'Marvel's The Punisher' - "Front Toward Enemy" Episode 9 Recap

The increasingly devious exploits of Lewis Wilson continue in episode nine of Marvel's The Punisher, "Front Toward Enemy". He opens the episode with the bombing of an office building, killing and seriously injuring several innocent people. To publicize his stance on the government, Lewis sends a letter to Karen Page to print in the Bulletin. Lewis believes that he is simply following in the footsteps of The Punisher, and Karen Page, via her association with Frank Castle, would be sympathetic to his ideas.

Of course, neither Frank nor Karen support the idea of blowing up innocent people. Karen goes on the radio to publicly tear down Lewis and his beliefs. Frank and Micro listen in as Lewis calls the radio show to speak with Karen directly. When Lewis ends his phone call with a marine expression, Frank immediately deduces Lewis' identity and decides to take matters into his own hands.

Micro pinpoints Lewis' location, but before Frank can get there, Curtis arrives. Curtis tries to talk down Lewis, but the soldier attacks Curtis and beats him with his own prosthetic leg. By the time Frank arrives, Lewis had left and Curtis was rigged with explosives. As the cops close in on Frank's location, he manages to convince Lewis to help him diffuse the bomb to save Curtis. Frank escapes just in time, sprinting away from the scene on foot as the cops give chase by car. He manages to evade capture, stealing a cop car in the process.

Meanwhile, Micro goes rogue and decides to meet with Madani in the hopes that she will help them take down Cerberus. As the two discuss the investigation, a news report interrupts them. The dash-cam on the cop car that Frank stole caught video of his face, which was now being broadcast all of the world. Frank Castle is alive, and the whole world knows it.

Another solid episode of The Punisher in the books. The Lewis storyline has been an excellent dive into the fragile mind of a soldier and how much damage PTSD can cause. It's the shows way of exploring the horrors of gun violence without having to totally condemn Frank's actions. Great stuff.

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