TV

The Penguin

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Photo: Macall Polay / HBO

“Batman doesn’t appear in The Penguin, and if you accept the show on its own terms, you won’t miss him. Not when Cristin Milioti, as organized-crime heiress Sofia Falcone, is doing her best clenched-jaw O-Ren Ishii impression at the head of a table of cutthroat criminals, intimidating them and bending them to her will. And certainly not when Colin Farrell, from beneath a ton of prosthetics as striving henchman Oz Cobb, is providing an outsize version of gabagool excellence. This is all praise, and on the strength of those two performances, The Penguin’s eight-episode season, premiering September 19 on HBO and Max, pulls off an exorcism that initially seemed impossible.” — Roxana Hadadi, “Who Needs the Batman?”

  1. Episode 8 A Great or Little Thing
    The Penguin Finale Recap: Man of the People In the end, Oz gets what he’s always dreamed of, but he’ll have to live with the cost forever.
  2. Episode 7 Top Hat
    The Penguin Recap: The Monster Show Another origin episode shows how easily monsters are made in Gotham City.
  3. Episode 6 Gold Summit
    The Penguin Recap: A Tailgate Party in Gotham Oz knows better than to let a good crisis go to waste.
  4. Episode 5 Homecoming
    The Penguin Recap: The City Took Them Their alliance is now broken, and Oz and Sofia make moves to take over the city.
  5. Episode 4 Cent’anni
    The Penguin Recap: Men Have Called Her Crazy Sofia’s origin story as “The Hangman” makes for a fun and sick ride.
  6. Episode 3 Bliss
    The Penguin Recap: This Is Gotham Oz and Sofia’s bid to take over Gotham gets more complex and precarious with each move they make.
  7. Episode 2 Inside Man
    The Penguin Recap: No One’s Untouchable We might still be relying too much on gangster cosplay, but Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti continue to have a blast with these characters.
  8. Episode 1 After Hours
    The Penguin Series-Premiere Recap: Wrong Guy, Wrong Night Oswald Cobb sees his opening to take control of Gotham. The only thing standing in his way? A hellbent Sofia Falcone, fresh from Arkham Asylum.

More on The Penguin

  1. the vulture transcript
    How The Penguin Became the Sofia Falcone ShowCristin Milioti thought through every motivation, music cue, and mullet option to craft the most sympathetic psychopath on TV.
    By Roxana Hadadi
  2. vulture festival 2024
    New York Magazine's Vulture Festival - Day 2
    Cristin Milioti Had a Pop-Diva Playlist for The PenguinThese artists helped her lock in on the right “energy” for Sofia Falcone.
    By Jennifer Zhan
  3. up up and away
    All 43 Live-Action DC Comics Shows, RankedThe Penguin is in pretty good company.
    By Joshua Rivera
  4. finales
    The Penguin Always Had to End Like ThisNo villain origin story is complete without one final, excruciating heel turn.
    By Roxana Hadadi
  5. gold rush
    Cristin Milioti Could Carry The Penguin to Emmys GoldThe question isn’t whether HBO will campaign its prestige comics show. It’s whether voters are wooed enough by Sofia Gigante to care.
    By Joe Reid
  6. behind the seams
    How The Penguin Styled Sofia Falcone’s Gigante TransformationFeeding into Cristin Milioti’s volatile performance, her costumes chart a journey from obedient heiress to homicidal mob boss.
    By Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
  7. chat room
    The Penguin’s Shohreh Aghdashloo Couldn’t Let Nadia Stay Quiet“I couldn’t help myself. I thought, She would have to say something here.”
    By Roxana Hadadi
  8. do it in dc
    Make Girls SuperpoweredSome suggestions for HBO’s upcoming slate.
    By Vulture Staff
  9. tv review
    Who Needs the Batman?As The Penguin’s representatives of Gotham’s underworld, Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti can do bad all by themselves.
    By Roxana Hadadi
  10. battle of the bats
    Is The Penguin Better Than Joker: Folie à Deux?Critics seem to think so.
    By Alejandra Gularte
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