‘The Penguin’: Oz Cobb is just the Tony Soprano of Gotham

A spinoff of Matt Reeves’ The Batman without the caped crusader might sound like a tough gig to pull off. But here’s the thing, The Penguin on HBO doesn’t feel like a superhero outing. If anything, it feels like a mob drama, with Oz Cobb as the Tony Soprano of Gotham.

The similarities between The Penguin and The Sopranos are rather in-your-face, starting with the setting and tonality of the new HBO series created by Lauren LeFranc and produced by DC Studios with Warner Bros. Television. Its Gotham is easily reminiscent of The Sopranos’ New Jersey, with deals happening in shady bars, Italian-American crime family dynamics, and an anti-hero you can’t help but feel for because his vulnerability threatens to burst and ruin the ruthless, indifferent mobster exterior that he tries to project. In some ways, you could argue that this similarity is built into the comic book story itself, which The Penguin seems to hold true to.

Spoilers ahead for The Penguin!

So in what way is Oz Cobb the Tony Soprano of Gotham?

1. His appearance, gait, and accent

The accent, of course, triggers nostalgia for the prestige mob show right away. But it is Oz Cobb himself, with his awkward gait (the reason for which was revealed in the premiere) that earns him the nickname “The Penguin” and his rounded features and receding hairline, that evoke Tony Soprano.

2. The Italian-American mob families

Gotham’s criminal underbelly is controlled by Italian mob families like the Falcones and the Maronis, constantly vying for power and triggering gang wars over the slightest of infractions. Michael Kelly plays Johnny Viti, the underboss of the Falcone family, and there’s a caporegime too, Milos Grapa, played by James Mario. And there’s lots of that Italian-New Jersey accent going around. Michael Zegen, who plays Alberto Falcone, could’ve walked straight outta The Sopranos with that slicked-back hair, his swag, and that accent!

3. The Penguin’s complicated relationship with his mother and how it informs his character

In The Penguin series premiere, titled “After Hours,” we meet Francis Cobb (Deirdre O’Connell), Oz Cobb’s mother, and that’s perhaps when The Sopranos nostalgia smacks you hard in the face. We know the complicated relationship that Tony Soprano shared with his mother, with the series in fact initially conceived as a film about a mobster who was in therapy over issues with his mother! 

In The Penguin too, Oswald Cobb’s relationship with his mother informs his character. In one breath, Francis both babies and indulges her son, telling him he deserves the world and also emasculates him by asking him if he’s too much of a p*ssy to go after what rightfully belongs to him.

Oz is clearly unhealthily dependent on his mother’s validation, and she has controlled him all his life, because he thinks she’s the only one who loves him despite all his shortcomings. It fuels an insecurity in him that is at the centre of all his decisions.

4. Oz Cobb is secretly a softie

One of the best things about The Sopranos was watching Tony undergo his therapy sessions, which brought out a vulnerable side to a mobster and made you feel for him. There’s a similar vein in The Penguin, who, despite his mother’s efforts to toughen him up, can’t help but let his softer, vulnerable side sneak out.

In the first episode of The Penguin, we see Oz open up to Alberto Falcone about what his ideal legacy would be, who then mocks him for it. And it is this rejection that triggers him to kill Alberto. He laughs after he shoots him, but the very next minute, Oz curses, because he doesn’t relish the kill or violence; for him it is more of a necessary but frustrating by-product of achieving his goals. We even see Oz take a liking to Victor Aguilar, the homeless teenager, probably because Victor has a stammer and Oz sees a kindred spirit who is trying to make his mark in the world despite his disability. 

5. Oz thinks he is the good guy, and he might just be?

One thing you might’ve noticed with both Tony Soprano and Oswald Cobb: it’s hard to see them as absolute villains. There’s the vulnerability, the humor, and the lightness with which they carry themselves sometimes, and their own perception of why they do what they do, that informs how we perceive them. And they don’t think they’re bad guys.

Unlike the other Batman villains, Oz Cobb doesn’t suffer from insanity, which leads him to commit crimes. He dresses like a boss, believes in grooming and keeping up appearances, and considers himself the Gentleman of Crime. Have you seen that purple car of his on The Penguin? Classy AF!

So can you see it, then? Will The Penguin live up to its spiritual competition, The Sopranos? Time will tell! But something tells me Oz Cobb might actually find it amusing and even like being compared to Tony Soprano!