We're just two episodes into The Penguin, but the hit series' audience is already really worried about the potential fate of its most endearing character.
The Batman spin-off has already proven that it doesn't need the Dark Knight to be HBO's latest TV hit, with viewers praising its thrilling and tense 'Scarface meets The Sopranos' storyline, cinematography, and its two leads – Colin Farrell and Cristin Milioti, who have particularly wowed fans as Oz Cobb and Sofia Falcone respectively.
But it's one of The Penguin's key supporting characters who's dominating online discussions after episode 2 – titled 'Inside Man' – and not for good reasons. Indeed, viewers are concerned about Victor Aguilar (played by Rhenzy Felix), Oz's lackey-in-chief, who's felt the wrath of his new boss multiple times throughout the HBO show's early entries.
poor vic after having worked for penguin three days #ThePenguin pic.twitter.com/BF9qFJr9amSeptember 30, 2024
With six more suspense-filled episodes of the popular Max still to go, it's highly unlikely that anything will happen to Victor just yet; after all, there are plenty of other supporting characters who are more likely to bite the bullet before Oz's right-hand man. But, considering that the show's protagonist was ready to "pop a cap" into Victor's skull just 10 minutes into The Penguin's first chapter, plus the fact that Victor is now working for one of the most unhinged and callous individuals in Gotham City, many fans are convinced that he won't make it to the end of this Batman-adjacent series.
A quick glance at social media sites such as Reddit and X/Twitter reveals how anxious some people are about Victor. On Reddit, aLittleDoober summed up a lot of viewers' thoughts, writing: "I am scared for poor Vic though and think Oz might end up offing him". Their sentiments were shared by other users, including kush125289, who wrote "Vic... [is] definitely dying...", and KindsofKindness, who opined: "I feel pity for Vic. He is gonna get himself killed. I would be shocked if he survived the whole season."
Oz is not Victor friend. The sooner y’all realize that, the better. Vic work for Oz, that’s the extent of their relationship. Also, Oz is a ticking time bomb. At any moment he can react hastily. #ThePenguin pic.twitter.com/zZPBhscraUSeptember 30, 2024
There are some audience members, though, who believe Victor might make it out alive. Geek-Haven888 is one of them, with the Redditor saying "he's either going to be dead by the end of the show or be like a terrifying henchman".
Cig_sg_throwaway was more convinced that Vic will survive, writing: "His arc is to become more street-smart and ultimately proving to Oz he has what it takes to survive the politics of Gotham's underworld", while NitarasDaughter offered up another suggestion: "Even if he does live, he'll most likely end up in Arkham because of everything Oz puts him through."
As the aforementioned embedded tweets, plus post-episode 2 reactions from other X/Twitter users, such as nkajoanofarc and truckerschapeI, show, however, it seems most viewers are fretting over the prospect of Vic being killed. I suspect they'll be delighted to be proven wrong, though, if one of the best Max shows' most lovable characters lives to fight another day.
The Penguin episodes 1 and 2 are out now on Max and HBO (US), Sky and Now TV (UK), and Binge (Australia).
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