Sofia Falcone Just Repeated Her Family’s Unforgivable Sin

Perhaps the most interesting character in The Penguin on HBO is not Oswald Cobb, the titular villain. Rather, it’s the daughter of mob boss Carmine Falcone, locked away in Arkham for 10 years as the Hangman serial killer. In “Top Hat,” Sofia repeated the Falcone family’s unforgivable sin against her young cousin Gia.

Sofia Gigante (née Falcone), is a figure from the Batman comics, but The Penguin has re-imagined much about the character. In the HBO series, set in the corner of the DC Multiverse created by Matt Reeves for The Batman, Sofia is not the criminal she is in the comics. The biggest twist was that Carmine Falcone was actually the serial killer known as the Hangman, and he framed Sofia for the murders when she found out. To hide his own guilt, Carmine put Sofia in Arkham, where she was tortured for more than a decade. While not a complete parallel, she did the same thing to her cousin Gia Falcone, now in a Gotham City state children’s home and hospital.

Sofia Gigante Casually Threatened Her Cousin Gia Falcone

Sofia May Not Have Even Realized She Was Doing It

In the penultimate episode of The Penguin, Sofia learns her cousin Gia is asking to talk to the police. Sofia killed the entire Falcone family, but she spared Gia by convincing her to sleep in the greenhouse. However, Sofia learns that Gia saw something that night, and she worries the girl will expose the crime. The police already suspected foul play, and since Gia is Sofia’s alibi, the child’s testimony would wreck everything. She then goes to visit the little girl in the children’s home.

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While walking in to talk to her, Sofia flashes back to her time in Arkham. While this place is better than Gotham’s infamous institution, it’s still a prison. Sofia even discovers that Gia has been cutting herself. After first denying she did anything, the head of the new Gigante crime family all-but confesses to Gia. What’s really twisted about this moment is that Sofia likely believes she’s being kind, when she’s really threatening the girl.

“It might seem confusing, and I know that it hurts. But your mom, your dad, everyone in our family were bad people who deserved [to die], and I’m glad they are gone.” — Sofia to Gia in the children’s home.

Even after her experiences at Arkham, Sofia likely believes she is protecting Gia by making her a ward of the state. She tells Gia that she will find a new, better family than the one she had. Sofia also gaslights the girl, by denying she actually saw the gas mask Sofia wore to open the windows and doors in the house.

How Sofia Takes a Different Approach Than Carmine Falcone Did

The Gigante Family Leader Tries to Let Gia Be ‘Free’

After leaving Gia’s room, Sofia breaks down, overcome with emotion. The Penguin has meticulously shown her descent into true villainy. Still, Sofia’s treatment of Gia is considerably better than how her family treated her. A true parallel would be if Sofia tried to frame Gia for the murders, rather than simply pretending the gas leak in the Falcone mansion was an accident. Still, the episode makes it clear Sofia knew that what she was doing was similar enough to what her father Carmine did to her.

“Make sure you keep [your daughter] protected. A young woman in [the Falcone family]? Might not end well for her.” — Sofia Falcone to Carla Viti about Gia at Alberto’s wake.

However, after visiting Gia, the horror Sofia feels might also reflect on what she might have to do if the child doesn’t take the hint. Were Gia to talk to the police or implicate Sofia in the death of her family, to protect her freedom, Sofia might have to take greater steps. She might send the duplicitous Dr. Julian Rush to further confuse Gia into thinking she is mentally unbalanced. Sofia may have to discover just how much she is like her father.

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What Carmine Falcone did to Sofia was much more extreme than what’s happening to Gia. Not only was Sofia locked in the institution without trial, he set her up to either kill an inmate or be killed herself. If Gia doesn’t keep quiet about the Falcone family murders, Sofia may be forced to discover just how far she’s really willing to go.

The Penguin finale debuts Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024, at 9 PM on HBO and Max.

Following the events of The Batman (2022), Oz Cobb, a.k.a. the Penguin, makes a play to seize the reins of the crime world in Gotham.

Release Date

September 19, 2024

Cast

Colin Farrell , Cristin Milioti , Rhenzy Feliz , Michael Kelly , Shohreh Aghdashloo , Deirdre O’Connell , Clancy Brown , James Madio , Scott Cohen , Michael Zegen , Carmen Ejogo , Theo Rossi

Seasons

1

Creator

Prequel

The Batman (2022)

Story By

Bill Finger, Bob Kane

Writers

Lauren LeFranc

Directors

Craig Zobel

Showrunner

Lauren LeFranc

Character(s)

Oz Cobb , Sofia Falcone , Victor Aguilar , Johnny Viti , Nadia Maroni , Francis Cobb , Salvatore Maroni , Milos Grapa , Luca Falcone , Alberto Falcone , Eve Karlo , Julian Rush

Avg Episode Length

60 Mins

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