I remember a time just a year or two ago, when I would binge watch the newest Netflix Marvel show in a weekend. One because I could, two because I thoroughly enjoyed them. I have to be honest, I have definitely reached critical mass with these shows. This was no more evident than my experience in viewing the second season of the Punisher.
Like all the other Netflix shows, this one could have been wrapped up in a nice, tidy ten episodes. Instead it goes to thirteen. The reason I had such high praise for season 2 of Iron Fist is it stood at 10 episodes and knew when to wrap it up.
This show and others are frustrating because they keep going. I feel like this is the same complaint I have made about every Netflix show they have done. Looking back on it, I think the first season of Daredevil is the only one I didn't feel like it was too padded. This season just had way too much going on.
Each of these show have some degree of realism and that is what leads to their grittiness and what made them so good. However, this show pushes those boundaries and beyond. All the other characters with their own show, Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones and Iron Fist all have special powers. In watching how Frank Castle is in this show, you'd be hard pressed to argue that he doesn't have super powers as well.
The thing that bothered me about the first season but really comes to light here is how much punishment the Punisher (see what I did there?) can take. I get that Frank is military trained and is the most stubborn person ever, but even he should not be getting the crap kicked out of him the way he does and keep on ticking. He doesn't have a healing factor, but you wouldn't know that. With the way he keeps getting consistently beat up, you would also think he wasn't actually good at his job. He is the Rocky Balboa of this universe. He's supposed to be almost invincible in a way to scare the bad guys. Here, everyone can get a shot and have a chance to take him down.
This series has gone a long way to truly humanize Frank Castle and I get that. He is a deranged, tragic anti-hero. For me, I prefer the Punisher to be a force of nature as he is usually portrayed. With less talking. We don't get that in this show. I still like Jon Berenthal as the Punisher and I think he is perfectly cast, but this show can be too much at times.
I hate to sound like I am railing on this show, but I have a few more things to get off my chest. The last season dealt with para-military units and soldiers dealing with PTSD. I felt like they really had a lot to say. In this season, I don't know what the message is supposed to be. Everyone seems to act in their own self interest and a lot of people get hurt along the way. Between having to deal with Russo and a mystery assassin, this show had too much going on at once. Let's not forget political intrigue!
All the characters make bad decisions on this show and it is hard to root for them. It truly is. I know in some way I have become desensitized to TV violence, but as brutal as some of the fight scenes were, it started to bore me a bit.
Now, I do think the actors on this show were all good. It was shot really well and it still remained gritty. I do love seeing some of the characters from other series showing up here. It helps sell that this is all one combined universe. If I am being honest with myself, I did not like this season. As listed above, there were many reasons and they were just hard to overcome for me. After the first season of Iron Fist, I did not want to get into the habit of hate watching shows. Now I can add this season to a list that includes the aforementioned Iron Fist and the second season of Jessica Jones.
Truth be told, this has been the best iteration of the Punisher that we've ever had and if Marvel is smart, they should hold on to Jon Berenthal's number when it is time to come back to this character again. This show overachieved in a way that the other shows didn't. He was so popular in Daredevil season 2 that he as able to get a spin off show that got two of it's own seasons. We shouldn't lose sight of that.
