During that time, he was given clearer motivations, and a tragic backstory. There, he was invariably used as a foil to the more pure-hearted heroes. Furthermore, he doesn't want to lose any of the pain or anger that motivates him. Throughout all of the seasons, it is pretty mild overall. Years later during the Civil War story, when Steve Rogers was beating Frank senseless for murderingtwo supercriminals under Cap's protection, Frank refused to defend himself. This password will be used to sign into all, Bad Projection Is Ruining the Movie Theater Experience, 6 Stand-ups Analyze ChatGPTs Attempts to Steal Their Jobs, Travis Barkers Finger Is Now the Enema of Blink-182 Fans. Punisher is famously a lone wolf, but he has had some allies in the past, as his stint working with Daredevil showed. Since then, they've written for various online publications, including CBR, Screen Rant, The Gamer, and The Comics Vault. Many uses of "shit" throughout every episode. You might not have ever heard of Grace Jones before but in the 80s she was pretty big. It was a focal marketing point for The Punisher, the new 13-episode series streaming on Netflix. During his career, the prolific actor inhabited an array of troubled characters. Quickly. His father was a construction worker while his mother helped instill in him a love of books. We spray-painted [the Punisher skull] on our Hummers and body armor, and our helmets and all our guns. A man is shown carrying a severed head. In every iteration of The Punisher, Frank has always had hundreds of weapons. The skull haunts him and reminds Frank of his ongoing internal war that forever rages on. It Could Get Ugly. Dolph Lundgren was born in the small community of Spnga which is in the Stockholm county in Sweden. Sometimes he would team up with them to defeat a common foe. I gave all that up a long time ago. Frank was hunting Spider-Man after being hired by The Jackal who framed Spider-Man for the death of Norman Osborn. So you can expect a lot more blood and death in The Punisher than any of the other Defenders series. 2. I can't remember what happened, but I remember not liking it. After Dax Shepard asked her about her musical chairs relationship situation. I think the aspect of the guns and tactics and just how kickass he is written is what draws a lot of military people to him, says Army veteran Jeff Holman, whose unit in Iraq spray-painted the skull on Humvee turret armor and rooms they stayed in. A man's inner intestines and organs are briefly shown following the detonation of a bomb. Though Conway originated the Punisher, the veterans and law-enforcement officers I spoke with typically told me that their favorite tales were written by Garth Ennis, who has helmed the character on and off since 2000. A man is choked to death in an airport bathroom. Lundgren's studied at a lot of different institutions all over the world, one of them being the University of Sydney where he got his master's in chemical engineering. But the Punishers fans in law enforcement and the military think its misguided to write their fandom community off as sinister. He-Man wasn't the only character that Lundgren played that was from an existing property though. He supported Everton FC when he lived in Europe, but developed more of an interest in international football tournaments like the UEFA European Championship and the FIFA World Cup after moving to Los Angeles. In the second season of The Punisher, Frank Castle is drawn into the mystery surrounding the attempted murder of Amy Bendix where she is targeted by John Pilgrim under the orders of Anderson and Eliza Schwartz. Bernthal helped Holland by reading lines off-camera for an audition type; Holland acted onscreen in a similar video for Punisher producers. While in boot camp, Punisher was trained by Cap. A common cause of genetic limp is having one leg that is significantly shorter than the other. Bernthal attended at least one WWE event to see Angle in the ring in 2017. The show features very emotional themes throughout that may upset some viewers. Jon Bernthal, whose father was a corporate lawyer (and now chair of the board of directors for the Humane Society), enjoyed a privileged upbringing in Washington, D.C. where he attended Sidwell Friends, the same private school that counts Chelsea Clinton and Sasha and Malia Obama among its alumni. It lasted just one season. I'm a nerd who loves movies, comics, video games, and television. Yup, the role that Dolph Lundgren is most known for isn't the first one, even though most people couldn't name anything he was in before. I dont believe there is any more danger or contradiction than using any other type of fiction and cheering for the flawed protagonist. Cover of 'Punisher MAX' #57 from Garth Ennis. They think were crazed, delusional, and dare I say lawless types because we view the Punisher character as an individual that picks up where our justice system drops the ball. Sherri Johnson Meinke. The main protagonist himself is repeatedly shot, stabbed, beaten, and tortured throughout the series. GOP Megadonors Are Trying to Pull the Party Away From Trump. In doing so, does he become as bad as those he sets himself against? 2. Despite his skills and background in the military, Frank was always a family man first. For instance, Frank is a Vietnam veteran known for his expertise as a soldier in almost all of his incarnations. How Tyrel Jackson Williams Brought TikTok Cringe to, Its sort of a newer version of the L.A. actor ride that Kyle is on the first two seasons, but its worse.. But the Punisher is more complicated when it comes to discerning how he fits into the mold. Multiple men are shot and killed in an illegal safehouse containing stolen cars. Dolph Lundgren might just be one of the smartest men in the world, let alone in Hollywood. A man is executed with a shotgun blast to the back of the head. A deceased man in a warehouse is seen in the foreground with a pair of pliers sticking out of his ear. This show is INCREDIBLY violent and savage, with an extremely dark and serious tone, and it's filled with extreme graphic violence and grisly images throughout. This is definitely the most brutal death of the series. Jones was a singer, songwriter, and actress and not too long after taking on Lundgren as her bodyguard the two began dating. There are certain heroes he admires like Captain America, but for the most part he rubs other heroes the wrong way. The Marines had and have a reputation as the most dedicated, fiercest, and most honorable members of the American military, Conway recalls. As a kid, Bernthal got into fights, sometimes with weapons. Lundgren is a very avid Soccer fan, or how he refers to it, a Football Fan. Its like people saying the Swastika was a Hindu symbol that means family and love. Frank Castle has a strange sense of patriotism. Williams, a Marine vet and current sheriffs deputy whos been a Punisher fan since childhood. Jon Bernthal knows his audience. He does not want to numbhis senses, as they give him an edge in his crusade against crime. A woman is shot in the head but ultimately lives. And who you can expect to see performing and presenting. He-Man wasn't the only character that Lundgren played that was from an existing property though. Their relationship developed dramatically, and he moved with her to New York City. A solution as bad, if not worse, than any of the problems. On top of just being a genius, Lundgren was able to make time to become a second-degree black belt in Karate and a champion. This is because when his family died, Frank could not forgive those who had harmed him so badly. The Punisher would ultimately make its debut in the midst of the ensuing, widely televised congressional hearings. In June 2007, Lundgren accepted an exhibition boxing match for Russian television against Oleg Taktarov, a former UFC competitor. The next time The Punisher died was during the acclaimed Dark Reign storyline, in which Daken, Wolverines son, dismembers Frank. All Frank cares about is executing the worst of humanity. Theres a big, dangerous difference between these two things and there should be, wrote io9s Beth Elderkin in a post last February about police using Punisher imagery. Related: The 20 Best Sports Movies That Have Ever Been Made. | As weve discussed, Frank Castle does not hesitate to murder those he deems worthy of his punishment. Car_Hack April 29, 2009, 8:14pm #5. If you say he went into a drug neighborhood and killed all the drug dealers, would that make that neighborhood better? As Americans learned that their government had conspired with drug lords to sell cocaine in U.S. cities, Frank was knocking over crack houses in Spanish Harlem with a bazooka. Police instructor and former police sergeant Charles E. Humes Jr. said in an article about the same topic, No matter what an offender did or how much they truly deserve it in anyones opinion, it is never our job to punish an offender. Even the characters co-creator, writer Gerry Conway, says he found Chris Kyles passion for the Punisher unsettling: I dont think he understood the fundamental truth that the Punisher is not a man to admire or emulate., That truth has been baked into the character since Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru built him out in the early 70s. 2023 Vox Media, LLC. The most disliked way that The Punisher was brought back was when he became "Angel Punisher." Liberal Democrats have sold this country down the river! Punisher is seeking vengeance on the gang members that are responsible for the deaths of his wife and two children. Franks time as a Marine is vital to understanding his character and the environment he came from, Ennis says. This is without a shadow of doubt the darkest and most violent MCU entry of all time. Overall there is not too much explicit scenes. Though some things may be lost if Twitter fades, the real magic behind the platform was never the app, but the people. Whatever one thinks of the end product, you cant argue that it glorifies the way governments sponsor violence. Frank Castle is the ultimate definition of Occams razor for the military, he says. A man is shot in the head via long range sniper fire. The skull, as ubiquitous as Captain Americas shield, is on jerseys, t-shirts, coffee mugs, even tube socks. What set him apart from other heroes and even villains was not just his penchant for murder, but how personal he took each encounter. Frank Castle was created as an antihero. In this arc, he worked alongside other monsters and was portrayed as a hulking monster with huge weapons. Though he loved his fellow warriors, he detests the immoral men who send grunts to foreign abattoirs and ignore them if they return. While working one night, he was spotted by an agency that provided personal protection for celebrities and was offered a job. In that era, the Punisher was able to take on a heroic mantle, [rather] than being an anti-hero that was frowned upon. The latest movie news, trailers, reviews, and more. If that guy doesnt wake up, the cops told him, youre going away for life.. Weve got romance, breakups, emotionally loaded dumplings this episode has a little bit of everything! Conway portrayed Frank as a Marine from his very first appearance in 1974s The Amazing Spider-Man No. A group of private contracted soldiers are taken out by a man and his accomplice in the woods by shooting and stabbing them. A large part of Season 2 involves the NYPD's Brett Mahoney (recurring from Daredevil) attempting to capture Frank Castle and bring him to justice. The actor demonstrated as much in 2015, when he took the stage at New York Comic Con to speak about playing the gun-toting Marvel vigilante known as the Punisher. Punisher will be going through a lot of henchmen in his new series, and that string of dead bodies will likely eventually lead to Rawlins. Before you start bingeing The Punisher, here's everything you need to know about the gun-slinging anti-hero. General population have a misunderstanding of Frank Castle/Punisher fans, says Murrieta. Following parts in little-seen films like 2002s Mary/Mary and 2004s Tony n Tinas Wedding, Bernthal got a glimpse of a major Hollywood production with 2009s Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian. Multiple wounds are visible. This email will be used to sign into all New York sites. that there are some people who are so sick in the head and evil, that the only way for there to be peace is to get rid of them. He also became obsessed with apex predators as a point of academic curiosity. Stan Lee the creator of hundreds of famous Marvel heroes changed the characters name from The Assassin to the Punisher., From left: Pre-Nazi Totenkopf, S.S. Totenkopf, classic Punisher skull.Public Domain, CC Attribution-Share Alike 4.0, Marvel Comics. S ometimes it takes a bootleg T-shirt to stop a bootleg T-shirt. The Punisher kills people he feels deserve it. Can Anyone Predict Whos Going to Win Best Supporting Actress? Due to the Punisher's merciless crime-fighting tactics, he naturally acquires more enemies than allies. A man is stabbed and bitten in the ear. Very disturbing and upsetting. Bullets being pulled out of wounds, cuts being stitched up, etc. I felt Frank Castles morally dubious quest could be ameliorated somewhat by establishing that he was a product of that particular military tradition., The bone-deep, morally ambiguous connection between Franks experiences in uniform and his crusade against crime has persisted ever since. Despite the role of Ivan Drago being his most iconic and the one that he is most known for, there is a lot about the man behind the monster that most people who have seen either Rocky IV or Creed II do not know about. The officers responsible, it was later discovered, were part of a group within the Milwaukee Police Department called The Punishers. The Punishers would don gloves and caps embossed with Frank Castles skull symbol before going on patrol in the citys predominantly Black neighborhood, where they engaged in vigilante-style activity., In December 2014, a group of current and former police officers created Blue Lives Matter. The private media company had the explicit goal of pushing back against the then-nascent Black Lives Matter movement. It's off screen but it is extremely upsetting and shocking. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. | Its not my understanding of the police.. If one thing has become synonymous with The Punisher, it is the white skull that always appears on his chest. The skull on the Punisher's chest says it all: he lives with death and shares this gift with the world. Not clearly seen. The film wasn't received too well, but maybe Lundgren could try to get a spot in the MCU. While Lundgren was preparing to move to Boston, he was working as a bouncer in Sydney in order to bring in some extra cash. I think patriotic war movies brainwash young men to idolize war and killing enemies/terrorists more than fictional vigilantes ever will. After all five rounds, Lundgren lost the decision to Taktarov. One of these women becomespregnant and has their child without telling him. Most heroes dislike him for his murderous ways and disregard for law, but on top of that, Frank is often seen threatening others. Frank Castle is Marvel's Punisher - but how much do you really know about the character? But I dont think that has to do with the superhero genre. The skull on the Punisher's chest says it all: he lives with deathand shares thisgift with the world. Now, don't get me wrong. He previously suffered a brain aneurysm on February 18, and was ultimately taken off life support. Dont worry about uniforms, inspections, or restrictive rules of engagement. A man's face is smashed into and dragged through a mirror. That and he is crazy, after the death of his family. Ennis says hes heard from veterans who tell him his work with the Punisher got them through tough experiences, but like Conway, he doesnt see the characters warrior status as a clear positive. Two main characters carry on an intimate relationship for a brief period where multiple implied and sometimes shown sex scenes occur. Bernthal became interested in acting in high school and was later accepted into Harvard's masters in dramatic arts program. Add a comment. Simply the Worlds Most Interesting Travel Site, 20 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Dolph Lundgren, With his comeback seemingly not slowing down, Ranking 15 Of Marvel's Non-Superpowered Characters, From Weakest To Strongest, The 20 Best Sports Movies That Have Ever Been Made, 15 Surprising BTS Facts About Sylvester Stallone's Biggest Movies, 19 Shady Things About Sylvester Stallone Everybody Ignores. The Punisher has long been embraced as a classic superhero, but his comics spread reactionary ideology. He's basically the coolest, and the most down to earth. I just dont. The onetime The Walking Dead star has won over critics and audiences with his soulful performance as Frank Castle, a war veteran who grapples with his post-traumatic stress disorder by obliterating criminals. On Friday, cops and soldiers will get to see Bernthals latest effort to make good on that promise. Gregorio Len graduated cum laude from the Visual & Media Arts department of Emerson College, Class of 2020. The Punisher is a symbol of doing the right thing by any means necessary. His powers. For The Class, a 2006-2007 CBS series, Bernthal appeared in an ensemble comedy about a group of classmates who rekindle their friendship 20 years after meeting in the third grade. Pretty much every sex scene in the show lasts 30 seconds at most. From the moment he was given his own series, it was used to push reactionary ideas and dangerous fiction. I grew up during the Serpico era of New York, he says. The Wagner opera returns to the Met for the first time in 17 years. Protect the innocent. After he realized he was being fooled, The Punisher sided with Spidey and fought against The Jackal. In a warzone, the main protagonist beats an enemy combatants head in with a rock repeatedly. You can also watch their videos on YouTube under the name Theo Kogod, where they post sporadically. Frank learned combat tactics, vehicle operation, and firearm training. The character and his iconography are totemic for many cops and soldiers, wrote Abraham Riesman for Vulture, adding that his popularity spiked when Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, the subject of American Sniper, appropriated the skull as his own. After committing suicide, Frank was chosen to do Heavens bidding as an angel. Lundgren has said that, as a child, he was insecure and suffered from allergies, describing himself as a runt. TikToks Favorite Celebrity Couple Is Kim Kardashian and Michael Cera. Gerry Conway, the writer, had initially pitched the idea of the misguided antihero as a throwaway villain. Like numerous heroes, Frank Castle served in the Vietnam War. Bolan is a Vietnam veteran who is known for his deadly capabilities but merciful tendencies. Bonnie is likely limping due to an injury or medical condition. We wanted people to know, Were here and we want to f with you., Thats a very specific image you cant say is tied to anything except the Punisher, Conway says about his creations signature emblem. Password must be at least 8 characters and contain: As part of your account, youll receive occasional updates and offers from New York, which you can opt out of anytime. Stone wandered off. In this story, he meticulously kills each hero and villain, beginning with Cyclops. The main antagonist's mother is a heroin addict. In February 2017, a Kentucky precinct endured heavy criticism when it branded vehicles with Punisher decals with the words Blue Lives Matter over them. The blood looked more real as well in season 1. The Punishers use of murder and other illegal tactics in his pursuit of justice is what makes him an anti-hero. These are usually mild and don't portray any actual nudity. While this detail may vary depending on who is writing the character, it makes sense that the character values sobriety. With his daughter, son, and wife all dead, Frank has no attachments left to keep him from anchored in society. There is a lot about the man behind the monster that most people who have seen either Rocky IV or Creed II do not know about Dolph Lundgren is most well known in the world as Ivan Drago, the terrifying Russian giant that killed Apollo Creed in the boxing ring and nearly did the same to Rocky Balboa. One of the most famous versions of The Punisher pits Frank up against the entire Marvel Universe in the aptly titled,Punisher Kills The Marvel Universe. His goal is to kill those who deserve to die. Rawlins tortures Frank. Be the first to know what's trending, straight from Elite Daily, Ranking The 'Outer Banks' Parents By How Much They Suck, The 5 Most Ridiculous 'Outer Banks' Theories, Ranked By Plausibility, John B & Sarah Are Officially The Least Interesting 'Outer Banks' Couple, By subscribing to this BDG newsletter, you agree to our. Despite the early-season drama, its still (almost) anyones game to win. The Palestinian Feminist Collective is working to decolonize Valentines Day this year. The real enemys in Washington! Terms of Service apply. Police have been seen across the country wearing variations of the symbol, frequently while beating and tear-gassing peaceful protesters. Can we get 20 views!. A few notable ones are Batman, Green Goblin, and Iron Man. For some, it symbolizes honor and gritty determination, and for others, unbound aggression and destruction. In his free time Gregorio likes to make short films and take photographs. He does notset out to help people. "I felt as an actor, theres a real respect for the arts there that I dont necessarily think too many of my peers at the time in America had. As a result, Bernthal can speak fluent Russian. They lost no time in making Frank Castle the mascot for their official Facebook page, and promoting the now-ubiquitous Thin Blue Line Punisher., Banner image on the Blue Lives Matter Facebook.Copyright Unclear. We all thought what the Punisher did was cool: He righted wrongs. In April 2000, Irish writer Garth Ennis was hired to bring the Punisher into a new millennium. Frank rips the sticker off and says, Were not the same. Fortunately, The Walking Dead came along not long after. So you can expect a lot more blood and death in The Punisher than any of the other Defenders series. Heroes save people. He does not set out to help people. Get daily news, in-depth reporting and critical analysis from the journalists, activists and thinkers who are working to improve our world.. Youve seen it before. He cannot forgive any criminals for the aggressions they commit against the innocent and therefore treats all crimes and encounters like the first he had with the Costa family. Simply. However, anyone who crosses the line and tries to do what Frank does while wearing his symbol better get his approval first, or else Frank will go gunning for them as just another killer who needs to be put down. A man has recurring nightmares of his wife being murdered. The Punisher was basically designed to be the unforgiving version of Captain America; able to survive just about anything, against anyone. There are plenty of heroes and villains that have massive arsenals. Punisher, in a fantasy-type way, thats the badass guy you want to be. A man injects heroin into a bed-ridden woman. We all thought what the Punisher did was cool: He righted wrongs, wrote Kyle in his 2012 autobiography. The late Chris Kyle, the famed Navy SEAL sniper who was the subject of American Sniper, crowed in his memoir that his unit nicknamed themselves the Punishers and painted the skull on their equipment. We were unable to submit your evaluation. Some scenes of people smoking cigarettes and cigars. As with its predecessors, Punisher MAX relied heavily on racist caricatures, although now they were generally anti-Black instead of anti-Latino. There is lots of moaning and panting in the sex scenes, akin to what you would hear in an adult film. Current events are only one in a long line of regressive uses that the Punisher skull has been put to. You showed us how its done. Frank is unmoved. Most recently, Frank Castles totenkopf has become an integral part of the pushback against protests over the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Obviously, if the Punisher was a real person and did the stuff he did, there would be people who get hurt, innocents, says Adam, an Army veteran who requested anonymity. The Castle family were killedin the process. Bernthal said he was largely ignored by the cast (no, he had not threatened to beat anyone up on this set). He says he owns thousands of dollars in Punisher comics and merchandise, has a Punisher tattoo, and even designed one of his wedding cakes to look like the characters distinctive skull logo. Given the nature of his work, Frank Castle is pretty much the ultimate loner. With the Punisher, we get to see that justice is done to those who deserve it., As a character, the Punisher has an ambivalent relationship to the military, as do many who have served. As the writer for a failed 1976 solo-series put it: In many ways, the Punisher is an unusual choice for a lead character. Frank believes, for better or for worse, that the only way to keep a criminal from repeating a crime is by ending their life. He has a vast intelligence network of police, journalists, sex workers, and government officials working to provide him with up-to-dateinfoon criminal activities. Prominent lawyers, journalists and human rights defenders say prosecuting Assange poses a grave threat to journalism. While hunting an enemy sniper named The Monkey, who rivaled Franks skills, he was taken prisoner. In the film, Black love is free of colonial baggage. Yup, he wasn't born with the name Dolph. This introductory juxtaposition against Daredevil served to set up Punisher's characteristic ethos: he has no qualms about killing criminals. At the end of the Franken-Castle arc, he was truly healed and brought back to the world of the living as he once was. Like Neff, Murrieta sees an element of wish fulfillment in the character. The Punisher was fiction, of course, but it was a particular kind of right-wing fiction that ran directly opposite reality. He's also told others who wanted to follow his example to look instead to Captain America for inspiration. He cites books in his inner monologue when figuring out the philosophies of others or how to approach a situation. Lundgren is a very smart man and we'll talk more about that in the next entry on the list but for now, let's focus on his studies abroad. In the early 2000s the Punisher was chosen by U.S. forces to represent U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. After one day of rehearsal, he was fired and replaced by Andy Samberg. This fight can disturb some, or at least make you cringe. The main protagonist is strapped to a chair and tortured and beaten repeatedly. Here, Frank Castle mercilessly slaughters every single criminal he finds on his path, and it's often with extremely graphic results. There he encounters a local military owned by the narco-traffickers, and no sign of U.S. involvement to be found. It was a boxing match and was 5 rounds long, supposedly Lundgren was a replacement for Mike Tyson. They like watching that guy, and go, No ones going to write him up for that. They look at that as kind of wanting his job, without the whole dead-family thing., All of that said, not everyone in law enforcement and the military consider the characters nuances. They serve their country and so he treats them with respect. When real life and television mix, it's hard to tell what is reality and what . The overall tone of the show is very dark. And I look at this as a huge honor, a huge responsibility, and I give you my absolute word: Im gonna give everything that I have.. Much later, when he was in his 30s, a run-in with someone who was harassing Bernthal while the actor was out walking his dog led to a fight that nearly landed him in prison. There would be no future issues for Frank Castle not in that particular series anyways. Frank Castles actions are not ones to emulate, but like most heroes, he is a great example to live your life by, says Army veteran Russell Gallaway. In one scene a man is removing an arrow from another man's shoulder. The original Punisher from the Marvel comics chose the skull while in Vietnam. 1 Answer. The famously temperamental Stone allegedly told Bernthal that his takes were subpar and that he was vain. Bernthal, who had not yet sworn off fistfights, replied that, "You might be Oliver Stone, but I will beat your f***ing a** right here on this set. A little fact about Sweden you probably didn't know is that the country had mandatory military service for men from 1901 all the way to 2010. Its nothing against what theyre doing. It is also why, if Frank ever manages to kill every murderer and psychopath on the planet, there will still be a final bullet chambered in his gun to use on himself. RELATED: The Punisher: 5 Heroes Frank Castle Has Beaten (& 5 He Can Never Win Against). Get the news you want, delivered to your inbox every day. There area handful of people in the superhuman community who occasionally work with him, but they're the exception. Crucial quote "Frank Castle would beat Sean Hannity into a . But while Tony's origins have been retconned to be based in the Gulf Wars, Frank has remained a Vietnam vet through the 00s. Dolph Lundgren has had a pretty amazing life by any measurement, going from what he described as a runt in his childhood, to becoming a scholar, to martial arts champion, to celebrity bodyguard, to model, before eventually becoming the actor that he is today. Jon Bernthals take on Frank Castles Punisher is sure to be great, and Marvel is smart enough to incorporate the best parts of his history into their new stories.