‘The Penguin’ – ‘Cent’Anni’ – Review
The Penguin has established itself as a dangerous, evocative and addictive new crime series, and things take a turn for the unexpected in Episode Four, ‘Cent’Anni’, that none of us expected, and it is far and away the best episode of the series and one of the most intriguing pieces of television you’ll see all year!
Confronting the events that turned her into “The Hangman” – and led to a decade-long fight to survive in Arkham State Hospital – Sofia makes plans for a more hopeful future.
Episode Four of The Penguin, ‘Cent’Anni’, takes a pause on Oz Cobb’s ambitious rise to the top, and instead, audiences are taken back in time as the story of Cristin Milioti’s Sofia Falcone takes centre stage, and the tale of ‘The Hangman’ is brought to life. And the result is a scary, savage and sorrowful tale of a daughter lost to madness and the horrors that result from family legacy. Showrunner Lauren LeFranc puts it all on the line in Episode Four. It’s a pure opera of the depths of family hell, and its twists, turns, and surprises will leave you in shock as Sofia’s harrowing origin is brought to life! LeFranc has been open about how she was inspired in part by the dark history of the Kennedys, and especially the horrendous fate of Rosemary Kennedy in developing her backstory for Sofia Falcone, and it adds to the pure horror of the narrative in every possible way.
The origin of Sofia Falcone goes completely from A to Z in Episode Four, ‘Cent’Anni’, and we see Sofia go from an intelligent, brilliant young woman, who her father possibly sees as a worthy successor, to having her thrown into the pit of hell and emerging as something entirely else. And it makes for jaw-dropping television. Actress Cristin Milioti brings incredible range to her performance, and the harrowing transformation she undergoes in ‘Cent’Anni’ as her father’s true character comes to the forefront, and the base evil of her family’s power almost swallows her. After being made aware of a string of brutal murders, and making the connection to her mother’s own untimely ‘suicide’ as a child, Sofia encores the wrath of her father and his ‘family’ and finds herself thrown into a hell that completely re-shapes her into a terrifying new force.
Making his debut in The Penguin in ‘Cent’Anni’ is the undeniably talented Mark Strong as Carmine Falcone, who inherits the role from the great John Turturro, and Strong brings a new shade of sophistication and danger to the role of this formidable force of Gotham’s Crime Underworld. Strong portrays Falcone as a pure shark who’s not above going to any lengths to protect his empire, including sacrificing those closest to him to do it, and you feel his ultimate control and presence at every turn. Strong is an actor of tremendous range and presence, and it’s fantastic to see him working next to Milioti. You completely buy into their history as father and daughter and the dangers that shadow. While Falcone’s actions are deplorable and mark him out as a villain worthy of the deepest layer of hell, you can’t help but praise his incredible performance as this very dangerous man, and the level of complexity that he brings to the role.
Betrayed by her father, Sofia Falcone finds herself sentenced to the worst place in all of Gotham City, Arkham Asylum, and it’s here that ‘Cent’Anni’ takes a savage turn. While Matt Reeves only hinted at the madness of the infamous institution in The Batman, ‘Cent’Anni’ explores it to the fullest, and Sofia’s indoctrination into its brutish corridors makes for the stuff of the scariest horror films. Utter madness follows, and we watch her lose her sanity and self to this place. A new persona is born, that of ‘The Hangman’, and Sofia is thrown to monsters and emerges as one herself. Director Helen Shaver brings a female perspective to the horror that Sofia suffers through in this episode, and there’s plenty of violence, both physical and psychological, that will throw the audience around. Milioti throws herself into the madness, and it’s damn horrifying watching Sofia lose herself to this new persona, and the woman who emerges is someone entirely different.
‘Cent’Anni’ is utter madness captured on film, and with her origin established, the resulting third act leads to a dangerous confrontation and Sofia Falcone grabbing for her birthright in a move that brings her past and present together. And it’s a brutal end to the episode that none of us saw coming. Oz had better be careful because there’s a new boss in town, and she won’t suffer anyone who gets in her way.
The Penguin is now streaming on Neon and SKY TV.
Image: SKY TV