'The Penguin' Season 1 Episodes 7 & 8 Spoiler-Free Review

Nov 12

DC’s The Penguin has officially come to an end, and we have a lot to discuss. While episodes seven and eight were released a week apart, I think it is best to watch these two episodes together in a movie-style format instead. I have been one of this show's biggest cheerleaders, but the final two episodes felt more than a little bittersweet with the way they tied up some of the loose ends. WARNING!! Contains spoilers for The Penguin episodes one through six!!

Episode six saw Oz’s Bliss business booming, and it seemed like things were finally working out for him. Sofia and Sal have no idea where he is, and he is finally seeing things work out for him. Victor has taken on the role of caregiver for Francis and Oz’s right-hand man. Unfortunately, as the episode progressed, we saw Sofia and Sal slowly getting closer to where Oz was living, and after she meets with Eve and tells her the truth about Oz and his connection to the Hangman case, Eve tells her exactly where to find him. Victor is forced to commit his first murder to protect Oz, and we see him being consoled by Oz, who offers him words of advice about how to clean up himself and work through the guilt. As the episode comes to a close, we see Francis and Victor dancing when Oz gets the power turned back on, but Sofia is standing in the entryway with a crowbar.

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Episode seven picks up right where episode six left off, and we learn that Sofia has taken Francis to get dirt on Oz, and she knocked Victor out but left him alive. This was a surprise because I expected her to kill Victor since she knew how close he was to Oz. After Oz learns what happened to his mother, he is confronted by Sal and his men, who demand that Oz give Bliss back to Sofia in exchange for his mother’s life. Oz agrees, but once they arrive in the underground operation, a battle breaks out between Sal’s and Oz’s men. Sal and Oz finally have their face-to-face fight, but it ends in the most disappointing and anticlimactic way possible.

This episode gave us answers as to what actually happened to Oz’s younger brothers and saw Sofia forced to choose what kind of person she wants to be and what she wants to do about Bliss. I have been a big fan of Sofia’s character throughout the show, and while I understand why they made the decision they did for her character, it felt like a letdown compared to the trajectory she was on at the end of episode five. The explosive ending to this episode made for the perfect setup for the series finale.

Episode eight is both the best and most frustrating episode of a show I have ever seen. The episode sees Sofia seeming to get the upper hand when she has Oz brought to Monroe’s to finally tell his mother the truth about everything. Unfortunately, she sorely underestimates who Oz is, and even when his mother’s life is in danger, he is still lying and trying to talk his way out of the situation. His mother is actually the one who ends up dropping some serious bombshells, and while they aren’t surprising, they do feel like a gut punch after everything Oz has done for her. Oz escapes, and Sofia puts a bounty on his head, but we quickly learn that Oz is even more cunning than we knew, and he not only gets the upper hand on Sofia, but he ultimately gets to decide what her fate will be.

The episode ends with Oz seemingly on top, but just as we think no one will be able to stop him, we are reminded that there is a sequel to The Batman on the way, and it will play directly into this show. This episode was one of the best of the series, but the final death in this show still has me more upset than I can put into words. The Penguin is easily the best show to ever be put out on Max, and it has the potential to be the best DC show of all time.

All episodes of The Penguin are available to stream on Max.

Episode Seven Rating: 7/10

Episode Eight Rating: 10/10

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