The Penguin Introduces a Twisted Romance Into the Show

Much of The Penguin has shown the varying rises to power of Oz and Sofia Falcone, who are both rather amazing at seizing the moment and turning bad things to their favor. The last few episodes have focused a heavy share of the attention on Sofia especially (played by the amazing Cristin Milioti), and while episode 6 of The Penguin does so as well, we also see a different side of Sofia’s life early in the episode, courtesy of a romance with its own share of twists. Spoilers are incoming for The Penguin’s sixth episode Gold Summit, so if you haven’t watched the episode yet you’ve been warned.

A Twisted Romance

Early in the episode the attention shifts to Sofia’s home, and we see her in the midst of a romantic night with someone off camera. We soon learn though that the night is now over, as turns towards that person to reveal it’s her therapist Dr. Julian Rush (played by Theo Rossi). She turns around and tells him “you’re doing it again…you’re scrutinizing).”

She walks towards him and we then learn he’s actually tied up in a chair. He says “I’m admiring you”, and she responds “are you hurt?”. The camera moves closer as she unties him and you can see what she’s referring to, as he’s clearly bleeding a bit from what seem like scratches on his shoulder and chest. He then says “I deserved it.”

As she walks away he says “are you bored with me already?” and she says “I have work.” He gets up to leave and says “When you find Oz, feel free to take advantage of my expertise.” Sofia smirks and then says Dom will see him out. That’s when she heads to the kitchen and encounters Salvatore Maroni (played by Clancy Brown) to talk about that man Oz.

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The One Who Believed Her

Sofia has been betrayed by many to this point, especially when she was imprisoned in Arkham Asylum and left to rot by Carmine Falcone. With the power the Falcone family wielded, no one was on her side, but Julian was different, and he’s been by her side since he got out of Arkham.

In past episodes we’ve seen their relationship start to become something different, with hints that there was more there than just a doctor and patient relationship. Julian has dug into her past trauma and helped her face it, and now she has gone from someone who is desperately trying to get people to believe she’s innocent to someone who is seizing power and leaning into that aura of fear.

This ties into their relationship in the present as well, as Sofia is clearly in the power position regarding their dynamic, and Julian saying things like “are you bored with me already” only furthers that notion. We don’t get any more looks at their relationship after this throughout the episode, but it will be interesting to see where it goes from here and how Sofia and Julian react to Oz moving forward.

The Penguin Episode 6 is now streaming on Max.

What did you think of the episode? You can talk all things DC and TV with me on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!