I don't actually mind that Punisher "beats" Daredevil at the end of episode one, because he gets his ass handed to him and just manages to get the upperhand because of a gun that Matt didn't notice. Daredevil even blames himself for that the following episode, calls himself stupid for not noticing.
+Dale Luck Also I have a question that I'd like to know what others who've watched it would say. Throughout the entire season, Daredevil is constantly told (by a street level weapons dealer, by Punisher, by Stick, etc.) that his inability to wipe out criminals instead of just crippling them is completely useless, and I thought it was leading up to him actually killing someone. On that final fight with the ninjas on the roof, Matt doesn't protest against Punisher's shitty cameo appearance in sniping off the ninjas around him, and proceeds to roundhouse kick Nobu off the roof. For any other criminal that he wasn't vaguely aware could come back from the dead, this would be a death sentence. Was this what Daredevil had wanted, following the death of Elektra? Was it just a poorly shot "Daredevil now kills people" sequence or was it a flacid "I'm going to be angry for 5 seconds now the person I love is dead" and he's going back to normal next season?
I thought Elektra was an incredibly refreshing and complex female character. She was a strong and sexy female lead. I did not see her as necessarily bad or good.When it counted she made the right choices but I think that we're used to seeing heroes that put people first rather than themselves. I don't think she was any less compelling than the Kingpin because she was meant to add a different side to Matt's past and character that we have not seen played out before. Because of Elektra we saw Matt break into Fogwell's gym, steal cars, etc. and we also got to see how far his "no-kill" rule extends. Elektra had the potential to bring out the absolute worst in Matt as opposed to the rest of the cast. That's something *NO* one was able to accomplish in season 1. I think it's unfortunate that she was overlooked by so many. You would think that women and men that like women would be proud of Elodie Yung's performance and how the writer's handled her character.
I wish they were more scenes of Matt with the priest. I don´t know, those were kinda sweet in S1. Though I feel there wasn´t enough room for them with all the action.
I also loved those scenes. Basically the internal moral struggle between Daredevils vigilantism and Matt's Roman Catholic faith shown on screen. The actor playing the priest deserves more screen time.
As much as I'm a Punisher fanboy, I was surprised that not only he could survive this long against Daredevil, but even win in hand to hand. He got beat up pretty badly, but still. In Ennis' run he either had to straight up run away from him or resort to trickery to beat him. Hell, in the comics, in the scene preceding Daredevil being tied up to a chimney (which is basically copy pasted into this season), he beat up Frank within seconds and Punisher had to use some sort of ultra wave sound device to disable Matt.
Beg to differ Razor. This version of the Punisher isn't *just* a trained soldier--he's USMC Forward Recon Sniper. These guys are literally the best of the best of the entire Marine Corps and often become SEALS. And yes, they are trained extensively in knife fighting, shooting blind folded, and maintaining combat readiness even under severe injury.
+Head Trauma Is he a ninja? Does he have radar powers that enable him to anticipate every move his opponent makes in a hand-to-hand confrontation? Didn't think so. Argument stands.
USMC do not become SEALS. You have to be apart of the Navy to be a SEAL. Also, most in the military have poor training in most martial arts, with just basic moves from Brazilian Jujitsu and a few others. The Military gives you lots of confidence but without the real skills to back it up against a trained martial artist or someone with years of fighting experience. Frank Castle would rely on his firearms, but against something like a Ninja in hand to hand, would be quickly dispatched in seconds. People have this idea in their heads that the military are highly trained in hand to hand but they simply aren't, you get an extremely basic training in fighting skills and taught to rely on your rifle.
I'm a big Punisher fan, he's my favorite Marvel character, but I agree with the fact that there's too much bullshit he gets away with in comics alone. I miss when Punisher comics were more self contained stories. Him beating Captain America is as dumb as Franken-Castle.
Surprised you didn't mention that Motorhead was playing in the background of the biker scene in episode 3. it put a big fucking smile on my face when I heard it
I rose in indignation when you said Daredevil was the best thing currently on Netflix. When you qualified your statement with Blade Runner, I sat back down. Superb review, as always Razorfist. You tirelessly earn my subscription...unlike a lot of other review channels I can name.
I think one of the parts that really shined in this season is Murdock's struggle to find balance in both him being the Daredevil, as well as his life in general. There is always going to be the typical balancing of dual identities and that was surely done pretty well. But what was 100x better was him trying to balance everything involving the Punisher and Elektra's escapades in Hell's Kitchen. That was the point in the season that really had me twisting and turning because I wondered just whether or not all of it would be too much for him, or he would pull a miracle out of his ass and make it all work.
I don't think the absence of Hand flashbacks is due to the Punisher. It was budget concerns. The artists hide it well,but it's still fairly obvious that they were struggling to tell this sprawling story with the limited resources available to even a high end TV show. Hence the suddenly minimalist set design and exposition dumps in later episodes as they tried to save their last big wad for the finale.
Goddamn YES to every scrap of this, from critique of the Punisher to the demand for the DVD to wanting to bottle Elektra's voice and breathe it as air.
Partially semantics, partially to explain Castle's hair style: In this iteration, they've changed his back story to make him a Marine instead of a soldier. The high and tight hair style is extremely common in the USMC, especially in the infantry with hilarious variations on it needing to be banned by the actual Uniform Board (look up the horseshoe for a cringe induced laugh fit). I was an Air Winger and preferred the High Fade myself, but none of our regulation cuts could be considered good looking Aside from that minor quibble and admittedly weak reasoning for a character hair's choice (he's no longer in the service, he should have made like the rest of us and grown out his hair to civilian levels), wonderful review and highly entertaining. Thank you.
The Punisher plot was more interesting to watch than The Hand plot, but that's only because they refused to develop it fully. I can understand why people prefer the Punisher. Every time they switched back to Elecktra and Stick, I get the feeling viewers were scratching their heads saying "What's happening now? Something with Ninjas?" They really dropped the ball on that one. Also, am I the only one who felt the romance between Karen Page and Matt Murdock was really flat? not that it wasn't written well, the actors felt like they were only kissing each other because they had to. Deborah Ann Woll looked like she cringed pretty hard anytime there was a romantic scene, she looked really tense like she didn't want to be there.
+Child0fVis0n Matt is a snatch slayer in the comics, as razor said in a previous video, Daredevil is a gash hound and any woman that even shows him so side boobage gets to know all his fucking secrets.
+daniel 39 Netflix Canada also is denied Blade Runner. I do use a VPN though, so I may have to right a great wrong and finally see Blade Runner for the first time.
you're the first reviewer I've seen that articulates everything he says perfectly. it's like fucking poetry when u open your mouth, plus your joke deliveries always have me in tears.
Damn, that intro song with the clips from the show is so bad ass. When the guitar starts and Daredevil busts through the window, you know shit's about the get fucking real!
To be fair, Paul Kersey was a medic. Frank is a Force Recon Marine. But yeah, Cap losing to him is just ridiculous based on strength, however, Matt losing to him seems fairly reasonable.
awesome review razor i was waiting for this video and it was worth it and yes season 2 was epic, and lets be honest at this point season 3 is so going to be based solely on frank millers born again comic
Castle is not a regular soldier. He was marine force recon and also the absolute best of the best at what he did. Him standing up to Daredevil I feel is appropriate though not necessarily beating him.
The problem with Soldiers is you usually encounter them in things called SQUADS, PLATOONS or COMPANIES Since Frank Castle is just a single "grunt" it's unrealistic a Stick Trained Matt Murdock was taken down by him? I'd say The Punisher has proven he's far MORE than a Soldier the same way Black Widow & Hawkeye aren't just run of the mill Covert Operatives.
I think you're all focusing on realism too much here. Hawkeye and Black Widow are powerless humans. They're more mundane than Dare Devil. Dare Devil at least has something that can technically be called a power. Hawkeye and Black Widow? They're just really well trained. If they can pull of insane feats of strength against super commandos, aliens, and robots. I'm sure Punisher can at least hold his own against Dare Devil for more than 3 to 5 seconds as everyone is saying.
That One Oldtaku Yes, but Daredevil without his powers can perform better than both their amazing feats of strength and with his "powers" it is unlikely they can even hold a candle to him.
Hawkeye took out an alien hoverbike with an arrow without looking. Without powers. So if a normal dude can do something people would mostly expect only Dare Devil could do, with training alone, it's not improbable to beat him in a fist fight. Though again. Comicbook movies. Real world rules of reality don't apply here. Really it's just bad writing in general. The "normal" heroes can do pretty much anything a super powered hero could do if it's needed for the plot. Dare Devil needed to be put in a vulnerable spot for the discussion the rooftop. So they made Punisher beat him down.
Agreed with everything you said, my only real criticism of this season is a lot of the fights seemed to just be there for the sake of having a cool fight when the reasons the fight was happening didn't hold much weight compared to the first season when most of the fights seemed to have good reason. For example, it was awesome when he fought those bikers but the only conflict was the bikers thought Daredevil blew up their bikes. Sure, Frank wanted to kill them so they probably deserved it but there wasn't much conflict there.
Yes! YES! I'm so tired of people saying the Punisher needs his own show, when the sum of his personality begins and ends with murder. Awesome character, but There's nothing to explore about the guy. "And then he killed a guy" would be the synopsis of every episode. With how they set him up in the show, He would only works as a side character.
+DrakeVagabond This. Punisher is fucking amazing, simply because I love anti-heros, but they're almost always better as support and side characters, and to that extent, they become my favorite characters surpassing the protagonist, but without the protagonist, plots would grind to a fucking halt. I mean, I love the Greyjoys in A Song of Ice and Fire, but aside from raiding a few towns and yelling at each other over an island and dragon trombone, they do fuck all for the actual plot, compared to Jon, Tyrion, Sansa, Arya, Cersei... etc. Punisher would be suited best as a recurring in Daredevil, that comes back at inopportune times, either to help, or because he is royally pissed the fuck off and wants to kill some bitches and Daredevil can't stop him due to being caught up with other shit. Devil in Cellblock D is so fucking good for that reason, Frank has respect for Matt, but he is trying to teach Matt, that sometimes you have to kill, and that dynamic is so fucking interesting between the two. Daredevil works without Punisher. Punisher works best with Daredevil in the midst.
this review is a thing of beauty. thank you for mention the punisher vs cap fights. he lso fought cap to standstill sometime in the 80s in cap 241. but jon claimed the role as his own.
In Frank Castle's defense, he is a Special Forces soldier. More combat training. And in their initial conflict Frank only wins because he pulls a gun from his ankle holster and grazes Daredevil on the side of the head.
I'm surprised you didn't make more mention of the Kingpin / Matt Murdock scene, which in many ways, was the scene that always stuck with me after watching the series. It also seems as though the show runners are planning to use the Murdock Papers story line as a basis for the next season.
I agree that Punisher's inclusion in the series had considerble faults. Speaking as a Punisher fan, I think that his story didn't need to take up as much of the centre stage as it did and should've been a side story to pepper in some over the top 80's-esque action between Elektra/Hand story movements. When used as a non-lead character Punisher should be used selectively for short intervals to add fuel an already burning fire and nothing else. One thing I will say in Punisher's favour here is that the writing staff for Daredevil did do a good job of showing a more complex character in Frank Castle than most comic/film writers have previously (fan-boners aside). Normally, he's an almost silent and golem-like figure whose soul purpose is to kill those who harm others, but this series showed a more human figure behind the spray paint skull without making him seem like he's merely desperate for pity and a shoulder to cry on. Anyway, stellar review, Razorfist. Keep the content coming!
I'm surprised you didn't mention Vincent D'onofrio's brief appearance and him earning his namesake. Wilson Fisk has always been my favorite villain and this show fucking nails it.
Abso-fucking-lutely we need Daredevil on DVD! (I prefer Blu Ray lol, but they usually release them side by side, so fuck it.) Season 2 and still no physical release is fucking bullshit!
People who complain about the show ALWAYS reveal their ignorance of the subject - both Elektra and the Punisher are much closer to their original comic origins - I felt this season was even more true to the comic pages and the show runners were clearly testing the waters for the other shows - Love your reviews - you run circles around the competition.
The one thing that I took umbrage with was the way they didn't address the 'Kill criminals, or don't' issue very well. A little too much moralist browbeating for me... right up to the point where Daredevil not only screwed the pooch, but the pooch's bitch mother, papa dog, and the cat - when he said "You're right. My way isn't working so we will do it your way this one time" only for the Punisher to also deliver a contradiction of his own. "There's no way back from my side of the line, Red" Hurrrr fucking durrrr Marvel.
Daredevil has officially risen past my favorite super-hero, Batman. Fucking amazingly well done show. Along with this show and your reviews has got me very much interested in reading that comics.
Child0fVis0n I'm not exactly the biggest fan of that show because just the nature of it bothers me big time (younger versions of villains for example).
The death of Ben Urich though......sealed the emotions of WHO Wilson Fisk AND it was the only time I almost cried. And I really didn't give a fuck about Electra or the The Hand, hopefully Defenders put an end to the Hand storyline for good
Good job pointing out ACTUAL flaws that others may have missed. I'm still not entirely convinced though that Daredevil easily overpowering the Punisher would turn out better for the show and for the dynamic between them.
I don't remember Punisher winning any fist fight against Daredevil. Punisher pulled out a pistol and shot Daredevil while he was distracted by something.
There was some issues I had with pacing and script, but this is a 9.0/10 show at least and the action is the best I have ever seen on television. It's a joy to watch in its execution of beauty and brutality.
Iv been looking forward to this review for a while now. Completely agreed with everything. I'm nearly done with my second viewing. I loved just about everything to do with this season, but I do think that the Electra/hand storyline didn't fit with the punishers. It was like here is 30 minutes of daredevil fighting ninjas and Electra straight up murdering dudes. Then here's 10 minutes of Karen page looking through old news papers about frank castle. The punisher was great, the performance was amazing. What would have been better is to maybe give him a one or two episode introduction, or perhaps even a 6 episode miniseries devoted to his introduction and clash with daredevil, then give him his own stand alone series. Electra needed more time given to her and the hands storyline. The punisher needed more time on his own. There wasn't enough room for both this season. Still a 10/10 though because I'm nitpicking.
"Punisher is a dude who kills dude. Fin" Which is why I am very hesitated of Netflix considering to make a Punisher series. I keep asking everybody, what will Frank Castle be doing for the next 13 one hour episodes? Kill people? It's going to get boring very quickly.
+Nam Nguyen - Yeah, that's always been my issue (no pun intended) with Punisher comics, as well. When he doesn't have another hero to bounce off, his stories have a tendency to lapse into formulaic dogshit. The Garth Ennis Punisher MAX run being the worst offender. Ever story arc follows the format of 'Introduce villain > villain does a bad thing > villain does a REALLY bad thing > Punisher finds villain, gets the shit kicked out of him, nearly dies > Punisher comes back and kills the ever-living shit out of the villain'. Repeat as needed.
The writers wanted to add more to the plot with the hand, especially with Nobu, but Jeph Loeb wouldn't let them, stating that no one cares about Asian characters or some shit. Come on man, you've done great work with Daredevil, and don't you know that people enjoy fleshed out and interesting villains with great worldbuilding would have made the Hand better?
Glad to hear someone else enjoyed S2 as much as I did after hearing so many lukewarm or shitty responses to it. Daredevil and Punisher were my favorites as a kid, and there were lots of "fuck yeah" moments for me, especially in the first half.
I love the Punisher, and Bernthal as an actor, but you're right. And later in his own Netflix series, he apparently develops Wolverine's healing powers 😂
"Why don't you have him throw down with thanos" 5 years later... Punisher has ghost rider powers and both fights and teams up with thanos... thanks for giving the marvel hacks ideas razor.
I too was surprised that Punisher was holding his own in fist fights with Daredevil but I suspended my disbelief. They're trying to make him seems as badass as possible for the scrubs that don't read comics. I loved the portray of Elektra, the actress handled herself well and had good chemistry with Matt. Great season. Especially loved the return of Nobu and Fisk. So fucking awesome.
My favorite moment was the prison seen with Fisk and Matt. My least favorite was when Frank showed up to the rooftop scene. I felt that that was completely unnecessary.
I'm glad I'm not the only one more interested in Daredevil and Elektra than the Punisher. Just a more interesting arc. Found it really odd that he just showed up to snipe some ninjas on the rooftop then peace out.
They need to put Bullseye in this show yesterday. Daredevil's best fights are with Bullseye, the guy murdered both Elektra and Karen and yet the show thinks it's more important to introduce Punisher. The hand to hand fight between the two would be as good if not better than the season 1 Nobu fight.
Nexus Zen I'm just mad Bullseye didn't rape and kill Elektra in the series like he did in the comics. That's just a meaningless gripe considering the quality of the series.
Holy shit all i can say is those first 4 episodes. How could you not think this was teh best thing you could watch on your tv after all that. I def like season 2 but do feel it slowed down a bit towards the end. But i am really loving how they manage to still make this season most frightening threat all about King Pin (even though he was barely in it). Great series can't wait for season 3
"[The Punisher] is also highly adept at hand-to-hand combat, and has been trained in multiple forms of martial arts such as Nash Ryu Jujutsu, Ninjutsu, Shorin-ryu Karate, Hwa Rang Do, and Chin Na." -Wikipedia, referencing Punisher Annual vol.2, #2 (September 1989)
+NecroArmorLink "I haven't got a chance against him. Never do." - Punisher, on Daredevil, in the pages of his own comic. "Welcome Back, Frank" story arc.
I knew Jon Bernthel could do it from the minute I heard he got picked for the role. That's enough about Punisher. Season 2 actually didn't feel that good to binge. I was already worn out by episode 3's amazing action sequences. So when I got to the best shit with the ninjas, I was out of breath. I'm watching both series again at some point, but I would prefer to do so with said Bluray and DVD release! Oh, and Foggy was easily my favorite character this season. Suck it IGN.
honestly while I do love season 2, I must admit that it seriously pissed me off with how disjointed the story felt. Something in that season was defenitely not supposed to be there.
Not sure if this was brought up already, but the word “soldier” in the US military applies only to members of the Army (like how Airman and Sailor only apply to members of the Air Force and Navy, respectfully). In the Netflix continuity, Frank Castle was a Marine, and as any real life Marine will correct you on, they aren’t “Soldiers.”
I believe the reason why the Punisher's hair was cut that way, was because he just came home from war and Marines have to have their hair nearly buzzed. If Marvel and Netflix ever do want to bring back The Punisher, there's a good chance that they would have Jon Bernthal grow out his hair just like how the Punisher has it in the comics.
I loved it. BUT, whilst this had some better moments, I felt season 1 was better paced from start to finish. But god damn, season 2 is still great man :)
I liked Season 1 more, but I still found S2 quite enjoyable. I won't ever take "modern noir", ninjas and good action choreography for granted, but I do think this had a couple of noticeable flaws, while with S1 I had to be more nitpicky to find them. This time around, I believe both stories (Elektra&Punisher) didn't blend well which made the pacing of the show suffer and Frank's final confrontation with the blacksmith underwhelming. Also, even if Kingpin controls the prison, I think seeing little to no repercussion to the fucking chaos he orchestrated there was very weak. Finally, I agree with you that Stick having exposition dialogue about the Hand was horrible: in fact, I'd say it undermined the whole Elektra story and made everything a little more unbelievable for me. Elodie Young was more than adequate in her role but I just didn't buy how far Matt went for her: I actually believe he was out of character in the final episode, not to mention the rushed (and then abruptly ended) romance with Karen. Having said all this, I'd give the season a 7/10 and the first one a 9/10. For the record, I did like S2 more than Jessica Jones.
+Harold Black This. I want Ironfist far more than Luke Cage. Mainly because Devil in Cellblock D, and Ironfist was portrayed relatively well for a childs cartoon in Ultimate Spiderman, in the whole like two episodes I watched of it.
10:00 - Good catch on the strange Stick/Matt discussion. You can tell by the way the camera is kind of panning out and unfocusing that this was supposed to be a flash back, but it looks like they ran out of budget ... or time.
Great review, Razor. New Subscriber but I love your work already. You forgot one of the only other down points was the literal plot hole of the 12 story pit that is NEVER MENTIONED AGAIN!
Not sure if you know the context for that moment of Punisher killing Cap Razor, but if I recall, it came from a Zombie Apocalypse AU. Cap was infected, and Punisher was the only one there to put him down before he became a zombie. Also, I believe the writers said that Ben's death was because they were under the assumption that they weren't allowed to use him after that (As they were unaware of the Spider-Man negotiations).
Yes! Yes! Yes! Great review and very astute observations of the good (great!) and bad of how Frank Castle was characterised in the season. Your thoughts reminded me of a common occurrence in Arrow that makes my eyes roll out of my head: some new villain will come along who for no good reason becomes an expert in hand-to-hand combat. The only reason I can see for this is the writers want the viewer to feel that Team Arrow is in actual danger from this person and they have no other way to achieve this than to fudge the dice roll. Frank Castle is a badass but DareDevil is a super badass.
Yeah, that "coiffe" is referred to in the Marine Corp as a "high reg" meaning, within the norms of a haircut that is to uniform regulations. More common among Marines is the "high and tight" which is absolutely to the letter of minimum regulations (technically it is against regulation to completely shave ones head, though that is often ignored, especially on deployment). Among short timers and those often called shit birds by other Marines are the "mid reg" and "low reg" hair cuts, which technically within the uniform regulations are considered to demonstrate ones "shit bagginess" also, whoever they had giving him that hair cut, wasn't very good at the "fade" Marines get at the barber.
+FrankDaTank1218 - ...a point that was defended by actual members of the military. Maybe try checking the top comment on the video next time? ...but, then... _you're_ the guy who thinks 'good hand-to-hand' is equatable to being trained as a *_goddamn ninja_* and imbued with radioactive radar powers.
+The Rageaholic even top comments selected, the post you mentioned is not being seen. however, "goddamn ninja" is nothing more than a "karate knowing spy". yes, ninjas are scary, but it is mostly due to their stealth and agility skills. however, this doesn't means their fighting skills are the best. apart from what "actual members of the military" said, Frank Castle is not simple conscript. good hand to hand combat knowledge is one thing, and "GOOD" hand to hand combat knowledge is another thing. American Navy Seals, Russian Spetsnaz or Turkish Maroon Berets are known for their hard trainings. I am sure a guy like Frank Castle knows enough Boxing, Krav Maga, Jiujitsu and Muay Thai to fight against a ninja. What does a Navy Seal knows? www.livestrong.com/article/429350-styles-martial-arts-navy-seals-learn/
Here is a rather simple even the best spec ops soldier can outshoot a martial arts master he can out knife fight some martial arts masters(depends on the style in question) and he can beat the holy hell out of a normal person or anothe solider in a fist fight he will get torn to shreds by a martial arts master someone who has dedicated a good chunk of their life to mastering the art of beating people into a bloody pulp in hand to hand combat.
+Ten of Spades actually, incorrect. The martial arts taught to marines are actually incredibly complex and tailor Mae for combat. Marine scout snipers and force recon marines (which it states Punisher is) are trained extensively in MAACP, or marine martial arts for the layman. It's an extremely fast, particularly violent martial art that focuses heavily on disarmament and repurposing of weapons, grapples, and takedowns, as well as not just blocking enemy attacks, but locking their limbs and turning their own bodies against them. Combine that with Frank Castle's strength and speed and while he lost to daredevil in the long run, makes former special operations marines extremely deadly in hand to hand. If you're looking for a martial arts discipline to learn, it's extremely practical.
SPOILERS One thing that pissed me off about season two was the ending, where Matt talks about running away with Elektra and leaving everything behind. Really? Kingpin just threatened to kill your best friend when he gets out of prision (which seems to be in the verge of happening) and you gonna run away? I kinda spoiled the end for me, for I knew that something would happen to ruin this runnaway.
Bladerunner on Netflix....director's cut or the theatrical? Oh and you are right about Frank Castle....he is a soldier....but he is also special forces so he does have hand to hand training....but not enough to win against Daredevil in a straight out hand to hand fight. I also agree about the DVD release....I'm waiting Netflix.
The Punisher/Daredevil dynamic was easily the best part of this season and why the first 4 episodes were my favorite. It was enjoyable season overall, but it felt like the show lost a lot of momentum that it never regained when the Punisher was put in prison.
Punisher aint Dirty Harry. Maybe at first, but the character had grown considerably. In BORN it is heavily implied Frank made a deal with Satan to become the personification of Death. It is heavily implied he is superhuman but it is not explicitly spelled out in typical comic book fashion.
At 11:09, Razörfist becomes the PUNisher.
I regret nothing people.
I don't actually mind that Punisher "beats" Daredevil at the end of episode one, because he gets his ass handed to him and just manages to get the upperhand because of a gun that Matt didn't notice. Daredevil even blames himself for that the following episode, calls himself stupid for not noticing.
+Dale Luck Also I have a question that I'd like to know what others who've watched it would say. Throughout the entire season, Daredevil is constantly told (by a street level weapons dealer, by Punisher, by Stick, etc.) that his inability to wipe out criminals instead of just crippling them is completely useless, and I thought it was leading up to him actually killing someone.
On that final fight with the ninjas on the roof, Matt doesn't protest against Punisher's shitty cameo appearance in sniping off the ninjas around him, and proceeds to roundhouse kick Nobu off the roof.
For any other criminal that he wasn't vaguely aware could come back from the dead, this would be a death sentence. Was this what Daredevil had wanted, following the death of Elektra? Was it just a poorly shot "Daredevil now kills people" sequence or was it a flacid "I'm going to be angry for 5 seconds now the person I love is dead" and he's going back to normal next season?
Murdock's favorite line: I'm kinda busy right now
+SilentTree "It's complicated."
I feel so bad for him.
I thought Elektra was an incredibly refreshing and complex female character. She was a strong and sexy female lead. I did not see her as necessarily bad or good.When it counted she made the right choices but I think that we're used to seeing heroes that put people first rather than themselves. I don't think she was any less compelling than the Kingpin because she was meant to add a different side to Matt's past and character that we have not seen played out before. Because of Elektra we saw Matt break into Fogwell's gym, steal cars, etc. and we also got to see how far his "no-kill" rule extends.
Elektra had the potential to bring out the absolute worst in Matt as opposed to the rest of the cast.
That's something *NO* one was able to accomplish in season 1. I think it's unfortunate that she was overlooked by so many. You would think that women and men that like women would be proud of Elodie Yung's performance and how the writer's handled her character.
Well said, and Godspeed!
Charlie Cox is fucking spectacular, hope he gets the recognition he deserves eventually.
Agreed 100%
Fingers crossed that Spiderstooge doesn't fuck it up.
I wish they were more scenes of Matt with the priest.
I don´t know, those were kinda sweet in S1. Though I feel there wasn´t enough room for them with all the action.
that story the priest told matt in S1 was just soooo good
I also loved those scenes. Basically the internal moral struggle between Daredevils vigilantism and Matt's Roman Catholic faith shown on screen. The actor playing the priest deserves more screen time.
As much as I'm a Punisher fanboy, I was surprised that not only he could survive this long against Daredevil, but even win in hand to hand. He got beat up pretty badly, but still. In Ennis' run he either had to straight up run away from him or resort to trickery to beat him. Hell, in the comics, in the scene preceding Daredevil being tied up to a chimney (which is basically copy pasted into this season), he beat up Frank within seconds and Punisher had to use some sort of ultra wave sound device to disable Matt.
As an Iraqi veteran myself I had the exact same reaction to Frank's inexplicable fighting ability when fighting Daredevil.
+Alexis Sánchez - Thanks for your service, brother.
+The Rageaholic Thanks for the support
Beg to differ Razor. This version of the Punisher isn't *just* a trained soldier--he's USMC Forward Recon Sniper. These guys are literally the best of the best of the entire Marine Corps and often become SEALS. And yes, they are trained extensively in knife fighting, shooting blind folded, and maintaining combat readiness even under severe injury.
+Head Trauma Is he a ninja? Does he have radar powers that enable him to anticipate every move his opponent makes in a hand-to-hand confrontation?
Didn't think so. Argument stands.
+The Rageaholic I don't think he won the first fight, I mean sure he ended it but only after getting his ass beat and with a surprise gun.
Head Trauma How the fuck do you shoot blindfolded? Not saying they cant, just wondering how the fuck.
USMC do not become SEALS. You have to be apart of the Navy to be a SEAL. Also, most in the military have poor training in most martial arts, with just basic moves from Brazilian Jujitsu and a few others. The Military gives you lots of confidence but without the real skills to back it up against a trained martial artist or someone with years of fighting experience. Frank Castle would rely on his firearms, but against something like a Ninja in hand to hand, would be quickly dispatched in seconds. People have this idea in their heads that the military are highly trained in hand to hand but they simply aren't, you get an extremely basic training in fighting skills and taught to rely on your rifle.
I'm a big Punisher fan, he's my favorite Marvel character, but I agree with the fact that there's too much bullshit he gets away with in comics alone. I miss when Punisher comics were more self contained stories. Him beating Captain America is as dumb as Franken-Castle.
Surprised you didn't mention that Motorhead was playing in the background of the biker scene in episode 3. it put a big fucking smile on my face when I heard it
Also, Bronson's mustache can defeat just about anything.
I rose in indignation when you said Daredevil was the best thing currently on Netflix. When you qualified your statement with Blade Runner, I sat back down.
Superb review, as always Razorfist. You tirelessly earn my subscription...unlike a lot of other review channels I can name.
I think one of the parts that really shined in this season is Murdock's struggle to find balance in both him being the Daredevil, as well as his life in general. There is always going to be the typical balancing of dual identities and that was surely done pretty well. But what was 100x better was him trying to balance everything involving the Punisher and Elektra's escapades in Hell's Kitchen. That was the point in the season that really had me twisting and turning because I wondered just whether or not all of it would be too much for him, or he would pull a miracle out of his ass and make it all work.
This is where I post my obligatory request for a Bladerunner review...
I don't think the absence of Hand flashbacks is due to the Punisher. It was budget concerns. The artists hide it well,but it's still fairly obvious that they were struggling to tell this sprawling story with the limited resources available to even a high end TV show. Hence the suddenly minimalist set design and exposition dumps in later episodes as they tried to save their last big wad for the finale.
Goddamn YES to every scrap of this, from critique of the Punisher to the demand for the DVD to wanting to bottle Elektra's voice and breathe it as air.
Partially semantics, partially to explain Castle's hair style: In this iteration, they've changed his back story to make him a Marine instead of a soldier. The high and tight hair style is extremely common in the USMC, especially in the infantry with hilarious variations on it needing to be banned by the actual Uniform Board (look up the horseshoe for a cringe induced laugh fit). I was an Air Winger and preferred the High Fade myself, but none of our regulation cuts could be considered good looking
Aside from that minor quibble and admittedly weak reasoning for a character hair's choice (he's no longer in the service, he should have made like the rest of us and grown out his hair to civilian levels), wonderful review and highly entertaining. Thank you.
Spoiler safety is the best thing in the history of movie/series reviews.
Okay, but you have to admit that the fight scene of Frank Castle in the hallway versus all those prisoners was an absolute blessing to your eyes.
The Punisher plot was more interesting to watch than The Hand plot, but that's only because they refused to develop it fully. I can understand why people prefer the Punisher. Every time they switched back to Elecktra and Stick, I get the feeling viewers were scratching their heads saying "What's happening now? Something with Ninjas?" They really dropped the ball on that one.
Also, am I the only one who felt the romance between Karen Page and Matt Murdock was really flat? not that it wasn't written well, the actors felt like they were only kissing each other because they had to. Deborah Ann Woll looked like she cringed pretty hard anytime there was a romantic scene, she looked really tense like she didn't want to be there.
+Child0fVis0n Matt is a snatch slayer in the comics, as razor said in a previous video, Daredevil is a gash hound and any woman that even shows him so side boobage gets to know all his fucking secrets.
God damn it! You mentioned Blade Runner and I immediately went to Netflix only be sorely disappointed.
Netflix Ireland disappoints, yet again.
+Al Valentyn You and I alike, brother.
+Al Valentyn At least you don't have Mexican Netflix
+Al Valentyn you need to use a vpn. vpns alow you to get on to the neflix of other countries.
+daniel 39 Netflix Canada also is denied Blade Runner. I do use a VPN though, so I may have to right a great wrong and finally see Blade Runner for the first time.
+Al Valentyn Wait, there are different shows depending on the region? What the fuck man.
lol I completely agree about the Clancy Brown subplot. As soon as I saw him on the witness stand, I said "Fuck. This guy is always a bad guy".
you're the first reviewer I've seen that articulates everything he says perfectly. it's like fucking poetry when u open your mouth, plus your joke deliveries always have me in tears.
The thing I love about Razorfist is the way he talks. He's extremely energetic and never bores you, even unscripted on the Drunken Peasants.
Damn, that intro song with the clips from the show is so bad ass. When the guitar starts and Daredevil busts through the window, you know shit's about the get fucking real!
Just (as in literally just) as I finish Daredevil S2, you upload this. It's like my birthday or something. :D
The Punisher was inspired by Mack Bolan "The Executioner" written by Don Pendleton beginning in 1969. Check out one of his books!
To be fair, Paul Kersey was a medic.
Frank is a Force Recon Marine. But yeah, Cap losing to him is just ridiculous based on strength, however, Matt losing to him seems fairly reasonable.
awesome review razor i was waiting for this video and it was worth it and yes season 2 was epic, and lets be honest at this point season 3 is so going to be based solely on frank millers born again comic
Hipster beard might be putting it too lightly. I thought the dude was actually allen ginsberg.
I just realized, while listening to Razör complaining about the fact that the Punisher is overpowered... The Punisher is Marvel's Batman.
He is the 1970s version of Batman
Not really . Batman is closer to captain america in strength , way more well trained in hand to hand and probably far more intelligent.
Castle is not a regular soldier. He was marine force recon and also the absolute best of the best at what he did. Him standing up to Daredevil I feel is appropriate though not necessarily beating him.
The problem with Soldiers is you usually encounter them in things called SQUADS, PLATOONS or COMPANIES
Since Frank Castle is just a single "grunt" it's unrealistic a Stick Trained Matt Murdock was taken down by him?
I'd say The Punisher has proven he's far MORE than a Soldier the same way Black Widow & Hawkeye aren't just run of the mill Covert Operatives.
Yes, but against a superpowered ninja with ultra hearing getting beat by him is still quite the stretch.
I think you're all focusing on realism too much here. Hawkeye and Black Widow are powerless humans. They're more mundane than Dare Devil. Dare Devil at least has something that can technically be called a power. Hawkeye and Black Widow? They're just really well trained. If they can pull of insane feats of strength against super commandos, aliens, and robots. I'm sure Punisher can at least hold his own against Dare Devil for more than 3 to 5 seconds as everyone is saying.
That One Oldtaku Yes, but Daredevil without his powers can perform better than both their amazing feats of strength and with his "powers" it is unlikely they can even hold a candle to him.
Hawkeye took out an alien hoverbike with an arrow without looking. Without powers.
So if a normal dude can do something people would mostly expect only Dare Devil could do, with training alone, it's not improbable to beat him in a fist fight.
Though again. Comicbook movies. Real world rules of reality don't apply here.
Really it's just bad writing in general. The "normal" heroes can do pretty much anything a super powered hero could do if it's needed for the plot. Dare Devil needed to be put in a vulnerable spot for the discussion the rooftop. So they made Punisher beat him down.
That One Oldtaku Doesn't make it a valid argument as to why the Punisher beating him wouldn't be a stretch, but true.
Agreed with everything you said, my only real criticism of this season is a lot of the fights seemed to just be there for the sake of having a cool fight when the reasons the fight was happening didn't hold much weight compared to the first season when most of the fights seemed to have good reason. For example, it was awesome when he fought those bikers but the only conflict was the bikers thought Daredevil blew up their bikes. Sure, Frank wanted to kill them so they probably deserved it but there wasn't much conflict there.
Yes! YES! I'm so tired of people saying the Punisher needs his own show, when the sum of his personality begins and ends with murder. Awesome character, but There's nothing to explore about the guy. "And then he killed a guy" would be the synopsis of every episode. With how they set him up in the show, He would only works as a side character.
+DrakeVagabond This. Punisher is fucking amazing, simply because I love anti-heros, but they're almost always better as support and side characters, and to that extent, they become my favorite characters surpassing the protagonist, but without the protagonist, plots would grind to a fucking halt. I mean, I love the Greyjoys in A Song of Ice and Fire, but aside from raiding a few towns and yelling at each other over an island and dragon trombone, they do fuck all for the actual plot, compared to Jon, Tyrion, Sansa, Arya, Cersei... etc.
Punisher would be suited best as a recurring in Daredevil, that comes back at inopportune times, either to help, or because he is royally pissed the fuck off and wants to kill some bitches and Daredevil can't stop him due to being caught up with other shit. Devil in Cellblock D is so fucking good for that reason, Frank has respect for Matt, but he is trying to teach Matt, that sometimes you have to kill, and that dynamic is so fucking interesting between the two.
Daredevil works without Punisher.
Punisher works best with Daredevil in the midst.
this review is a thing of beauty. thank you for mention the punisher vs cap fights. he lso fought cap to standstill sometime in the 80s in cap 241. but jon claimed the role as his own.
YES! Credits song is Devil & Daughter. One of my favorite latterday Sabbath tunes.
In Frank Castle's defense, he is a Special Forces soldier. More combat training. And in their initial conflict Frank only wins because he pulls a gun from his ankle holster and grazes Daredevil on the side of the head.
I'm surprised you didn't make more mention of the Kingpin / Matt Murdock scene, which in many ways, was the scene that always stuck with me after watching the series. It also seems as though the show runners are planning to use the Murdock Papers story line as a basis for the next season.
I agree that Punisher's inclusion in the series had considerble faults. Speaking as a Punisher fan, I think that his story didn't need to take up as much of the centre stage as it did and should've been a side story to pepper in some over the top 80's-esque action between Elektra/Hand story movements. When used as a non-lead character Punisher should be used selectively for short intervals to add fuel an already burning fire and nothing else.
One thing I will say in Punisher's favour here is that the writing staff for Daredevil did do a good job of showing a more complex character in Frank Castle than most comic/film writers have previously (fan-boners aside). Normally, he's an almost silent and golem-like figure whose soul purpose is to kill those who harm others, but this series showed a more human figure behind the spray paint skull without making him seem like he's merely desperate for pity and a shoulder to cry on.
Anyway, stellar review, Razorfist. Keep the content coming!
Great stuff. I eager waited this review since I finished my first thirteen hour binge.
I'm surprised you didn't mention Vincent D'onofrio's brief appearance and him earning his namesake. Wilson Fisk has always been my favorite villain and this show fucking nails it.
Spot on and 100 percent accurate. Especially the stuff about the Punisher as well as the fucking horrible Elektra criticisms from SJWs.
Loved the part at the end, because some of us don't use Netflix's steaming service but do use the DVD mailing service.
Abso-fucking-lutely we need Daredevil on DVD! (I prefer Blu Ray lol, but they usually release them side by side, so fuck it.) Season 2 and still no physical release is fucking bullshit!
I hope there's a Punisher: War Zone review soon!!
For the first time since subscribing to this channel, I have stopped the video before watching the spoiler alert. Oh, what a day
Just wanna say thanks for getting me into both this series and Daredevil as a whole (y)
I would not be surprised if we got Daredevil Season 3 Featuring Punisher and later Punisher Featuring Daredevil...
Been waiting for this review.
Daddy Razorfist just lit the match. Thanks dude, I definitely have to watch this after watching your review
People who complain about the show ALWAYS reveal their ignorance of the subject - both Elektra and the Punisher are much closer to their original comic origins - I felt this season was even more true to the comic pages and the show runners were clearly testing the waters for the other shows - Love your reviews - you run circles around the competition.
Nice Razor, I am surprise you didn't talk about the Kingpin, that talk they had in the prison was really intense.
The one thing that I took umbrage with was the way they didn't address the 'Kill criminals, or don't' issue very well. A little too much moralist browbeating for me... right up to the point where Daredevil not only screwed the pooch, but the pooch's bitch mother, papa dog, and the cat - when he said "You're right. My way isn't working so we will do it your way this one time" only for the Punisher to also deliver a contradiction of his own. "There's no way back from my side of the line, Red" Hurrrr fucking durrrr Marvel.
Daredevil has officially risen past my favorite super-hero, Batman. Fucking amazingly well done show. Along with this show and your reviews has got me very much interested in reading that comics.
+Child0fVis0n Not to me it doesn't :/ Fucking hate Gotham.
Child0fVis0n Apologies if it bothers you.
Child0fVis0n I'm not exactly the biggest fan of that show because just the nature of it bothers me big time (younger versions of villains for example).
The death of Ben Urich though......sealed the emotions of WHO Wilson Fisk AND it was the only time I almost cried. And I really didn't give a fuck about Electra or the The Hand, hopefully Defenders put an end to the Hand storyline for good
Paul Kersey was an architect but point taken.
Frank Castle was a direct RIP off of Mac Boland the executioner.
Paul Kersey was in the Korean War if I'm not mistaken.
Good job pointing out ACTUAL flaws that others may have missed. I'm still not entirely convinced though that Daredevil easily overpowering the Punisher would turn out better for the show and for the dynamic between them.
I don't remember Punisher winning any fist fight against Daredevil. Punisher pulled out a pistol and shot Daredevil while he was distracted by something.
There was some issues I had with pacing and script, but this is a 9.0/10 show at least and the action is the best I have ever seen on television. It's a joy to watch in its execution of beauty and brutality.
Iv been looking forward to this review for a while now. Completely agreed with everything. I'm nearly done with my second viewing. I loved just about everything to do with this season, but I do think that the Electra/hand storyline didn't fit with the punishers. It was like here is 30 minutes of daredevil fighting ninjas and Electra straight up murdering dudes. Then here's 10 minutes of Karen page looking through old news papers about frank castle.
The punisher was great, the performance was amazing. What would have been better is to maybe give him a one or two episode introduction, or perhaps even a 6 episode miniseries devoted to his introduction and clash with daredevil, then give him his own stand alone series.
Electra needed more time given to her and the hands storyline. The punisher needed more time on his own. There wasn't enough room for both this season.
Still a 10/10 though because I'm nitpicking.
"Punisher is a dude who kills dude. Fin" Which is why I am very hesitated of Netflix considering to make a Punisher series. I keep asking everybody, what will Frank Castle be doing for the next 13 one hour episodes? Kill people? It's going to get boring very quickly.
+Nam Nguyen - Yeah, that's always been my issue (no pun intended) with Punisher comics, as well. When he doesn't have another hero to bounce off, his stories have a tendency to lapse into formulaic dogshit. The Garth Ennis Punisher MAX run being the worst offender. Ever story arc follows the format of 'Introduce villain > villain does a bad thing > villain does a REALLY bad thing > Punisher finds villain, gets the shit kicked out of him, nearly dies > Punisher comes back and kills the ever-living shit out of the villain'.
Repeat as needed.
The writers wanted to add more to the plot with the hand, especially with Nobu, but Jeph Loeb wouldn't let them, stating that no one cares about Asian characters or some shit. Come on man, you've done great work with Daredevil, and don't you know that people enjoy fleshed out and interesting villains with great worldbuilding would have made the Hand better?
Glad to hear someone else enjoyed S2 as much as I did after hearing so many lukewarm or shitty responses to it. Daredevil and Punisher were my favorites as a kid, and there were lots of "fuck yeah" moments for me, especially in the first half.
Also, anyone who liked Stevenson in War Zone is alright in my book, sir.
I love the Punisher, and Bernthal as an actor, but you're right. And later in his own Netflix series, he apparently develops Wolverine's healing powers 😂
"Why don't you have him throw down with thanos"
5 years later...
Punisher has ghost rider powers and both fights and teams up with thanos... thanks for giving the marvel hacks ideas razor.
I too was surprised that Punisher was holding his own in fist fights with Daredevil but I suspended my disbelief. They're trying to make him seems as badass as possible for the scrubs that don't read comics. I loved the portray of Elektra, the actress handled herself well and had good chemistry with Matt.
Great season. Especially loved the return of Nobu and Fisk. So fucking awesome.
My favorite moment was the prison seen with Fisk and Matt. My least favorite was when Frank showed up to the rooftop scene. I felt that that was completely unnecessary.
I'm glad I'm not the only one more interested in Daredevil and Elektra than the Punisher. Just a more interesting arc.
Found it really odd that he just showed up to snipe some ninjas on the rooftop then peace out.
They need to put Bullseye in this show yesterday. Daredevil's best fights are with Bullseye, the guy murdered both Elektra and Karen and yet the show thinks it's more important to introduce Punisher. The hand to hand fight between the two would be as good if not better than the season 1 Nobu fight.
Nexus Zen I'm just mad Bullseye didn't rape and kill Elektra in the series like he did in the comics. That's just a meaningless gripe considering the quality of the series.
Holy shit all i can say is those first 4 episodes. How could you not think this was teh best thing you could watch on your tv after all that. I def like season 2 but do feel it slowed down a bit towards the end. But i am really loving how they manage to still make this season most frightening threat all about King Pin (even though he was barely in it). Great series can't wait for season 3
"[The Punisher] is also highly adept at hand-to-hand combat, and has been trained in multiple forms of martial arts such as Nash Ryu Jujutsu, Ninjutsu, Shorin-ryu Karate, Hwa Rang Do, and Chin Na." -Wikipedia, referencing Punisher Annual vol.2, #2 (September 1989)
+NecroArmorLink "I haven't got a chance against him. Never do."
- Punisher, on Daredevil, in the pages of his own comic.
"Welcome Back, Frank" story arc.
Fucking youtube i was looking for this and a search only showed your first review,awesome review again man
I knew Jon Bernthel could do it from the minute I heard he got picked for the role.
That's enough about Punisher. Season 2 actually didn't feel that good to binge. I was already worn out by episode 3's amazing action sequences. So when I got to the best shit with the ninjas, I was out of breath. I'm watching both series again at some point, but I would prefer to do so with said Bluray and DVD release!
Oh, and Foggy was easily my favorite character this season. Suck it IGN.
honestly while I do love season 2, I must admit that it seriously pissed me off with how disjointed the story felt. Something in that season was defenitely not supposed to be there.
Not sure if this was brought up already, but the word “soldier” in the US military applies only to members of the Army (like how Airman and Sailor only apply to members of the Air Force and Navy, respectfully). In the Netflix continuity, Frank Castle was a Marine, and as any real life Marine will correct you on, they aren’t “Soldiers.”
I believe the reason why the Punisher's hair was cut that way, was because he just came home from war and Marines have to have their hair nearly buzzed. If Marvel and Netflix ever do want to bring back The Punisher, there's a good chance that they would have Jon Bernthal grow out his hair just like how the Punisher has it in the comics.
I loved it. BUT, whilst this had some better moments, I felt season 1 was better paced from start to finish. But god damn, season 2 is still great man :)
I liked Season 1 more, but I still found S2 quite enjoyable. I won't ever take "modern noir", ninjas and good action choreography for granted, but I do think this had a couple of noticeable flaws, while with S1 I had to be more nitpicky to find them. This time around, I believe both stories (Elektra&Punisher) didn't blend well which made the pacing of the show suffer and Frank's final confrontation with the blacksmith underwhelming. Also, even if Kingpin controls the prison, I think seeing little to no repercussion to the fucking chaos he orchestrated there was very weak. Finally, I agree with you that Stick having exposition dialogue about the Hand was horrible: in fact, I'd say it undermined the whole Elektra story and made everything a little more unbelievable for me. Elodie Young was more than adequate in her role but I just didn't buy how far Matt went for her: I actually believe he was out of character in the final episode, not to mention the rushed (and then abruptly ended) romance with Karen.
Having said all this, I'd give the season a 7/10 and the first one a 9/10. For the record, I did like S2 more than Jessica Jones.
Just finished season 2. The post credits Luke Cage teaser gave me blue balls, because it's not Ironfist.
+Harold Black This. I want Ironfist far more than Luke Cage. Mainly because Devil in Cellblock D, and Ironfist was portrayed relatively well for a childs cartoon in Ultimate Spiderman, in the whole like two episodes I watched of it.
10:00 - Good catch on the strange Stick/Matt discussion. You can tell by the way the camera is kind of panning out and unfocusing that this was supposed to be a flash back, but it looks like they ran out of budget ... or time.
Loved that Gladiator had his costume on under his clothes.
Great review, Razor. New Subscriber but I love your work already. You forgot one of the only other down points was the literal plot hole of the 12 story pit that is NEVER MENTIONED AGAIN!
Not sure if you know the context for that moment of Punisher killing Cap Razor, but if I recall, it came from a Zombie Apocalypse AU. Cap was infected, and Punisher was the only one there to put him down before he became a zombie.
Also, I believe the writers said that Ben's death was because they were under the assumption that they weren't allowed to use him after that (As they were unaware of the Spider-Man negotiations).
Hey, Razorfist, what's your thoughts on Batman v Superman? Can we expect a review?
+Steve -O It's a fucking disappointment. That's all people need to know.
It's actually pretty good, everyone should watch it to form their opinion on it
The actress that plays Electra is perfect for that role. Also see her playing a better Lara Croft.
Yes! Yes! Yes!
Great review and very astute observations of the good (great!) and bad of how Frank Castle was characterised in the season. Your thoughts reminded me of a common occurrence in Arrow that makes my eyes roll out of my head: some new villain will come along who for no good reason becomes an expert in hand-to-hand combat. The only reason I can see for this is the writers want the viewer to feel that Team Arrow is in actual danger from this person and they have no other way to achieve this than to fudge the dice roll.
Frank Castle is a badass but DareDevil is a super badass.
Yeah, that "coiffe" is referred to in the Marine Corp as a "high reg" meaning, within the norms of a haircut that is to uniform regulations. More common among Marines is the "high and tight" which is absolutely to the letter of minimum regulations (technically it is against regulation to completely shave ones head, though that is often ignored, especially on deployment). Among short timers and those often called shit birds by other Marines are the "mid reg" and "low reg" hair cuts, which technically within the uniform regulations are considered to demonstrate ones "shit bagginess" also, whoever they had giving him that hair cut, wasn't very good at the "fade" Marines get at the barber.
Special Operation soldiers get good hand to hand training.
Razorfist is the same guy who thinks soldiers don't have times to use sights.
+FrankDaTank1218 - ...a point that was defended by actual members of the military. Maybe try checking the top comment on the video next time?
...but, then... _you're_ the guy who thinks 'good hand-to-hand' is equatable to being trained as a *_goddamn ninja_* and imbued with radioactive radar powers.
Special Forces get training in mostly LINES type stuff.
Not that much sparring.
Not that impressive.
Any half-decent martial artist could take one on.
+The Rageaholic even top comments selected, the post you mentioned is not being seen.
however, "goddamn ninja" is nothing more than a "karate knowing spy".
yes, ninjas are scary, but it is mostly due to their stealth and agility skills.
however, this doesn't means their fighting skills are the best.
apart from what "actual members of the military" said, Frank Castle is not simple conscript.
good hand to hand combat knowledge is one thing, and "GOOD" hand to hand combat knowledge is another thing.
American Navy Seals, Russian Spetsnaz or Turkish Maroon Berets are known for their hard trainings. I am sure a guy like Frank Castle knows enough Boxing, Krav Maga, Jiujitsu and Muay Thai to fight against a ninja.
What does a Navy Seal knows?
www.livestrong.com/article/429350-styles-martial-arts-navy-seals-learn/
Here is a rather simple even the best spec ops soldier can outshoot a martial arts master he can out knife fight some martial arts masters(depends on the style in question) and he can beat the holy hell out of a normal person or anothe solider in a fist fight he will get torn to shreds by a martial arts master someone who has dedicated a good chunk of their life to mastering the art of beating people into a bloody pulp in hand to hand combat.
+Ten of Spades actually, incorrect. The martial arts taught to marines are actually incredibly complex and tailor Mae for combat. Marine scout snipers and force recon marines (which it states Punisher is) are trained extensively in MAACP, or marine martial arts for the layman. It's an extremely fast, particularly violent martial art that focuses heavily on disarmament and repurposing of weapons, grapples, and takedowns, as well as not just blocking enemy attacks, but locking their limbs and turning their own bodies against them. Combine that with Frank Castle's strength and speed and while he lost to daredevil in the long run, makes former special operations marines extremely deadly in hand to hand. If you're looking for a martial arts discipline to learn, it's extremely practical.
SPOILERS
One thing that pissed me off about season two was the ending, where Matt talks about running away with Elektra and leaving everything behind.
Really? Kingpin just threatened to kill your best friend when he gets out of prision (which seems to be in the verge of happening) and you gonna run away? I kinda spoiled the end for me, for I knew that something would happen to ruin this runnaway.
NINJAAAAS! GOD BLESS THE COMIC BOOK GODS! this review couldnt come any sooner.
Frank Castle is a Marine not a soldier but I do agree with you that as far as writing Frank Castle he does when far more than he ought to
I love hearing Razerfist talk. I'd listen to him if he did a video about the various types of shit and what it means for your health.
Honestly, part of me can't help but think the writers were making a Punisher pilot half the time.
Bladerunner on Netflix....director's cut or the theatrical? Oh and you are right about Frank Castle....he is a soldier....but he is also special forces so he does have hand to hand training....but not enough to win against Daredevil in a straight out hand to hand fight. I also agree about the DVD release....I'm waiting Netflix.
Jon IS Frank Castle. In look, in attitude, in madness.
I've disagreed with you on a lot of things, Razor, but this review was absolutely on-point. Great analysis, man.
The Punisher/Daredevil dynamic was easily the best part of this season and why the first 4 episodes were my favorite. It was enjoyable season overall, but it felt like the show lost a lot of momentum that it never regained when the Punisher was put in prison.
I think you're underestimating raw strength combined with Marine training and maybe a slightly greater will to complete the mission.
Punisher aint Dirty Harry. Maybe at first, but the character had grown considerably. In BORN it is heavily implied Frank made a deal with Satan to become the personification of Death. It is heavily implied he is superhuman but it is not explicitly spelled out in typical comic book fashion.