Table of Contents 64q43
The 4th episode of Penguin is among us and it begins exactly where the previous one ended. The difference is that now we see the perspective of Sofia Falcone of the situation, taking us then to a chapter that could be a Filler, but considering the character's trajectory up until then and her importance to the plot, it becomes one of the best and something essential. Come with me to check out some more details of the episode! 65b5h
But first, be warned that this review contains SPOILERS, so go ahead, watch the episode and then come back here, okay?
An episode focused 100% on Sofia Falcone (History) 67f21
The importance of Sofia Falcone in the series really becomes even clearer at this point. I said that she, Oz and Vic are the protagonists in the review of the last episode, and this becomes even more evident here. Would this be the series of Sofia, but using Oz as a crutch to sell more? I wouldn't be surprised, and far be it from me to complain about it, since I've already mentioned the fact that she's my favorite character in the series.
The 4th episode brings Sofia's perspective on the rushed events of the last one, where Oz and she are in the hands of Nadia Maroni. This is where Oz's lies start to fall and this scoundrel betrays Sofia in a brazen way to try to get away with it. Maroni. In the middle of this mess, that's when Vic arrives with the car and manages to save Oz.
Now we see how and if Sofia got out of this alive. We see her weak and calling Julian and then we are transported to 10 years ago, shortly before the character's arrest. And then the series subverts everything we have seen so far, because it brings the whole context of what really happened and makes us see the real villains of the story and shows us Sofia's potential from now on.
It's a very difficult episode to watch. Starting with Sofia's childhood, we see that she found her mother hanged in her room, supposedly in an act of suicide. Over the years, she began to fight for women with psychological problems so that they would not go through something similar, while at the same time she herself did not believe that her mother would have these problems and that her father Carmine would actually be a murderer of women.
If we consider the history of Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz) in The Batman, she was also Carmine's daughter and when things got bad for him, the first thing he thought of was to kill his own daughter for the sake of his empire. Something similar happens here, giving us context that the character has always been a bad person, particularly with the women in his life, in a tone of oppression, even leading to death.
In the film, the character was played by John Turturro, but in the series he was replaced by Mark Strong and honestly, it turned out great. You can take him as a younger version in the series and an older one in the movie and it's all good. In the series, they explore his relationship with Sofia and Alberto and how dangerous he could be, even in the shadows.
He sees Alberto as weak and Sofia as strong, who could one day replace him in the family. However, during one of Sofia's events for women, a journalist informs her about an ongoing investigation in Iceberg Club, her father's nightclub. Although she avoids the subject, this is where we see the emergence of Oz. At the time, he was just Sofia's driver, but he sees this connection between the press and his boss's daughter as an opportunity to create chaos.
When he tells Carmine about this, he questions Sofia, until she reveals her thoughts about her mother's death and Carmine's possible involvement in the situation. This is enough for the head of the family to change everything and treat the character as a sick person who needs a lot of help. If this is already strange, it gets even worse, since on the way home, we discover that Carmine threw the death of 7 women on his own daughter's back, thus creating the image of Carrasco (Hangman).
Yes, Sofia is innocent from everything we've seen about her so far. She was a sane person until she went to the Arkham and be tortured and deceived to her limit. She would stay there for 6 months to prove herself to be a normal person in order to return to society and when her time was up, her father pulled strings so that she would stay for 10 years. It's scary, it's painful to see and it also makes us create a huge empathy for the character and also for her brother Alberto, already killed by Oz.
In fact, Sofia Falcone freaks out in there and no matter what she does, it will be used against her. It is a losing battle. Add that to Bliss that we saw in the last episode, we have the entire structure of Arkham in favor of Carmine and the doctors to prove that she is completely sick and crazy.
However, that wasn't the most important part of the episode. Without it, it wouldn't have made sense, but it's what comes next, now that really matters. After being saved by Julian, the doctor who also treated her in Arkham, the two talk and Sofia comes to the conclusion that it is neither her nor him who are in the wrong, but rather the world and accepts the world's advice to have a fresh start.
It is also in this part that the title of the episode, Hundred years explains itself. The protagonist decides to go to the family dinner Falcone even without being invited and there she pulls off her biggest scam (I was on her side). She says everything she had to say to each of them, about how they left her and his mother, about how no one ever cared about her and Alberto there and at the end she makes a toast with the term “hundred years”, that is, 100 years in Italian, as a way of wishing a long life and many years of happiness to whoever is toasting.
She takes advantage of the toast to highlight that she will have her fresh start and that they won't have to worry about her anymore, giving this story a closure. This is where we have the most brilliant and enjoyable ending to the script. At the end of the night, she calls Gia, the little girl who lives in the house and who shows a little affection for her, to sleep in the greenhouse.
They sleep peacefully and in the morning we discover the reason. Sofia has set gas in the entire house, killing each of them, creating her own fresh start. This connects with the scene of her leaving her room with the window open as well. The episode ends with her waking up Johnny Vitti, the only one she has left alive and probably the one she will use to give the new start for the family.
Actuations 733j4n
Cristin Millioti steals the show in every way in this episode. Since we are placed in a context 10 years before the events of the series, I think it's fantastic how the actress manages to imprint a younger character in her looks and the way she walks and moves her body. And as the events unfold, we see her development into a much more defined character, but now a woman and no longer a little girl.
Also noteworthy is the Mark Strong in the role of Carmine. The change in the character is aesthetically visible, but the production must be congratulated for respecting the canon created in the 2022 film. Despite different actors, we have the exact same character here, but with his relationship with his children now explored in detail, something that was exclusive to the Selina in the movie.
We also had a bit more of Alberto in the series. His character is the party-loving son, always, but it's sad to see how much he loved Sofia and then the tragic end in the first episode. It's horrible in a good way, if that's possible, because everything has consequences here. We really get into the characters' lives.
During her time in Arkham, Sofia also made a “friend” named Magpie. Actress Marié Botha plays her and it’s all crazy. Although we don’t create any bonds with her, her narrative purpose works very well to show the point where our protagonist went crazy.
Technical aspects 2e2i1i
This is perhaps the best episode so far in every aspect. As I said, this could easily be an episode Filler where it adds nothing and just keeps on messing with Sofia's character's sad past, but that's precisely its merit. The story is, yes, very tragic and causes more or less feelings in each of us, but its quality and how much it adds to the plot in general are undeniable.
Taking advantage of cliffhanger of the final revelations of the previous episode, Hundred years uses this flashback device to bring us up to date with the entire history of Falcone, mainly from Carmine, to prepare us for the new phase of Sofia Falcone.
Nothing is placed by chance here. Magpie shows us a bit of Bliss in practice, while the entire trajectory between Sofia and Carmine connects us so much with the film. The Batman as with the character's connection with Julian Rush, important in the plot and serves to give another push towards the final act of the same.
Visually, everything is very believable and interesting, and it doesn't stray from the aesthetics created in the film. I say this because we have similar settings, like Arkham, and the same philosophies are maintained, such as costumes, cells, etc. Elements such as costumes are also beautiful and speak to moments of tension, luxury and even the most depressing.
Soundtrack 51333
Although it is not a frequent feature in the series, the soundtrack is used very well. In this episode in particular, it was very useful in creating moments of tension, especially when Sofia was about to carry out her plans.
Conclusion 60664y
The 4th episode of Penguin manages to be even better than the previous one, in a proposal that in many cases could fall into a situation of pure emotional appeal. Here, each detail works as development for the protagonist and also for the plot, preparing us for what may happen.
The episode gives us everything we want and ends with that taste of wanting more, but without being appealing with a silly cliffhanger that is there just to hold the audience. We have a closed episode, but with a small loose end to continue next week and I can't measure how anxious I am for it. See you in the next episode.
Where to watch 4m2n35
the miniseries Penguin is available on the paid channel HBO or by subscribing to the streaming service MAX. There are 8 episodes in total, leaving us with 4 left now.
See also:
Text proofread by: Daniel Coutinho in 14 / 10 / 2024
Penguin: Episode 4 Cent'anni 516n10
Penguin: Episode 4 Cent'anni-
Episode Review10/10 Excellent
