My god, I didn’t think I would be able to say this, but The Punisher did it. As a big fan of Daredevil seasons one and two, I’m shocked that the story of Frank Castle was able to overcome the great telling of Matt Murdock’s story. The fight scenes in Daredevil blew me away. The hand to hand combat in tight spaces, showing each hit and making you feel like you’re the one kicking and getting their ass kicked. That was what I was looking forward to in The Punisher, based on the Prison scene in season two of Daredevil. The first season was so much more than that. That is what impressed me the most.
Jon Bernthal is impressive as ever on this show. He showed us how well he would play Frank in season two of Daredevil. This was just the first layer in this huge onion of a character. Netflix and Marvel could have easily given the fans what they wanted, fan service of him just killing people by any means necessary, and torturing to get answers. I haven’t seen a show that had such an easy path, that went so much deeper than they needed to. Their take on PTSD, and the follow up of soldiers coming home from their service was incredible. It really helps you understand what it’s like to be living with a psychological problem you get through such a traumatic experience and works it in your head that there are people like every day.
Both Frank Castle, and the character they introduce named Lewis, both suffer issues that they deal with in different ways. Lewis tries to curb his PTSD by going to meetings once a week. Frank seems to just ignore it after he has a small episode that would wake him up from sleeping. You get a good view on both of their journeys of suffering.
I’m not going to go super in-depth about the show because I really want people to watch it and form their own opinions. But I am going to take a bit to explain four of the things I liked, as well as disliked. No spoilers.
Likes-
-Jon Bernthal is fucking fantastic. You really feel for his character and you really like him, despite him being a vigilante murderer. His deep grunts and screams when killing (like the prison scene from DD s2) are tenfold in this season.
-I really enjoyed the characters and their developments throughout the season. There wasn’t any real weak character or anyone that was carried by another performer.
-The action was spectacular. They didn’t shy away or hold anything back. I would compare it to a healthy mix of Daredevil and John Wick.
-The use of “flashbacks” without going totally insane with fleshing out his origin. There’s a repetitive scene, but it’s used for the same reason every time it’s used. I find it really fits.
Dislikes-
-The music didn’t fit as well as I had thought. It sounded more like I was watching Sons of Anarchy, then The Punisher.
-Some fight scenes were a bit too dark. I understand the aesthetic, but I would like more scenes where you can tell what’s going on.
-I really can’t think of two other things I disliked about the show.
-Yeah, I definitely can’t think of something else.
Overall, I give this show a 9.5. It for sure packs a punch, and crushes the property as well as we all had hoped. I would without a doubt say this thirteen episode season is better than Daredevil season two, and on par with season one
Mayhem Media 
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