Punisher Will Stand Alone From Other Netflix Series
One of the things that was apparent when Marvel and Netflix teamed up was that it had a very connected universe. And in fact, some of the Defenders showed up in each other series in one way or another. As a result of the success of Daredevil Season 02, The Punisher is getting his own series on Netflix that will release later this year. However, unlike the other Defenders series, this show won’t connect to them, which means it’s going to be a bit more focused on the character and not on some overarching story.
According to actor Jon Bernthal, this will be a very grounded series:
“We are stripping down every supernatural element,” Bernthal said to Entertainment Weekly. “This show is different. It looks different. Frank is a character rooted in the most basic human emotions… He’s a comic-book character, but he doesn’t fly, he doesn’t have X-ray vision. He’s an unbelievably skilled soldier who’s been very, very angry and very, very hurt.”
This feels right given who the Punisher is, and given the small clues we got in Daredevil Season 02, as well as the teasers Netflix has been releasing, Frank Castle doesn’t need ninjas or supernatural forces to make him feel relevant. He’s a violent anti-hero who has a job to do, and he will do it.