Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle was one of the highlights of the original Daredevil TV series, introduced as a snarling, seemingly unrepentant revenant haunting Hell’s Kitchen’s criminals and the halls of Washington. His introduction was so popular that he received two seasons of his own spin-off, which meant that when Daredevil was announced for a revival back in May 2022, it seemed a given that the character would be folded back into the larger MCU. Fast-forward four years, and the Punisher has appeared in the first season of Daredevil: Born Again and is returning for the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
As well-received as his initial appearances were, there’s a bit of stagnation to Bernthal’s version of the character. Instead of committing to Frank’s compulsion to continue his never-ending “war” against the criminal underworld, it feels like he’s been in a continued state of false retirement and denial every time we’ve seen him since the original Daredevil’s second season, until something inevitably pulls him back in. Earlier today, Marvel Studios released the first trailer for its upcoming special, The Punisher: One Last Kill, and while it looks similar at first glance, its place in the timeline could mark a change in the character’s outlook.
