Editor’s note: The below recap contains spoilers for The Penguin Episode 6.

I don’t know if you heard, but Falcone is over. Gigante is the new hot name in Gotham. Last week’s episode of The Penguin saw Sofia (Cristin Miloti) doing away with her father’s surname and declaring herself a Gigante, which was her mother’s maiden name. She also finally killed Johnny Viti (Michael Kelly) in cold blood. Now, as she builds her own criminal empire, Sofia has allied with her father’s old rival, Salvatore Maroni (Clancy Brown), who now has even more reasons for wanting to kill Oz Cobb (Colin Farrell). It’s been rough recently for our favorite waddling mobster; he was able to get back his supply of Bliss, and Episode 5 ended with him and Vic (Rhenzy Feliz) finding their new base of operations, but they’re far from the top of Gotham’s food chain. After burning Nadia (Shohreh Aghdashloo) and Taj (Aria Shahghasemi) Maroni alive, Oz is now in hiding in a dilapidated apartment in Crown Point, alongside his mother Francis (Deidre O’Connell) and Vic. Episode 6 “Gold Rush,” picks up several weeks later, as Oz and Vic attempt to find a way to unleash Bliss onto the streets of Gotham while Sofia and Sal conspire to take down the Penguin.

Winter Has Come to Gotham in ‘The Penguin’ Episode 6
Image via HBO

Winter has arrived, and it’s beginning to snow in Gotham. Oz narrates, giving us a quick recap about Sofia shedding the Falcone name and Sal’s escape from Blackgate, before questioning, “Who’s got the power?” It’s then revealed that Oz and Vic’s new base of operations, in the abandoned trolley station, is thriving. After initially being left with only two salvageable buckets of Bliss, the business is now thriving, and they are selling the drug themselves. Oz tells his workers that every single gang in Gotham will be looking for a way to get their hands on Bliss, and with a steady cash flow, he’ll be able to get his life back on track.

Vic drives into headquarters on a motorcycle and meets up with Oz in his office, handing him a duffel bag full of money. Oz confirms that they only need to get a few more of Gotham’s gangs on board before they’re fully established in the city. However, there’s a lot of bad blood between all of these gangs, which is typical, so Oz tells Vic that they have to make sure that their business isn’t being advertised. The biggest get, though, is the fact that Zhao (François Chau), the head of the Triad family, who you may recall from Episode 3, is now interested, and with his partnership, they can take their business international. The only true downside is that the station’s power is still unreliable, and City Hall has been rationing power, rerouting nearly all of it to rich neighborhoods. Even more worrisome? Sofia and Sal’s guys are attempting to sniff out their whereabouts. Oz doesn’t seem too worried, explaining the fact that they’re willing to pay those who work with them gives them an upper hand over their enemies.

At the Falcone Gigante estate, Sofia and Dr. Julian Rush (Theo Rossi) have taken their relationship to a frisky new level, but she doesn’t seem too interested in him helping her with taking out Oz. After telling Julian he can see himself out, Sofia goes to the kitchen, where she finds Sal cooking one of his wife’s old family recipes. Sal stresses that Oz has the upper hand on them in supplying Bliss and that the neighborhood gangs will buy from whoever is selling, including the Triad. Unphased, Sofia states that they need to let every gang know that dealing with Oz comes at a cost.

Back in Crown Point, Vic prepares breakfast, as Oz tells Francis that they’ll be out of their safehouse in no time. Francis begins to have a manic episode, threatening Oz that if he can’t restore the heating, she’ll go to Rex Calabrese, who has been dead for years. Amid the morning chaos, Oz receives a phone call informing him that the Triads are out of their deal. Bewildered, he orders Vic to turn on the news, which reports that three bodies have been found hanging on the street, each with a severed finger. Oz quickly deduces that Sofia is behind this, but his frustration quickly subsides when he comes up with a new scheme: they’ll give away Bliss for free, which will let the gangs know that whether they like it or not, the drug is already in their neighborhoods.

As Vic walks through the Crown Point neighborhood, he is approached by Squid (Jared Abrahamson), a local drug dealer he crossed paths with while his family was still alive. Squid inquires about how Vic has come into more money, pointing out his brand-new shoes and asking to get in on the operation. Vic is unsure but becomes further intimidated when Squid reveals that he saw him and Francis walking into their safehouse, and threatens to find the older woman unless Vic lets him in on things.

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Francis’ Condition Worsens in ‘The Penguin’ Episode 6
Image via HBO

Meanwhile, Sal and Sofia have broken into Oz’s old apartment in the Diamond District. When Sal inquires about the framed childhood photo of Oz and his brothers, pointing out that they could target someone their enemy cares about, Sofia tells him that Oz’s family is already dead. As Sal proceeds to smash up Oz’s apartment using a silver golf club, Sofia discovers Eve Karlo’s (Carmen Ejogo) underwear in a drawer, alongside a Polaroid photo.

Of course, we already know that Francis isn’t dead, but she’s close to it at this point. Back at the safehouse, Oz hears his mother calling for help from the bathroom and finds her bruised and shivering in the tub, realizing that she was lying in freezing cold water all through the night. Francis breaks down in a moment of lucidity and tells Oz that she doesn’t want to be alive anymore, as her dementia has only worsened. She then makes Oz promise to kill her if her mind ends up going before her body does. The two share a tender moment where Oz dresses Francis up in a nice dress and puts on her makeup, telling her that she looks like Rita Hayworth from her favorite movie, Gilda.

This scene is the perfect example of how The Penguin can make you sympathize with its dastardly characters. Unlike something like Todd Phillips’ Joker, where you only feel pity for Arthur Fleck, or Venom, which turns the supervillain into a wise-cracking anti-hero, you still feel for Oz and Francis, despite all of their past sins. While their relationship is complicated, they truly do have a love for one another, and contrary to what Sofia says, it proves that Oz still has a heart. O’Connell is also phenomenal in these moments. There are times when an actor plays someone with Alzheimer’s or dementia, and it can lean way too over-the-top or feel played for laughs — but O’Connell plays it so naturally, in a manner that becomes heartbreaking.

When Vic arrives back at the apartment and finds Oz working on the generator, he confirms their success in dropping Bliss all over the streets of Gotham, but he’s concerned about Squid. However, Oz is too preoccupied with fixing the generator and worrying about his mother to have a deeper conversation. Meanwhile, Sofia patrols the streets, asking around about Eve, and is stopped by Roxy (Jessie Pinnick), who tells Sofia that she’ll lead her to Eve for the right price.

Later, Oz pulls up to City Hall, waiting until Councilman Hady (Rhys Coiro) is alone before confronting him directly. Hady, who recognizes Oz from his previous association with Carmine Falcone, insists that he has already paid off his debts. Oz replies by grabbing Hady’s nostrils with a pair of pliers, demanding that the councilman bring power back to Crown Point and threatening to blackmail him if he doesn’t comply. Hady finally gives in, but Oz gives him until sunup to get the job done. While getting into his car, Oz receives a call from a member of the Sullivan Crime Family, and based on the tenor of things, they’re not thrilled about Bliss ending up in their territory — which gives Oz the in to set up a meeting.

Meanwhile, Vic meets up with Squid and attempts to pay him off, but the drug dealer refuses the money, throwing it back at him and demanding a meeting with Oz. When Vic balks, Squid threatens to snitch on Oz to the Gigante family for a bigger payout. Terrified, Vic agrees, only to pull out his gun and shoot Squid in the neck when his defenses are down. Horrified by what he’s done, Vic runs away from the scene as Squid bleeds to death.

Oz Rallies the Troops in ‘The Penguin’ Episode 6
Image via HBO

Sofia arrives at Eve’s apartment, holding her at gunpoint. Eve, however, doesn’t seem all that surprised, since she’s the one who’d told Roxy to send Sofia her way. Sofia demands to know where Oz is, but Eve claims that she doesn’t know — and that, even if she did, kidnapping her wouldn’t do much, as Oz won’t come to her rescue. When Eve refers to Sofia as the Hangman, it results in the queenpin finally telling the truth about how Oz was complicit in her father’s killings and framing her for the crimes by sending her to Arkham. Eve finally breaks and tells Sofia that Oz is hiding out in Crown Point. Meanwhile, at the trolley station, Vic tearfully tells Oz that he killed Squid and expresses remorse. In response, Oz hugs him and tells him that “it gets easier,” while continuing to comfort him. Vic returns to the apartment, while Oz meets up with the local gang leaders of Gotham for what he calls his “Gold Summit.”

While passing out cans of beer to each of the leaders, Oz declares war on the rich and powerful of Gotham, including Sofia. Zhao initially refuses to budge, calling Oz foolish, but Oz continues, saying that they’ll have more territory and power if they work together rather than against. Before giving his toast, Oz reveals that he was the one who killed Alberto Falcone. Slowly but surely, the other gang leaders open their beers, including Zhao. The episode concludes back in Crown Point, as the electricity suddenly comes back on. Francis and Vic celebrate by dancing to a playing record, but unbeknownst to either of them, Sofia has found her way into the apartment, clutching a crowbar.

While the latest episode of The Penguin may not reach those impressive heights of the previous two, it’s still another strong addition to the series. Episode 6 doesn’t boast as many big revelations and is more predictable in terms of the plot, but much like Episode 5, the pacing is extremely tight, and the runtime flies by. The biggest highlight, without question, is Francis’ story arc. Despite us still not fully knowing where her character’s morals truly lie, it’s hard to see her suffer. “Gold Rush” also doubles down on Oz’s softer side, to the point where by the time The Batman: Part 2 comes along, we may be looking at the character much differently. Maybe we might even be rooting for him, in some ways.

Sure, the whole “Eat the Rich” storyline has been done to death in recent years, but it’s always had strong ties to the mythology of Batman. We’ve become accustomed to stories in Gotham where Bruce Wayne sulks around his mansion. By comparison, The Penguin is successfully able to paint a portrait not just of one of the Caped Crusader’s biggest foes, but also of those underrepresented groups. We’ve always known Gotham is a city in shambles, but The Penguin succeeds in showing us why it is the way that it is.

The Penguin Episode 6 may not be as explosive as the last two, but excels in showing a more sympathetic Oz Cobb.ProsDeirdre O’Connell gives a remarkable and gut-wrenching performance as Francis.Much like Episode 5, the pacing is relentlessly fast.Episode 6 gives us a glimpse at more of the other gangs in Gotham. ConsThis episode feels a bit more predictable in comparison to the two prior.

It follows the transformation of Oswald Cobblepot from a disfigured nobody to a noted Gotham gangster.Release Date September 19, 2024 Cast Colin Farrell , Cristin Milioti , Rhenzy Feliz , Michael Kelly , Shohreh Aghdashloo , Deirdre O’Connell , Clancy Brown , James Madio , Scott Cohen , Michael Zegen , Carmen Ejogo , Theo Rossi Seasons 1 Prequel The Batman (2022) Story By Bill Finger, Bob Kane Writers Lauren LeFranc Franchise(s) Batman , DC Elseworlds Showrunner Lauren LeFranc Avg Episode Length 60 Mins Expand

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