Critic’s Rating: 4.8 / 5.0
4.8
On The Penguin Season 1 Episode 5, the Falcone name has been wiped from Gotham’s streets.
In one swift move, Sofia obliterated the old regime and claimed the throne that her father had promised her when she was a young girl.
But her reign isn’t just about power — it’s about redefining who she is by honoring her mother, Isabella, with a new family name: Gigante.
It’s a significant choice for the writers and one that carries weight, particularly with those who know their mob history.
Vincent “Chin” Gigante, a real-life boss of the Genovese Family — the so-called Ivy League of New York’s infamous Five Families — was known for feigning madness to dodge authorities.
Dubbed “The Oddfather” by the press, he would wander the streets of Greenwich Village in a bathrobe and slippers, drooling all over himself as he mumbled incoherently.
One of the wildest stories about him is the time the Feds went to serve him with a subpoena and found him naked in a bathtub, holding an umbrella.
So, the parallels between Sofia and Gigante feel intentional.
Sofia’s donning her mother’s fur coat is perhaps a subtle nod to Gigante’s bathrobe, and the umbrella imagery ties back to Penguin lore in the Batman universe.
And just like Gigante, who was far from crazy, Sofia might not be as unhinged as she appears.
She’s playing a long game, ruthless and strategic, but there’s a sense that she’s walking a fine line between brilliance and madness.
Ruthless Moves and Strategic Alliances
Sofia’s plan to transform the former Falcone empire into her new Gigante family showcases her strategic brilliance.
Viti served his purpose by gathering the remaining Falcone associates, but Sofia never intended to keep him around. The moment he questioned her authority, she shot him in the head without hesitation.
It was as cold-blooded as it gets, sending a clear message to everyone at the table: Join her or die.
Sofia isn’t just shaking things up — she’s offering her crew a bigger cut of the pie, — an offer they couldn’t refuse (couldn’t resist that one). But unlike Oz, she’s actually delivering.
Oz may promise his team the world, but he’s a manipulative liar who never means what he says.
Sofia, on the other hand, genuinely wants to build something different, though it doesn’t feel like she’s in this for the long haul.
Her alliance with Sal Maroni serves two clear purposes: to find Oz and eliminate him.
There’s deep-rooted distrust between the Falcone and Maroni families, but Sofia has already proven to Maroni that she’s serious.
Sal is fully aware of what Carmine did to her, and there may be some sympathy there, knowing that her father played a role in her suffering.
Unlike Carmine, Maroni values family above all else, and he would never have treated Sofia like her father did. Sofia knows this, too, and it’s part of why she seeks him out.
Sofia isn’t afraid to show her cards, though I’m not sure if that’s a strength or a weakness.
Back at the Falcone mansion, she openly admitted to the associates that she killed the entire Falcone family.
It was a mic-drop moment, bold and defiant, cementing her as a force not to be trifled with. She wanted everyone to know she wasn’t playing games and was ready to go to war with anyone who opposed her.
Even Julian seemed proud of her at that moment. What’s his deal, anyway?
Still, Viti may have been right when he tried to dissuade her from admitting that. He knows this world far better than Sofia does, but it doesn’t matter now — Viti is sleeping with the fishes (sort of).
While Sofia’s alliance with Maroni is a smart move, and Maroni might see it as useful in the fight against Oz, it may not play out the way Sofia envisions.
As I mentioned, there’s a chance Sofia doesn’t actually want to rule Gotham’s underworld.
Maybe she’ll pull a move like Gigante, who ultimately dropped his crazy act to save his sons — but in Sofia’s case, she’ll leave it all behind to save herself.
Perhaps Sofia’s only goal is to take out Oz, and once that’s done, she could walk away, leaving the underworld to Maroni.
But Maroni doesn’t know this — at least not yet. Unless she reveals this as her true intention, Maroni likely won’t keep her around for long.
The Self-Destructing Oz
While Sofia is busy building alliances, Oz is spiraling into self-destruction.
He kidnapped Maroni’s son and tried to trade him for those valuable mushrooms, but in a brutal act of ruthlessness, he ended up burning Maroni’s wife and son alive.
Now, with nothing left, Maroni is driven by revenge, while Sofia — essentially an orphan herself — shares the same goal: take Oz down.
Oz is smart but not smart enough. He’s impulsive and reckless, and his empire is crumbling. His constant references to Rex Calabrese should be wiped from his mind because no matter how hard he tries, he will never be Rex Calabrese.
His only allies are his mother and Vic, and even Vic’s loyalty is questionable, even if he lied to Frances about Oz taking down the Falcones.
Vic clearly feels sidelined, especially when Oz kept him out of the action during the double-cross. His motives are still unclear.
It’s hard to understand why he sticks with Oz unless that brief taste of violence from mowing down the Maronis awakened something in him.
Even Eve separated herself from Oz because she’s fully aware he’s not the guy to be seen with right now.
The tunnels play a crucial role in this episode, and they may become Oz’s hiding place once that kid from Vic’s past comes for them — and you know he will.
This could also become the moment when Vic finally sees Oz’s true nature, even if it’s been right in front of him all along.
If anything happens to Frances because Vic made the poor choice of hiding her in Crown Point, Vic will likely end up sleeping with the fishes (there’s no “sort of” this time around).
When Oz returned to the tunnels where he and his brothers used to hang out, he called it a “homecoming.” But there’s something ominous about it, too.
He hesitated in front of that small door leading to another tunnel passageway as if he were hiding something — maybe even the truth about his brothers’ deaths.
His stories about them keep changing, and I’m willing to bet he killed them — or is it just one brother? Frances’s memories seem to indicate there was only one.
There’s also the possibility that Oz’s hesitation is setting up something bigger — like the appearance of another Batman rogue: Poison Ivy.
The tunnels are dark and humid, making them an ideal environment for the Bliss mushrooms — or even a greenhouse. They also connect to Arkham, where Poison Ivy could be lurking.
Could the show introduce her as a player who takes over the mushroom business, maybe using them as a basis for her poisonous plants?
The mushrooms — even the ones Oz saved — are already contaminated by the fire retardants. If you remember, the chemist from Arkham already said in an earlier episode that they were extremely sensitive.
It’s an interesting thought, especially since Oz is in way over his head with the whole operation, even though he doesn’t realize it yet.
An Explosive Showdown
With only three episodes left, we’re heading toward an explosive showdown.
Will Sofia and Maroni team up to take down Oz? Or will Oz somehow survive despite his growing list of enemies?
He has to make it to The Batman 2, right? But the producers have recently hinted that there could be more seasons of The Penguin, so maybe we’re in for some major surprises.
One twist I’d love to see? Kill off the Penguin.
It would be a bold move, but there’s a chance the Maroni/Gigante alliance could win, leaving the door open for a whole new power structure in Gotham.
At this point, Oz is running out of options.
His moral compass is non-existent, and while that might keep him alive for now, it’s not enough. Sofia is smarter, more calculated, and far more dangerous. I see nothing but doom for Oz Cobb.
Over to you, TV Fanatics. Who do you think will come out on top? Will Sofia and Maroni wipe out Oz, or will Oz claw his way his way out of another mess? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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