Penquin

[Alan2099]

Is it just me, or does anybody else actually miss Penquin as a weird fat little guy that comited crimes with an umbrella rather than some kind of mob boss and/or informant?

Personally, I feel something has been missing from the character since they've tried to down play the goffier aspects and treat him too seriously.

[Sean Whitmore]

I'll admit, I am tired of seeing Batman beat him up for information every other month.

Still, putting him in a position of power at least gives the Penguin something to do. Beyond that the only difference between him and the average thug is he shoots an umbrealla instead of a gun. He's not even crazy, like the other villains.


SEAN

[kel25]

To be honest I really don’t care much for most of Batman’s rogue gallery. He has a tendency to outclass them by so much that they are nothing but jokes. It gets even worse when you really examine some of them.

Take Penguin for example. They are trying to set him up as a crime boss but I don’t ever recall him being intimidating. I guess it’s kind of hard when your named after a bird that can not fly or when it’s Welsh for head white. Yeah, that’s a scary animal. His weapon of choice is, of all things, trick umbrellas. If I ever had to fight this guy I’d probably lose because I couldn’t get off the floor from laughing so hard when I realize he is serious. :D

[curefreak]

To be honest I really don’t care much for most of Batman’s rogue gallery. He has a tendency to outclass them by so much that they are nothing but jokes. It gets even worse when you really examine some of them.

Take Penguin for example. They are trying to set him up as a crime boss but I don’t ever recall him being intimidating. I guess it’s kind of hard when your named after a bird that can not fly or when it’s Welsh for head white. Yeah, that’s a scary animal. His weapon of choice is, of all things, trick umbrellas. If I ever had to fight this guy I’d probably lose because I couldn’t get off the floor from laughing so hard when I realize he is serious. :DThis is exactly why i felt Tim Burtons Penguin was genuis, that was the first time anyones ever found him intimidating or scary at all.

[Joe Acro]

This is exactly why i felt Tim Burtons Penguin was genuis, that was the first time anyones ever found him intimidating or scary at all.
I think you're confusing intimidating and scary with creepy and bizarre.

[curefreak]

I think you're confusing intimidating and scary with creepy and bizarre.If you met him in a dark alley you wouldn't know the difference
and why cant creepy and bizzare people be intimidating?
are you hatin?

[Super Buddies Forever]

I think the problem with the Penguin is that he's a character who doesn't really work in modern day stories. He would have been forgotten about back in the Silver Age had Burgess Meridith not owned the role and burned it into the public consciousness. Because of this, writers have been trying to find new roles for him ever since the Bat books became more gritty.

I admit that I like Burton's take on the character. I believe Warner Bros. was pressuring him into using the Penguin when he only wanted to use Catwoman. It was an interesting, disturbing twist on something many people remembered from their childhoods.

The mob boss Penguin was interesting for the first few years, but now it feels like they're just keeping him around because he's the Penguin, not because he's an interesting character. He almost does need to return to some of his more colorful traits but in a way that makes him intimidating and not a funny little dude in a suit. He needs to be a super villian on the level of the Joker and Two Face again.

Maybe the answer is blending the classic Penguin, the Burton Penguin, and the mob boss Penguin. The closest I think they ever got to this was in the Animated Series.

[curefreak]

I think the problem with the Penguin is that he's a character who doesn't really work in modern day stories. He would have been forgotten about back in the Silver Age had Burgess Meridith not owned the role and burned it into the public consciousness. Because of this, writers have been trying to find new roles for him ever since the Bat books became more gritty.

I admit that I like Burton's take on the character. I believe Warner Bros. was pressuring him into using the Penguin when he only wanted to use Catwoman. It was an interesting, disturbing twist on something many people remembered from their childhoods.

The mob boss Penguin was interesting for the first few years, but now it feels like they're just keeping him around because he's the Penguin, not because he's an interesting character. He almost does need to return to some of his more colorful traits but in a way that makes him intimidating and not a funny little dude in a suit. He needs to be a super villian on the level of the Joker and Two Face again.

Maybe the answer is blending the classic Penguin, the Burton Penguin, and the mob boss Penguin. The closest I think they ever got to this was in the Animated Series.Or he could be used for comic relief like in the new series?

[SlightlyMad]

I never really cared for Penguin until No Man's Land which is when I thought he really came into his own. At one point Batman was even forced into a compromise with him. He was really showing promise until Luthor came & p*ssed on his chips.

I thought it was the best do-over in a long time & that making him a petty thief with gimmick umbrellas again would be an injustice.

[retcon74]

I don't recall in which comic book this took place...it may have been back in the "Animated-like" Batman series written by Templeton, but.. At one point, Penguin, in the role of Gotham City's Mayor, refused a huge payoff because (and I'm paraphrasing here) "Money I can get anywhere...POWER & RESPECT is what I want now"

To me, this is the best use of the Penguin; A former pudgy little kid who couldn't get the girl, wasn't picked to play on any team, etc... now not looking to commit crimes for "revenge" or "money" but, rather, to get the respect and envy of others that was denied him in his youth. To that end, I believe he should be written to either go the way of the "True villian" (what more respect is there to be had in the Gotham underworld then to be known as the man who did away with Batman?) or the "corrupt politician" who doesn't need the money but wants the power, fame, and respect that goes with public office.

Personally, I prefer the latter as Penguin seems to be a far more viable threat to Batman from a political standpoint then a physical one. Besides, Bruce Wayne could use a "bad guy" of his own. How ironic would it be to have Mayor Cobblepot try to ruin Bruce Wayne out of spite, envy, jealousy, what-have-you, never knowing that he is, in fact, also hurting The Batman.

[curefreak]

I don't recall in which comic book this took place...it may have been back in the "Animated-like" Batman series written by Templeton, but.. At one point, Penguin, in the role of Gotham City's Mayor, refused a huge payoff because (and I'm paraphrasing here) "Money I can get anywhere...POWER & RESPECT is what I want now"

To me, this is the best use of the Penguin; A former pudgy little kid who couldn't get the girl, wasn't picked to play on any team, etc... now not looking to commit crimes for "revenge" or "money" but, rather, to get the respect and envy of others that was denied him in his youth. To that end, I believe he should be written to either go the way of the "True villian" (what more respect is there to be had in the Gotham underworld then to be known as the man who did away with Batman?) or the "corrupt politician" who doesn't need the money but wants the power, fame, and respect that goes with public office.

Personally, I prefer the latter as Penguin seems to be a far more viable threat to Batman from a political standpoint then a physical one. Besides, Bruce Wayne could use a "bad guy" of his own. How ironic would it be to have Mayor Cobblepot try to ruin Bruce Wayne out of spite, envy, jealousy, what-have-you, never knowing that he is, in fact, also hurting The Batman.Actually he does that in the new animated series, but just not in a political way
but he has a serious hate on/jealousy for Bruce much more so than Batman whom he's intimidated by.

[kel25]

Like the idea of him as a corrupt politician looking more for power than money. Have him go by Oswald and reduce the Penguin name to people trying to mock him. Those changes would go a long way in making me respect the character.

[SlightlyMad]

Good points. After all, Wilson Fisk is the public side of the Kingpin. Oswald Cobblepot & The Penguin could be the same, although I prefer him as the club owner pulling the strings of the politicians rather than being involved in the political scene itself (too similar to Lex if he were to go that route).

[Alan2099]

So I take it I'm the only one that misses the guy that used to use trick umbrellas to commit crimes.

[Guts/Batman]

Nah...

You're not the only one, Alan. His weapons black market thing is all he does.

[Keehar]

I miss classic Penguin too.

Sure, he looked goofy, but alot of comic book villains do. But he fit nicely into Batman's world. And he was a great villain IMO.

Burgess Meredith and Danny DeVito did awesome jobs portraying him on screen.