Warning - spoilers ahead!
It’s rare for a superhero spinoff to become great prestige TV, but that’s exactly what The Penguin is doing. Written and helmed by showrunner Lauren LeFranc, The Penguin follows Oswald “Oz” Cobb (Colin Farrell) in the weeks after the events of Matt Reeves’s 2022 The Batman, as he rises through Gotham’s criminal underworld to become the Penguin.
Despite being rooted in the superhero genre—one recently declared “dead” after a string of box office bombs and underperforming TV projects—The Penguin has been praised for its Sopranos-like quality. From mob politics to the complex morality of its villains, The Penguin brings audiences to new and intriguing places in The Batman universe.
Let’s look at three elements of The Penguin that hooked audiences, and made the superhero genre prestigious TV.
Like any great anti-hero, most characters in The Penguin operate in morally gray areas, especially Oz. His personal motives are driven by a desire to gain and maintain power. While Tony Soprano balances two families to preserve an image, Oz is trying to create one.
The ambiguity of Oz’s character makes him compelling, as he manipulates others for his benefit. Despite his willingness to kill Victor (Rhenzy Feliz) after using him as an accomplice, Oz has become a mentor to him. Yet there’s always the tension that either one could betray the other to survive in Gotham’s brutal underworld.
What makes this dynamic work so well is the writers’ understanding of character humanity and motivation. We see what drives these characters to make ruthless decisions. Each character plays a deadly game, and the audience is hooked because every action and scene pushes the plot forward, explaining why characters make the choices they do. Even at their most sinister, we empathize with them because each action has a goal—survival or power.
While not a new concept, it’s rare to see a show execute it so effectively, giving viewers reasons to invest in its villains. It’s not because audiences love to hate someone. Instead, they want to root for the underdog, and The Penguin writers have given us so many reasons to root for Oz, Victor, and Sofia (Cristin Milioti).
While other superhero shows like Agatha All Along and The Boys have crafted worlds where superheroes dominate, The Penguin grounds Reeves’s gritty crime world with Sopranos-like realism.
The labyrinth of family networks, the meetings in nightclubs, and the life-or-death dynamics that could go south if the wrong thing is said, add a layer of storytelling that feels like a complicated puzzle that is satisfying to watch come together.
Oz doesn’t navigate the nuances of crime as masterfully as Tony Soprano, but he’s on a journey to reach a level of criminal savvy. Instead of relying on violence, his aspirations for power and respect shape his interactions in the underworld. Dismissed by others as just “the Penguin,” a degrading nickname given by Alberto (Michael Zegen), Oz earns the audience’s empathy through his desire to be respected.
The desire to be accepted and seen is a deeply human emotion that is easy to empathize with. Telling it through the mafioso lens allowed the writers to smartly solve problems that push motivations and desires of characters through nuanced interactions that reflect the complexity of real-life relationships.
For years, the superhero genre has followed a predictable formula, with standard story beats:
Introduction: The audience is introduced to the hero and their backstory. The primary conflict or villain is also introduced.
Call to Action: The hero has to decide whether to accept the challenge.
Training and Preparation: The hero prepares for the battle, often with help from a mentor or allies.
First Battle: The hero faces the villain or a major obstacle but doesn’t yet resolve the conflict.
The Darkest Moment: The hero hits an emotional low and reflects on what they learned from the first battle.
Climax: The hero triumphs by using hard-won lessons.
Resolution: The hero reflects on their journey and growth.
While The Penguin seems set to follow this structure, the series defies expectations early on by blending the superhero genre with crime drama conventions perfected by The Sopranos.
Oz is constantly covering up his crime of killing the new mob boss, while using his knowledge to further his ambitions. He’s also caught in a complicated relationship with Sofia, who he betrayed by getting her locked in Arkham and who now hunts him for revenge.
The traditional storytelling formula for the superhero show doesn’t fit the narrative unfolding. Instead, the writers have crafted a cat and mouse structure inside the superhero formula:
Introduction: Oz establishes his ambition, killing Alberto and adopting his plan to seize power.
Call to Action: Oz works with Sofia to elevate their positions in the underworld.
Pursuit and Evasion: He avoids Sofia’s questions and is actively working to eliminate her power in Gotham by working with the Maroni family.
Mind Games: Each of Oz’s choices are calculated, and save himself while helping him gain power.
The Double-Cross: Sofia learns of his past betrayals, including her time in Arkham.
The Darkest Moment: Sofia violently eliminates her enemies, and singles her intent to target Oz.
The Showdown: Sofia and Oz’s inevitable confrontation will determine the series’ power dynamics.
By blending the two structures, The Penguin feels familiar yet fresh, offering a new and exciting story that builds on a world audiences are already familiar with.
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The Penguin shares DNA with The Sopranos, yet it elevates a genre often dismissed by critics and fans alike. Its success rests with the screenwriters, who deftly explore moral ambiguity, develop characters through mob dynamics, and subvert audience expectations by blending genre storytelling techniques. The Penguin is exciting TV that will end with a pivotal moment that will redefine its titular character and the legacy of great superhero shows.
The Penguin is currently streaming on MAX.