Now Frank Castle has returned to our screens in top form with Daredevil: Born Again, I can't help but wish The Punisher hadn't needed to kill off the antihero's best villain before his 2025 return and subsequent official confirmation the character is a part of the MCU. As part of The Defenders timeline of shows - including Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and The Defenders - The Punisher was in a liminal state for a while, since it was unclear for several years if these releases were to be considered MCU canon. Luckily for us, that status didn't last forever. 5y5ud

Having rewatched all of The Punisher, Frank Castle's story in Daredevil: Born Again makes even more sense and ties well into the antihero's solo show story. The Punisher works as one of the more self-contained Marvel show stories, despite initially being a part of the Defenders timeline and then later being made more concretely MCU timeline canon via Jon Bernthal's appearance in the cast of Daredevil: Born Again. As such, while the show certainly has its own merits, Frank Castle's arc is made so you don't have to watch prior releases to understand where he's at in Daredevil: Born Again itself.

After rewatching all 26 episodes and two seasons of The Punisher, I'm even more convinced that Daredevil: Born Again sets up the vigilante's MCU spinoff to perfectly repeat a story Frank Castle has faced many times before. The MCU timeline has brought more and more figures from the Netflix Marvel shows into its world recently, with additions like Jon Bernthal's live-action Punisher receiving considerable praise. Frank Castle certainly isn't the last figure to become a concrete part of the MCU, but his return is still decidedly welcome.

After rewatching The Punisher, I'm still impressed the show managed to pull off revealing a central character's backstory in the very final episodes of the Marvel show. Prior to Jon Bernthal's live-action Punisher appearing as a concrete part of the MCU timeline via his role in Daredevil: Born Again, Daredevil and The Punisher were the only Marvel shows this iteration of the character could be found in. As the central series for the antihero, The Punisher naturally focused the most on its titular vigilante, though it made sure to flesh out a varied and engaging roster of characters along the way.

After 6 years off-screen, I'm grateful Daredevil: Born Again season 1 nailed the one thing the MCU needed to get right about the Punisher upon his return to the small screen. The return of the likes of Charlie Cox's Daredevil, Vincent D'Onofrio's Kingpin, and - of course - Jon Bernthal's Punisher have been cause for celebration for many Marvel fans, especially since it appeared as though these role reprisals might be impossible earlier in the franchise's run. Now, not only have these figures returned, but they've also been cemented in in the MCU timeline more concretely by Daredevil: Born Again's story.

Since the second season of Netflix's Daredevil, Jon Bernthal has been in the role of Frank Castle/The Punisher. An antihero with a complicated, traumatic history including military service, the character acted as a foil to the deeply Catholic Matt Murdock/Daredevil due to their differing views on vigilantism. He received his own spin-off thereafter, which lasted for two seasons, and following a couple of guest spots on Daredevil: Born Again, he is slated to receive his own special presentation on Disney+.

WARNING: This articles includes MAJOR SPOILERS from Daredevil: Born Again episode 9.Following the major events of the Daredevil: Born Again season 1 finale, Marvel Cinematic Universe star Vincent D’Onofrio addresses whether Kingpin might be in Jon Bernthal's Punisher spinoff project. As Daredevil: Born Again episode 9 ended with Mayor Fisk having declared all vigilante activity illegal, the MCU TV show put another story into motion, but not for Matt Murdock. Instead, Frank Castle's next MCU appearance got a slight setup, thanks to the Daredevil: Born Again post-credits scene.

The Punisher is a horrifically violent mass murderer whose desire to "punish" the wicked transcends what modern law allows. He deeply despises not just criminals but the perverse justice systems that allow systemic crime while abusing its own people in the process. Yet, many casual fans of the franchise have long forgotten what Frank Castle's logo represents, to the point where it is now in opposition to Frank's original ideology.

After rewatching all 11 hours of The Punisher season 1, I'm seriously excited to see how the MCU tackles 1 major member of the core cast of The Fantastic Four: First Steps. While it released in 2017, The Punisher season 1 had few links to the wider MCU, instead existing in a liminal state of canon when looking at the overarching on-screen franchise. After several years - and after the show's own conclusion with season 2 in 2019 - this changed, however, as the Netflix shows became more officially MCU canon, and Jon Bernthal's Punisher debuted in 2024's Daredevil series.

Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Daredevil: Born Again season 1, episode 8.Despite Frank Castle's influence on Matt Murdock's MCU story, the Punisher has been completely absent from Daredevil: Born Again. In the period between The Punisher season 2's ending and Daredevil: Born Again, many of the New York Police Department have co-opted the Punisher's iconography to represent their overly violent crime-fighting methods. Frank Castle himself seems to have taken a long break from his vigilante life, and some unidentified individuals have impersonated him to commit crimes such as murdering Hector Ayala a.k.a. White Tiger and pinning the blame for serious crimes on innocent civilians.