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'The Punisher' Season 2 Is Happening; Watch A New Featurette

The Punisher featurette
By Chris Evangelista

The Punisher, the latest Marvel show from Netflix, is now available to stream in all its body-count laden glory. If you somehow forgot about the show (it debuted weeks ago), Netflix has just cut a handy-dandy behind-the-scenes featurette that delves into the making of the show and its somewhat complicated conspiracy plotline. On top of that, Netflix has officially renewed the show for a second season. The Punisher season 2 news and featurette are both below.

First thing's first: if you want more violent adventures of Frank Castle, AKA the Punisher, Netflix has officially renewed the show for a second season.

Despite the character's somewhat simplistic nature, filmmakers and actors have had a hard time bringing The Punisher to life. Daredevil season 2 seemed to finally get it right, mostly due to the casting of Jon Bernthal in the role. Bernthal brought the perfect balance of intensity and madness to the character, which make the prospect of his own spin-off series all the more exciting. The Punisher is now streaming on Netflix, and since the nature of Netflix's shows inevitably leads to the buzz dying down after the initial binge-filled weekend, the streaming channel went ahead and cut a new behind-the-scenes featurette to remind audiences of The Punisher's presence.

Check it out – but be warned. If you haven't watched the series yet, there are numerous spoilers here.

The Punisher featurette 

The featurette features several interviews with the show's stars, including Bernthal; Ebon Moss-Bachrach, who plays Punisher right-hand-man Micro; Ben Barnes, who plays the Punisher's old war buddy Billy Russo; and Amber Rose Revah, who plays Dinah Madani, the Homeland Security agent trying to track the Punisher down. I think the biggest takeaway here, at least for me, is how soft-spoken and articulate Bernthal is. He made such a memorable career playing growling, grumbly guys that I just sort of assumed that was how he actually spoke. Acting!

Beyond that, this featurette delves into the character's motivations, and the somewhat complicated conspiracy that drives the entire narrative of the first season. Bernthal also talks about how his Frank Castle isn't your ordinary "superhero": "Frank doesn't wear a cape, he can't become invisible, and there's no quit in him."

I wish I could say I enjoyed The Punisher, but the truth is I found it to be one of the least-watchable Netflix Marvel shows. As I said in my review, "[Marvel and Netflix are] scraping the bottom of the barrel with The Punisher. The show isn't as dire as Iron Fist, simply because Bernthal is so charismatic an actor (while Iron Fist's Finn Jones is not) that he makes it mostly bearable. But when the season comes to a close, you're left with an overwhelming feeling of disappointment. It's a pity, because Bernthal really is excellent in the part."

Again, the secret ingredient here is Bernthal. His performance is memorable enough that I'd be willing to watch The Punisher season 2, if the writers can just iron out their script problems.

The Punisher is now streaming on Netflix.

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