Frank has to take control when Pilgrim assaults the police station, and Russo makes a move when his rage finally boils over.
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Frank and "Rachel" hole up in a hotel to escape her pursuers, and Madani tries to convince everyone that Russo is lying about his condition.
Frank Castle is back, and his attempt at living a normal life is ruined when he sees a group attacking a young woman.
He succeeded in taking down Rawlins, but now Frank Castle is in a tight spot after Russo had to leave him for dead.
The final episode of this season begins with Madani and Micro rushing Frank to Madani's parents' home, urging her father to help. Despite her mothers disapproval, her father notes that sometimes freedom fighters are labeled criminals, and saves Frank from a punctured lung. Russo has since made it to his apartment and patched his bullet wound, and despite police arriving, he effortlessly eliminates them all and blows up the apartment. Now conscious, Frank learns of Russo's escape and, despite Micro giving him money stolen from criminals and a warning from Madani, is still set on revenge. Madani gives a report on what happened to Rafi and Hernandez, saying Frank overpowered her and escape, but the two note how obviously false this is, as Frank was critically injured at the time. Despite them pressuring her to give the true account, Madani refuses to budge, stating accusations can be dangerous, such as ones she could make about Rawlins. Unlike Frank, Micro attempts to return to normality, reunited with his family at a safehouse, though his wife has a hard time dealing with him repeatedly disappearing. In an attempt to find Frank, Russo has gone to Curtis, who wakes up with his gun missing and Russo maintaining a civilized rage. Russo allows him to put on his prosthetic leg and make coffee, asking how long Curtis has been lying to him and demanding to know where Frank is. Reaching for his coffee, Russo realizes there is a problem and dives out of the way of a sniper bullet from Frank, simultaneously clipping Curtis' shoulder with a pistol shot. Frank calls Curtis and tells him to put Russo on. Curtis slides the phone to Russo, who commands Frank to eject his magazine and round. The two agree to meet at Midnight at Frank's "painted ponies," and Russo tells Curtis to call an ambulance before leaving. In a flashback to the carousel where Frank's family died, we see them having a day with Russo. Amidst light riffing, one moment hints at Russo's rage as Lisa Castle jokes about his being an orphan but claiming to be named after Billy the Kid. In another sign, he and Frank agree it is horrible that the Kid was betrayed by his friend for fame and money. Back with the Lieberman family, we see things steadily improve as Micro plays cards with the kids. Finally accepting his return, Sarah leads him away to have sex. We head to the carousel, where Russo takes two young workers hostage. Frank, arriving later that night, sends the location to Madani, who immediately heads out. A gunfight ensues, resulting in a leg wound for Frank and a shot to the cheek to Russo as the carousel spins the foes and the hostages. Hitting his boiling point after having his face damaged, Russo threatens to shoot the hostages. Frank willingly comes out unarmed and is shot repeatedly in the chest. While Russo taunts Frank, Madani arrives and takes a shot, but he manages to turn and shoot her in the head. Frank takes the opportunity to body slam Russo, and the two engage in some impressive hand-to-hand combat. The two go back and forth, with Russo finally injuring Frank by using both his combat knife and the hidden blade on his wrist. For fans of the comics who have been waiting for Russo to physically become his literary counterpart, this climactic episode gives a satisfying conclusion. With this fight finally taking place, a lot of emotions are raging. Given the history between the two and what Frank learned this season, it's not surprising that the combat gets as violent as possible. Despite everything he's done throughout the season, it's also interesting to see how Russo sticks to his honor. In the scene with Curtis, Russo sticks to his word despite having numerous opportunities to kill Curtis. Though Frank is able to trick Russo initially upon approaching the carousel, it is also noteworthy how impressive Russo is tactically and physically. In his first scene for the episode, we see him take down numerous police officers, all without doing more than walking and firing single shots from his silenced gun. Not as much happens with Micro in this episode, though it is clear he and Frank have developed a brotherly bond and it is still nice to see how his family life heals. While not entirely believable, the speed at which they accept him back gives a warm feeling. Madani is key throughout the episode, continuing her typical defiant nature, not willing to compromise what she believes is right. Along with how she saves Frank's life at the start of the episode, she's the reason he is able to continue his mission less impeded, since she doesn't give him up. One aspect of the episode that did make me roll my eyes, to be honest, came from Curtis and Russo. At different points, both of them say that Russo and Frank aren't too different. It feels like as long as Western media has made a hero vs. evil story, there has been the "classic" phrase "you're not so different, you and I." Even Dr. Evil of Austin Powers made fun of this back in the 90's, saying it to Austin and then mentioning it in the third film. It doesn't ruin the episode, but it's a cliché that I, for one, am sick of hearing. It's tired, and overused, and a lame, on-the-nose way of saying two characters are meant to be mirrors of each other. Regardless, the episode is a great end to the Punisher's first violent season, and I can't wait to see what Frank Castle brings to the table in season 2. After rescuing Micro's daughter and agreeing to help Madani, Frank are out to rescue the remaining Liebermans and stop Rawlins and Russo.
The last episode, Frank succeeded in killing all of Russo's men, then called Madani to meet him and Micro. Rawlins, meeting with an angry Marion, easily agrees to let Russo burn to cover their tracks and absolve them of any connection. At the start of this episode, we see Frank giving his taped confession to Madani, admitting his, Rawlins', and Russo's involvement in the Kandahar situation. Though Madani believes Russo is the one who killed the officer from the Kandahar tape, Frank, with his typical ethics, firmly admits his guilt. Micro refuses to tell what happened to him until his family is safe, and the two are sent out with a wired-up Frank to swap themselves for Micro's family. Russo is watching the situation with a sniper rifle, and soon police swarm the area, causing a gunfight, during which an agent shoots Micro. Frank is still taken, and though Micro's family begins grieving, they soon learn, like the audience, that Micro simply faked his death again, to trick Russo. Madani's plan, to have Frank's wire gain proof of Russo and Rawlins, goes awry when she realizes Frank has removed his wire and Micro knew he would. Unfazed by Madani's anger, Micro states that his allegiance is to Frank, not her, and refuses to give up Frank's location. Frank, meanwhile, is slipping in and out of consciousness, dreaming of Maria, tied to Micro's chair in the hideout as Russo tries to make him stop the computer counters. Frank tells him to ask Micro how to do it, then learning of the supposed death, Rawlins enters to begin torturing Frank. Frank eventually seems to break, inputting his codes, but takes advantage of having a free hand to grab a blade taped to his chair, only for Rawlins and Russo to stop him after he stabs Rawlins. The episode comes to a climax as Micro doubts the plan, Frank slips further toward death, and Russo and Rawlins begin butting heads. With this episode, we see the tables turned on Frank, as Rawlins uses all his contempt for the Punisher to horrifically torture him. We get a good look at more of Frank's classic moral beliefs as he refuses to let Russo take the fall for him, and see just what it takes for him to begin breaking. Despite his great endurance, repeated visions of his wife throughout the episode result in Frank almost letting go of the world to be with his family. The relationship between Frank and Micro is further cemented with this episode, as contrary to their original relationship, Micro is steadfastly loyal to Frank. We even see Micro's deep understanding of Frank's broken psyche and how emotionally torn he is because of his past. Madani struggles to choose her next move when she learns Frank killed the Agent, immediately reacting to him differently. When she approaches Micro with this, he notes that Frank knows what he did, and knows he deserves to be punished for what he did. As Micro said, Frank hates what he did in the past, rather than having done it joyfully, and his memories and guilt torture him daily. While things between Frank and Micro have improved, we see Russo and Rawlins begin to go at it more, as their relationship begins to crumble. Not much happens with Madani in this episode, but this works to the episode's strengths as it keeps things focused on Micro and Frank's situations. Despite an incapacitated Frank being the only one who can do anything action-wise against the antagonists for much of the episode, nothing feels slow as we learn a lot about the characters and see their relationships. The end also promises some typical Punisher violence to replace his captivity with episodes to come as the show winds down. Only time will tell how Frank will bounce back from his torture and return to his crusade against crime. Though wounded from the hotel bombing in the previous episode, Frank Castle is more determined than ever to deal out his punishing vengeance on those who've wronged him.
At the end of the last episode, Karen leaves the police wondering where Frank went, and we see that he zip-lined off the building's roof. Frank had just learned that Russo was involved in what was going on, and had, in fact, betrayed him, and Micro had went behind his back to talk to Madani, and he sits at a trashcan fire thinking. He later manages to limp into the hideout, covered in blood from his head wound and the puncture in his arm, where a piece of shrapnel still protrudes. After limping past Micro, Frank sets about removing the shrapnel, immediately oozing blood, and tries to sew the head wound. Frank makes his anger at Micro known, initially refusing to let him sew the wound, and says their work together is done. Micro notes that Frank, in a way, went behind his back as well when he went after Lewis and let himself be seen to the world, but Frank is set that he is on his own again. The episode heads to the Lieberman house, where Micro's family have learned Frank's true identity, with mixed reactions. Zach is naturally hurt and angry, saying his mom could have gotten them hurt by trusting "Pete," Sarah seems unsure what to think, and Leo wants to give "Pete" the benefit of a doubt. At this point, we see Madani begin questioning Russo, but he quickly takes control by noting it is not an official questioning, refusing to tell her anything. When asked about Sam, Russo stays the same, but becomes nervous when Madani mentions that Frank could get to him soon enough. Hernandez is naturally angry with Madani for provoking Russo, but she convinces him to take a gamble and jab at James, hoping to crumble her relationship with Rawlins. Rawlins, meanwhile, has gone to Marion James and admits his shady past, and says Frank is a problem for both of them. Back with the Liebermans, a strange police officer shows up, saying they called about having seen Frank, and Sarah cautiously tiptoes around his questions. Revealed to be either dirty or fake, the man attacks Sarah and Zach, and though Zach runs away, another man catches him and the two are taken captive. Leo makes it out, however, as she had been upstairs when the man entered and Sarah told her to stay quiet upstairs, then told the man Leo was at a friend's house. Frank notices the disheveled house on Micro's screens, and decides to help the family, and Micro searches the cameras, finally seeing that Leo escaped from an upstairs window. Realizing that Russo's men now have their location, because Sarah has his number, Frank tells Micro to call Leo and set up a place for them to meet. Unable to bring himself to talk to Leo, Micro has Frank tell her to go to a pool where they went as a family, and Frank says it will have to be him that goes, as he will be killing the men Russo sends to the hideout. Madani and Hernandez take their gamble, and though James doesn't bite the bait, Hernandez seems to think she's shaken, telling Madani to wait for a reaction. The episode comes to its climax as Frank prepares the hideout for Russo's approaching men, once more dawning skull-painted armor, which calls a "memento mori," a reminder to a person why they need to come back from battles alive. Micro puts everything on the line, having to reveal himself to his family, and the results of Madani and Hernandez's gamble reveals the current relationships for a few people. This episode doesn't let down after the action of the previous episode, but rather improves on it as Frank slaughters Russo's men. Frank's preparation and combat show his expertise, but not in such a way that he feels too unrealistic. A common complaint of heroes without powers, like Batman, is that they often seem to never so much as get scratched, despite their vulnerability. With Frank, however, we see injuries going both ways, as by this episode, he has experienced near-death fighting alongside Gunner, a bullet wound and shrapnel from the previous episode, and new wounds from his hideout fight. While Frank is obviously a master at what he does, him getting wounded keeps him grounded and feeling human. Along with the combat, this one takes a good look at the relationships between characters now that Frank is revealed and information is getting out. The realization that Russo is involved with everything is a massive blow to everything Frank knows, leaving him angry for his interaction with Micro. It is obvious Frank had come to respect and trust Micro, and the hacker's actions meeting with Madani compound on Russo's betrayal. Now that Madani knows that Russo killed Stein, her trust has also been broken, though she has new trust with Hernandez, and she is closer to catching Rawlins. Rawlins and Russo, meanwhile, clearly trust no one, as Russo worries that news of what they did will affect them both, and is paranoid that Rawlins will give him up. These beliefs are founded, as it is obvious Rawlins won't hesitate to throw Russo aside is and when the situation calls for it. A big change for relationships was, of course, between Frank and the Lieberman's, as they are unsure of how to handle the news that "Pete" has been fooling them. Though Leo is more willing to accept the truth of the matter, it is obvious Zach will have a hard time adjusting, especially once reunited with his dad. Sarah, like Leo, is taking the situation slowly, but Zach, who felt angry and alone after the loss of his father, will only be angrier now that his new fatherly role model has been revealed as the Punisher. It's possible Micro's return will prompt a bigger reaction from the family, due to what he means to them and how they've had to feel for a year. The final episode is drawing near, meaning some massive confrontations are about to take place. With Frank and Russo both experts at what they do, a battle between them will be a sight to see. Kicking off with a murder from Lewis Wilson, Punisher episode 10 gives us mixed around timelines and conflicting accounts of a bombing involving Lewis' attempting bombing of Senator Ori.
The episode starts us with Lewis killing veteran Isaac Lange, who had been attending Curtis' meetings, and enters his home. Noticing a pair of pet birds, Wilson moves their cage in an attempt to let them go free out the window, but they refuse to move. This moment works in a subtle but effective way to symbolize Lewis' beliefs, as he sees the country as being run by completely corrupt officials who are keeping the citizens caged. To Lewis, the citizens and the birds just don't understand what he is trying to do for them, despite his belief he is on a mission to serve them. To the people and the birds, however, Lewis is just someone who barged in, caused destruction, and is trying to uproot them from the life they know and are comfortable with. We soon move to the building where Karen Page was set to interview Senator Ori on the issue of gun control, finding an overturned room and Russo talking to Detective Brett Mahoney. Hours earlier, Russo was preparing for Karen's interview with Ori, inviting her in and conversing about the ironic situation of a gun-carrying reporter talking to a senator advocating gun control while he is protected by Anvil, a military security company. One detail that Russo fails to share is that Frank calls him soon after, saying that Lewis is coming and he wants Russo to protect Ori and leave Lewis to him. Mahoney also speaks with Ori, who claims that Lewis, after blowing a hole in the room, entered and killed the Anvil guards, before Frank entered behind him as backup. In this version of the story, Ori heroically picks up a gun and shoots back, then flees the scene to get help, narrowly avoiding shots from Frank. When Mahoney shares the story with Karen, she is disgusted, explaining that Ori cowered in fear the minute Lewis entered, and asserted that Frank intervened, saving their lives. In Karen's description, Ori hid behind a couch as Lewis killed the guards and found him, and she left her hiding spot to convince him not to hurt Ori. As Lewis prepared to shoot them, Frank barreled into the room and dove in Lewis' way, taking his shots with a bulletproof vest. Ori then ran away, in Karen's opinion shoving her into Lewis, who then held her captive to keep Frank at bay, and escaped both Frank and guards by showing a bomb he was strapped with an entering an elevator. Once in the elevator, the guards turned their attention to Frank, who ran to a stairwell, shielding himself with a guard's corpse. Back in the present, Mahoney talks with Madani, and the two go over Sam Stein's death before Mahoney asks why Madani was present during the bombing. We see that prior to the bombing, Madani, confronted by Rafael Hernandez, gives the full details on her botched sting operation and the bug she discovered in her office. Relenting, Hernandez gives Madani the case files for each of Russo's men from the sting, and she notes they were all affiliated with Anvil. Back to the bombing incident, Madani is downstairs as Lewis arrives in the building dressed as an Anvil guard, and waits for Russo. Russo comes down, and though he wants to head back up soon to protect Ori, Madani questions him about the men and if he thinks he could figure out who escaped and killed Stein. Now on the defense, Russo brushes the men off as former employees who took their own path, and though feigning being offended, he agrees to ask around if anyone might know who it was. As their conversation gets more heated, the bomb goes off upstairs, and Russo rushes back up as Madani heads for the stairwell, where she encounters Frank. Though Madani demands that Frank hand himself over or be shot, he says she won't do anything and moves close, only for Russo to enter an upstairs door and graze his head with a shot. Frank seems to stunned at what Russo has done, but Madani, now in a standoff with Russo, comes to the realization he killed Stein. Before anyone can move, police swarm the stairwell, forcing the three to lower all weapons and stand still. Madani and Russo are led away, but Frank grabs a fire hose and leaps down the stairwell, landing on a floor after the hose jerks to a stop, injuring his shoulder. Now covered in multiple injuries, Frank enters a downstairs area, where Lewis is struggling to stay calm and Karen is trying to talk him down. In a moment of calm openness, Lewis explains that a mantra he was just repeating, which says if you're surrounded with no chance, you should kill yourself, was drilled into his head overseas. As Frank enters, Lewis again takes hold of Karen, forcing Frank to quickly determine a way to safely get them apart as the episode comes to a peak. The choice to have the story told from the future was interesting, as it is the first to be done this way, rather than having a straightforward, linear progression. It is reminiscent of the Japanese film "Rashomon," in which multiple people tell their version of what happened when a samurai and his wife were attacked by a bandit. Each person't account is drastically different from the others, with the bandit claiming the he bested the samurai honorably and the wife, despite saying she'd leave with him, ran away. The woman says she was a poor bystander and the bandit raped her, then she went unconscious essentially from shame, waking to find him dead. The samurai, speaking through a medium, says the bandit raped his wife, who asked to go with him if he would kill her husband, then ran away when the bandit asked the samurai if he should kill her, so he freed the samurai, who killed himself. A woodcutter explaining the story says he was there, and that in reality both men were cowards when fighting, and the wife was chastising them both, until the bandit got lucky in killing the samurai, and the wife fled. Though a listening commoner realizes the woodcutter stole a dagger from the crime scene and therefore he is also a liar, his story is often believed as the truth. Director Akira Kurosawa, however, has said the point of the film is to explore multiple possibilities, rather than giving a definitive truth. In the end, the woodcutter's story could, at most, likely only be considered the least biased, while stilling not giving us the right details. Later stories to use the "Rashomon Effect" often reveal the actual occurrence of an event at the end, and it is possible that is what happened here. Karen is the last one to share what happened, as she was involved with the Frank/Lewis standoff. Due to what we know about Ori, and more obviously, Frank, his story cannot be believed because he is protecting his pride and we know Frank dislikes Lewis. Karen obviously knows Frank the best, and we know from her work as a journalist that she is a strong advocate for the full truth. One small detail that suggests the truth of her account is how Frank handles situations with Lewis, repeatedly shushing him. We have seen Frank do this in previous episodes, in attempts to calm another person, in particular when Lewis has meltdowns. However, Karen could easily be attempting to make Frank seem more classically heroic than he might have been, in an attempt to make him look good. Really, this isn't a typical "Rashomon" moment, as we only get two differing accounts, since Russo and Madani talk about separate things. However, we do know that each person's story could be slightly untrue, and they don't always reveal the full truth to Mahoney. In Russo's account, he, of course, fails to mention Frank's call, and Madani just says Russo interrupted her capture of a suspect, rather than what she is after Frank for. This, along with the realization Karen even admits to helping Frank escape, does make her story be what we go from. With Madani realizing the truth about Russo, she finds herself in a bad position, because there isn't much she can do. At the moment, Madani has no proof Russo has done anything, as Stein was the only witness to Russo's involvement and she can only say the men used to work for him. This is not evidence enough to prove that Russo was involved, and he has enough power that her attempts to do anything could easily cause problems. Now that Frank and Lewis have come head to head, and Madani has figured out Russo was deceiving her, things are bound to get more complicated in coming episodes. After the shocking death of Sam Stein in the previous episode, Punisher episode 9 hikes things up with Lewis' explosive entrance.
Episode 8 ended disastrously for Madani's forces, taking heavy damage despite killing all but Billy Russo during their sting operation. Most horrific for Madani, however, came when Russo killed Sam with no witnesses, leaving Sam unable to tell Madani of their true enemy. Madani has retreated home in shock, and refuses to return to work or make statements despite mounting pressure due to her falsified paperwork. Outside, Frank and Micro watch Madani and her mother with a sniper rifle, trying to decide how best to handle her. Before they come to any conclusion, however, a building is damaged by Lewis' pressure cooker bomb from episode 7. Later, after watching a news report with a cell phone video of the explosion from within the building, Frank, disgusted at Lewis' "cowardly" use of bombs, stalls the plan to contact Madani. Lewis sends a message directly to Karen Page to get his mission plan public, as he believes she will see him as similar to Frank, but she calls him a coward and terrorist. Over with the police, Madani is in hot water with Rafael Hernandez, who wants to know why she did what she did, but she gives him nothing when he says he can't help if it is about Kandahar. On a radio station, Karen again denounces him, even after he calls in directly and threatens her. Frank, who was listening, becomes enraged that Karen is being targeted, and realizes it is Lewis because of the young man's use of the phrase "sic semper tyrannis." Knowing he heard it back in Curtis' group, Frank demands that Micro track down Lewis, saying Karen is family to him. Curtis, having also recognized Lewis, heads to O'Connor's house and discovers his dead body and Lewis' bomb supplies. Lewis walks in and the two talk, but he eventually attacks and is able to knock Curtis out by yanking off Curtis' prosthetic and beating him with it. Frank has, meanwhile, checked Lewis' house, and calls Karen to tell her to stay out of the situation, when Micro tells him of Lewis' whereabouts and Curtis being there. Over at Madani's, a failed attempt at sex with Russo to feel better has led to a conversation about blaming oneself. Russo states that he has experienced plenty of deaths, which, if thought of negatively, could lead him to a mindset of blaming himself for not preventing them. In reality, the enemy is the true one to blame, or maybe even the victim, slipping in a jab that Sam somehow got stabbed when he had a gun. Russo is also hired to protect a gun control advocate, whom Lewis had previously specified as an opponent. Frank, arriving at O'Connor's, finds Curtis hooked up to multiple claymore mines, and Lewis, watching from outside, calls Curtis' phone to talk to Frank. The two argue viewpoints and Frank bounces between berating Lewis and calmly trying to convince him to say how to disarm the bombs. Curtis, trying to get Frank to leave, explains that despite what he typically says, he often feels hopeless and sometimes thinks it would have been better to just die rather, than lose his leg. As the episode comes to a climax, Frank must find a way to disarm the bomb before police arrive, Lewis having called them to witness the explosion. At the same time, Madani, has decided to speak at Sam's funeral and tell the truth no matter the cost, and Micro, when telling Frank of Lewis and Curtis' location, seemed about to make contact with Madani. This episode finally brings to light the building opposing methods of handling seemingly the same problem, as well as hypocrisy and opposing ideology. One of the biggest examples of this comes with gun control advocate Senator Ori, as he quickly becomes a target for Lewis. In particular, Ori hiring Russo for protection is an interesting development, as Russo would be known for using guns. Russo himself says it's funny that, for all his beliefs, Ori is more than willing to shell out money to hire security with opposing views to his. Ori clearly knows this, and reminds Russo that, because of the storm that could be caused if an attacker were killed with a gun, he wants protection in other forms. The unstable Lewis is an interesting look at a more twisted version of Frank's path, as Frank points out that, despite Lewis saying they are the same, he was willing to beat Curtis, a US marine, and strap him with bombs. Similalry, as Karen says on the radio, Lewis' claim that he is going after corrupt people is weakened due to his first victims being regular working-class people. Though this is a clear examination of how not everyone agrees with Frank's methods and could see him as a terrorist, the differences are all to clear. With Frank, the main issue with what he does could by that while he often kills people for corruption, people don't always know of the corruption, and therefore see him as just someone killing members of the government or military. Frank has his moral code, however, and makes sure to save people and try to prevent casualties, like when he clipped the young soldier at Rawlins' compound rather than taking a kill shot. Lewis, meanwhile, has become convinced that American rights are being trampled on by anyone who opposes him, not noticing some of his own hypocrisy. Lewis says that he needs to show people like Karen they can't just say whatever they want, a clear disregard for free speech despite his adamant advocacy for gun rights. In his own mission to take down corruption, Lewis is obviously becoming little more than a terrorist as Karen said, willing to hurt or kill whoever opposes him. A smaller important development comes from the talk between Madani and Russo, when Russo insults Sam and mentions how he died. Given that, as Madani said, Russo shouldn't have been there, it would be odd to someone like Madani that Russo would know Sam was killed with a knife, or even that he had his gun. This is just further evidence that, despite how he and Rawlins control so much, Russo isn't always too bright, unintentionally dropping clues for Madani that he is lying. With Frank now dealing with both Lewis and police, Madani likely about to spill everything she knows, and Micro intending to meet her, everything is beginning to get tangled together. As everyone continues in their own goals, it is clear there are big confrontations coming in future episodes. After the Punisher's attempt to assassinate William Rawlins failed in the previous episode, Frank and Micro regroup for a new plan to proceed.
The episode opens with Russo visiting his elderly mother in a nursing home, where she is bedridden and doesn't speak. Russo resents his mother due to her past drug addiction resulting in her abandoning him to abusive foster care, and terrorizes her with his visits. Despite this, Russo says he pays them extra to be sure they even brush her teeth, and gives her a shot before leaving. Back with Frank, Micro has been running a facial recognition program on an image of Rawlins from Frank's scope, and is able to identify him. Frank becomes enraged about Rawlins profiting from the "battle wound" he got when Frank beat him for the disastrous mission overseas, and Micro worries that the CIA will know he is on their site. Frank assures Micro the CIA aren't going to come after them, noting they have no mention of his prior assaults at the compounds or the shot at Rawlins. Micro's worries soon increase, however, as the cameras in his house suddenly go out, prompting him to demand Frank check on his family. Rather than go immediately to the house, we head to Russo making light jabs at Madani after another hook-up for her inability to let him get close. As the two talk about their scars, Madani comments about Russo's multitude of scarred areas except his face, a nod to his comic counterpart. Though the two joke about their scars initially, Russo opens up to Madani about his life in foster care and how he was abused by one of the caregivers. Over at the Lieberman house, Frank arrives with flowers just as Sarah takes the garbage out, and she invites him in. Pouring wine for them both, Sarah explains she turned off the Internet to punish Zach, yet still let him go out for the day. Madani, meanwhile, has the bug in her office exposed and stages a conversation with Sam about intervening in an ammo buy Frank will be making. Frank, still at the Lieberman house, reactivates the Internet, allowing Micro to see as Sarah, drunk and feeling comfort with Frank, kisses him. Frank defuses the situation and heads back to the hideout, where Micro has the kiss frozen on his computer and is passed out drunk. Madani's fake plan gets to Rawlins and Russo, who refuses to use more of his Anvil personnel because of the losses sustained going after Gunner, instead later hiring mercenaries. Madani and Sam tell other officers about the ammo buy and file paperwork for the situation, but don't inform anyone of their true intentions. Back at the hideout, Frank gets the two talking about how they met their wives to show Micro he has no intention of going after Sarah. Micro, still drunk, starts walking away once appeased, but comes back upon realizing Madani could be the key to their plans. He says Frank could be the witness Madani needs to put Rawlins away, but Frank refuses and has to knock Micro out with a punch to stop him from calling her. We go back to Frank, banging pots to roughly wake Micro, giving him food and frustrated that Micro still believes they should contact Madani. Sarah calls Frank and says she needs help with Zach, so he heads over and she shows him a knife she found in Zach's bag, saying she is afraid of what he'll do. Frank has a "talk" with Zach, saying how similar he is to young Frank, and scares both Zach and Micro by holding the knife to his neck. Zach, speaking for the first time in the interaction, admits he is scared and alone, and wanted others to feel the way he does. The episode comes to a close as Frank handles the situation a new way and Madani and Russo's groups collide. In this episode, we finally get payoff for the relationship built between Frank and Sarah, which sees obvious but well-handled issues between both Frank and Sarah and Frank and Micro. It was good to see Frank stick to his feelings and beliefs, not letting the show get wrapped up in a love triangle. The Zach situation finally culminates in a pleasing scene, which I had been waiting for, wondering what tough love tactics Frank would employ to get through to the kid. The fact Rawlins and Russo easily fell for Madani's ruse and aren't able to counter Frank and Micro's plans show they're not in control as much as they initially seemed. The pressure has continued to mount on the two as Frank gets closer, of course, but also as Madani gets closer to uncovering them. Madani, meanwhile, is making some risky plays now that she knows someone has bugged her office and likely other areas of the division. The faked conversation with Sam was definitely a good play on her part, but her decision to not tell anyone else, while likely necessary because she doesn't know who is trustworthy, could lead to trouble in the future. To enact their plan, the two had to falsify documents, and this paired with their refusal to let others in on the idea, could get her in trouble if there are problems. With Frank finding a new kind of relationship with the Lieberman family, including Micro, and Russo and Rawlins' plans crumbling around them, future episodes will likely give us some violent meetings. Recovering from his wounds, Frank Castle is ready to get back into the action for episode 7: Crosshairs as he tries to identify Agent Orange.
At the end of the previous episode, viewers saw Castle's so-called friend Billy Russo getting in a car with William Rawlins (Agent Orange) after Castle failed to show for an overseas move. This episode begins with Lewis washing his hands after murdering O'Connor, and going home where is father confronts him, worrying for his and others' safety and making him take medication. Lewis, still confused and broken over everything happening to him, breaks down in the basement where he almost shoots himself. Frank and Micro plan to interrogate Morty Bennett, who Frank is certain knows Agent Orange's identity, and Frank wonders what he will do if faced with the need to kill a soldier. Billy Russo, having been revealed as an enemy, meets with Madani and tells her Frank never answered his message, and he soon heads out to meet with Rawlins and discuss the issue of Bennett. Madani, taking note of Russo joking that it's not like anyone's listening to her conversations, realizes Gunner died after she identified him, and comes to the conclusion her office is bugged. Back with Frank and Micro, a plan has come together to get in with Micro working surveillance as Bennett has a "date" with a dominatrix. With Micro's help, Frank navigates his way in and crashes through Bennett's door, and the dominatrix radios Russo, who is waiting nearby. Micro warns Frank of the incoming back-up, and Frank tells Bennett that if he screams, he'll die, before dropping a smoke grenade to give Micro time to clone Bennett's phone. The soldiers enter, equipped with laser sights, and Frank silently takes them out from within the smoke, until only the masked Russo is left. Once the cloning is finished, Frank, wounded from trading gunshots with Russo, leaps out a window and escapes via a tunnel, where he is forced to incapacitate a soldier with a shoulder shot. The excited tension is replaced with another kind as we head to Lewis and his father talking while watching a Muhammad Ali boxing match, and Lewis comes to think he needs to take matters into his own hands. Certain he needs to do something, Lewis goes to a hardware store and purchases the materials to make a bomb out of a pressure cooker. Bennett, meanwhile, rages at Rawlins and Russo for using him as bait, and claims Frank got nothing from him, so they decide he should retire and have Russo set up a new life for him. Frank and micro, with the coordinates of Bennett's phone, head to their location to find Rawlins, as Micro wonders what it will be like when he can go back to his family. Frank reassures Micro, but says it will be hard to go back to their lives and says he shouldn't mention the numerous cameras set up in the house. As Frank and Micro zero in on Rawlins' compound, Madani and Sam search her office for the bug and Russo takes Bennett to a hotel to begin his new life. This episode gives us a good look at how well Frank and Micro can work off each other, as well as how effective Frank is at stealth. The smoke scene showed from the beginning how much more menacing Frank is than a typical soldier, as he isn't at all fazed when told of the approaching forces. Once the soldiers have arrived, Frank shows off expert skill in taking down the soldiers without making sound, making him seem that much terrifying. We potentially have Frank and Micro out-thinking Rawlins and Russo for the time being, as nothing was suspected after determining Bennett had said nothing. Russo might be getting a little too prideful, as he is the reason Madani started to suspect her office had been bugged. Considering Madani seems naturally suspicious of things and lets few people get close, it's entirely possible she'll connect him with what's going on. In this case, Russo would have more to worry about, as he would have both the police and the Punisher coming after him. With Madani previously unsure of what to hink about Frank, and now the possibility of uncovering Russo's deception, maybe we'll see a meeting and possible team effort between Madani and Frank. Whatever happens, the climax of this episode set up multiple confrontations to come in the future, especially for Frank. |
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