By Michael Foster-Sanders/campus editor
The Punisher is Marvel’s newest Netflix series in the Marvel Television Universe. But after the lackluster Iron Fist and the mediocre The Defenders, will Marvel get back on track with a hit series they’re known for and give The Punisher the treatment he finally deserves?
Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, has had an uphill battle making the adaptation from comics to live-action media. The first attempt was the 1989 movie, starring Dolph Lundgren as the anti-hero, which was faithful to the source material but didn’t have a U.S. release due to financial woes of the production company and went directly to home video.
The next attempt was by the newly formed Marvel Studios in 2005 with Thomas Jane playing the lead. This movie lacked the soul of the comics. It took place in sunny Florida instead of the grimy New York City, and Jane not embodying the character hurt the movie. It quickly fizzled from theaters.
The final attempt to the big screen was 2008’s War Zone but without the backstory on why Castle is the way he is it falls flat. The 13-episode Netflix series corrects this by fleshing out the character and his backstory.
The series starts with Frank working a construction job after the events in the second season of the Daredevil series trying to cope with his demons from his past. Castle is a war veteran with post-traumatic stress syndrome whose family was killed in a gang crossfire. Castle became a vigilante and killed the people responsible for the tragedy. He tries to lead a somewhat normal life, but an incident at the construction site makes him become The Punisher again to deliver his form of justice to those who are guilty in his eyes.
The series shined by showing how war can scar soldiers and without proper treatment to deal with the horrors they endured in combat, certain situations may trigger flashbacks and negative feelings causing them to react in a violent way. Ironically, many veterans face the same similar situations when returning home.
The series has graphic violence but it’s not to shock, it’s to show the viewer that the journey that Castle embarks on, by becoming The Punisher into the criminal underworld is an ugly place, and they do horrible things to good people.
Marvel’s Netflix series always had the issue that it was a few episodes too long, but The Punisher’s pace is just right. Make sure to set aside a few hours for binge-watching.
