The Punisher Action Shots Unleash Frank Castle’s Relentless Alter-Ego

“We are stripping down every supernatural element – zero ninjas, zero members of the Hand, and definitely zero dragons.”

That’s Jon Bernthal there discussing The Punisher‘s fantastical elements – or lack thereof. Coming out of The Defenders, Marvel and Netflix’s team-up series that brought together the street-level heroes of New York City, it’s fair to say that there’s a real appetite for a grounded, engrossing addition to the Netflix portfolio, particularly after all that talk about K’un-Lun and the immortal Iron Fist. The answer? Frank Castle.

Originally a best-in-class US Marine, Castle began moonlighting as The Punisher after his wife and children are brutally murdered. It’s a quest for revenge that leads our protagonist down a dark and dangerous road, from which there is no return. And so, with Netflix’s latest standalone series almost upon us, a slew of photos have emerged via SFX Magazine, with one featuring a bearded Frank looking out over NYC. Perhaps The Punisher will flash-forward to the not-so-distant future? We’ll find out soon.

For now, have a gander at those photos below:

Meanwhile, during a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, Jon Bernthal addressed the show’s antagonist, noting that Frank is forced to tackle a city-wide conspiracy along with his own personal demons – demons that can be traced all the way back to his time spent in the military.

All of the above. He’s up against all of it. During this show, nobody is who they appear to be… This season is much darker as it goes, it gets darker and darker and more visceral. The show takes you on this journey of Frank becoming more and more human again and then shutting off and shutting off and going back to what works for him, and the place where he kind of belongs, and I think that’s a place of solitude and of darkness and destruction. It’s going to get into as dark and as brutal a place as you’ve ever seen in the Marvel world, I can promise you that.

Still no word on a release date for Marvel’s The Punisher. Apparently, though, Netflix plans to drop all 13 episodes online without much of a lead-up, so there’s a very good chance Castle’s long-anticipated solo outing will be with us sooner rather than later. Stay tuned for more.