Tough and brutal, here’s why Netflix’s The Punisher will have you coming back for more

Frank's back, with a bang.

It's been 10 days since The Punisher was unleashed on Netflix, so it's about time we checked in with the show and the state of Marvel's current TV offering.

Having binge-watched all of season one in just two days (hey it was too cold out to do anything else, okay?) here’s our takeaway from what the show gets right, wrong, and could do better next time around…

Jon Bernthal is an excellent actor

It might sound like stating the obvious if you’ve seen Jon Bernthal inhabit Frank Castle already in season two of Daredevil - his graveyard monologue alone is brilliant - but the man deserves tremendous credit for his turn in the Punisher’s debut outing proper.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EdMQk2fL_qA

Clip via Rastifan

Castle isn’t the easiest of protagonists to hang out with an extended period of time, but Bernthal manages to peel back every possible layer of the character.

Where previously the likes of Dolph Lundgren, Thomas Jane and Ray Stevenson offered an only surface-level interpretation, Bernthal digs deep, running a gauntlet of emotions and showing that there’s more to this guy than just ruthless efficiency when it comes to his brutal line of work.

At his complicated best, Castle resembles a wounded animal; lost, scared and yet somehow determined. It’s not easy to get this across without being willing to show vulnerability, and Bernthal proves himself a fearless actor throughout. He might want to ease up on the loud caveman growling for season two, though. It’s a bit ridiculous.

The show wants to start conversations, but isn't sure how to finish them

It’s going to be interesting to see how people react to The Punisher, and that includes hardcore fans, first-timers and those who enjoyed his supporting turn in the second season of Daredevil.

Anyone hoping for the slapstick brutality of 2008’s Punisher: War Zone or the absurdity of a man punching a polar bear in the face - seriously, that happened once - will be seriously disappointed by a show that adopts a methodical pace and attempts to speak to serious issues.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=liABMxEvPAc Clip via Lionsgate Movies

The Punisher 2017 edition is a slow-burning examination of what war does to a human being, and how those who serve their country can ultimately wind up lost and rejected by society.

Like its chief anti-hero, The Punisher isn’t terribly subtle, so the depiction of PTSD-affected young men and opportunistic murderers isn’t too shocking, but it’s when the show tries to Say Something about gun control that the line begins to blur quite messily.

There’s a grim predictability in the radicalisation of a young white soldier who feels betrayed by the country he swore to protect, not to mention some uncomfortable real-life similarities - the show’s release date was delayed following the shooting that left 59 dead and 546 wounded in Las Vegas in October.

Alas, having built up this character rather effectively, he becomes something for Castle to simply deal with, rather than provoke difficult commentary. Despite it being somewhat intriguing for a TV show so steeped in violence to tackle the issue of gun control, there’s no real aftermath, rendering the whole thing curiously hollow.

Some production aspects still need fine-tuning

Hey, remember when you couldn’t actually see most of what was going on during a Daredevil fight scene? Someone at Marvel still subscribes to the idea of ultra-low lighting. Though there’s plenty of daylight in The Punisher, you’ll still be hammering F2 on your MacBook more often than you’d like.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O95aQIST5Z4

Clip via Peaches Lamb

Also, this might seem a bit unfair given that composer Tyler Bates worked on both, but phoning in a cheap remix of the awesomely atmospheric ‘John Wick Reckoning’ during a pivotal closing scene is, well, cheap.

Marvel has a length issue

Gone are the days of powering through 20+ episode seasons of shows, with 13 seemingly the new magic number. That said, Marvel could seriously do with taking a leaf out of Game of Thrones’ book and cut their superhero ventures down to 10 instalments at a time.

As of now, they seem to be struggling with finding a balance between story and character arcs. Daredevil season two is a good example of this; the Punisher storyline works perfectly as a half-season narrative, whereas Matt Murdock’s battles with The Hand felt interminable after just a few episodes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZhzSBQ-Fvo Clip via Netflix België/Belgique, Nederland en Luxemburg

It’s a problem that affects Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, and Iron Fist, particularly when you can feel that a conflict is being dragged out for the sake of episode count. The Punisher is just as guilty in the padding department, to the point that you could quite easily jettison entire characters and subplots and still arrive at the same destination without compromising the overall plan.

On the plus side, The Punisher is a perfect companion for those household chores you’ve been neglecting, or that video game you keep meaning to get back to. Seriously, in the age of the binge-watch, you’ve got to multi-task accordingly.

You'll be back for season two Despite the issues and a fairly open-ended conclusion, The Punisher covers so much ground in its first season that you feel committed for more by the time the credits roll. It may be somewhat exhausting on a binge, but there's enough character development and potential for future adventures - particularly where the name 'Jigsaw' is concerned - that you'll be spray-painting a skull on your wall this time next year. Or something. https://youtu.be/OMW_dPtm7Bo Clip via Netflix