“A Great or Little Thing,” the eighth episode of The Penguin‘s first season, takes us to the dark and twisty end of Oswald Cobblepot’s rise in Gotham City. The last chapter is a high-stakes power struggle. Oz (Colin Farrell) achieves new heights, but he learns the hard way that success in Gotham’s criminal underworld has a steep cost. The episode shows Oz’s long-lasting family trauma and ends with a brutal fight that solidifies his change into the feared crime boss known as the Penguin.
The Penguin Season 1 Episode 8 Recap
The finale starts with a scary flashback of Oz’s mother, Francis, remembering the horrible choice she made to kill her own child with the help of the notorious Rex Calabrese. In this flashback, we see Oz’s troubled relationship with his mother from a different angle. It also shows us the violent, unending path he’s been given. Back in present-day Gotham, Oz wakes up while being cuffed to a chair and being questioned by Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti) in a cruel way. Sofia, who is very good at manipulating people’s minds, plays with Oz by telling him a story about a bird that killed its younger brother to get acceptance from its mother. This is a subtle way of saying that Oz is also a killer of his own blood.
Next, Francis shocks everyone by confirming what Sofia already knew: she’s always known that Oz killed his brothers Jack and Benny. It’s not Francis’s last insults—calling him a “disappointment” and a “waste of space”—that hurt the most. In a fit of rage, she stabs Oz to try to end the life of her own son for good. But Oz gets away from the chaos, hurt but holding his dying mother as he storms off.
After the event, Oz goes to the hospital to meet his loyal enforcer, Victor (Rhenzy Feliz). Here, Victor tells them that their allies are leaving Oz because they don’t see any reason to put themselves in more danger. Victor tries to get Oz to fight again by reminding him of what he has done well and how powerful he is over the people of Crown Point. Now that he is determined, Oz starts making a plan to catch Sofia for good. He plans to use Sofia’s past crimes to influence the media and the politicians in Gotham.
Oz tricks Councilman Hady into believing that Sofia is the worst person in Gotham and is to blame for the recent bombing in Crown Point as part of a personal vendetta against Salvatore Maroni. Oz sets his last trap for Sofia with Hady’s help.
The final showdown takes place at Gotham’s airport, where Sofia thinks she will kill her enemy. She instead finds herself surrounded by people who have betrayed her and beaten by Oz. As quickly as they can, every major gang in Gotham betrays Sofia, which makes it possible for Oz to take over the city. Sofia is finally caught and sent back to Arkham Asylum. This is a huge loss for the once-feared Falcone heir. A strange letter from her half-sister Selina Kyle, however, gives her hope that this is not the end of her story.
In the last few scenes of the episode, Oz goes back to the hospital to find his mother in a vegetative state after having a stroke. She is still alive, but she isn’t responding. Oz is left alone with the sound of her rude last words. In his last cruel act, he kills Victor, his closest ally, in a cold way, cutting a last link to his past.
At the end of the episode, Oz is single and at the top of his game. He is wearing his signature suit and dancing with his girlfriend Eve while she says the words he had been waiting to hear from his mother: “You did it.” “Gotham is yours.” A Bat-Signal lights up the sky, letting everyone know that Batman will be in Gotham soon. At the same time, Oz takes his place as the Penguin, ready to fight any threats to his new empire.
The Penguin Season 1 Episode 8: Ending Explained!
At the end of the season, Oz seems to be living with his mother, Francis, in a fancy penthouse, which is where he always wanted to be. There is, however, a bitter twist: Francis lies still, having had a massive stroke. And even though he now has the power and safety he wanted, this sad turn shows how his ambition has cost him.
One of the most disturbing parts of the episode is when Oz kills his young apprentice, Victor “Vic” Aguilar. Despite Victor’s loyalty, Oz sees him as a liability in the end and strangles him. This slow, personal act of violence shows how Oz has changed into something dark. According to showrunner Lauren LeFranc, this was the planned way for Oz to kill Victor: “When he kills Victor, it’s like he’s ripping out his own heart.” This moment shows Oz’s inner conflict: he’s giving up personal relationships for power, but he’s also aware of the monster side of himself that he’s accepted.
Sofia’s Trip Back to Arkham and the Letter from Catwoman
At the same time, Sofia Gigante (formerly Sofia Falcone) has a terrible end that Oz plans. Just as she is about to leave the criminal life in Gotham, Oz makes sure she goes back to Arkham Asylum. Sofia loses, but she gets a letter from her half-sister Selina Kyle (Catwoman), which gives her hope. The episode doesn’t say what’s in the letter, but LeFranc gave Sofia a hint of a hopeful message by saying she might find family and connection outside of her doomed life in Gotham. The good news for Sofia is that this unexpected connection helps her. Even though Sofia is strong and smart, she can’t match Oz’s cruelty in the end.
LeFranc told TVLine about what he thought would happen to both Sofia and Victor. She said that Sofia’s life was necessary to make a punishment worse than death, since Oz’s decision to lock her up in Arkham was meant to hurt her in ways that death couldn’t. Keeping Sofia alive fits with Oz’s need to control people who used to threaten him, and it serves as a constant reminder of his power.
LeFranc’s knowledge of Oz’s character growth, on the other hand, led him to decide to kill Victor. Victor’s death was originally supposed to happen in the second-to-last episode, but it was moved to the finale to make it more powerful. It was a chilling reminder of Oz’s first episode and the bond of brotherhood he had with Victor. LeFranc said that the fact that Oz made the killing so personal shows how much he wants power: “It’s really speaking to Oz owning the fact that there’s a monstrous side to himself.”
How Colin Farrell Deals with Oz’s Difficult Character
Colin Farrell brought a unique mix of charm and danger to the role of Oz, showing how complicated a character can be while also being captivating and scary. LeFranc praised Farrell’s performance and talked about how the two of them worked together to balance Oz’s dark and cruel side with moments that kept the audience interested in him. Farrell’s skill at showing Oz’s weaknesses while keeping his monsterish edge was key to making the character interesting without making his actions seem more noble.
LeFranc said that Farrell knew exactly how to play Oz’s darker sides. He didn’t want Oz to be seen as either a — hero — or a — villain. Instead, he wanted him to be a complex character who was driven by ambition, haunted by his past, and ready to do horrible things to get what he wanted.
There Could Be More Stories in Gotham
Fans are already wondering if there will be more books in The Penguin series after this one ends. LeFranc said she was excited to learn more about Gotham’s criminal underworld, but there aren’t any official plans yet. “I love the seedy down low.” “It’s so much fun to write for all these characters and make my own canon within it,” she said, expressing her admiration for Matt Reeves’ dark portrayal of Gotham.
With The Batman Part II coming out in 2026, it’s not clear if we’ll see characters like Sofia again, but LeFranc was excited about how Cristin Milioti played the part. “Sofia feels extra personal to me,” she said, explaining that her goal was to make Sofia an interesting female character in a world where strong men are usually the norm.
The Penguin’s finale makes Oz even more of a big deal in Gotham’s criminal world, but it also makes people wonder what the price of his rise to power was. Oz gives up the few connections he has, which makes him feel even more alone. He may be in charge of Gotham’s criminal underworld, but he is deeply alone at his core. With Sofia’s possible connection to Catwoman, the end of her story arc sets up some interesting problems for the future.
The Penguin has set Oz up for a big role in Gotham’s shady areas by giving him a complicated and morally murky journey. It makes a big impact on the Batman universe, exploring ambition, power, and the cost of loyalty in Gotham City in a dark and nuanced way, whether it comes back or not.
For more detailed recaps and TV insights, visit otavo.tv.
The Penguin Season 1 Episode 5 [1×05] Recap: Homecoming
The Penguin Episode 4: Who is Magpie??
The Penguin Season 1 Episode 5 Preview: Homecoming
