WHAT TO WATCH: 'Marvel’s The Punisher' stays on target for the most part

Francis Castiglione, a.k.a. Frank Castle, has always been one of the most peculiar enigmas in the Marvel comics universe. Here we have a man calling himself the Punisher, armed with nothing but wits, military training, guns, and a skull-emblazoned shirt.

Yet, in a world with people who can bench-press buildings and create entire alternate realities, he still manages to operate with surprisingly minimal opposition, straight-up murdering the scum of society as he sees fit.

This, of course, raises a number of questions. How could Marvel’s morally uptight heroes allow this vicious, violent vigilante to continue being the judge, jury, and executioner of the criminal underworld? Do they just think that dealing with a street-level threat such as Frank Castle is beneath them? Do they quietly support his revenge-fueled quest to rid the city of crime? Or are they secretly afraid of the possibility that getting in the Punisher's way might make him take aim at them instead?

Admittedly, this becomes less of a problem in the grim and gritty world of the Netflix Marvel shows. Tangentially related to (but never directly acknowledged by) the commercially successful, generally child-friendly Marvel Cinematic Universe, the world of Netflix Marvel is perhaps best described as "grounded."

Whether it's the environment, the costumes, the supporting cast, or the superpowers (which, in this corner of the MCU, tend to be either less showy or more plausible), Netflix Marvel shows seemingly exist in their own little bubble, requiring the least amount of suspension of disbelief. Thus, under these conditions, certain characters thrive, perhaps more than they ever could in a PG-13 special effects extravaganza.

Characters like the Punisher, for instance.

Guns a-blazing

Introduced in the second season of "Marvel's Daredevil", The Punisher was the undeniable breakout star, with many fans proclaiming Jon Bernthal as a significantly more convincing Punisher than Thomas Jane or Ray Stevenson in their respective feature films. Apparently, this was enough for Marvel and Netflix to green-light a full series for the character, making "Marvel's The Punisher" the first initially unplanned addition to the Marvel Netflix universe.

"Marvel's The Punisher" follows the titular character's journey after the events of "Marvel's Daredevil" season 2, as he continues to seek—and dispense—justice for the deaths of his wife and children.

In his second on-screen portrayal of the Punisher, Bernthal continues to bring the perfect blend of highly trained military precision and bloodthirsty savagery that makes the character so compelling.

With Castle’s origin story out of the way, “Marvel’s The Punisher” is free to explore the anti-hero’s relationships with the handful of people he trusts enough to call allies. Chief among these is a partnership straight from the pages of the comics: His unlikely team-up with pro hacker Micro (portrayed by Ebon Moss-Bachrach).

The development of Bernthal and Moss-Bachrach’s friendship is believable, as they go from reluctant partners to whatever passes for “friend” in Castle’s vocabulary.

Meanwhile, Daredevil’s ally and former lover Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll) continues to be Castle’s confidante and anchor—one of the few things that keep Castle from completely getting swept up in his mission of revenge and ultimately losing his humanity.

Also worth noting is the absence of Claire Temple (Rosario Dawson), who appeared in all previous Netflix Marvel shows (all the way to “The Defenders”) as the glue that essentially held all of them together. Her exclusion from “Marvel’s The Punisher” was reportedly due to scheduling conflicts, but also points to the fact that “Marvel’s The Punisher” is a completely different animal from the rest of the Netflix Marvel series.

(Un)friendly fire

While “Marvel’s The Punisher” manages to maintain the high standard of quality set by previous Netflix Marvel series—and deliver blood and guts by the truckload, as one would expect from a show starring the Punisher—it does have its shortcomings.

As Castle tends to be the sort of character who only sees the world in black and white, it is perhaps unsurprising (albeit somewhat disappointing) that his villains (who, while pulled from the source material, will not be identified in this review) are significantly lacking in depth.

Even the most sympathetic among the lot is a sick and twisted human being. It kind of makes one think that they were written into the series solely to give Castle some much-needed target practice. Then again, for obvious reasons, the Punisher doesn’t exactly seem like the kind of protagonist who would have plenty of recurring villains.

The sheer amount of punishment and physical abuse Castle endures in this series is astounding. At times, it’s like Castle’s durability is at near-superhuman levels. Simply put, squeamish viewers are in for a rough ride.

If you’re willing to look past those minor stumbling blocks, you’ll find that despite his merciless methods, Castle is perhaps the most human among all the Netflix Marvel heroes to date—and that “Marvel’s The Punisher” more than makes up for the sins of the character’s rather lackluster cinematic past. — LA, GMA News