The Penguin Episode 4 Cent’Anni Review: Flasback episode results in the best performance and episode of 2024

The Penguin Episode 4 chronicles the fall and rise of Sofia Falcone in a scintillating hour of television anchored by Cristin Milioti‘s astonishing performance.

Taking focus away from the title character is a risky gambit. After all, Colin Farrell is delivering one of the year’s best performances. However, the decision to center The Penguin episode 4 around Sofia leads to the best episode of the series. In this episode, Oswald “Oz” Cobb may be a side character, but Farrell gets a glorious moment to show Oz at his most conniving.

Cent’Anni starts in the present day by presenting the ending of episode 4 from Sofia’s perspective. Then, the flashback begins by showing how Sofia ended up in Arkham. Mark Strong replaces John Turturro as Carmine Falcone. Strong does a stellar job of portraying this version of the infamous gangster.

The cherry on top of this dark, twisted, magnificent hour of television is the episode doesn’t end in the past. Cent’Anni returns to the present. Sofia is fed up with lies. However, the episode doesn’t end with anger but satisfaction. She enacts revenge in a way that puts her in a position to battle Oz and the Maronis.

The use of different focuses by director Helen Shaver and Mick Giacchino‘s score adds to the disorientation.

Overall, The Penguin is firing on all cylinders. Milioti’s acting chops complement excellent character development, dialogue and direction.

After the overview and rating of The Penguin Episode 4 Cent’Anni 10 out of 10 (Masterpiece), here’s a look at Sofia’s shattered perceptions, a trip to Arkham and a reclamation of power. The Penguin is streaming on Max.

Shattered Perceptions in The Penguin Episode 4

Cent’Anni opens with Sofia’s point of view of last week’s chaotic conclusion. Nadia Maroni (Shohreh Aghdashloo) ambushes them. Then, holds Sofia and Oz at gunpoint. Before Victor “Vic” Aguilar can save Oz, Nadia reveals Oz killed Sofia’s brother. Without hesitation, Oz maintains his loyalty to Maronis in front of Sofia to survive. Vic arrives, and Oz tells Vic to leave Sofia behind, which Sofia also notices. Sofia collapses after calling Dr. Julian Rush.

The flashback begins to show a more innocent version of Sofia. I say more because she’s still the daughter of a crime family. In the opening of the flashback sequence, Sofia serves as chairperson for an organization that helps women with mental health issues. After the event, Summer Gleeson, a reporter, is looking into the deaths of several women and notices similarities to Sofia’s mom’s death.

During a dinner with her brother and father, Carmine reprimands his son and compliments his daughter. He promises to make a change and allow Sofia to run the family. When they are alone, Sofia asks about her Mom’s well-being before her death. Carmine does some pretty manipulative gaslighting.

Sofia meets with the reporter and looks at photos of the victims. She notices the killer’s hand in one of the photos has scratches that are similar to her father’s. Sofia abruptly ends the meeting. Oz tries to counsel, but Sofia tells him to mind his place. Sofia snapping at Oz ends up sending Sofia down a horrific path.

Arkham Rehabilitation

During a party, Carmine summons Sofia to his office. Oz told him about Sofia’s meeting with the reporter. She knows he murdered those women. Carmine orders Oz to take Sofia home.

The police stop the car on the way home. Carmine frames Sofia for the murders of seven women and is sentenced to a six-month psychological evaluation in Arkham. Her stay at Arkham includes rounds of painful torture ranging from electric shock therapy to psychological experiments designed to break her. She also doesn’t have a psychotic neighbor in Magpie.

Sofia maintains her innocence throughout the 6-month sentence. However, her brother visits and tells her she’s not getting out. All of the hope drains from her face. She returns to Arkham full of paranoia, and the spark in her eyes also extinguishes. She questions whether Magpie is loyal. Unsatisfying with her response, Sofia kills Magpie and screams she’s innocent

Transformation

Back in the present day, Sofia wakes up in Rush’s home. She wastes little time breaking down the lecherous glint in his eyes. Sofia declares she needs a fresh start. Her entire posture changes. Now, there’s confidence in how she’s going to start over.

She returns home and addresses the family. Her entire speech is a goodbye message. They believe she’s leaving for Italy. Sofia kills them by pumping gas into the house. She saves her innocent niece from the fumes, but Sofia’s silent attack kills everyone else except Johnny Vitti (Michael Kelly). Sofia practically skips up to Johhny’s room, pointing a gun and telling him to put some pants on.

The confidence shown during Sofia’s final address to her family shows the growth from innocent to kingpin of Gotham.

The Penguin Episode 4 Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, what Carmine told his daughter does come true. The Falcone empire is Sofia’s to run. However, Carmine’s cruelty and the lies of men like Oz have turned Sofia into the most powerful woman in Gotham. Sofia rising and killing the Falcones makes Oz’s predicament even more precarious. I can’t wait to see how the Oz and Sofia conflict will end.

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