Reviewer Rating: 4.5/5.0
4.5
Oz may want to rethink the “it’s so much fun to dance” line he threw at Sofia Falcone in Penguins season 1 episode 2, because the dancing is only getting more twisted.
As we’ve seen many times, every step forward takes him two steps back, leaving him in a mess of his own making.
At this point, Oz is missing the forest for the trees—despite what he thinks he is.
Not only is he in a dangerous dance with Sofia Falcone and the Maloney family; he’s also completely blind to the ticking time bomb that is Vic.
Can’t see the forest for the trees
Oz desperately needs someone he can trust and sees Vic as a younger version of himself. But the more he pulls Vic into his world, the worse things get.
Ozzy may be street smart, but Vic is far from it. And Oz is too obsessed with his desire for power (and trying to get himself out of trouble) to realize that Vic is just following out of fear.
This “life” is not the life Vic wants. Vic wants to get back to where he was before the Riddler wreaked havoc. But Oz couldn’t see that, and no matter how many intimidation tactics Oz used, Vic was not fit for this world.
However, Oz gives Victor another chance time and time again, a decision that is sure to come back to bite him in the ass.
Oz has no problem taking down threats like Evard, but when it comes to Vic, he’s completely blind to the danger at hand. It’s maddening to watch.
Meanwhile, Sophia is playing her own deadly game, trying not to let her madness show.
She’s not just insane – she’s a scorned woman. We all know what the saying goes: Hell hath no fury than a scorned woman, especially when it comes to her scorned uncle Luca.
Now that Oz has teamed up with Sofia to take down the Old Man, he’s basically jumped into the fire of hell. But how much fun would it be for him to actually dance to her tunes?
Sofia is smart and ruthless—far more than Oz trusts her or any of the “old men” in the Falcone family (even some women, looking at you, Kara).
Like Vic, Oz has no choice but to go with her if he wants to save his life.
He’ll do his best to use her to his advantage and they’ll definitely play off each other, but she’s a huge problem and Oz has bitten off more than he can chew.
But the bigger problem is that the noose around Vic’s neck is getting tighter and tighter, and Oz can’t seem to get rid of the man.
dangerous dance
Will Oz bring Vic with him? Of course, he is, and there are a million ways it could work. The most obvious one is that Vic will somehow (not intentionally) slip up and expose Oz’s hand in this mob war.
We’ve seen how Vic gets tongue-tied when he’s stressed, scared, or around beautiful women.
How do you think it will play out when he accidentally slips in front of Sophia and tries to recover? He has no chance.
Watching Ozzy and Sofia dance together is an absolute wild ride, but it’s even more fun watching Ozzy’s world fall apart when Vic screws up.
Or, who knows – maybe Vic will surprise us all and flip the script and become the new “Oz,” throwing his boss aside.
After all, Vic knows all of Oz’s secrets and has the upper hand, even if he doesn’t know it now.
As much as I’d love to see Oz take the throne of Gotham’s underworld, he makes too many mistakes.
He should be content with being Rex Calabrese 2.0. Of course, part of his ambition was that he felt he was never respected, but that’s where he misrepresents Calabrese’s legacy.
The respect Rex received was genuine. If Oz takes the throne, any respect he gets is just because he’s the boss, not because people actually admire or like him. This will never change.
He’ll be a formidable boss (think Vic), surrounded by a bunch of yes-men (think Vic) who will secretly laugh at him (Vic hasn’t done this yet, but it might happen).
women of gotham
Speaking of Sophia, she’s not the only woman making power moves in Gotham’s underworld.
Nadia Maroni wielded surprising influence while her husband was in prison. While she’s only a small character now, she’s already inspiring some of Oz’s more reckless decisions, proving just how much women shape his character.
From his mother to Sofia, Nadia, and even more subtly Eve, Oz has a serious blind spot when it comes to the women in his life.
Of course, he has no choice but to give in to Nadia’s demands and get Evard back, but Oz seems to be falling into the hands of these ladies all too easily.
Another thing to consider – Ozzy also often avoids problematic situations. As smart and tense as those moments are, he’s not Batman, so why does he always have an easy way out?
On the other hand, what’s wrong with Carmine Falcone being a rat? Unless I’m remembering the Batman movies wrong, doesn’t Oz know that?
Will he use it as his trump card, waiting for the perfect moment to use it? Or is he still trying to pin the idea that his boss is a rat on him?
It’s telling when Oz shares his story of his gang beginnings with Pinky.
What if Pinky wasn’t talking to the FBI? What if the opposite is true?
There’s a reason Oz keeps sharing these different stories with Vic, and for Penguin, for better or worse, these stories are bound to come together at some point.
Over to you! Did Oz make a mistake with Vic? Can Oz defeat Sofia? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and be sure to check out our Penguin Roundtable for more thoughts on the entire series.
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