I think I hate The Penguin — not the show, the man. 

HBO’s “The Penguin,” broadcasted from Sept. 19 to Nov. 10, may just be one of the greatest comic-book adaptations set on screen. 

The Penguin, or Oz Cobb (Colin Farrell), becomes one of the most detestable villains in the history of television over the course of eight episodes. When the show begins, the viewer is left rooting for Oz to rise in the underworld of Gotham to take what’s his. But by the end? I’m counting the days until Batman beats him to a pulp in some dark alley. 

Farrell’s portrayal of Oz belongs right up there with the ranks of James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano. In a way they are both similar characters, they’re mafia bosses hell-bent on taking what’s theirs. But they are also both tragic characters, and you can’t help but feel bad as they slowly dive into madness. 

Farrell completely transforms and becomes unrecognizable as Oz. Without actually knowing Farrell was playing the character, I’m not sure many people would be able to tell that he was the one hobbling on screen. What may be even more impressive is his voice transformation. Gone is the Irish accent many know him to have, and is replaced by a gritty, classic New York accent. Farrell should be first in line to receive the Emmy for Best Actor in 2025. 

“The Penguin” is set in the same universe as Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” and picks up right after the events of the film. Gotham is ravaged after a devastating flood, and following the death of infamous crime boss, Carmine Falcone, the crime underworld is up for grabs. 

So Oz makes his move in an attempt to grasp the vacated power — but another member of the Falcone crime family is back to take Carmine’s place, Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti). Sofia has just been released from Arkham Asylum — for reasons that remain unknown — after “killing” several women and earning the moniker, “The Hangman.” She teams up with Oz to take out the rest of the Falcone family who don’t want to see her gain control, setting the stage for Sofia and Oz to battle it out. 

Milioti’s haunting performance as Sofia belongs right up there with Farrell. She perfectly plays off the role of someone who has gone through a traumatic event such as living in Arkham for years. Her monologue in episode five, “Cent’anni,” when she reveals to her family her father pinned the murders on her to save himself, was terrifying and gripping all at the same time. 

What the series does so well is make you truly care and root for the traditional Batman villain — or at least at first. Oz’s relationship with Victor Aguilar (Rhenzy Feliz) shows the good in him, as Oz takes him under his wing. The viewer sees Vic go from this stuttering kid to a confident man, standing side-by-side with Oz as he makes his big move against the crime families of Gotham. 

But Oz’s relationships are what also makes the show so tragic, most notably with his mother, Francis (Deidre O’Connell). Oz’s relationship with his mother was what drove him into the Gotham crime scene. He promised her he would give her everything she ever wanted, and stopped at nothing to try and make good on that promise. 

The relationship gets even more complex when it is revealed that Oz “accidentally” caused of the death of his two brothers when he was a kid by locking them in a flooded tunnel where they later drowned. Oz never comes clean that it was he who left them down in the tunnel — whether he intentionally did it or not was not made clear. 

It’s later revealed that Francis knew all along it was him, and that she even arranged to have him killed before Oz made his promise to her that he was going to give her everything she ever wanted. By the end, she couldn’t hide the hatred she had for him anymore. 

Sofia uses the hatred Francis has for Oz against the love Oz has for Francis against each other. She captures them both, bringing them to the spot where Oz made his fateful promise. In her own twisted way, she wants Oz to come clean in the way her father never did. But Oz is too far gone for that, he could never live with the idea that Francis knew it was him. All the emotional stress gets to Francis as she suffers a stroke she never recovers from, leaving her in a vegetative state by the end of the series. 

The most heartbreaking moment is when Oz realizes his mother isn’t going to recover. His coming to terms with the fact that his mother will never say she is proud of him crushes Oz, but it also frees him in a way too. 

Oz eventually outsmarts Sofia, turning the other crime organizations in Gotham against her. In the end, she gets a punishment worse than death — she goes back to Arkham. 

But once Sofia is put back into Arkham you are still left rooting for Oz, you’re proud of him in a way. He accomplished everything he ever wanted, he was now the crime “kingpin” of Gotham. But when Farrell said in an interview that everyone would hate Oz by the end — he meant it. 

Oz and Vic share one final scene at the end of the finale, on a park bench, where Vic says that Oz is like family to him. Oz can’t have that, as he says “Family is a strength, it drives you. But it’s also a weakness.” And then your stomach twists as Oz chokes out Vic, killing the only person who was ever loyal to him, and he smiles while doing it. 

The dark, twisted transformation from the Falcone underling to hobbling, top-hat-wearing “Penguin” was complete. 

Cue the bat signal.