The Penguin – Drama Series

Though it’s true that the series has Batman’s absence which still astonishes many people, The Penguin aka Oswald ”Oz” Cobb’s rise in the world of organized crime in Gotham has received anticipations equal to Bono and Sopranos which is very impressive. With heart pounding action and drama the stories also highlights issues in the society as introduced by Showrunner Lauren LeFranc.\

Oswald “Oz” Cobb (Colin Farrell)\

In 2022’s The Batman, we were able to see the interesting character of Colin Farrell who played a great role, however the HBO series further explains his character in depth. The Penguin which is the next series, so far Oswald has not taken on as terrifying a character as Tony Soprano or Vito Corleone but the character is a minor member of Gotham’s criminal society\

After the events of the Batman, Oz tried to get his foot in the crime scene after Carmine Falcone died, and In order for him and Sofia to build connections they were required to face the dark side. \

Oz’s goal has always been about winning and nothing else. This is why he is a psychopathic gangster who would make blood relatives wrecked and still not care. He is a very powerful individual who always boasts about his greatness.

Because of this, he has to deal with a few clashes with the law. This doesn’t sit well with GCPD Chief Mackenzie Bock, and neither does it sit well with the FBI’s muscle in Gotham, Councilman Sebastian Hady. After a poorly considered crime of passion, Oz is now back at his pad only to be greeted by Sofia and her goons. After a fierce confrontation, she manages to subdue him and imprison him in the glasshouse.

Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti)

Montreal enjoying the performance of the Penguin as brought to life by Colin Farrell, some may miss the sheer brilliance that is Sofia Falcone performed by Milioti, the scorned daughter of mob boss Carmine who’s driven by a need for power and retaliation. A former actress in Palm Springs and Black Mirror, she is originally from Cherry Hill and the pangs of a formidable crime queen are all there as she seeks to position herself as one of the biggest in Gotham’s deep web of crime.

Although Sofia’s ultimate goal is to control the Falcone family, she also has her own personal agenda: to avenge her brother’s death. When she walks into the dining room of a family gathering where some of her father’s soldiers are seated, wearing a black slip gown and a fur coat, she says to the surviving lower-ranking mobsters: “I gassed them and they will be ‘so glad they’ are dead.’” She subsequently shoots Johnny Viti, one of the Capos that she had previously spared, in the head.

Sofia also believes that there is a mole in her unit, so she bribed her former employee‘s detective to assist her in discovering the mole. At the end, he delivers to her Ervad, a member of Maroni’s crew, in order for her to interrogate him. He informs Sofia that she will be killed by the Maronis if they discover that she conspired with Oz, but she tells him that she still wanted to risk it.

Victor Aguilar (Rhenzy Feliz) A teenager by the name of Victor Aguilar (Rhenzy Feliz) who is a part of a gang made an appearance in the third episode of Penguin. He is a young man from Crowne point who is looking to repay a debt to Sofia Falcone and try to start establishing his reputation in the underworld. He, like the other goons under Penguin sees Oz as a father figure and wishes to make it to the top like him.

He and his friends plan to raid the Falcone family’s mansion and try to snatch off the rims from their parked SUV. Unfortunately, things do not go according to plan. Serbian mob from the Detroit branch and Victor manages to kill all of them with ease in order to face the Penguin, who is driving out to kill him. With his wealth and power over all others in the mafia who worked under him, he did not find it very difficult to employ or assassinate anyone.

As the days pass, he gets wasted and ugly under his excessive drinking and drugs, and starts dealing in various kinds of weapons. He is caught off guard sometimes because the adrenaline rushes might be a huge factor but other than that he searches for ways to escape. Ironically, he doesn’t know whether he sees himself at the top or at the very bottom. And most of the episodes have their most intense scenes revolving around him.

Feliz is a perfect fit for the part as he effortlessly switches from a plotting thug to a loveable loser. He’s even better in closeups, where he captures that sway back as if he were a Hollywood gangster character who could assume the roles of De Niro, Pacino and Gandolfini. Not to mention his million dollar grin. Check him out on The Penguin tonight on HBO and stream on Max as well.

Francis Falcone (Deirdre O’Connell)

Even though The Penguin is based on crime and not a comic book story, showrunner Lauren LeFranc has not been reluctant to adopt the style. She has done an admirable job and includes diverse serious gangster movies including Scarface and The Sopranos among her sources of inspiration.

This week, LeFranc and Milioti are again convincing enough to make us believe that they are on the right track. After seeing this week’s thrilling episode one would dislike trying to imagine a world where The Penguin exists as a run of the mill mafia movie.

The head of cabal appears to be Sofia Falcone as she seeks for the help of Oz Cobb her son and attempts to trace him. She tries to convince him in wiping out the family hierarchy so that she can take control of the gangster group. To this end, she offers a bribe to one of his ex-staff GCPD officer and captures one of the staffers, Ervad, who is also an informant working for Carmine.

He is Oz’s target, but even though he is hesitant at first, it does not take long for him to realize, how important his mother is to this struggle. It is then that O’Connell, proving once again what a real treat she is for television audience, provides us with a one of a kind performance in a role of Francis Falcone, a horrified elderly woman who is loosing her mind.