Episode 2.03 – “New York’s Finest”
A nun comes forth, but never quite in focus. There are statues of Mary Magdalene in the room, and crucifixes on the wall as she approaches a boy sitting up in bed. She places a hand on his shoulder, and implores him to stay down, “…Matty, don’t get up. You need rest.” The instinctive opposite of everything his father had taught him.
She wipes him with a wet cloth, and strains blood out of it. Just then Matt wakes up, chained to chimney. The Punisher sits across from him, sipping coffee.
Reasoning With A Madman
“Morning, Sunshine.”
While the Punisher stitches himself up, Matt starts asking why he was spared when everyone else that got in his way was killed. And so a chess game where two immovable objects act as King begins.
The internal struggle is gone now for Matt, it’s now the dichotomy of The Punisher and Daredevil, polarizing views with the same goal. Justice with different endgames.
With the noise of the New York streets below them, the conversation between DD and The Punisher continues, even if it is mostly Matt talking. As he starts to break down the wall surrounding the Punisher, he finds out he’s from New York, and formerly considered himself Catholic. DD & Punisher, two sides of the same coin known as New York’s finest.
Matt’s able to get bits of information out of him. He assumes that he’s ex-military, and understands that people can come back from war changed…but the question raised is what if when you come home, there’s no break in war?
The psychological stand-off is interrupted by the building’s Super. The Punisher threatens to take him out if Matt makes any noise. He let’s slip to the Super that his name is Frank, and they connect over having both served in the armed forces…all while Frank secretly has a gun pointed at the man’s head.
He says it was for Matt, that it was all a show. He only goes after the people who truly deserve it, and that he needs to end their terrorizing in a finite way, unlike Matt whom he views as a “half-measure.” They both feel as though they’re doing what needs to be done in order to cleanse the city they call home.
Two equal forces pushing against each other. They argue about the means to what end. Matt believes that while someone may be evil, there’s a glimmer of light left and they should be allowed the chance at redemption. He seems not only be trying to save the people Frank is going after, but convince both Frank and himself that they can have that chance, too. To dig themselves out of the self-imposed pits they’ve been wallowing in.
For Frank, the point is moot. He knows he’s on a path of execution. He’s dead set on taking out the people who rob the light from the world.
“We don’t get to pick the things that fix us, Red. That makes us whole.” The Punisher calling Daredevil “Red” is on par with Wolverine saying, “Bub.” It’s part of the character.
Just like Matt, Frank will fight until he dies. He won’t give up until his mission is complete. After knocking Matt out, he finds Grotto brings him back to the rooftop with an ultimatum. He’s taped a gun to Matt’s hand, and tells him to make a choice. Shoot Grotto, a man who is now not as innocent as Matt once believed, or shoot Frank before he can take Grotto out himself.
How Do Let Go When You’re At The Bottom?
The weight in the air as Matt says, “Go to Hell” and Frank responds, “Too late” is cumbersome. It holds you down as the struggle to win the stand-off continues.
Matt finds a way out but shooting himself loose, breaking the chains that bind him but he’s not fast enough. Frank shoots Grotto point-blank. As hard as he tries, Matt just can’t save Grotto.
The match is lit though, and Frank blows up a line of motorcycles down on the street below. A line of motorcycles outside the Dogs of Hell HQ. They come out to investigate the explosion, and see Frank atop the building across from them.
This all sets up a new take on the hallway scene from season one. Down the hallway, to the stairwell, where Matt progresses from top floor to ground floor absolutely eradicating each gang member with every flight of stairs. He’s still got a chain attached to his wrist, and uses it as a whip and projectile.
It’s not a clean, single shot like in the first season, but it’s edited to feel as if it is and felt true to that original scene. It didn’t quite have the stark impact of season one’s incredible fight sequence, possibly because I was trained to expect another scene like this, it was still a remarkable bit of fight choreography.
Knowing Matt’s in trouble, Foggy searches the ER for Claire Temple…he’s pretty sure she “Works the night shift.” (Wink wink) The hospital is teeming with gang members, The Punisher has been busy. Reluctantly, she agrees to help Foggy after he shows his talents talking down members of two rival gangs, preventing any innocent victims caught in the potential crossfire. She sees in Foggy the same fight that Matt wages, keeping innocent people safe, just with less punching. This is also where we get a reference to Luke Cage, since Claire is the constant so far in the Marvel/Netflix titles.
Karen is looking into the Assistant District Attorney, and finds out that he’s just the latest in a long line of ADAs that Reyes is willing to throw under the bus were any difficulties to arise in her professional efforts. Karen convinces him to give her the Punisher files, and she starts digging. She comes across an X-Ray of a skull with a bullet hole through it.
I really loved the stalemate Matt and Frank found themselves in during this episode. Neither one would budge from their belief, in fact they tried to convert the other to their side of the argument. An utter standstill of bull-headedness in perpetuity. Foggy and Karen seem to be making headway on the tasks at hand, but DD is stuck both physically and mentally when it comes to The Punisher.
Click on PAGE 4 for the review of 2.04 – “Penny and Dime”