Summary
One of the most interesting things aboutThe Penguinis that the Max series might be a spinoff ofThe Batman, but the caped crusader won’t appear in the show. Instead, the focus of this story is all about the criminal underworld in Gotham. That focus has made the show one of the best of the fall. However, despite there being no Dark Knight involved, it looks like there is a kind of Robin story unfolding in a very different way.
InThe Penguinand Oz Cobb’s and Victor’s relationship has stood out from the very beginning.Of course, when viewers spend a good 10 or 15 minutes wondering whether we’re about to see a teen kid get gunned down,Sopranosstyle, it tends to make an impression.As everyone knows by now, Victor wasn’t gunned down, instead he’s become one of the lead characters in then popular Max series. He’s someone who legitimately seems to have the only real moral compass ofany of the main characters. His development as the series ramps up and then winds down is certainly going to be interesting to see. For now, it certainly seems as if he’ll be to Oz what Tim Drake, or Jason Todd are to Bruce Wayne.
Building A Partnership In The Penguin
Even without various apparent similarities to the Batman and Robin stories, it would feel like the audience is witnessing one of the better mentor-menteerelationships among the villains. These guys usually don’t seem capable of any relationships at all in the DCU.That’s one thingThe Penguinhas done exceptionally well. There is absolutely no gray area when it comes to Oz Cobb. He is a bad guy who is intent on doing bad things and he’s more than willing to do it to good people if he has to. But that doesn’t mean he’s incapable of wanting to be liked. Wanting to be loved. And wanting to be looked up to and feel like there’s someone there to impart his special brand of wisdom to, and that’swhere Victor Aguilar comes in.
Cast
Colin Farrell (Oz Cobb), Cristin Milioti (Sofia Falcone), Rhenzy Feliz (Victor Aguilar) Theo Rossi (Dr. Julian Rush)
When To Watch
Sunday nights at 8 pm Eastern
Victor is a kid who came across Oz Cobb during a period of time when The Penguin could have just as soon gunned him down on sight as taken him under his wing. But through three episodes of the Max series, there’s some real bonding going on.Especially in Episode 3,when it looks like Victor isabout to leave Oz for his special girl. Just when it seemed that relationship was over, it got a second life at just the right time. Victor’s arrival might have saved Oz’s life. They are now, more than ever a team. That’s, of course, one of the similarities between Batman and Robin. But it’s far from the only one. And it might not even be the most obvious one.
Very Intentional Batman And Robin Comparisons
Realizing the similarities between Oz and Victor and Batman and Robin seems like quite the accomplishment. Until viewers start to realize that the show was never hiding it. In fact, it was shoving it in the audience’s faces. Keep in mindhow the pair inThe Penguinmet.
Oz encountered Victor and another young man trying to steal his car. That just happens to be how, in different storylines,Batman met Jason Todd and then Tim Drake. That’s something that surely stood out to people who have consumed Batman materials beforeThe Penguinaired. Knowing that, it certainly seems as though that scene was very intentional. It was a foreshadowing by the showrunners that Oz was in fact, not going to shoot Victor and that the two would form a bond that can’t be broken. Even when Cobb’s Robin felt uneasy about the direction of their relationship. He still couldn’t just leave.
There is of course, also the fact that Victor’s parents died at the hands of a famous Batman villain.Even if the Riddler didn’t directlykill them, his plan to blow up the seawall took them out just a effectively. The big difference here of course is that Batman might have stopped The Riddler, but it was The Penguin who offered Victor a sense of family and a father figure once his family was washed away in the flood.
The End Of The Origin Story Could Be Similar As Well
One thing thatThe Penguinhasn’t shown yetis just how this bond might break. The tragedy of the Batman and Robin stories is that sooner or later, Bruce Wayne pushes his wards away. They all leave eventually. Or they get killed depending on whichshow/movie/comic the story follows.
However, it feels like sooner or later, Vic will realize he needs to move on and get away from Cobb’s toxic personality.
Victor had a chance to get out in Episode 3 ofThe Penguinand he decided to come back and stay with Oz. “The Life” is just a little too interesting at the moment. However, it feels like sooner or later, Vic will realize he needs to move on and get away from Cobb’s toxic personality. Some sort of clash to end the season is by no means, out of the question.
The Penguin
Created by Lauren LeFranc and starring Colin Farrell, The Penguin builds on 2022’s The Batman. The Max series chronicles the eponymous villain’s attempt to reach Gotham’s criminal peak, rising through the underworld in the middle of a power struggle.
