This weeks Villain is: The Penguin Oswald Chesterfield Penguin Cobblepot is afictional character, a supervillain who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. He is known as one of Batmans oldest and most persistent enemies. ArtistBob Kane and writer Bill Finger introduced him in Detective Comics #58 (December 1941). The Penguin is a short, round man known for his love of birds and his specialized high-tech umbrellas. A mobsterand thief, he fancies himself as being a gentleman of crime; his nightclub business provides a cover for criminal activity, which Batman sometimes uses as a source of criminal underworld information. According to Kane the character was inspired from the then advertising mascot of Kool cigarettes – a penguin with a top hat and cane. Finger thought the image of high-society gentlemen in tuxedos was reminiscent of emperor penguins.[1] Burgess Meredith portrayed the Penguin in the 1960s Batman television series and its movie. Danny DeVito played a darker, more grotesque version in the 1992 film Batman Returns Subsequent Batman animated seriesfeatured him in depictions that alternated between deformed outcast and high-profile aristocrat. The former interpretation appeared in comics, most notably in the miniseriesBatman: The Long Halloween and its sequelDark Victory He made a cameo appearance at the end of the Long Halloween with no lines. He had a slightly more notable role in Dark Victory – this incarnation included elements of Merediths interpretation. The Penguin has repeatedly been named one of the best Batman villains, and one of the greatest villains in comics[2][3][4][5] and, paradoxically, has also been described by others as among the least convincing.[6][7] In 2009, Penguin was ranked #51 in IGNs list of the Top 100 Comic Book Villains of All Time.[8] Unlike most of Batmans rogues gallery, the Penguin is in control of his actions and perfectly sane, features that help him maintain a unique relationship with the crime-fighter. His latest characterization has him running a nightclub and casino that is popular with the underworld. Batman comes to tolerate his operations so long as the Penguin remains one of his informants. The entrepreneurial Penguin often fences stolen property or arranges early prison furloughs for a hefty fee. Fictional character biographyEdit Born Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot,[9] the Penguin was bullied as a child for his short stature, weight, and beak-like nose. In some media, his fingers are fused, resulting inflipper-like hands. Several stories relate that he was forced as a child to always carry an umbrella by his overprotective mother due to his fathers death from pneumonia after a drenching. His mother owns pet birds that Cobblepot lavishes with attention, and served as his only friends growing up. His love for birds would eventually lead him to obtaining an Ornithology major in college. In some versions, Cobblepot turns to crime after his mother dies and the birds are repossessed to pay his mothers debts; in others, he is an outcast in his high society family and their rejection drives him to become a criminal. In keeping with his origins, the Penguin pursues his criminal career with class. He prefersformal wear such as a top hat, monocle, andtuxedo while he steals. The Penguins alias first came from a childhood taunt over his grotesque appearance and love of birds.[10] In an early account, when Cobblepot first attempted to join a gang, he was belittled as a penguin and mocked for his umbrella before being literally kicked from the crime den. Outraged at the rejection, he resolved to make the Penguin a name to fear and the umbrella a fearsome weapon. He returned to the den and killed the crime boss with the worlds first .45 caliber umbrella, then claimed leadership of the now-terrified criminals. Some later stories suggest that he tried to abandon the nickname, which he initially hated but came to accept. Pre-Crisis Originally known only by his alias, the Penguin first appeared in Gotham City as a skilled thief, sneaking a priceless painting out of the museum by hiding the rolled-up canvas in the handle of his umbrella. The Penguin later used the canvas as proof of his intellect to a local mob, which he was then allowed to join. With the Penguins help, the mob pulled off a string of ingenious heists, but the mobs leader and the be-monocled bird eventually fell out, leading Cobblepot to kill him with his umbrella gun. The Penguin became leader of the mob and attempted to neutralize Batman by framing him for theft. The Penguins plans were eventually thwarted, but the bandit himself escaped.[11] The Penguin was a persistent nemesis for the Dynamic Duo (Batman and Robin) throughout the Golden and Silver Ages, pulling off ploy after ploy, such as teaming up with The Joker,[12] attempting to extort money from a shipping company by pretending to flash-freeze a member of its board of directors,[13]and participating in Hugo Stranges auction of Batmans secret identity.[14] The Penguin made his last appearance, fittingly, during the last appearance of theEarth-One Batman. After he and a multitude of Batmans enemies are broken out ofArkham Asylum and Blackgate Prison by Ras al Ghul, the Penguin carries out Ras plans to kidnap Batmans friends and allies. The Penguin, along with the Joker, the Mad Hatter,Cavalier, Deadshot and Killer Moth, lay siege to Gotham City Police Headquarters, but are infuriated when the Joker sabotages their attempt at holding Commissioner Gordon for ransom. A standoff ensued, with the Joker on one side and the Penguin and the Mad Hatter on the other. The Joker quickly subdues both with a burst of laughing gas from one of his many gadgets.[15] Post-Crisis Following the Crisis rebooting the history of the DC Universe, the Penguin was relegated to cameo appearances, until writer Alan Grant(who had earlier penned the Penguin-origin story The Killing Peck) and artist Norm Breyfogle brought him back, deadlier than ever. Within the era of the Tim Drake Robin, the Penguin forms a brief partnership with macabre criminal and hypnotist Mortimer Kadaver, who helps him fake his own death as a ploy to strike an unsuspecting Gotham. The Penguin later guns down Kadaver, after plugging his own ears with toilet paper so that the hypnotist no longer has power over him.[16] After Batman foils this particular endeavor, the Penguin embarks on one of his grandest schemes in the three-part story The Penguin Affair. After finding Harold Allnut on a lonely street, undergoing physical and verbal abuse by two gang members, the Penguin takes the technologically-gifted hunchback in, showing him kindness in exchange for services. Harold builds a gadget that allowed the Penguin to control flocks of birds from miles away, which the Penguin utilized to destroy radio communications in Gotham and crash a passenger plane. This endeavor, too, was foiled by Batman. Batman finally hired Harold as his mechanic. The Penguin resurfaces during Jean Paul Valleys tenure as Batman as one of the few to deduce that Valley is not the original Caped Crusader. To confirm this theory, he kidnapsSarah Essen Gordon, places her in a death-trap set to go off at midnight, and turns himself in, utilizing the opportunity to mockCommissioner Gordon as midnight approached. An increasingly infuriated Gordon is nearly driven to throw him off the police headquarters roof before Valley shows up in the nick of time with a rescued Sarah. As Valley left, he commented, Theres nothing the Penguin can throw at me that I havent encountered before. The Penguin reluctantly agrees with this sentiment, accepting that he has become passé.[17] Subsequently, the Penguin turned his attentions to a new modus operandus, operating under the front of a legitimate restaurant and casino known as the Iceberg Lounge.[18] Though he is arrested for criminal activities several times during the course of his reform, he always manages to secure a release from prison thanks to his high-priced lawyers. During the storyline No Mans Land, whenGotham City is nearly leveled by anearthquake, the Penguin stays behind when the US government closes down and blockades the city. He becomes one of the major players in the lawless city, using his connections to profit by trading the money that nobody else in Gotham could use for goods through his outer-Gotham contacts. One of these connections is discovered to beLex Luthor and his company, LexCorp. The Penguin, as seen in Batman #287 (May 1977). Art by Mike Grell. The Penguin is swept up in the events ofInfinite Crisis. In the limited series seventh issue, he is briefly seen as part of the Battle of Metropolis, a multi-character brawl started by the Secret Society of Super Villains. The Penguin, along with several other villains, is bowled over at the surprise appearance ofBart Allen. One Year Later, while the Penguin is away from Gotham City, the Great White Shark andTally Man kill many of the villains who had worked for him, and frame the reformedHarvey Dent. Great White had planned to take over Gothams criminal syndicate and eliminate the competition, the Penguin included. Upon his return to Gotham, the Penguin continues to claim that he has gone straight, and reopens the Iceberg, selling overpriced Penguin merchandise. He urges the Riddler to avoid crime, as their non-criminal lifestyle is more lucrative. The Penguin was featured as a prominent figure in the Gotham Underground tie-in to the series Countdown He fights a gang war against Tobias Whale and Intergang while supposedly running an underground railroad for criminals. As the Penguin conducts his affairs, Two-Face enters the club and demands to be let in on his underground railroad project. The Penguin tells him to meet him after hours and subsequently brings him into a meeting with several of Gothams most notorious villains, includingHugo Strange, Scarecrow, and Mad Hatter. Batman, in the disguise of Matches Malone, spies on the meeting from behind a darkened alcove. Suddenly, the Suicide Squad bursts into the room and attacks the assemblage of villains.[19] It is revealed that the Penguin is involved with the Suicide Squad, and that he had set up the other villains to gain the favor of the Squad.[20] The Penguin later meets up with Tobias Whale in order to negotiate with him.[21] The Penguin and Spoiler had assembled gangs like the Bat Killers, who were based on Batmans enemies; the Dead End Boys, based on the Suicide Squad; the Femme Fatales, based on female villains; the Five Points Gang, based on the Fearsome Five; the L.O.D., based on the Legion of Doomto which the Penguin himself had once belonged; and the New Rogues, based on theRogues.[22] The Penguin and Tobias Whale fight each other as Robin, the Huntress, Batgirl, and the fourth Wildcat all get involved. Even though the Penguin gets the upper hand, Whale reluctantly calls a truce with him to stop Johnny Stitches and Intergang.[23]Johnny Stitches sends the Penguin a package containing the Riddlers glasses and Mr. Jessups dismembered body. Johnny tells the Penguin that Tobias Whale was not on his side any longer. Johnny also mentions that he had threatened the families of those fighting on the Penguins side, and that he is giving him one day to get out of town.[24] The Intergang then attacks the Iceberg Lounge, only to be foiled by Batman. In return for his help, Batman makes the Penguin become his informant.[25] Cobblepot later loses Batmans support afterthe latters mysterious disappearance and Intergangs exploitation of the return of the Apokoliptan Gods. He appears in Battle for the Cowl: The Underground, which portrays the effects of Batmans disappearance on his enemies. The Penguins mob is absorbed by Black Mask II, who controls his criminal activities. The Penguin, with the aid of the Mad Hatter, abducts Batman and brainwashes him to assassinate Black Mask. During the events of Brightest Day, the Birds of Prey discover the Penguin beaten and stabbed at the feet of the White Canary.[26]The Birds rescue him and flee to the Iceberg. While recovering, the Penguin expresses his attraction to Dove.[27] Eventually, the Penguin reveals that his injury had been a ruse, and that he is working with the White Canary in exchange for valuable computer files on the superhero community. He betrays the Birds and seriously injures both Lady Blackhawkand Hawk before the Huntress defeats him.[28] The Huntress tapes him up with the intention of taking him with her, only to be informed by Oracle that she has to let him go due to a police manhunt for the Birds. The Huntress considers killing him with her crossbow, but ultimately leaves him bound and gagged in an alley with the promise that she would exact her vengeance on him later.[29] The Penguin is eventually attacked by theSecret Six, who kill many of his guards in an ambush at his mansion. Bane informs him that he needs information on Batmans partners, as he plans on killing Red Robin,Batgirl, Catwoman, and Azrael.[30] The Penguin soon betrays the teams location, which results in the Justice League, the Teen Titans, the Birds of Prey, the Justice Society, and various other heroes hunting down and capturing the criminals.[31] Around this time, a new super-villain, who called himself the Architect, plants a bomb in the Iceberg Lounge as revenge for crimes committed by the Penguins ancestor. Though Blackbat and Robin are able to evacuate the building, the Lounge is destroyed in the ensuing explosion.[32] The New 52 In The New 52 (a reboot of the DC Comics universe), the Penguin is a client of a criminal named Raju who was sent to offer gold toDollmaker for Batmans release.[33] While in his Iceberg Casino, the Penguin views a disguised Charlotte Rivers on his surveillance cameras and he tells his henchwoman Lark to make sure Rivers gets a story to die for.[34] During the Death of the Familycrossover, the Penguin puts his right-hand man Ignatius Ogilvy in charge of his operations in his temporary absence. Ogilvy, however, uses the Penguins absence to declare him dead, taking over his gang and killing those loyal to him. Under the alias ofEmperor Penguin,[35] Ogilvy takes over the Penguins operations. Upon the Jokers defeat, Batman unsuccessfully attempts to imprison the Penguin in Blackgate Penitentiary only to be forced to release him later. Upon learning of Ogilvys betrayal, the Penguin attacks his former henchmans new empire, but Batman intervenes and arrests him. The Penguin is found not guilty, however, thanks to the machinations of his ally Mr. Combustible. Meanwhile, Ogilvy releases Kirk Langstroms Man-Bat serum on Gotham City, turning many of the citizens into the creatures. Langstrom discovers a cure, returning the citizens to normal. Ogilvy then takes the serum himself, along with additions made by Poison Ivy. Emperor Penguin then challenges Batman openly to a fight, defeating the masked vigilante with his newfound prowess, and leaving him to be rescued by the Penguin. The pair forge a temporary alliance, and defeat Ogilvy.[36] The Penguin also played a role in Black Canarys rebooted origin. In Birds of Prey vol. 4 #0, Dinah sought to land a job at Iceberg Lounge, knowing that a lead on the Basilisk organization which she was pursuing would soon spring up there. Unfortunately, the Penguin was not in the habit of taking job applications, so she decided to prove her worth by infiltrating the outfit by herself. When she arrived in the Penguins bathroom, he was unimpressed. To prove her worth, she demonstrated her special ability: a sonic scream that could shake down the roof, if it were intense enough. Naturally the scream alerted Penguins henchmen, and she made short work of them with her martial arts skills. Finally impressed, Penguin hired her, and dubbed her Black Canary in keeping with the ornithological theme. During the Forever Evil storyline, Penguin is among the villains recruited by the Crime Syndicate of America to join the Secret Society of Super Villains.[37] With the heroes gone, Penguin becomes the Mayor of Gotham City and divides the different territories amongst the inmates of Arkham Asylum.[38]Bane retrieves Emperor Penguin for the Penguin as part of their agreement. When he brings him to the Penguin, he tells Emperor Penguin that the Arkham fighters are not scared of Bane as he does not instill fear as Batman did.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 18:22:55 +0000
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