EntertainmentTVCrime ShowsThe PenguinThe Penguin lands a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score that’s higher than The BatmanWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
EntertainmentTVCrime ShowsThe PenguinThe Penguin lands a near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score that’s higher than The BatmanWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: HBO/Sky)
Word on the street in Gotham is that The Penguin is the new top dog – onRotten Tomatoes, anyway.
The new HBO crime drama, starring Colin Farrell’s Oz Cobb, is currently sitting pretty with a 93% critic score on the review aggregator. That’s higher than 2022’s The Batman, which managed 85% from, admittedly, a far wider range of reviewers.
Our ownreview of The Penguinlauds one of the “best performances in Batman’s on-screen history” from Cristin Milioti as Sofia Falcone, AKA The Hangman.
“Her charm as an actor will be unsurprising,” our deputy entertainment editor Fay Watson wrote. “But it’s the sheer brutality that she brings to her role that really takes everything up a notch.”
The Penguin reactionselsewhere are similarly effusive, with outlets calling it a “near-perfect mobster story” and a “spiritual sequel to The Sopranos.”
Despite the hype, expectations should be tempered in one respect: don’t expect Robert Pattinson’s Batman to swoop in and save the day.
“Rob is not going to be in the show,” The Batman director Matt Reevestold Total Film. “I’d rather take the Band-Aid off now. We did talk about all that but we felt the best way to do this was to go on a grand exploration of a guy grabbing for power in this moment.”
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The Penguin, also starring Rhenzy Feliz and Mark Strong, begins on HBO on September 19, with new episodes to follow weekly on Sundays.
For more, check out our guide on how to watchDC in order, plus a look ahead to all thenew superhero moviesflying your way very soon.
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1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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2Mufasa: The Lion King review – “It’s no Hakuna Matata but this Disney origin story is a class above the 2019 movie”
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4Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
4
Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”
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5Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”
5
Cobra Kai season 6, part 2 review: “Returns to the sort of hard-hitting form that made it such a fan favorite in the first place”