The Punisher Surf Draculas… Again
What is it about this iteration of the Punisher and needing to re-earn the identity in every story he has been in? At the resolution of each of his appearances, Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal) dons the iconic Punisher skull as if it weren’t the ending of his previous appearance. Is this special the start of the Punisher finally just being the Punisher? If not, it was just another “Surf Dracula” to end The Punisher: One Last Kill, an otherwise unremarkable 44-minute Marvel Special Presentation.
The special picks up after the Punisher’s war on the Gnucci mob family, which takes place off-screen before we rejoin Frank Castle. Only one member of the family is alive and wants the Punisher dead. Frank is also dealing with the PTSD of the loss of his family and what it means to be a soldier.
If that summary feels a bit bare-bones, then it’s on the right track for the special itself. Everything that takes place in this special has happened before, but better elsewhere. It’s not a true adaptation of anything and lacks the thematic teeth to say anything. With the Punisher, especially his symbol, being so polarizing, I thought maybe this would be the series to have something to say. Something more to say on the police or military adoption of the symbol than what was done in Daredevil: Born Again. But it doesn’t. It doesn’t really have anything new to say at all. It’s just this version of Frank Castle struggling with his PTSD and his war on evil. Again.
With how negatively I am speaking about this special, you might assume I hate the Punisher. I actually love him. Garth Ennis’s Punisher Max is one of my all-time favorite comics, but this special is only a Garth Ennis adaptation in one way, the redeeming factor of the special:
The violence.
One of the key elements of Ennis’s take on the Punisher is his over-the-top usage of violence. With the special taking place under the MCU umbrella, I was curious how far they were going to push the limits of what Frank would do. They did, indeed, push the limits pretty far with half of the special just being gun and knife fights. There is one kill in particular that is truly gruesome, and proves the pen is mightier than the sword. Overall, the special’s tone is outwardly cruel but lacking the strength of the writing that Ennis brings to a world like this. It ends up just being a lot of Jon Bernthal yelling and killing people.
That is a fine premise, but as a special, I expected more from it. I expected a real story structure, not beating after beating without a single moment of clear resolution. It felt more like a teaser of what future Punisher stories might be in the MCU but never felt fully formed enough to stand on it’s own. It’s a fun watch but it’s going to fade away as fast as the idea of being the Punisher does from the character with every apperance he makes.
Hey Frank.
A Marvel Television Special Presentation: The Punisher: One Last Kill premieres May 12, only on Disney+.
