Great news Punisher fans! With John Bernthal( The Walking Dead, Wolf of Wall Street) cast as The Punisher for season two of the Daredevil series on Netflix, there has been talk of a solo Punisher series adding to the beloved comic-book franchise.
The three previous cinematic Punisher entries never quite achieved enough popularity to garner a true sequel, simply mediocre reboots. The Punisher (1989), starring Dolph Lundgren is my personal favorite, as the awesome 80’s action more than makes up for the story straying a bit from the source material( naked sewer meditating?). I enjoyed the Thomas Jane Punisher movie and The Punisher: War Zone as well, but I am truly a fan of those ridiculously violent action movies from the 80’s( Cobra, They Live).
The Punisher doesn’t shine in blockbuster, world-at-stake events like Age of Apocalypse or Civil War, although he played a small role in the latter. He is a gritty, story-driven character that should not be confined to two-hour increments, every two years. His story should unravel over time, and a weekly Punisher series à la Daredevil would be a perfect fit, as his tale should weave through different story-arcs in the true comic-book fashion.
Netflix has taken the next logical step in the natural evolution of live-action comic-books with the smash-hit Daredevil series and the upcoming Iron Fist, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Defenders series’, known as phase one of the Marvel-Netflix productions. The Punisher series has not been announced yet, but it is considered a no-brainer for him to have his own series in phase two.
One possible scenario for phase two is Iron Fist, Luke Cage, and Jessica Drew grouping together in a Heroes for Hire series and Daredevil going back to his solo series. This would clear up space for some new characters to join the Marvel-Netflix arena with their own shows. A couple of possibilities rumored to join are Ghost Rider and Blade. They would be a perfect fit along with a Punisher Series, and the darker Netflix universe would allow them to bring a slew of characters and storylines from a whole other side of the Marvel Universe(Midnight Sons anyone?).
The serial nature of comics makes them an absolute perfect fit for television series’, but very few studios have taken advantage. There have been great animated shows(X-Men, Spiderman, Batman), and there have been some well-received live-action shows(Smallville, Lois & Clark, Gotham, Arrow), but the high production value and mature nature of the Marvel-Netflix universe is ready to blow everyone out of the water.