Marvel's The Punisher: 9 Reasons It's A Disappointment
1. Not Enough Action In A Show That Should Be Filled With It
In the first episode of Marvel's The Punisher, we see what could have (should have) been. Working a construction gig where he vents his anger by smashing brick walls, Frank Castle is at least getting by. Soon, he meets a young kid, Donny, new to the crew who immediately tries to befriend the loner. Castle, polite but firm, tells the kid thanks, but he's not interested.
Still, when Donny lands himself in trouble, Castle does the right thing. After a couple of lowlifes on the same construction crew rope the kid into knocking over a private poker game, only for Donny to botch it and identify himself, the rest of the thugs try to murder him. Castle, in Punisher mode (but missing the skull), takes them out in particularly brutal fashion. He then leaves the kid the loot and a note: leave town.
Castle then heads to the poker game, which is actually a collection of mobsters playing for high stakes. He takes out each and every one.
If the Netflix series were about Castle sparking a mob war through good intentions, and maybe dealing with a demon from his past, we would have been in for a treat. Instead, the entire storyline is dropped, the kid never heard from again, and Frank Castle spends a full thirteen episodes trying to figure out the painfully obvious: Why he exists.