Marvel's The Punisher: 31 Easter Eggs & References You Need To See

22. Dirty Harry

The show inevitably has lots of pop culture references to vengeance movies, and Dirty Harry is one of the most subtle but most important. The Punisher was borne out of the same sort of mentality as Harry Callahan.

In both cases, the lead characters are forced to dole out their own brands of justice outside of the law and both properties are steeped in anti-authoritarian frustration and protest.

There's a bit of an homage in there in the second episode, as Frank toys with Micro to make sure he isn't being followed in the same way that Scorpio does to Harry in Dirty Harry. It's subtle, but it's clever.

And in another specific film nod, Micro refers to Frank as a "one man Wild Bunch" at one point too.