'The Penguin' Season 1 Episode 6 Spoiler-Free Review

Oct 28

Episode six of The Penguin is here, and the stakes have never been higher. This episode is slower than the first five episodes, but it perfectly sets up the last two episodes of the series. I have never been more worried about the lives of Oswald’s mom and Victor than I was when the credits started to roll at the end of this episode. WARNING!! Contains spoilers for episodes one through five!!

Episodes four and five continued to tell the history of the characters and how they ended up where they are in the pecking order of Gotham’s underworld. It was finally revealed that Sofia was not the Hangman, but rather her father Carmine Falcone was the actual killer. We also learned that he murdered her mother, and after Oz told him that Sofia met with a reporter,

Carmine also murdered this reporter as well. He then called the police and set Sofia up to take the fall, blocking the court from ever hearing the case and resulting in her 10-year incarceration in Arkham. We also learned more about Oz and that his brothers were “taken by the city,” which is why he tries so hard to put money back into the poorer neighborhoods in Gotham. Episode five set up the unholy union of the Maroni’s and the Gigante’s, which was only possible because of Oz. Since he killed Sal’s wife and son and betrayed Sofia, he literally handed them to each other. The episode ended with Sofia taking the seat at the head of the table while Oz took his operation underground because it was the only way to keep himself hidden.

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Episode six picks up after a bit of a time jump, but we aren’t told quite how long it has been. The mushrooms are growing perfectly in the underground tunnels, and Bliss is taking Gotham by storm. Sofia and Sal aren’t doing much because they can’t figure out where Oz is operating from, but this changes fairly quickly when they realize that they are starting to lose control. Right when it seems like everything is going perfectly for Oz, his mother has a setback with her health and asks him to do something that he may not be capable of doing. Sofia and Sal decide that they need to start sending a message about what working with Oz will lead to, but Oz is already a step ahead of them and puts a plan into motion that may very well be their downfall. This episode saw Victor stepping up as Oz’s right-hand man, but he is forced to do something that shakes him to his core. We also see Eve, Oz’s love interest, brought into the mix by Sofia, and when she learns the truth about the hangman, her alliances change very quickly. The episode ends with one of the most haunting moments any DC project has ever had, and I am honestly terrified to watch next week’s episode because I am not sure I want to know what is going to happen.

All-new episodes of The Penguin are out every Sunday at 9 pm Eastern on Max.

Rating: 9/10

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