The Penguin: 10 Biggest Differences From the Batman Comics Universe

The Penguin’s 10 Biggest Differences From the Comics

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at the most significant differences between HBO’s original show, “The Penguin” and its source material, diving deep inside the pages of the Batman Comics Universe. As we’re going to be covering the first five episodes of the show’s first season, keep your umbrella handy, ‘cause it’s gonna be rainin’ spoilers.

“The Long Halloween”

In an interview, show creator Matt Reeves discussed that his main inspirations for the show were Al Pacino’s Tony Montana and the “Batman” comic “The Long Halloween”, which tells of the bloody war between the Maronis and the Falcones, all instigated by the Holiday Killer. In “The Penguin”, Oswald Cobb takes over the Holiday role in the story, serving as mastermind to the conflict. However, that is where most similarities end. But don’t worry we’ll be coming back to both storylines as we slide through this video.

Gotham

The ever changing context and scenery of Gotham always serves as a jumping off point for many of the Dark Knight’s shows and movies and this time is no exception. In Matt Reeve’s Bat-verse Gotham City is plagued by crime, corruption and a surprisingly low sea-level height. While the first few points are usually a no-brainer, the inclusion of sea-walls and the threat of flooding is a first for the live-action iterations of the city. As seen in the third episode of the show, the Crown Point neighborhood, home to Victor’s family, is a hub for the immigrant, mainly Latino, inhabitants of the city. It was a vibrant, colorful and tightly knit community, in sharp contrast with the comics, until a flood came and brought the neighborhood closer to its literary description as one of the most violent and worst neighborhoods in the city.

Magpie

During the show’s fourth episode we get the very disturbing, and oh so very talked about, flashback involving Cristin Milioti’s Sofia Falcone. During her first night in Arkham Asylum, Sofia meets Magpie. Played by Marié Botha, she can be overlooked given the stacked cast. Despite this, her character has a somewhat lively comic book background. Actually premiering in a Superman comic, Magpie made her debut in “The Man of Steel” #3 in 1986. This strange jewel thief has an affinity for bird-themed valuables, thus her name. Slowly becoming mad, she fashioned booby trapped replicas of the jewels she stole. She was stopped by Batman and Superman and landed a cell in Arkham right next to Poison Ivy. In an interview with Screen Rant, actor Marié Botha, mentioned that as soon as she got the part, she “ordered every single [comic] that featured Magpie and got to reading and studying.” We sincerely hope the deep dive prepared her for taking a food tray to the face.

Victor “Vic” Aguilar

Played by Rhenzy Feliz, he has been a very welcome addition to Reeve’s Bat-Verse, albeit on the wrong side of the law. His last name, Aguilar, comes from the Spanish word for eagle, very much in keeping with the bird theme. Vic is somewhat of a grounding element for the power hungry Oz, always reminding him of where he came from and his own struggle in coming up the ranks of the Gotham underground. He is described by many as a representation of the Robins in the Bat-verse, continuing the long standing tradition of employing orphan kids for questionable jobs. Some point out the obvious reference to Jason Todd, who was also recruited by his mentor while trying to steal the wheels off his bat car. In the comics, a relatively unknown character called Chick, once served as the Penguins’ teen sidekick, but other than the familiar sounding name the relationship between the two is more coincidental. Theories about his future in the universe are varied and numerous, some even naming him the first Robin or even a Nightwing type character. The show’s fifth episode has very much put him on a path of villainy, so we’ll have to see if it holds.

Bliss

Drugs and Gotham go together like peanut butter and jelly. In “The Batman”, the narcotic flooding the streets is called Drops. As we move into the show, a new, more potent substance is introduced into the mix. Masterminded by Alberto and Sofía Falcone, this new drug was supposed to be a way to take the business to a new level. After Alberto’s tragic fall down a flight of stairs, Oz saw this as his opportunity to start climbing the ranks. A byproduct of the resin from mushrooms grown in Arkham itself, the drug was given to inmates during Sofias’ stay in the asylum. It induced a state of euphoria and a welcomed disconnect from their reality, as Oz would later call it, a sense of bliss. In one “Teen Titans” comic arc, Bliss had little to do with feeling good about your surroundings, and more about surrendering your brain power to a villain called the Brain in an effort to expand his mental capacity. Party drug or not, Bliss follows a long line of chemical compounds in the “Batman” universe, and its connection to Arkham in the show could lead to other, more notable, substances like fear toxin, venom, or laughing gas.

The Iceberg Lounge

Serving as a base of operations and a cool place to have a villainous good time, in the comics, the Iceberg Lounge was the proud creation of the Gentleman of Crime, Oswald Cobblepot. While we got a glimpse into the infamous nightclub in “The Batman”, it has fallen into disrepair during the events of “The Penguin”. This time around the club belonged to Carmine Falcone and was only given to Oz as a front for both the drops trade and serving ice cold corruption to Gotham’s elite. The Iceberg Lounge put Oz on the criminal map and gave him enough power to get his fins in the game. While the future of the lounge in Reeve’s Bat-verse is still uncertain, the fact that Oz found a new base of operations deep within Gotham’s old tram system is a good sign that we’re only seeing the…tip…of…the… you get it.

The Maronis

One of the more robust elements of “The Penguin” is the Maroni family structure. While they had earlier appearances in the comics, it’s during the events of “The Long Halloween” comic series that the Maroni Crime Family really came into the mainstream. At that point the Maronis were composed only of Luigi, his son Salvatore, and his grandsons Pino and Umberto. As the villain Holiday starts targeting Maroni men during the events of the comic, an all out war breaks out between Gotham’s biggest crime families. The conflict lands Sal Maroni in the witness stand in front of Harvey Dent with a bottle of acid between them. Reeves bolstered the Maroni Family for “The Penguin”, bringing only Sal over and putting him in the hands of legendary character actor, Clancy Brown. This iteration of the Maronis included new and exciting members in the form of Nadia Maroni played by Shohreh Aghdashloo. The introduction of Nadia broke the Italian centric trope of the mobster ingrained in the comics. Being of Iranian heritage, the character of Nadia filled the Maroni ranks with a diverse crowd of henchmen and goons. Sadly, the outcome of the show’s fifth episode will bring with it a new Sal that will more than likely join Sofia Falcone in her hatred for our flightless protagonist.

The Falcones

While the Falcones are a staple of the comics, the family structure was changed to better suit the show’s universe. With the death of Carmine Falcone in “The Batman”, the criminal organization is headed by his brother Luca, underboss Johnny Viti and consigliere Milos Grapa. The show includes characters that fill out the Falcone family ranks, such as Isabella Gigante, Sofía’s mother, and Carla and Gia Viti. During the events of “The Long Halloween” the apparent death of Alberto Falcone at the hands of Holiday marks the beginning of a conflict that would bring about the return of Sofia Falcone and a war that will trap Harvey Dent, Jim Gordon, Batman and Catwoman in the middle with all of Gotham’s “Freaks”. In the show, Carmine’s death is the powderkeg and Oz becomes the proverbial match that lights up the conflict between the two families. The return of Sofia, who, while very much a made woman in the comics, is treated as an outcast and a nuisance for the new heads of the family. They desperately try to get rid of her as she vies for a seat at the table. After the family suffers a “suspicious” end, Sofia takes the reins and decides to change both her and the organization's name to Gigante. While taking the Gigante name for herself is comic accurate, Falcone’s name remained throughout the comic book run.

Sofía Falcone a.k.a Sofia Gigante

There’s betrayal and then there’s what happened to Sofia Falcone. Having witnessed the death of her mother, her childhood wasn’t exactly a happy one. With the help of her brother Alberto, Sofia was able to overcome many things, even becoming the public face of the Falcone family. Everything came crumbling down after realizing that her father was not only responsible for the Hangman murders, but also for the death of her mother. She was framed for her father’s murders and spent 10 years in Arkham Asylum. Other than the physical differences between the original character and her “Penguin” counterpart, her character arc is the one that most distances itself from its source material. First appearing in “The Long Halloween”, the tall and very muscular Sofia Falcone returns to Gotham for Father’s day. A violent, calculating, brutal daddy’s girl, Sofia relies on her savage physical nature to protect her father, but ultimately fails in this task. Returning later in the follow-up story Dark Victory, Sofia names herself the head of the Falcones and takes up the mantle of the Hangman, punishing cops who worked with Harvey Dent against her father. While she would adopt the name Gigante after marrying mobster Rocco Gigante, the impact of the name change is hardly felt…her punches though, that’s another story.

Oswald “Oz” Cobb a.k.a the Penguin

Let’s get the obvious out of the way, yes, they changed his name on the show. One of the first surprises that we got from the first episode was the reveal of our main character’s actual name. Showrunners have explained that the name change came out of a need to ground the character. During the events of “The Penguin” it is revealed that Oz came from a poor background. During the fifth episode, Francis Cobb, Oz’s mother and another original character played by Deidre O’Donnel, mentions to Vic that the family lived in Crown Point, one of the poorest areas of Gotham. In keeping more with the “Scarface” connection we mentioned at the beginning, the show steers more towards a mob-based, “Goodfellas” style story, staying away from the wealthy upbringing of Oswald Cobblepot in the comic books. In the first episode, the creators make a point of showing Oz’s disability, a clubfoot, which more than likely went untreated as a child and has become the main reason for his signature walking style. In the comics, this condition is hardly mentioned, linking his Penguin persona more to his physical appearance and tragic upbringing, contrary to the show, where the Penguin monicker is used more as a derogatory term, and is obviously a trigger for Oz, considering what happens to those who decide to use it.

What has been your favorite moment from “The Penguin”? Let us know in the comments.