Reviewer Rating: 4.8/5.0
4.8
To say that Penguins season 1, episode 3 blew me away would be an understatement.
I was so obsessed with this episode that I completely forgot to turn the speaker volume down. My downstairs neighbor banged on the ceiling in between yelling “OMG!” It was chaotic – but totally worth it.
Honestly, Euphoria has so many twists and turns that it could easily have been a blockbuster. I’d love to see it on the big screen.
Vic nailed it!
Vic really surprised me during Oz and Sophia’s drug deal. While he was waiting in his car, a police officer showed up and instead of completely freaking out, he did something completely unexpected.
The police took some money out of Vic’s pocket and Vic just went with the flow and used the opportunity to bribe him. Talk about quick thinking!
It was a clever move that kept the entire operation from getting bogged down, especially the bag full of drugs in the car.
When Vic later told Penguin what happened, Penguin was absolutely proud of him.
But even so, Vic’s loyalty is questioned. He breaks off the relationship with Ozzy at the nightclub only to save Ozzy after he chooses to leave his girlfriend.
It’s a loyalty Oz can’t ignore, but let’s be honest – he can’t be “in debt forever.” That’s not how Oz works.
If anything, it’s just another reminder that Ozzy can explode in an instant, as we’ve seen with Johnny Vitti and Vic himself.
Of course, Vic has dealt with Oz’s dark side before, but what’s his real motivation here? Why did he insist on staying, choosing Oz over the chance of a normal life with his girlfriend?
Maybe Vic saw more opportunities in Oz – money, power. But let’s face it, living on the edge with people like Penguin is dangerous—and stupid.
As far as I’m concerned, Oz is still too attached to Vic.
There’s always the lingering possibility that Vic might betray him, and after this episode, it’s clear that Oz is in deeper trouble — not just with the Maloneys, but with Sophia as well.
Hell has no fury!
Speaking of Sophia…they left her in the alley drinking Maroni! Do you think she’ll let it go? Especially after Ozzy’s crying apology tour? Yes, right.
This is definitely a turning point. Oz won’t make himself look like a bad guy, not with Sophia by his side.
I wouldn’t be surprised if he tried to blame the whole thing on Vic, forgetting that Vic wanted to wait for her. Trust me, Sofia won’t be as forgiving as Oz.
Nadia’s appearance is wild and almost seals Oz’s fate (it just keeps snowballing for him, doesn’t it?). His duplicity was completely exposed. Now, both sides of Oz and Vic is in deep trouble.
But honestly, when Oz does let him go, Vic should have jumped at the chance to run away from town with his girlfriend! So why wouldn’t he?
I couldn’t figure out what either of them were thinking. All I knew was that Oz’s world was about to collapse.
All the secrets he’s been hiding – killing Castillo, visiting Maroney in prison – it all starts to unravel.
While Sofia might slip away in the chaos, if she doesn’t, I could see her and Nadia teaming up against Oz.
Sofia is not related to anyone in the Falcone family, so protecting them is no problem for her at all.
Even though I joke that Ozzy is forever grateful to Vic for saving him, we all know Ozzy isn’t like that. His darkness was too deep.
No matter how compassionate he may seem at times, Vic is still just a plaything to him. After what happened at the nightclub, Oz can’t trust him.
It clearly offends Oz when he thinks Vic feels like a “prisoner” in his employ. We know Ozzy – he’s not one to let something like this go.
He’ll take it to heart and eventually use it against Vic, just like he did with the personal information Vic shared over dinner.
Oz is trying to channel Rex Calabrese, displaying this kind and caring behavior, but that’s not who he really is – and never will be.
Those brief flashes of evil darkness we see throughout the episode? This is the real Oz, and things only get worse from here.
Antihero or villain?
In a roundtable for Penguins Season 1, Episode 2, Tyler Johnson, Thomas Goldwyn, Whitney Evans, and I discussed whether Oz could become an antihero. To be honest, I still don’t think that’s on the table.
There were no clues anywhere, but that wasn’t the path I saw him going down. Even Colin Farrell recently mentioned that people will hate Oz when the series ends, and I stand by that.
Oz is a villain in the Batman universe, and this episode gave us even more proof of that.
You have to remember that this show is a bridge between the Batman movies, and Oz has to be a formidable adversary, even if he won’t be the main antagonist – Batman probably won’t go easy on him.
There are a lot of theories out there about Oz being named Cobb rather than Cobblepot, including one involving the Court of Owls.
In this case, Oz might become a redeemable character, but I don’t think that’s going to happen in this series.
We got glimpses of Oz’s crueler side in the first episode of Alberto Falcone’s Penguins and in the second episode of Castillo’s Penguins . Now, with each episode, he sinks deeper and deeper into darkness.
He’s obsessed with Vitti (Sofia doesn’t even react to it, which says a lot), and later, the way he switches on and off with Vic in the bathroom scene goes crazy. He meant everything he said; he didn’t say it out of anger.
He’s using Vic, manipulating him until he’s no longer needed. When that moment comes, Oz will let him go without hesitation.
Vic may have killed or nearly killed someone and Oz will use that to his own advantage, but I don’t think they all end well.
And there’s another problem – Vic told his girlfriend that he was afraid Oz would kill him if he tried to leave.
More women, more problems
Graciela is smart and I wouldn’t be surprised if she assumed the worst when Vic didn’t show up at the bus stop.
Who knows what she’ll do once she gets to California? Call the police? Contact someone at Crown Point?
Either way, this doesn’t look good for Vic.
All hell breaks loose when Oz finds her in his apartment. It’s just another reason for Oz to end this loose end, no matter how much he cares about Vic or sees himself in him.
At the end of the day, the only people Ozzy really cares about are Ozzy (and his mom).
One last thought – remember the scene in the car where Vic rehearses how to tell Oz he’s leaving with his girlfriend? He specifically said he was not a rat. Could this be any foreshadowing?
I’ve said it many times, Vic is not from that world. That’s not who he is, and I don’t think he wants to be.
Sure, he handled the cop situation well, but let’s be honest – if that cop had found drugs, Vic wouldn’t have been able to talk him out of it.
The real question is, can Vick hold up when the pressure comes? I don’t believe it.
Ramming Oz’s car into Nadia’s men was a bold move, but something else happened to him. Think about his memories and how the nightclub explosion triggered him.
Then again, there’s his girlfriend. she is his Loose ends. If Ozzy were chasing him, he might let her go to ensure her safety, especially since he stole Ozzy’s car after the nightclub incident.
But maybe he has another plan in mind–and it’s not to become Oz’s partner in crime!
There are a lot of moving parts here, and while I like Vic, I think he crossed a line when he chose to stay rather than run away when he had the chance.
Over to you, TV fanatics! Has Sofia escaped, or will she join forces with Nadia? Is Vic all in, or does he have other plans? Let us hear your thoughts in the comments below!
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