The Penguin just beat The Batman as critics say it’s “one of the best comic book TV shows ever”
HBOThe Penguin hits TV screens next week, but reviews are out and even better than those bestowed on The Batman.
Tim Burton gave us a dark, grounded Batman in 1989. Christopher Nolan crafted an even darker and more grounded Batman in 2008. While in 2022, Matt Reeves did the darkest and most grounded Dark Knight in The Batman.
Audiences lapped it up, to the tune of more than $770 million at the global box office. While the majority of critics were also fans, scoring the film an impressive 85% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Colin Farrell played a version of Penguin in that most recent movie. And now he’s getting his own spinoff series as “Oz Cobb.”
HBOThe show hits Max next week, and has already outscored The Batman on RT, with a whopping 93% score (at time of writing). Here’s what the critics are saying…
Variety: “A masterful examination of criminality, the show is twisted, disturbing and deeply enthralling.”
Kotaku: “The Penguin is well-written, well-paced, well-shot, and brilliantly acted — its episodes are succinct and smartly laid out, with showrunner Lauren LeFranc deftly weaving social commentary, heart-pounding action, familial strife, and black comedy throughout.”
NPR calls it: “greatly satisfying TV,” and writes that “The Penguin may not represent the cure for superhero fatigue, but it delivers a powerful dose of medicine that can treat its symptoms.”
NME: “What carries The Penguin is the richness of its characters and the complexity of its storytelling. Cobb could be a mere archetype – a mafia man who loves his mum – but the roots of his ambition and seething resentment at the world are gradually teased out, forging a compulsive narrative.”
While the Radio Times says The Penguin takes too long to get going, but adds that “When it eventually does get to the point, the series is explosive and the final few episodes provide moments of magic.
“As we learn more about the Penguin and return to his childhood, shocking truths come to light, reminding us of what kind of a monster we’re dealing with and paving the way for haunting scenes between Oz and Sofia. As for that finale episode? You won’t want to look away.”
Episode 1 of The Penguin drops on HBO on September 19, and the show runs for eight episodes, concluding on November 10, 2024.
For more comic book action, check out our list of the best superhero movies of all time, as well as the best superhero TV shows ever.