Marvel’s The Punisher is a dark and intriguing Netflix original. The plot follows the villain from Daredevil season 2, Frank Castle, 6 months after his final killing spree. In the first episode, “3AM,” Frank is having flashbacks of playing guitar with his daughter. Before the show takes place, Frank’s family, a wife and two children, were brutally murdered in the crossfire of a gang fight, as far as the viewer knows. He then made it his mission to exterminate all gangs in the city to avenge his family. His tragic history and violent actions create a brilliant base for a great show.
The most striking thing about The Punisher for a first-time watcher was the empathy felt for a man with such a violent history. Immediately after the murder of his family, Frank decided to go on a murder mission of his own. As the viewer should know, his actions were not those of a morally sound person. However, the show constantly dives into flashbacks of sweet memories of Castle’s family. Especially during sleep, Frank has visions of his late wife waking him up for breakfast and smiling down at him. The sun shines behind her and the frame is filled with muted pastel colors. After a few minutes, Frank, along with the viewer gets ripped out of the dream and back into the dark reality. The pained expression Frank shows is one of a kicked puppy. The pained expression Frank shows is one of a kicked puppy. Seeing such a rough man with extreme pain shocks the viewer.
Along with the pain, Frank’s coworkers constantly throw around derogatory names and insults. They believe he is mentally challenged and simply someone to torment without consequence. All of them snicker and tease him relentlessly day after day. They rudely comment about his odd work habits and shove his things around without the thought of hurting the man’s emotions. The camera switches back and forth from their piercing smirks and Frank’s blank face. Once the coworkers turn and walk away for the night, anger floods Castle’s eyes as he continues to work. Consequently, he snaps back to his old violent ways and kills the gang that put him down every day as they attempt to kill the new recruit. Though most people would not resort to violence to resolve that issue of unjust treatment, viewers of The Punisher can most likely empathize with the need to finally snap and retaliate against such oppressors.
Marvel Entertainment and Netflix created a new TV show that might turn subscribers away from the violence. The empathy they cause, however, is well worth the gory scenes. The emotions conveyed make The Punisher truly excellent.
Works Cited
“The Punisher.” created by Steve Lightfoot, season 1, episode 1, Netflix, 17 Nov. 2017.
“Daredevil.” Daredevil, created by Drew Goddard, Netflix, 2015.
Showing posts with label Marvel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Marvel. Show all posts
February 11, 2018
November 19, 2017
Luke Cage
For this week, I actually decided to watch a tv show instead of a movie. Being a huge comic book fan (admittedly far more of a DC fan than Marvel though), I knew it was only a matter of time before I really cracked into the Marvel Netflix shows. The only one I have seen is Daredevil and, quite frankly, I've only seen four or five episodes. So, of the other Marvel Netflix shows (The Punisher, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, The Defenders), I decided to go with Luke Cage. Luke Cage is an adaptation of the Marvel Comics character Luke Cage (obviously), a man who is almost completely indestructible.
The first thing I have to say is that Netflix and Marvel deserve mad props just for the pilot episode alone. The Luke Cage character in the comics quite frankly kind of sucks. He's bland and generic with very few good stories and even fewer good villains. Somehow, the show makes Cage likable and very charismatic. Of course, much of the appreciation here must also go to actor Mike Coulter, who previously had only popped up in small supporting roles in films such as Million Dollar Baby, Zero Dark Thirty, and Men in Black 3. Coulter is likable, fun, and just downright badass. It's made pretty clear that Cage is a lady's man with a character saying that some people just have "it," and Cage has that it factor. It's one of those things where the show does a great job of displaying that Cage is definitely a lady's man and it isn't just exposition that never is backed up. Additionally, Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali (Moonlight) is terrific as Cornell 'Cottonmouth' Stokes, one of two big bads in the show and arguably the main antagonist. Like Cage, Cottonmouth is a sucky comic book villain. To put it in perspective, Cottonmouth was a primary villain for the "hero" Power Man (Don't expect this guy to pop up in a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie anytime soon). Once again like Cage, he actually is really awesome here. Ali does a great job of making the character charismatic while also coming off as intimidating.
Another strength to the show is its tone and style. Luke Cage, while gritty like Daredevil, does feel different, mainly due to the large amounts of African American culture that the show uses, such as a soundtrack the features a lot of R&B music. The Daredevil show felt more like a Batman movie, sort of gothic and definitely more of a crime mystery, where as Luke Cage is an urban crime show with a good sense of humor. Just from watching the pilot, I think the higher ups that work on the Marvel movies really need to take notice. The major issue that has plagued the Marvel films ever since Iron Man 2 is that they all feel exactly the same. Even the best of these films still feel no different from the others. The movies have a formula that is safe and requires no risks, guaranteeing an at least decent movie, however this has also set a ceiling for these movies. With how the Marvel films work, they will never make a Logan (While based on Marvel comics, X-Men movies are made by Twentieth Century Fox), they will never make a Spider-Man 2 (The 2004 version), They will never make a Richard Donner Superman film, and they will most certainly never in a million years make a Dark Knight movie, nor even come close. These tv shows, however, can redefine the superhero genre and become more than just great superhero shows. Isn't that what it's all about? Taking risks to try and constantly set the bar higher? Sure the new wave of DC movies haven't all been overly well received, but they also made Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman is only fourth DC Extended Universe film and, in my opinion, is already quality wise better than every film the Marvel Cinematic Universe has ever released since this new continuity franchise began with 2008's Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk. Much like the DC Extended Universe, Marvel's Netflix shows haven't all been hits with Iron Fist being universally panned. That said, Daredevil is terrific, and just don't just take my word for it. Both seasons of Daredevil as well as Jessica Jones and Luke Cage have received almost universal praise. While of course much of this has to do with qualities such as writing and acting, it also has to do with each having unique tones and styles. In fact, Luke Cage's style and tone aren't just good, they're great and are characters in and of themselves. They set the mood and scene perfectly, helping immerse the viewer into the show seamlessly.
While I personally don't think directing is quite as important with tv shows as it is movies, great directing regardless produces great results. The pilot is directed by veteran Paul McGuigan, who, along with cinematographer Manuel Billeter, craft a beautiful looking show complete with great color uses and impressive camerawork. The work these two do really is cinema level and not just average cinema level but great cinema level. It's clear that Marvel and Netflix allowed McGuigan to fully craft the pilot how he wanted which evidently paid dividends in the end.
The final thing I quickly want to mention here is the humor. Similar with what I mentioned above about tone, Marvel films ALL have the same humor, humor that, quite frankly, does not work. Aside from the first Iron Man, the first Guardians of the Galaxy, Ant-Man, and parts of the second Guardians and Spider-Man: Homecoming, the humor in Marvel films is really childish and destroys the mood of the scene (by the way, 3 and 2 half films out of 17 isn't a great percentage). For instance, Captain America: Civil War is supposed to be a devastating movie and plenty of times is. However, Marvel still decided to throw in a lot of pointless, unfunny jokes. The only humor in the film should have been generated by Spider-Man and Ant-Man, however the film still gave jokes to almost every other character. The humor I think definitely took the movie from being a great movie to being just a great comic book movie and yes there is a huge difference. The humor used in Luke Cage is funny, but it fits with the tone as the humor is witty and adult, much like the rest of the show. Also, the humor is used sparsely and never used in a scene that is meant to be tense, dramatic, or sad. Unlike the Marvel movies, the show actually treats the audience as mature and realizes that not every scene needs to be happy go lucky.
In the end, I definitely recommend checking out Luke Cage. If you aren't into superheroes, that's ok. While he's a hero, he's far from a tradition superhero, which I think is both great and smart. I definitely plan on finishing the season by the end of Thanksgiving break.
The first thing I have to say is that Netflix and Marvel deserve mad props just for the pilot episode alone. The Luke Cage character in the comics quite frankly kind of sucks. He's bland and generic with very few good stories and even fewer good villains. Somehow, the show makes Cage likable and very charismatic. Of course, much of the appreciation here must also go to actor Mike Coulter, who previously had only popped up in small supporting roles in films such as Million Dollar Baby, Zero Dark Thirty, and Men in Black 3. Coulter is likable, fun, and just downright badass. It's made pretty clear that Cage is a lady's man with a character saying that some people just have "it," and Cage has that it factor. It's one of those things where the show does a great job of displaying that Cage is definitely a lady's man and it isn't just exposition that never is backed up. Additionally, Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali (Moonlight) is terrific as Cornell 'Cottonmouth' Stokes, one of two big bads in the show and arguably the main antagonist. Like Cage, Cottonmouth is a sucky comic book villain. To put it in perspective, Cottonmouth was a primary villain for the "hero" Power Man (Don't expect this guy to pop up in a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie anytime soon). Once again like Cage, he actually is really awesome here. Ali does a great job of making the character charismatic while also coming off as intimidating.
Another strength to the show is its tone and style. Luke Cage, while gritty like Daredevil, does feel different, mainly due to the large amounts of African American culture that the show uses, such as a soundtrack the features a lot of R&B music. The Daredevil show felt more like a Batman movie, sort of gothic and definitely more of a crime mystery, where as Luke Cage is an urban crime show with a good sense of humor. Just from watching the pilot, I think the higher ups that work on the Marvel movies really need to take notice. The major issue that has plagued the Marvel films ever since Iron Man 2 is that they all feel exactly the same. Even the best of these films still feel no different from the others. The movies have a formula that is safe and requires no risks, guaranteeing an at least decent movie, however this has also set a ceiling for these movies. With how the Marvel films work, they will never make a Logan (While based on Marvel comics, X-Men movies are made by Twentieth Century Fox), they will never make a Spider-Man 2 (The 2004 version), They will never make a Richard Donner Superman film, and they will most certainly never in a million years make a Dark Knight movie, nor even come close. These tv shows, however, can redefine the superhero genre and become more than just great superhero shows. Isn't that what it's all about? Taking risks to try and constantly set the bar higher? Sure the new wave of DC movies haven't all been overly well received, but they also made Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman is only fourth DC Extended Universe film and, in my opinion, is already quality wise better than every film the Marvel Cinematic Universe has ever released since this new continuity franchise began with 2008's Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk. Much like the DC Extended Universe, Marvel's Netflix shows haven't all been hits with Iron Fist being universally panned. That said, Daredevil is terrific, and just don't just take my word for it. Both seasons of Daredevil as well as Jessica Jones and Luke Cage have received almost universal praise. While of course much of this has to do with qualities such as writing and acting, it also has to do with each having unique tones and styles. In fact, Luke Cage's style and tone aren't just good, they're great and are characters in and of themselves. They set the mood and scene perfectly, helping immerse the viewer into the show seamlessly.
While I personally don't think directing is quite as important with tv shows as it is movies, great directing regardless produces great results. The pilot is directed by veteran Paul McGuigan, who, along with cinematographer Manuel Billeter, craft a beautiful looking show complete with great color uses and impressive camerawork. The work these two do really is cinema level and not just average cinema level but great cinema level. It's clear that Marvel and Netflix allowed McGuigan to fully craft the pilot how he wanted which evidently paid dividends in the end.
The final thing I quickly want to mention here is the humor. Similar with what I mentioned above about tone, Marvel films ALL have the same humor, humor that, quite frankly, does not work. Aside from the first Iron Man, the first Guardians of the Galaxy, Ant-Man, and parts of the second Guardians and Spider-Man: Homecoming, the humor in Marvel films is really childish and destroys the mood of the scene (by the way, 3 and 2 half films out of 17 isn't a great percentage). For instance, Captain America: Civil War is supposed to be a devastating movie and plenty of times is. However, Marvel still decided to throw in a lot of pointless, unfunny jokes. The only humor in the film should have been generated by Spider-Man and Ant-Man, however the film still gave jokes to almost every other character. The humor I think definitely took the movie from being a great movie to being just a great comic book movie and yes there is a huge difference. The humor used in Luke Cage is funny, but it fits with the tone as the humor is witty and adult, much like the rest of the show. Also, the humor is used sparsely and never used in a scene that is meant to be tense, dramatic, or sad. Unlike the Marvel movies, the show actually treats the audience as mature and realizes that not every scene needs to be happy go lucky.
In the end, I definitely recommend checking out Luke Cage. If you aren't into superheroes, that's ok. While he's a hero, he's far from a tradition superhero, which I think is both great and smart. I definitely plan on finishing the season by the end of Thanksgiving break.
September 1, 2017
Daredevil
This week, I decided to take on the pilot episode of the series Daredevil as it had been recommended to me by one of my friends. I am a fan of the movies based around Marvel characters, so I had rather high hopes going into this. Granted, I did not watch past the first episode, which I may decide to do in the future, but I found the start to be just okay. Had I not known this show was from Marvel, I wouldn't realize we were about to follow a superhero.
Yes, the show was not my favorite, however the directors did make some interesting choices. One of the better aspects was the usage of lighting. In most of the scenes, the lighting is dim. Pretty straight forward. However, I felt it was used to reflect the main character, Matt Murdock. He is shown as being more mysterious and closed off, to the point. He doesn't need lavish things and prefers the lights to be darker. It's also fair to mention he is blind. The director most likely added in this detail in order for us to relate to our main character more, and see and appreciate things from his perspective (no pun intended). We better understand what it's like to live in a darker world.
One thing I felt as though the pilot struggled with was figuring out what genre it was. At many different points, I felt like it was a completely different premise, and almost made the viewer get lost. There were fight scenes, displaying the show as an action, which I had assumed the whole show would be for the most part. Yet even then, while the show is about a supposed "superhero", it still showed him as a guy fighting local thugs. Later, Matt and his friend Foggy Nelson started up a law firm together, and during scenes of their practice, it seemed like they wanted it to be more political and law-oriented. The show almost tries to take up a good cop/bad cop dynamic between the two, but doesn't quiet get there. Every now and then, the show would throw in comedic elements, almost as though just to say there were comedic moments. And after all that, there is already romantic tension between Matt, and, ironically enough, Murdock and Nelson's first client, Karen Page. While most shows don't focus on one specific genre the entire time, this one seemed to get lost in itself and didn't truly establish what it wanted to be. Going away from the first episode, I wasn't really sure what section I would put a show like this in.
The show itself was not terrible, don't get me wrong. However, had I not heard great things from my friends, I'm not too sure if I would consider watching on. While the pilot typically tends to be the worst and most chaotic episode, this one doesn't seem to show much potential for a pick up. Any positivity about the show would be appreciated, as I would like to be able to watch a stellar series from the Marvel universe!
Yes, the show was not my favorite, however the directors did make some interesting choices. One of the better aspects was the usage of lighting. In most of the scenes, the lighting is dim. Pretty straight forward. However, I felt it was used to reflect the main character, Matt Murdock. He is shown as being more mysterious and closed off, to the point. He doesn't need lavish things and prefers the lights to be darker. It's also fair to mention he is blind. The director most likely added in this detail in order for us to relate to our main character more, and see and appreciate things from his perspective (no pun intended). We better understand what it's like to live in a darker world.
One thing I felt as though the pilot struggled with was figuring out what genre it was. At many different points, I felt like it was a completely different premise, and almost made the viewer get lost. There were fight scenes, displaying the show as an action, which I had assumed the whole show would be for the most part. Yet even then, while the show is about a supposed "superhero", it still showed him as a guy fighting local thugs. Later, Matt and his friend Foggy Nelson started up a law firm together, and during scenes of their practice, it seemed like they wanted it to be more political and law-oriented. The show almost tries to take up a good cop/bad cop dynamic between the two, but doesn't quiet get there. Every now and then, the show would throw in comedic elements, almost as though just to say there were comedic moments. And after all that, there is already romantic tension between Matt, and, ironically enough, Murdock and Nelson's first client, Karen Page. While most shows don't focus on one specific genre the entire time, this one seemed to get lost in itself and didn't truly establish what it wanted to be. Going away from the first episode, I wasn't really sure what section I would put a show like this in.
The show itself was not terrible, don't get me wrong. However, had I not heard great things from my friends, I'm not too sure if I would consider watching on. While the pilot typically tends to be the worst and most chaotic episode, this one doesn't seem to show much potential for a pick up. Any positivity about the show would be appreciated, as I would like to be able to watch a stellar series from the Marvel universe!
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