left to fend for himself, he has to fight to survive every day. That is, until he meets Oz and becomes his protégé. Victor does stay as the morally good character in this show, even though he does some pretty despicable things like severing Alberto's finger and sending the car into the Falcone mansion, running over the Maroni that is trying to kill Oz and Sofia outside the nightclub, and basically executing his former friend turned aspiring drug dealer. I also think that his death is the catalyst for something greater for the whole of Gotham because it will send shockwaves throughout the city. This is the push Oz needed to embrace his ultimate destiny and it sucks that it had to come at Vic's expense.
In conclusion, The Penguin is a fantastic deep dive into the titular character that gives us a twisted and broken person and makes us hate him more than we already did. Thank you all for reading, and I will see you for the next post.
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