I might write about streaming services as a major part of my role here at T3, but there’s no point in pretending that I can watch everything I write about. There are quite simply too many shows, across too many services, and even critically acclaimed ones can slip through my gaps easily.
Back in early 2025, when it first aired, The Penguin attracted all sorts of plaudits for its mature tone and clever plotting, but I didn’t have a Now Entertainment pass back then, so I couldn’t easily watch it. I’ve since picked one up and have been absolutely nailing the HBO content ever since but in all honesty, I forgot about The Penguin.
Now, the Emmy nominations are out, and the show’s been rewarded with a massive 24 nominations across a whole heap of categories, one of the best ever showings for a comic book franchise series. I’m not a huge believer in the importance of awards, but this is a great example of how they can bring something back to mind, months after you overlooked it.
The show marks one of the more interesting spinoffs you could choose to make from a huge movie like The Batman, showing us the backstory of Colin Farrell’s Penguin as he builds himself up from a smalltime player to a huge part of the crime world in Gotham City.
More importantly, though, it’s apparently a really well-planned and well-plotted story in its own right, featuring a range of new characters who flesh out the world and that central character. I’m particularly hyped to see Linda Cardellini’s performance, which has been lauded in a big way.
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The good part of catching up with a show this late in the day is that I have no skin in the game when it comes to who actually wins those Emmies (not that I ever do). The real point is that this has caused me to open up the Now app and add it to my watchlist, to make sure I don’t forget it again. If you also overlooked it, maybe consider doing the same.
