‘The Penguin’s Backstory for Victor Turns Riddler Into an Even Worse Villain

As a lot as The Penguin focuses on the exploits of the mob in Gotham, it is easy to overlook that the sequence really takes place within the aftermath of a serious terrorist assault. Few scenes function a greater reminder of this, nonetheless, than the tragic revelation that Victor Aguilar (Rhenzy Feliz) misplaced his household within the floods, which we see from a way more intimate perspective. Greater than only a tragic backstory, the occasions clarify the predicament Victor has discovered himself in initially of the sequence. What seems like a grand catastrophe in The Batman is reframed as a private tragedy, which denies Victor a correct supply of ethical steerage as he dives deeper into the underbelly of Gotham. As a substitute, he finds that mentor in Oz (Colin Farrell) and is drawn down a a lot darker path that might redefine the prison panorama.

Victor’s Backstory Brings a Complete New That means to ‘The Batman’

Many comedian guide characters, whether or not heroic or villainous, are outlined by the haunting presence of a troubled past or the tragic lack of a cherished one, and The Penguin appears to proceed this development. Whereas Victor himself does match this mould, the way in which it is offered to us as viewers makes it way more stunning to witness. The flashback scene feels deceptively written, and one won’t even understand when and the place issues are taking place till the explosions happen. What follows won’t be wholly sudden for the viewers, however the extra intimate portrayal makes it really feel overwhelming.

The destruction wrought by the flooding of Gotham additionally speaks to how hypocritical and repulsive the Riddler (Paul Dano) is as a villain. When he reveals his motivations within the movie’s climax, he cites his resentment towards the town’s elite class, which initially seems justified after witnessing all of the entrenched corruption. For that reason, the Riddler idolizes Batman (Robert Pattinson) and is rapidly devastated by his rejection, however he additionally views Bruce Wayne because the embodiment of the wealthy class that he despises. He can’t comprehend the concept that an individual like Bruce Wayne can combat for the poor like Batman, however The Penguin takes this argument additional. Because the sequence exhibits, the individuals most affected by the floods are the poorer neighborhoods, leaving individuals like Victor simply as orphaned because the Riddler himself. To make issues a lot worse, the Maroni and Falcone crime households stay untouched and transfer in to take advantage of the chaos through the drug trade, exhibiting that Riddler had performed extra injury to the individuals than the mob or corrupt regulation enforcement ever might have dreamed.

For Higher or Worse, the Loss of life of His Household Defines Victor

Very like Batman himself, the tragedy that strikes Victor has a dramatic impact on which path he chooses to comply with as an grownup. Nonetheless, whereas Bruce Wayne has a everlasting change in worldview after the death of his parents, Victor is extra formed by the absence than the precise method of their demise. Along with his mother and father and sister gone, Victor is much more weak to the attract of the prison underworld, which his household had already displayed issues about. All he has left now could be his girlfriend, who stays presumably the final one that can carry him again to one thing resembling a standard life.

On the identical time, the tragic demise of his household supplies him with a uniquely engaging father determine in Oz, who views Victor as a promising younger scholar and makes use of charisma and humor to indicate him how alluring the lifetime of a prison could be. After all, Victor rapidly finds himself overwhelmed with the mob life and stays extremely tempted to depart for a brand new life, and Oz is even keen to let him go with out incident. Nonetheless, he additionally is aware of that any try and flee with Graciela (Anire Kim Amoda) will depart him scuffling with poverty and uncertainty. Had his mother and father nonetheless been alive, it could have been a lot simpler for him to return to his former life and by no means look again. As a substitute, with out their steerage, he in the end returns to the fold. He even kills one of many Maroni henchmen, making him an open enemy of the second-biggest crime family. Now, there isn’t any turning again, and Victor seems set to turn into Oz’s private enforcer and ultimately a serious crime determine in his personal proper.

The Penguin airs each Sunday at 9:00 PM EST on Max within the US.

WATCH NOW