HBO's 8-Part Gangster Crime Drama Completely Changes How You Watch 'The Batman'

As much as The Penguin focuses on the exploits of the mob in Gotham, it's easy to forget that the HBO series actually takes place in the aftermath of a major terrorist attack. Few scenes serve as a better reminder of this, however, than the tragic revelation that Victor Aguilar (Rhenzy Feliz) lost his family in the floods, which we see from a much more intimate perspective. More than just a tragic backstory, the events explain the predicament Victor has found himself in at the start of The Penguin. What appears to be a grand disaster in The Batman is reframed as a personal tragedy, which denies Victor a proper source of moral guidance as he dives deeper into Gotham's underbelly. Instead, he finds a mentor in Oz (Colin Farrell) and is drawn down a much darker path.