Just like last week, Goku and Vegeta start off this week's episode of Dragon Ball Super, but the focus is clearly on Toppo for the rest.
With Dyspo and Gohan both out after last week's episode, the focus fell to Toppo, still fighting Android 17 with his superior power against 17's limitless energy. Realizing his attacks wouldn't hurt Toppo, 17 chooses to make good use of his energy by continuously firing on him, slightly pushing him back. Toppo figures out that 17 plans to run down the remaining six minutes by keeping him stuck under his barrage, and manages to escape through an opening in the blasts. He then decides he has to finish off 17 in one blow, taking note of 17's barrier being troublesome, and prepares a large blast after knocking 17 away. 17 counters the blast, but he is clearly outmatched until Frieza enters the struggle, repeatedly shooting Toppo from behind. Frieza taunts Toppo as he slowly fires, finally weakening him enough to let 17 overpower the Pride Trooper in a colossal burst of energy. Though Universe 7 is initially pleased, Whis notices that Toppo has not been knocked out, but is rather revealed to be heavily damaged after the smoke clears. Frieza again taunts Toppo, pointing out his ruined uniform, receiving uncharacteristic silence from the normally boisterous warrior. Toppo says his uniform, and by extension justice, no longer matter, as survival is what is most important here. Declaring he has made his choice, Toppo rips off the upper remains of his uniform, Toppo undergoes a massive transformation the leaves him larger and more muscular, with a purple aura and eyes and a symbol on his chest. Universe 7 says his energy is like that of a god, and Universe 11's God of Destruction shares the knowledge of Toppo's god candidacy. Frieza, unimpressed with Toppo's power, misjudges the strength of Toppo's destruction energy and is blasted away, along with the arena, which becomes large piles of rubble. 17 tries to fight back, but Toppo's destruction energy causes anything from rocks to blasts to simply dissolve upon reaching him. Toppo begins firing his Justice Flash, only to have Frieza reappear and taunt him again, charging his classic supernova. The blast gets no reaction from Toppo as it's charged, further suggesting the enormity of the new threat Universe 7 is facing. This episode easily tops last week in terms of impressive power and shocking moments, as Toppo's transformation caused things to take a complete 180. The transformation itself is impressive, as it takes Toppo's fat, disproportional figure and sculpts him into a more muscular titan. A curios thing about the change is a symbol that appears on his torso, and perhaps it is more important than it initially seems. 17 has been trying to find a chink in Toppo's destruction armor, and though the others notice a gap of time where Toppo can't fire his energy, there hasn't been any noticeable area or time for an attack. Perhaps, then, the symbol is like with Anilaza, and serves as Toppo's Achilles Heel that a character will make use of. In the end, while it's only speculation, I don't see 17 lasting to the end of the tournament, because the focus will likely return to Goku, Vegeta, and Jiren. 17 has proven himself one of Universe 7's most powerful fighters already, and in a single show arc has rightfully become a favorite for many fans. One possible ending that could be interesting is either a team-up of Jiren and Toppo vs Goku and Vegeta, or some combination of the characters fighting one-on-one. A noteworthy thing to think about is that Toppo is considered the second-strongest in Universe 11, saying so himself in what he considered the battle of the second-strongest of 11 and 7 when he fought Vegeta. Aside from his new powers potentially putting him on par or above Toppo, one could wonder if this means Vegeta's new limit breaker could kick him up to being more even with Goku again. Of course the limit breaker is impressive, and he's been managing to hold his own against Jiren, like Goku did, but at this point no one truly knows what the form does. This questionable form is compared for the time being to Goku's Ultra Instinct, which is already known, and was able to impress even the gods and angels. Whatever the case may be, Toppo has become a more terrifying force to reckon with, and will definitely be a challenge for Universe 7 in the remaining episodes.
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After taking on the soldiers in episode 5, Frank is out of commission, causing him and Micro to seek aid from outside sources.
At the previous episode's end, Frank's trip to see Gunner end disastrously as they were surrounded by Rawlins' men, and Gunner was fatally wounded. With Frank suffering severe blood loss, Micro decides to call in Curtis, who chastises Micro as they remove Gunner's arrow from Frank's shoulder. Curtis says it is Micro's fault this has happened, as his previous spying on Frank and efforts to gain his help is what brought him back into the fold. When Frank later wakes up, he worries for Gunner, but Micro assures him he made a call to give Gunner a proper burial. Madani and Russo, meanwhile, have had a night of fun, and Russo realizes Madani might be using him to get information about Frank. Madani's group is later called in to inspect the sight of Gunner's death and determine what happened. Madani determines that a massive gunfight took place, and there was another man, who she believes to be Frank, who managed to escape. Back with Curtis, cynical group member O'Connor continues giving his negative views on how the government treats veterans. Curtis responds with a horrific military story about being given a goat to care for that was repeatedly injured, and he would have to patch it up, until it was eventually killed. Relating more to O'Connor's stories of Vietnam and governmental views, Lewis protests for gun rights outside a courthouse, only for a cop to falsely arrest him for "drawing a weapon," at which point O'Connor simply walked away. Curtis bails Lewis out of jail, and tells him O'Connor has been lying, having never even served in Vietnam or been awarded the silver star. Lewis confronts O'Connor about his deceit and, when O'Connor threatens him with a knife, he murders the lying veteran in a fit of rage. Back with Madani, Russo finally gets her to admit Frank is alive, and begins broadcasting a looped radio message with code names Frank would know. Micro questions if it is safe to contact Russo, but Frank assures him that he trusts Russo with his life, and goes to see him. Frank tells Russo what was going on in Kandahar, and Russo offers Frank safe and secret passage overseas into a new life. Over with Micro's family, his son is lashing out in increasing amounts, having stolen a skateboard, and hitting his sister when he thinks she told his mom. He storms out, saying their family is full of liars. Frank, during a visit, comforts Sarah about her familial situation, and says he believes things will get better for the LIebermans soon. The climax of the episode hinges on the issue of Frank trusting someone, even someone he's known for so long, as he decides on whether to accept Russo's offer. This episode doesn't look as much at how damaged Frank is mentally, and focuses on where people place their trust. Micro was quick to call Curtis, knowing he could trust someone Frank does, only to be berated for bringing Frank back into fighting. Lieberman's wife and daughter, of course, fully trusts Frank, not knowing his true identity and connection to the living Micro. With Lewis, the events between him and Curtis have caused him to be bitter against the veteran, and was trusting of O'Connor, only to be crushed and enraged when his lies were uncovered. With Lewis in particular, it is a dangerous situation for him to feel like those he trusted most betrayed him, as he is already so unstable. However, a more prominent section is with Billy Russo, as despite Frank considering him fully trustworthy, Micro is incredibly hesitant to believe in him. Russo has seemed trustworthy throughout the series, but as the head of a military organization, there is the potential for him to be a tough opponent. Along with this, from what we saw of his teaching methods in a previous episode, although he took Curtis' advice to heart and dismissed Lewis, he seems to enact a kind of brainwashing to get his soldiers to believe whatever he says. Things are also more complicated with him because of his current relationship with Midani, as although she is potentially just using him, they've gotten very close quickly. With coming episodes, these relationships are bound to affect everything for better or worse, and likely begin to intertwine. Just a few months after adding "The Nightmare" Freddy Krueger and survivor Quentin Smith, Dead by Daylight has introduced the sadistic games of Jigsaw. In the world of "Saw," Amanda Young was one of John "Jigsaw" Kramer's victims, managing to escape a "reverse bear trap" that would have ripped her jaw off. Amanda came to see the world from Kramer's point of view, and joined his crusade as an apprentice. Soon, however, she develops an obsession with Kramer, and believes their victims don't deserve a second chance. Amanda begins making inescapable traps, so Kramer gives her another test, in this world leading to her entrance into the Entity's realm. David Tapp, meanwhile, was a detective working the Jigsaw case, and he became so obsessed he made mistakes when he and his partner Steven Sing found Kramer. Forgetting common police procedure before entering Kramer's workshop, Tapp ends up getting his throat slit, and Sing was killed. As a result, Tapp was thrown off the force, and took the case into his own hands, eventually stalking Dr. Lawrence Gordon, who Tapp believed was Jigsaw. In this world, Tapp later takes a bullet to the chest while hunting Jigsaw, and is pulled into the Entity's world. Each killer has a unique set of perks, with Amanda's focusing on Jigsaw-style traps, with two hook-based and one generator-based. With the hooks, Amanda can cause dismantled hooks to repair after being destroyed, countering the survivor toolbox and saboteur perk. Also when one survivor rescues another from a hook when Amanda is far enough away, they will be illuminated for her for a full minute. With her surveillance methods, Amanda can see generators she has regressed for a limited time. For her unique attack, Amanda hides her blade weapon and crouches, giving off no Terror Radius and enabling her to leap forward in an ambush attack to stab survivors. When survivors are in the dying state, Amanda can put traps on their heads, along with normal hooking. After a person is rigged, the trap will activate when a generator is complete, and they can only remove a it if they find Jigsaw boxes scattered across the map with Kramer's infamous Billy dolls on them. The survivor must stick their arm in the box, risking damage if they fail skill checks, but potentially getting a key for their trap. When the dlc was first announced, people naturally assumed Jigsaw himself would be added, which had many issues considering he is an old man with cancer. The game's style also doesn't fit Kramer's views, as he doesn't typically run around slashing people, and aside from the bear traps, he would have no way of starting his "games." Amanda makes more sense, as over time she began to fix her traps so people couldn't escape, making characters like her fit better with the chase-and-slash method. With Tapp, players get his detective determination and skill for perks, allowing for recovering while crawling, item illumination upon finishing generators, and generator bonus tokens when they are able to sneak near the killer without being caught. Both Tapp and Amanda fit perfectly as playthings for the Entity, which needs killers that won't stop and survivors who refuse to give up. The Entity slowly feeds off people's hope and loss of hope as they survive in its realm, which is inescapable, and loss of hope can turn people into killers. In this way, the Entity gets a perfect system by finding people like Tapp and Amanda, whose obsessions will keep them going. Tapp's dedication to saving others and finding Jigsaw will prevent him from giving up on the Entity's sick game, and Amanda's obsession with following Kramer's example in her own way will keep her killing. For now, players just have to learn how to best use Pighead, while simultaneously discovering her flaws exploitable to survivors.
Saw Chapter dlc teaser and release trailer
Dragon Ball Super 124 focused on Frieza, who finds that Justice Warrior Dyspo has more concerning tricks up his sleeve than expected.
The episode picks up with Goku and Vegeta hammering Jiren, finally seeming to be a match for the justice warrior as they slam him with a Kamehameha and Final Flash. When the smoke clears, however, Jiren walks out unscathed, returning to the fight as he comments on their full power. Frieza, meanwhile, continues to deal with Dsypo, saying that while Dyspo is fast, his movements are too linear and predictable. Annoyed, Dyspo begins peppering Frieza with attacks, finally capturing him in an energy ring. His follow-up is countered when Frieza whips around and grabs him with his tail, and Frieza offers him a deal: work together to eliminate Universe 7, then wish Frieza back to life after they are erased. The enrages the rest of Universe 7, and Dyspo counters immediately that he would never take a deal from such a villain, leading to Frieza transforming. Though initially taking Dyspo down a peg, Frieza is overwhelmed when Dyspo reveals his ultimate final move, again outclassing Frieza in speed. Noticing Frieza's trouble, Gohan leaves his battle against Toppo to intervene, only to find Dyspo is still able to outclass them. Noticing the necessity of wide space for Dyspo to move, Gohan has Frieza construct a cage of light energy, which will damage anyone it touches. His movements restricted, Dyspo is left with close-quarters combat with Gohan, who is drastically stronger, though he is still somewhat able to make use of his speed. While I'm trying not to spoil what happens in the end of this episode, the title doesn't leave much to the imagination. Suffice it to say Gohan gives an impressive show this week, working with surprisingly good coordination with Frieza, whom he says he will take down if he betrays him after defeating Dyspo. The finale includes a possible homage to the early days of Dragon Ball Z as Gohan takes on Dyspo, continuing the trend of bringing back classic moments both for reference and new use. It's good to see the focus go away from Goku, Vegeta, and Jiren for a bit, especially because there is so little time left in the tournament and there are still a few characters left who could get knocked out. On the same note, the timing continues to feel odd on how long is left in the tournament, with this episode's events apparently taking place in a minute or so. This is no new issue, as fans know the infamous Goku vs. Frieza fight on Namek, where Frieza repeatedly mentioned how long they had before the planet exploded, with the fight seeming to drag on much longer. With more characters getting knocked out, we will not only finish the tournament, which has gone for a good amount of time to get a conclusion, we will get a final battle against Jiren and get some answers to fan theories. One such theory is that the Grand Priest and the Angels are going to be revealed as antagonists, with some evidence from how Universe 9's Angel smiling when his universe was erased. There hasn't been a moment like this since it happened, but attention was given to it and it seemed strange given the expected reaction being some manner of sadness. There is, of course, also the matter of what will happen with Frieza, who has warned from the start that he would probably betray everyone, and has seemed to do so multiple times already. Of course unbeknown to the characters, we have heard Frieza say he wants to become stronger, but it's not as though the characters have forgotten who he is. Everyone has been on edge the whole tournament, with no one trusting Frieza fully and everyone quick to jump to the conclusion his is betraying them finally. Even Goku, who is known for being incredibly merciful and naive, has been wary and shouldn't be hesitant to take down the villain, due to the grave lesson he learned previously. During the Resurrection F movie and arc, Frieza took advantage of Goku's nature to injure him with a sneak attack, and was later able to destroy the planet despite Vegeta taking Goku's place in the fight. Whis, using a shield and time reversal, chided Goku for being careless and letting his guard down, and warned him that if he keeps giving his foes the same courtesy he expects from them, he risks losing everything. Given this, it would make sense that even if Frieza tries to betray them at the last second, Goku will be paying enough attention that Frieza won't succeed. To continue a previous hope, however, and given Vegeta's "limit breaker" form, it would be great to give him the chance to take the evil emperor down, especially considering their past. Having been enslaved and used by Frieza, the being who eradicated the Saiyans, Vegeta has had a major grudge since the series began. Back when they fought on Namek, Vegeta's inability to reach Super Saiyan led to his a powerful scene where he begged Goku, crying, to defeat Frieza for their people, before Frieza killed him. Goku was the one to defeat Frieza here after becoming a Super Saiyan, but Frieza returned as a cyborg, only to be swiftly dispatched by Trunks. During Resurrection F, it seemed fans would get their wish when Vegeta became Super Saiyan Blue and dominated Frieza, only for Whis' lesson to cause Goku to swoop in and finish him off. With Goku having reached Ultra Instinct twice and he and Jiren constantly pumped up as the big two, it would be great to see them face off in the end, then give Vegeta the spotlight with his limit breaker against Frieza. Though I'm still more a fan of Goku, Vegeta has had drastically more character development over the course of the series, and giving him a time to shine, in which he defeats Frieza, no less, would be incredibly satisfying. Jiren continues to decimate Goku and Vegeta on this week's Dragon Ball Super, while the rest of Universe 7 deals with Toppo and Dyspo.
At the end of last week's episode, Vegeta was on the receiving end of two massive blasts from Jiren, which left him battered on the ground. This week starts with Jiren recognizing Vegeta's warrior courage, and Goku stepping up to begin the fight anew. Goku enters cautiously, with the other Z-Fighters explaining that energy blasts are ineffective, but Jiren is not someone who could be recklessly approached. While he does this, Frieza shows Dyspo how ineffective he is, as none of his attacks damaged the Emperor of Evil, who strikes back but is angered to see his attack miss. Gohan and 17, meanwhile, have their hands full with Toppo, who pushes 17 back and swings the attacking Gohan away. After telling Gohan it is pointless for them to attempt coordination because they're never fought together, 17 says he will immobilize Toppo so Gohan can knock them both off the ring. While fighting Toppo, 17's arm gets twisted around and he puts up his energy shield, allowing Gohan to blast them both with a kamehameha wave. Toppo is able to stop and release 17 before they are knocked off, however, leaving 17 and Gohan stuck once again. Back with Jiren, Goku repeatedly teleports around him, leaving bits of energy wherever he goes before leaping onto a high bit of rubble. When Jiren steps forward, the energy fragments, acting as land mines, begin exploding, but the justice warrior is able to leap above the blasts. Goku attempts a splitting Destructo Disc, but Jiren is able to knock away and throw back each, causing Goku's pillar to fall and hang over the tournament ledge. It is now revealed, however, that Goku lifted a Disc improvement Krillin used against him, and an unseen one severs the pillar again, causing Jiren to fall as Goku teleports back to Vegeta. As expected, Jiren pushes off the falling rubble to reach the stadium, then simply walks through Goku's minefield. Seemingly finally enraged, Jiren slams into Goku without needing to touch him, which the Universe 11 Supreme Kai is a simple punch from Jiren. Goku refuses to stand down, however, and Vegeta also returns, saying he has to win the dragon balls to keep his promise to resurrect Universe 6. Impassioned, Vegeta repeats he will achieve power his own way, and breaks through his own shell to a new state of Super Saiyan Blue. Goku, meanwhile, powers up to his own limits, using both Blue and Kaioken, leading to an onslaught that Whis says might work due to their inability to coordinate throwing Jiren off. Now that both Saiyans have reached new heights coming episodes should again show us the kind of combat that made Dragon Ball so popular. Vegeta's new form marks an interesting variation on Saiyan progression, as it fits what people expected Goku to achieve when he reached Ultra Instinct. In this form,Vegeta appeared more bulky, similar to when he achieved the Ascended Super Saiyan form, or Super Vegeta. His hair also seems to have more pronounced spikes, and his hair and aura both have a deeper shade of blue to them. It's also an interesting development because of how, even though he hasn't reached Ultra Instinct, Goku hasn't achieved this new Saiyan-only form. Typically, Goku achieves new forms before Vegeta, and even reached Super Saiyan 3, which Vegeta has never done. This might be a fitting way of going for Vegeta's proclamation of gaining power in a different way from Goku. Since coming to Earth, Vegeta has always compared himself to Goku, his pride causing him to get frustrated when Goku always seemed a step or two ahead. But even back then, they had different ways of getting stronger, like Goku reaching Super Saiyan after the death of his best friend, while Vegeta's trigger was the realization of his own limits. Similarly, the god forms for each were attained differently, as Goku reached the red Super Saiyan God form after receiving power from Vegeta, their sons, and Pan. Blue was apparently the result of mastering the power he got here, but it is unclear how exactly Vegeta obtained the form, other than that he trained with Whis alone. Once Goku also started training with Whis, Vegeta again started comparing himself to Goku, becoming angry when he learned Goku was undertaking more intense training. He did the same thing more recently, when after seeing Goku reach Ultra Instinct for the second time, Vegeta tried to imitate what he saw, with no results. In last week's episode, his assault on Jiren seemed to be the same thing, as Whis said he seemed to be mimicking how Goku had looked during Ultra Instinct. If Vegeta truly has achieved something that only he has because of his path, it would be interesting for the writers to continue the trend. Rather than have Goku and Vegeta follow the same path of strength, the two could branch and gain their own forms, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. We have interesting stories developing with the others as well, because with how 17 was already willing to sacrifice himself to take down Toppo, and how he is now injured, we might soon see him take a fall. With Frieza, aside from how he has shown Dyspo to be no match for him, their is the potential for an interesting section involving him and Jiren. While the whole point of the tournament is to fight for one's own universe and survive, Jiren is no villain, and the Z-Fighters all have a kind of respect for him. Frieza, on the other hand, sees him only as an obstacle, and is letting Goku take him out of the way to reach the super dragon balls and become stronger than everyone. Everyone has known since they considered reviving Frieza that he would likely betray them, and have been ready at all moments to assume he is turning. The determining factor for who gets the dragon balls is who was the greatest warrior during the fights, and though Frieza can't kill anyone, is might be possible the winning universe members must fight amongst themselves after winning overall. Frieza might just be looking for the right time to come in and take down everyone else, that way he'll be the only only one left. If this is the case, there might be a team-up of the Z-Fighters and the Pride Troopers, which certainly be a sight to see. After a week-long hiatus, Dragon Ball Super returned with Jiren once more stepping into the fold as the Universal Tournament starts to wind down.
In the previous episode, 121, Universe 7 took a loss when Android 18 sacrificed herself to keep 17 in the ring. After re-joining the fight against Anilaza, 17 was able to secure a win by shielding himself from the robot's blast and smashing its energy core. With only two universes remaining in this episode, Jiren has once again entered the fold, this time facing Vegeta at the same time as he fights Goku. Initially, the remaining warriors from each side stood just facing each other, until Goku and Jiren, the strongest from their respective teams, stepped forward. Goku powers up as Jiren stands still, then releases an explosive burst of power before going hand to hand with the Universe 11 justice fighter. Unlike their first bout, Goku seems more able to handle and take on Jiren, though it is obvious who still has the upper hand. Vegeta soon joins up as well, declaring that he is the true strongest from Universe 7 and will take Jiren down. Frieza, meanwhile, faces Dyspo, who attempts to confuse the evil emperor with his speed and mobility. Frieza seems to not take the foe seriously, as he simply stands in the center of Dyspo's movements smirking, and says Dyspo's afterimages won't work. He believes he has gotten the upper hand when Dyspo comes up behind him and his tail grabs Dyspo by the throat, but Dyspo turns things around by gripping the tail and running wildly, smashing Frieza through debris. Simultaneously, Gohan and 17 go up against Toppo, with Gohan quickly warning 17 of Toppo's experience and how he gave Goku trouble, advising 17 to avoid Toppo's arms. Throughout the episode, Toppo proves himself a challenge for the Android-Saiyan combo, taking their blasts head-on with minimal damage and pummeling them. Goku and Vegeta, meanwhile, have their hands full with Jiren, as he repeatedly knocks Vegeta away with minimal effort and slams Goku with a barrage of punches. Vegeta takes notice of Jiren moves, however, watching him closely before speeding into the fray again. Jiren attempts the same move he just used on Goku, but Vegeta swiftly weaves in between Jiren's fists and lands a blow to his gut. After shocking everyone with this maneuver, Vegeta keeps his efforts up, landing punch after punch on the justice powerhouse. Vegeta, invigorated by his success, begins taunting Jiren, stating the warrior isn't as using as strong or fast as when he originally fought Goku. The excitement is short-lived, however, as Jiren shows Vegeta's moves were ineffective before as he slams him down, then hits him with an energy blast. Though he struggles against the mass of energy, Vegeta is caught in an explosion on the edge of the ring, his armor cracked as he stands exhausted. Jiren states that Vegeta will never beat him because of his arrogance, but Vegeta counters that arrogance is what his pride as a Saiyan is. Vegeta then prepares a final flash as the ultimate show of his power to prove Jiren wrong, with even Goku surprised by the energy amassed. While the other fights are touched on during the episode, the focus is on Goku and Vegeta facing Jiren, and especially Vegeta's surprise assault. Though his moves are obviously not effective, his ability to quickly read Jiren's movements and react to them is a good show of his abilities. As Vegeta pummeled Jiren, Whis suggests that he is trying to learn achieve Ultra Instinct, evidenced by his seemingly effort swiftness in dodging. Though the quick punches and dodging don't lead to Ultra Instinct as hoped, it's impressive Vegeta was able to break through Jiren's energy. Being knocked away doesn't even ruin the moment like has happened before with Vegeta, since Jiren has proven himself to have titanic power even Goku can't fully handle, even with Ultra Instinct. Jiren further proves himself an interesting antagonist this episode, as he and the justice warriors aren't villains. The justice warriors insult the Z-Fighters solely because they see Goku in a villainous light, as he called for the tournament. Despite their insults, the warriors fight for the good of their people and talk solely about their efforts to fight villainy. Dyspo has made a good effort against Frieza, though it is unlikely he will take the villain down, and Toppo seems to not even see Gohan and 17 as a threat. This is because Toppo is in line to become his universe's next God of Destruction, which he would likely serve as in a similar just way to Universe 11's current destruction god. Jiren, on the other hand, actually turned down the role of the next God of Destruction because it countered his views. While fighting Goku, Jiren asks why he wants to get stronger, responding to Goku's desire for power by saying he himself desires what is beyond strength. Though Vegeta's efforts failed overall, there is still hope that something great will happen by the end of the tournament. After the destruction of episode 4, the Punisher gets started on Frank Castle's mission for vengeance against those who murdered his family.
The previous episode ended with Micro, deciding to "get his hands dirty" in spite of what his wife and Frank said, slammed the van of weapons into Madani's car. Frank, with his honor code, chose to pull Madani out, saving her life before the car exploded, but letting her learn his identity as he said to stay out of his way. Madani wakes up this episode to find herself bandaged and badly bruised, but headed to work anyway. Frank and Micro argue about the potential danger of Madani knowing Frank is alive, but she chooses to not tell anyone about her rescuer, except Sam Stein. Though Stein says he won't lie if asked in a Q&A about the thieves, he shows after his questioning that he chose to hold his tongue and give Madani time to find evidence. Madani turns to Karen Page, wondering about her relationship with Frank and how she survived being "kidnapped" by him. Karen refuses to budge on the idea that Frank is alive, saying she sees no point in talking about a dead man as though he lives, though she says she saw him as an honorable man with a sad, painful story. Karen arranges a meeting with Frank, and he confirms his involvement with the car and guns, and tells her his regret in not beginning a ghost life in the past, when he felt his family was safer without him. Though Karen asks when the punishing will stop, she still seems supportive of what Frank does, which is odd considering her extreme displeasure at Matt Murdock re-donning the Daredevil mask. Perhaps this is due to Frank's honest nature, but whatever the reason, Frank and Karen continue to have an enjoyable relationship that the writers don't take too far. Frank then heads to Micro's house to fix Sarah Lieberman's car, finding a continued friendship from daughter Leo, but cold, snide remarks from son Zach. A potential relationship continues to become a focus this episode, with Leo clearly pushing Sarah to see what a nice person "Pete" (Frank) is, and urging her to invite him to dinner as thanks. Though Frank accepts, Zach dislikes the idea, acting as the reverse to his sister as he is still clearly upset about his father's "death" and doesn't want his mom to move on. Zach could potentially come to like Frank over time, but for now he seems to be someone his family is accepting to take his father's place. Frank will, in all likelihood, keep the relationship to simple friendliness, both for personal reasons as well as because of his team-up with Micro. When Frank returns, Micro shows him the footage sent to him of the murdered Afghan police officer. Frank determines it was his religious teammate Gunner who filmed and leaked the torture, as he "always knew what they were doing was wrong." The two hope Gunner might know who Agent Orange really is, and we head to a CIA meeting where Orange, revealed as William Rawlins, is talking to recruits. Rawlins also receives an award for his services, with mentions of the injury which blinded his left eye, though this is a result of Frank's punch. Rawlins is offered a promotion as his superior is moving up, and he tells her that there are no skeletons in his closet that could cause them problems. This leads to a problematic situation for Frank, as Rawlins had previously listened in on Madani and Stein talking, and decides to kill Frank's former teammates. This leads to Frank heading to Gunner's cabin at the same time as Rawlins' men, leaving the two outnumbered and outgunned. Episode 5 exhibits the show's ability to effectively swap focuses between side stories and characters, with less attention now on Curtis and the other veterans this time. We also continue to get development with each of these, with Karen and Frank's relationship continuing as Frank also adjusts to Micro and develops a relationship with his family. While Micro is having to work hard to prove himself, future episodes will likely show Frank beginning to warm up to him in his own way. After Frank Castle's interrogation of David Lieberman, episode 4 of "The Punisher" develops the duo's partnership as Agent Madani settles into her new position.
Frank, following a tip from Micro on anillegal weapon sale, intercepts Marvel street rat Turk. Though Turk was supposed to receive the guns from a group of Greeks, he tells Frank the police have already taken the cache, intending to set up a sting operation. Frank is left with only a pink rifle to start stocking up, causing hostilities between him and Micro. Micro agrees to help find the guns, but adds a condition upon learning that his wife gave Frank her number, which Frank says he got as leverage. Frank then agrees to sign an insurance form for Micro's wife about her hitting him with her car, offering help in other areas as well. We see a sort of bond develop between the two, potentially setting up more tension between Frank and Micro. Micro's wife might start to turn to Frank for more than emotional support, but given Frank's violent life and his devotion to his murdered family, it is likely nothing will happen. As Micro tries to find the guns, Madani and the other agents set up their sting, with Madani unintentionally embarrassing Stein by taking control and pointing out flaws in his plan that she quickly remedies. Stein makes more of an effort to get through Madani's walls, which seems to happen a bit as she open up about being told to stop digging into Wolf's death. Elsewhere, Lewis, the young man struggling with leaving the military from the previous episode, ends up digging a foxhole in his yard to sleep in after a nightmare caused him to almost shoot his father. Curtis pays him a visit but fails to persuade him into rejoining the group, as Lewis says he plans to join Anvil and rejoin the fray. Sensing Lewis' instability, Curtis goes directly to Russo and says he wouldn't want someone like Lewis in the field and watching his back. Despite Russo's earlier rousing speech about making the recruits everything they could be and Lewis performing well in each area, Russo sends him away. Lewis, angered, berates Russo and initially seems about to attack, before leaving for a potentially dangerous future in the show. With Lewis already so unstable and desperate to return to his soldier life, feeling betrayed by Russo and losing his one opportunity could push him over the edge. For now, however, the focus is still on Frank regaining an arsenal to use, as Micro manages to discover Madani's operation and he and Frank begin planning. The two head out for vehicles, and Frank finds a man being tortured as a result of the gun situation, with another man already dead. Frank then begins punishing, causing the torturers to pause as he pulls the pin from a grenade, which rolls under the tortured man but fails to explode. Leaving the man behind as he's "not their problem," Frank takes a sports car while Micro heads out in a van. This episode gives a dangerous meeting in the end while setting up possible future problems for everyone. As Madani already believed Frank to be alive, the possibility of her discovering him threatens to expose him to the world, and cause problems for his future endeavors. Similarly, now that Lewis has a chip on his shoulder and knows Curtis is responsible for him not getting into Anvil, he will likely return with a vengeance. Micro faces issues with himself, as he hears his wife tell Frank he was never much of a "hands-on" guy, calling people when problems arose, which Frank later mentions. The duo's team-up, while already something from the comics, is beginning to bring Frank to his classic style, as along with going after weapons, he now has his "battle van," classically used as a mobile armory. With so much set up and a tense climax, future episodes will have a lot to work off in continuing the Punisher's story. The Punisher took a step back from Frank Castle's crusade for episode 3 to focus on Frank and Micro as well as delving into Frank's past.
Picking up right where the previous episode left off, we find Frank Castle in David "Micro" Lieberman's hideout, with Lieberman strapped naked to a chair. With Frank not saying a word, Micro is left filling in the blanks that Frank is paranoid that Micro has some kind of backup that will soon arrive. To prevent this, Frank decides it's time for some torture, opting out of extreme brutality and instead using his knife for eating as well as running it against Micro. After a forceful slap, Frank tells Micro that the interesting thing about torture is how, despite initial pain, the human brain comes to seek comfort in a pattern. Routine is necessary to the mind, Frank says, a sort of false sense of security, as the victim's awareness of time dissolves and they resign themselves to their fate. Micro tells Frank how they are after the same people, as those responsible for the murder of Frank's family also "killed" Micro. Micro, a former NSA agent, found himself in a dilemma when he got footage of Frank's former Afghanistan team torturing and killing an innocent cop. Deciding he should do what's right, Micro turned whistleblower, and the next day noticed Carson Wolf and other officers approaching his car with guns and body armor. Though he tried to run away, Micro found himself surrounded by the corrupt officers, who fired a shot and began shouting at him to put his nonexistent weapon down. Standing on a ledge and distracted by his wife's arrival, Micro was shot and fell over the ledge, leading to his ghost life. With Frank having killed Carson Wolf in the second episode, we also cut occasionally to Dinah Madani, who has taken Wolf's place. As Madani tries to solve Wolf's murder, she also has to adjust to her new position and figure out who to let in and when. We also continue to get scenes of Curtis, Frank's fellow veteran, this episode with another former teammate from Afghanistan, Billy Russo. These scenes serve as a good way to continue diving into the psycho of battered army vets, with one young man describing how a man's head exploded when he shot it. Though he doesn't regret what he did, the man is angry about untrue propaganda he heard reporters say, changing a friendly fire incident into an ambush from the enemy. Though Curtis tries to keep things calm and talk about the sacrifices his friends had made, leading to him finding his new insurance salesman life, another veteran tells the young man that the emotional stuff is crap and he should look into the NRA. Along with the show handling the subject well, Curtis walks a fine line while interacting with Russo, as he must be careful to not say anything revealing Frank. Back with Frank and Micro, the torture takes an interesting turn, as Micro turns the tables and begins analyzing Frank. Micro begins bringing up the video he leaked, asking Frank how many times the innocent cop was beaten for no reason. This leads to flashbacks to Frank's time serving under Ray Schoonover, revealed in Daredevil as the drug dealer "The Blacksmith," who had Frank's family killed. While the main focus of the flashbacks shows the group's ignorance in what they were doing and how they reacted to their duties, we also see a story told back in Daredevil. Schoonover, while testifying on Frank's behalf, mentioned a mission the squad went on thinking they had found a powerful enemy, that was revealed to be a trap. In the flashback, we see that Frank was against the plan, their enemies' awareness of the group and the sudden dangerous whereabouts of this enemy being revealed leading him to think it was a trap, as he would do the same thing. Despite Frank's doubts and Russo backing him up, Schoonover went ahead with the plan, leading to many deaths from their squad and the loss of one of his hands. Frank then took control of the situation and singlehandedly cleared a landing pad for their support, saving the rest of the group. The squad is shell shocked afterward, but An alarm occasionally goes off which Micro says requires a code and retinal scan from him, otherwise his bunker will explode. Though the squad is shell shocked after, Agent Orange, who pushed Schoonover into the plan, only asked about if they succeeded, earning him a punch from Frank. As we learn about Frank's past, we see more of the moral gray area he works in and how his past haunts him. After the Afghan officer was tortured, he pleaded for his life, telling Frank he had a family, only to receive a bullet to the head. Frank and a squad mate later buried him, and as commanded, Frank removed the bullet from his head, thereby removing evidence of what happened. Frank's issues with his past lead to an interesting situation as we follow him, as there is the question of if we should support him just because of his family's death when he was so cold-blooded in the past. If the episodes so far are a good indication of the future, then further down the line things will only get better. |
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