by Nick Ferro, Contributing Writer
Fans of comic book television adaptations are eating really well here in the fall of 2024! If you had told me that 2024 would see two of the best shows in the genre release only weeks apart from each other, I’d have thought you were crazy. Especially after the year we had in 2023, with comic book-related movies and shows for the most part being wildly disappointing, or mediocre at best. I find it also very interesting that between The Penguin and Agatha All Along, we were given two villain spinoff shows that not only expand their respective universes, but also do so in two very unique ways. Where Agatha gives us a fun, quirky, supernatural tale with music, magic, and a villain turned antihero, The Penguin shows us the darker side of villainy and what it means to be a full-on bad guy in a comic property. The two shows are wildly different and shouldn’t really be compared at all. However, I appreciate that there is a crossover section of the Venn diagram. That crossover is excellent writing, directing, pacing, acting, and overall production design. The Penguin is just as good as Agatha, but in a completely different way.
The Penguin is a sequel spinoff to 2022’s The Batman, following Oz Cobb, a.k.a. The Penguin (Colin Farrell), as he tries to manipulate Gotham’s two major crime families, the Falcones and the Maronis, into destroying each other. In the aftermath of the Riddler’s attack and the death of Carmine Falcone, Oz sees an opening and takes it. He is met with a whole slew of problems as the show proceeds, but we are shown how time and again, no matter what is thrown at him, he finds a way to come out on top. Whether it’s by the seat of his pants or by huge margins, we are never sure if Oz is going to succeed; and the magic trick that this show does is getting the audience invested in wanting him to succeed. We want to root for this villain because he is the title character, but also because he is the underdog. He is a low guy in the hierarchy of Gotham crime. He tells stories of how he wants to be someone that people respect, and he wants to help those who can’t help themselves as a way to stick it to the rich criminals that sit pretty at the top of the food chain. He sells us pretty words because we are so used to comic book properties about a villain to play out as: He was misunderstood and isn’t really a bad guy.
And therein lies the rub of this entire show. Regardless of what Zangief might tell Wreck-it Ralph, Oz Cobb is not only a bad guy, but he is a Bad Guy! But you still root for him right up until the very end. One major reason we root for him is because of Vic (Rhenzy Feliz), the street urchin orphan that Oz catches trying to steal his car’s rims in Episode One. At first, their relationship is very much a forced conscription situation, in which Vic is convinced that when Oz is done with him, he’s a dead man. But Vic shows his worth with loyalty, which Oz respects. He takes Vic under his wing and shows him what it means to live in this criminal life. Vic is the audience surrogate, and he grows into a spectacular character in his own right. If you aren’t in love with their mentor/mentee relationship by the end of the series, I would be very surprised. Farrell and Feliz have amazing chemistry, and again, even though their characters do bad things, you want them to succeed because they are in this together.
You also connect with Oz and want him to succeed because of the relationship that he has with his mother Francis (Deirdre O’Connell). Oz is doing his best to take care of her as she is slowly declining from a degenerative memory disorder, which not dissimilar from Alzheimer’s. He and his mom are the only family each other has, because his two brothers died when they were young. The beginning of the series sets us up to feel bad for Oz and his circumstances, but as it progresses, it treats the audience like a frog in boiling water. It starts on low, but by the finale you don’t even realize that the water is boiling.
Standing in their way is Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti), who has recently been released from Arkham Asylum. The reason for her being sent there is a mystery that unfolds throughout the season, so all we know at first is that she’s known as The Hangman and hated by the citizens of Gotham, as well as her own family. Her crusade starts out as vengeance for her brother’s murder, which causes her to reluctantly team up with Oz. She seems to be the only person to recognize Oz for the real threat that he is, which is a huge point of contention for their relationship. As it does with Oz, the show starts you out by giving you a reason to be wary of Sofia, but then as more information is revealed of who she is, what she is capable of, and what she has been through, you start to see that the initial wariness is replaced with a whole slew of reasons to fear her.
That is what makes The Penguin so impressive. The ability to introduce ideas that make the audience think one thing, but then recontextualize the information later on in the season. There are reveals that not only work in the moment, but also make you reevaluate how earlier scenes played out. We are told a story of Oz’s brothers’ accident, we are told about a night that Oz’s mom took him out for a mom and son date on the town, we are told about Sofia’s past and her crimes, and each one of these stories is brought up again from different perspectives or with new details revealed. Some of them are then given even more context in the finale, which recontextualizes them again, and each time you learn more, it adds more depth to those earlier moments. The Penguin is a show that will keep you guessing from week to week and will not let up until the very last scene, where you are left with a character who you truly see as a villain. There is no doubt in my mind that you will 100% want to see him eventually come face-to-face with Batman to get the beatdown of a lifetime.
It would be an understatement to say that this show lives and dies by Farrell’s performance as the Penguin. The joke has been made ad nauseam at this point, but it bears repeating: I forgot in almost every single episode that it was Farrell under prosthetics. The character work that he is doing here is so unique and spectacular that he completely disappears. If I didn’t see a behind the scenes featurette with him being put in the makeup, I wouldn’t have believed it was him. Everything from the voice, to the walk, to the mannerisms are fine-tuned to create an original take of a character that we have seen portrayed on film many times before. Ferrel is giving a career-best performance in this show, and after watching it, I am not surprised why he got his own spinoff. It was apparent in The Batman that this was a special performance that needed singling out.
However, if Farrell is giving a career best performance, it’s nothing compared to Milioti, who is acting around him! Whether intentionally or not, she tried her darndest to steal every single scene away from him. I have loved her from day one, ever since I first saw her as The Mother in How I Met Your Mother, but what she is doing here is so far beyond the adorable and endearing character of that show. Milioti manages to take that endearing quality, dial it up to 11, and then add a layer of rage and pain over top to the point where you would be scared to be around her, but so enthralled by her that you would fall right into her trap. Which so many characters do throughout The Penguin. She manages to play almost three completely different characters throughout the series, and they are all believable in both a tragic and horrifying way. The vendetta between her and Oz escalates to such a degree that they both know exactly how to hurt the other so deeply — I cannot wait to see where this rivalry goes in the future of the franchise.
The Penguin manages to do what three Sony Marvel movies could not, by giving us a reason to watch a villain story that is missing its main hero. This show doesn’t need Batman to succeed, even if you might ask the very prescient question: “What is Batman doing during all of this?” I can only guess that he was at home, washing his tights, because he does not show up once. I am happy Batman doesn’t show up. But my one complaint about the show is that he doesn’t get a mention or a name drop, and no one is ever scared that he might show up during any of the crime shenanigans. Which doesn’t make sense for a world where he exists. This idea that Batman is not something on any criminal’s mind negates what we were told in The Batman. One of my favorite moments in The Batman was when the criminals would look into the shadows and not know if he was there waiting for them or not. That was not felt in this show, and I hope it isn’t something that is lost moving forward. If this is year two, then criminals should be concerned and for them to not be, it tells me that the writers approached this show with the understanding that he is a non-issue. It comes off as if the people behind the show, Matt Reeves included, are a little embarrassed to be doing a comic book property that has the ability to delve into the fantastical. It is totally fine that they wanted to make a Sopranos-esque mob story that is rooted in reality. But I can’t be the only one who thinks that leaving out all traces of Batman feels like they are using the IP to get eyes on, rather than to the fullest of it’s ability. It is my hope that moving forward, they continue to do what they are doing, so long as they don’t forget that Batman’s world is filled with rich and interesting characters, both grounded and fantastical. And Batman himself should always feel like a presence even if he isn’t on screen.
Overall, The Penguin is worth every second of your time. It will most likely serve as a really entertaining bridge connecting the two Batman movies, and I absolutely can’t wait to see where these characters’ stories go. I hope to see another season of this show, or another spinoff. I hope to see them in the movies, and I hope that the level of care with the writing and storytelling keeps up.
I really am feeling spoiled between Agatha All Along and The Penguin these past two months. Lets hope this is a sign of things to come for comic book television, and that for once Hollywood learns the correct lessons from a successful show.
Rating: Loved It
The Penguin is currently streaming on Max
You can read more from Nick Ferro, and follow him on Twitter and Letterboxd