'The Punisher' Recap: 'Danger Close'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK... 

I think we all knew, that consequences were going to come about from Frank Castle’s grand reveal to the world. But the bigger questions at hand when it comes to that, were just how severe and how sweeping those consequences were going to be. Well, as it turns out, The Punisher was quick to answer both of those questions in ‘Danger Close’, and unfortunately for Frank, neither of those answers were positive in the slightest.
 
But before we get too deep into the big time action and nail biting moments that this episode delivered our way, let’s take a moment and discuss the first consequence that the story provided us with because Frank…once again found himself staring into the abyss in this tale when he came to realize that his best friend and surrogate brother had betrayed him, and this painful revelation put Frank in the darkest place imaginable, to the point where it seemed he was ready to make one last push to deal with Rawlins and Russo and if it meant the end of Frank Castle, so be it.
 
However, fate sometimes has a funny way of changing the course of our destiny and as Frank and David debated the value of the Punisher’s life, the next consequence arrived since David’s family came under fire from Anvil and Sarah and his son were kidnapped while his daughter managed to escape and upon discovering this…the good parts of Frank came back to life. Because he quickly formulated a plan that allowed for David to rescue his daughter and keep her safe, and he saw a grand opportunity to deal with and confront Russo since it was now obvious to Frank…that Anvil was coming to the hideout to deal with both men and that meant, it was time for The Punisher to do his thing.
 
If anything, the arrival of Anvil at the hideout provided us with one of the most intense action sequences the series has offered up to date, simply because, this was Frank in his element. He was clean, efficient and deadly and it was stunning to watch him work with such gory efficiency. But alas, Billy didn’t make the trip because he’s no dummy, but he did get to speak to Frank and it would seem there is a plan in place to perform a prisoner exchange in order to get Sarah and Zach to safety and unfortunately for Billy…that plan is going to involve Homeland Security since Frank has pulled Madani into the mix in order to take down Rawlins and Billy once and for all. 
 
So, there you have it; another action themed episode, filled to the brim with intense moments, except this one did have a gentle twist to it. There really was something special in seeing David reunite with his daughter and the shock and the joy that came with that, and it was touching to see Frank’s fatherly side save him from the darkness once again, and considering the fact that Castle reached out to Agent Madani, one has to wonder if Frank is finally seeing the error of his vengeful ways, or if he has another plan in place to end the war raging inside his mind with swift and brutal violence, and with only two episodes to go, I’m fairly certain it won’t be long before we find out which path Frank is going to take. Until next time.

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