The Joker's Asylum: Penguin left me oddly content, completely curious, and slightly befuddled. I'm not as familiar with Penguin as I should be, but after reading this issue, I'm not sure that's such a bad thing.
In this issue, it's impossible to deny the simplicity of the Penguin's character. I was slightly disappointed as to how predictable the story wound up being.
If the Penguin were to "fall in love", wouldn't it be with someone who has felt similar ill treatments that he has? The Penguin's insanity thrives on those very feelings; those that come with being treated like he's bizarre and slightly inhuman. He has a soft spot for a woman whom he find being sold from a cage, Violet due to her being in the familiar situation of being treated like an animal. Violet looks passed his physical oddities and treats him with such gratitude that anyone would their hero. It's not so hard to believe that the combination of sympathy, acceptance and gratitude Violet bestowed upon him would have him enamored.
Throughout this issue, glimpses of the mockery the Penguin endured throughout his lifetime were given, along with his acts of revenge. Basically, anyone who laughs at the Penguin reaps gross repercussions.
Violet stumbles across proof of the Penguin's insanity and attempts to flee, calling him a "sick freak".
The question that remained at the end of this issue was whether or not locking Violet back in her cage was the end of the Penguin's "sweet" revenge.
This issue left me uneasy. Is the Penguin really so predictable, r is his lunacy simply buried deep within him, mostly untouched, waiting to be triggered the right way, sending him into a spiraling madness? This story was worth the purchase; however, the latter would surely make for a more interesting read.