Review: Marvel’s Punisher
The Marvel and Netflix combo hit again with their newest series The Punisher. My expectations were very high for this show, because I was an avid reader of the gratuitously violent anti-hero vigilante. There was something about the character that went beyond just the gore and killing. He was a decent human being that lost his family. He wasn’t just a murdering psychopath.
We already got a taste of Frank Castle during Daredevil season 2, so going into this I was worried that the audience wouldn’t be able to connect with him. With all the violence in today’s society it is hard to find a reason to see him as a hero, but this show was done perfectly to exude that feeling.
While some may complain that it was way too slow, I think most will agree that the paced narrative was necessary to make the audience cheer for the main character and feel for him. He’s not out for revenge. He’s out for justice. It may not be what the government deems as just, but for the people he’s taking out, it is what he feels needs to be done.
There is a suspension of disbelief seeing him get tortured, beaten, and shot beyond a level suitable for any one human to take, but isn’t that how any show like this would go? There were some references to the comics that were done tastefully. The final three episodes go from story telling to hard core (at some moments almost unwatchable combat). Yes, there was more than one moment where I had a difficult time seeing what was on screen, but it held my attention because at that point in the story the villains really needed to have that done to them.
SPOILER ALERT: The final battle with Billy Russo and Punisher was my favorite scene. I got worried at one point that they’d kill off the big bad. I knew that in the comics he becomes Jigsaw (basically the antithesis to Frank Castle with a horribly scarred face. At one point he even wore a costume similar to Punisher’s). Thankfully, Frank had reason to let him live, and with all the foreshadowing done throughout the episodes, how could he not?
Will we see The Punisher and Daredevil team up again to take down a Kingpin/Jigsaw/Bullseye combo? Who knows, but it’s something that I hope happens at some point. END SPOILERS
At the end of the day it comes down to this… The Punisher season 1 is a well told story. It is a tragic story. It is a love story. It is a story about corruption and justice. It is a story about political agendas and dealing with PTSD. Throw in some really action packed scenes to live up to the name Frank Castle bears, and you end up with something completely new for Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. I give it a 4.5 out of 5 sCrypt ratings. It went beyond my expectations for a good story, and appeased the comic book fan in me.
What did you think of Punisher season 1? Comment with your thoughts and predictions of where they may take the character(s) after this.
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