The Penguin Season 1 Review..!!

HBO’s The Penguin was one of the most anticipated TV shows of 2024, and I can safely say without any gripe that it succeeded in satiating my interest on all accounts. This gangster drama simply succeeded in keeping me enthralled till the end of the season. There are multiple reasons why I’d like to call this show a pinnacle, and there are multiple places where The Penguin stands up as a masterclass when it comes to making any work within the genre.

The Penguin takes place immediately after the events of The Batman, where Gotham is yet to purely come out of its ramshackle stage after the flood caused by Riddler in the first film. Oswald Cobb, aka Penguin, is still hellbent on building his empire since two of the notorious Mafia heads of Gotham, Carmine Falcone, and Salvatore Maroni, are no longer in charge of it. In a spur-of-the-moment, Oswald shoots down Falcone’s oldest son, Alberto Falcone, which starts a chain of events resulting in the eventual outcome in the end. After spending some years inside the Arkham Asylum, under the charges of committing multiple homicides, arrives Carmine’s daughter, Sofia Falcone. She isn’t received well by anyone apart from her relative’s young daughter (who is also not mature enough to understand the gravity of the situation there). 

 Oz, aka Oswald, while trying to dispose of Alberto’s body, meets Victor Aguilar, aka Vic, a delinquent but kind and genuine teenager from the outskirts of Gotham. Oz and Vic make a good team, and Oz often treats the latter with greater integrity than anyone around him. Oz also tries to remain calm and composed in front of Sofia to hide the truth behind her dear brother’s death. He also ploys to take control of the Falcones’ empire from behind. He even pretends to do business with her and secretly conspires with the incarcerated Salvatore Maroni and his family to take things under his control. But things aren’t as true as we initially perceive. Penguin’s morality rate is put into question right in front of us. We might wonder how good or bad he is as a person or how far he’ll plan and execute in order to reach his goals. Sofia has her own demons and aspirations which would develop as the show progresses. We will even wonder on which side she actually comes in. Vic on the other side has his own tragedies, but he also won’t look so aimless or innocent as the show progresses. He even forms a great bond with Oz, which forms a major aspect of the show. There is also a fight for control over the drug named ‘bliss’, which both Sofia and Oz need to take control over their business. How their characters progress and to what extent they are willing to push their moral or behavioral standards is what the rest of the show is mostly about. Along with all these, there are also several unexpected revelations that could tilt us on all occasions.

To begin with, the performance is one key feature as to why The Penguin is quite brilliantly crafted. Colin Farrell, as we all expected, was living in that role. Not even for one moment would we doubt if Farrell himself is playing that role (even though I’ll admit that the makeup is one contributing reason for it). He did master the typical Italian American to the point that we won’t simply find the distinction between his and Tony Soprano or even James Conway (all famous Italian American mobster characters in fiction). I mean, Farrell is already so incredibly good at mastering accents. He has been a part of Hollywood for some time and has portrayed several characters in America. But apart from his accent, he has also given a great deal of focus on modulating his voice, resonating with some of the very best Robert De Niro performances. From the beginning till the finale of the season, Farrell maintained these attributions consistently without slowing down. But when we describe the performance aspect of the show, I’d love to add that Cristin Milioti comes up as the overall showstealer of The Penguin. She owned a large part of the show with ease, to the point of elevating her to one of the greatest villainous characters in TV history. She portrayed every bit of her remorse, sadness, being stoic, and contempt with ease. The fans of the beloved sitcom How I Met Your Mother might wonder how brilliantly she portrayed the badassery and psychotic traits in this show, to the point of wondering if it was the same person or not. 

Rhenzy Feliz also did a good job as Vic. He did a good job acting out his trademark stutters and shyness and yet was driven by motivation. Vic is one character everyone might root for the most in the show. Apart from them, the rest of the supporting actors also did a good job. Mark Strong’s cameo as the younger version of Carmine Falcone was a treat and made me wonder why he wasn’t cast instead of John Turturo in The Batman (not denying that he was also amazing in that role). Clancy Brown also made a memorable presence in the show as Salvatore Maroni. Some of the rest of the cast members who did well on the show include Michael Kelly as Johnny Viti, Deirde O’Connell as Francis Cobb, and of course Ryder Allen as a young Oz. 

The writing part was exquisite throughout, with the necessary buildup. Almost all of the episodes ended with a powerful note and a push to keep us hooked up on the show till the very end. The characterization is a study for aspirants within the media industry. Almost all of the characters are presented in the most rounded-up manner as they could, which includes the case of Vic as well. Another major pro of the show is something I mentioned before consistency. None of the episodes or characters failed to make us feel tedious watching the show at all. In fact, the way it was written encouraged us to crave more from the show than we watched before. It’s a kind of antithesis to MCU’s Agatha All Along, which was airing around the same time on Disney+ and lacked all the positives in writing that The Penguin had. The making part was also inspiring and tried its best to tie with The Batman and all the intricate details of the Gotham City it had. As you all might know, Gotham City itself is a character in The Batman, and The Penguin also did a fair justice in putting that same place on the pedestal where it deserves. The overall atmosphere is that the set is filled with traits of both film noir and neo-noir film genres. In fact, the blending is just too perfect to go unnoticed in the show. However, one thing I personally felt like a small con of the show was the lack of excellent cinematography like in The Batman. But again, one is TV and the other one is a film, and factors like the budget are also to be taken. Also, it can’t be technically taken as a con either because the cinematography in The Penguin isn’t any bad and any creative decision to not incorporate Greig Fraser’s aesthetics in the same exact manner hasn’t hampered the show in any way. Even the aspect ratios and pacing of the works are quite different in their own right, and it’s still not a bad idea either. 

 Overall, everything within The Batman Universe (including the tie-up Riddler prequel comic) has come out so perfect for us to enjoy. It should also be mentioned that this shared universe within the world of DC is also a counter notion for those who doubt the existence and relevance of the whole superhero genre itself. The Penguin has not only emerged as one of the best comic book TV series, it also has a great place as a legit good work within the gangster/crime drama genres. Another season of the show is rumored as of now, and a sequel to The Batman will hit theaters in 2026. Along with it, another TV series is also rumored to take place within the same universe. Now let’s see how far this universe will develop when it comes to engaging us.