Marvel & Netflix’s The Punisher Recaps by Penny – Episode 7: Crosshairs

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Louise is washing the bigot’s blood off. He stares at himself in the mirror and takes off his shirt. He then rips the plastic shower curtain down, presumably to dispose of O’Conner’s body in. Surely SOMEONE is seeing a young man walking around dazed and shirtless in the middle of winter surrounded by snow with blood on his neck. He shows up at his dad’s house and his dad is worried. He just wants to help his son. But Louise just stands there silent. Dad tells him about his own post military struggles and that there’s no shame in having nightmares. He gives Louise a couple of sleeping pills and tells him tto try to get some sleep. Louise takes them without a word and goes downstairs. Once his dad has left for the store Louis starts freaking out and almost eats his gun, but just as quickly as he freaked out, he qoes eerily tranquil and pulls the gun back out of hi mouth. Opening credits.

Frank is doing pullups while Micro warns him not to overpush himself. They start going over some drone images of a Military base and how Frank is going to get to Colonel Bennet, AKA Clancy Brown. Frank is also sure Agent Orange knows he’s alive. He’s sure it was Rawlins watching on the wetwork unit’s helmet cams. Billy meanwhile is lying through his teeth to Dinah, trying to convince her he’s dead not knowing she’s actually seen him. He fake promises to do everything he can to find Frank. After he leaves, Sam storms in pissed that Dinah has compromised the investigation by telling Billy about Frank. Dinah tries to derail Sam with flattery but Sam isn’t buying it. He insists she not do this again.

Frank asks Micro if he’s ABSOLUTELY sure Bennet will be where he says he’ll be. Micro is sure, having picked through his life and knowing his schedule. They argue a bit over whether or not Frank is focused solely on Bennet for now. Micro admits he could never pull off the stuff Frank does, and Frank admits he has misgivings about breaking onto a US Military base, because he hates the idea that, if things go sideways, he may have to kill a few US Soldiers just for doing their job. Micro nods solemnly.

Dinah and Sam are bullshitting in the hallway about a guy sexually harassing her while people pass by. As soon as she’s SURE no one is eavesdropping, she tells Sam she thinks there may be a bug in her office. Meanwhile, Billy and Rawlins are having a Drink in Rawlins’ office, talking about the progress of Dinah’s investigation, how Billy should have just killed Frank the other night, and things they did in Afghanistan. Rawlins tries to talk down at Billy but Billy reminds Rawlins who it was who kept Frank from beating him to death back in that tent in Kandahar.They continue to discuss their plans to shore up their coverup.

Colonel Bennet, (I was mistaken, this is NOT Clancy Brown’s character), is having dinner in his office on base with a woman. They don’t specify their relationship but he gets off on her making him lick the floor so there’s some kinkiness going on. Frank informs Micro he’s successfully infiltrated the base. Micro tells him to stay still, using a drone to keep track of sentry movements, telling Frank when it’s safe to move. Bennet is no being paddled while wearing a ball gag. Micro continues to appraise Frank of sentry movements until he’s clear to get to Bennet. The moment Frank gets there though, the dominatrix shouts “HE’S HERE!” and we see Billy in tactical sniper gear outside saying go. It was a trap. But the conspirators only know about Frank, so Micros is easily able to warn Frank of 4 incoming bogies while he hacks Bennett’s phone. Frank goes stealth mode and knocks Bennett out cold to wait for his company. Frank waits for the squad to kill the lights as is tactically expected, then uses it against them. He keeps them busy and takes them out until Micro finishes hacking the phone, and Micro tells him to get out of there. Frank steals the gear off one of the squad and bails. Billy tells Bennett to get dressed and do as he tells him. Micro guides Frank past the guards as best he can as reinforcements show up. A lone soldier holds Frank up in a sewer tunnel. Frank tries to talk the kid down but he forces Frank to kneecap him. Frank is bothered by it, but at least the kid isn’t dead. He reaches Micro and they book.

Louise wakes up and greets his dad, who offers him some pizza and tells him he looks much better after getting some rest. Dad is watching an old Ali boxing match and Louise says he envies boxers because your enemy is right in front of you where you can see him. Dad is worried about him. He points out Foreman lost to Ali because he couldn’t change up his game but Ali did. He wants Louise to follow Ali’s example.

Frank is mad he left Bennett alive but Micro says it’s a win, because they proved Rawlins knows Frank’s alive, and they bugged Bennett’s phone. Frank is still angry about having to shoot the young soldier, but Bennett is on the move so they leave to track him. Louise is stocking up at an ammo shop and jesus fuck this CANNOT end well. He’s making a damned bomb while O’Connor sits nearby still wrapped in the shower curtain. Bennett meanwhile is yelling at Rawlins for using him as bait for their trap without telling him. Billy tells him he’s alive BECAUSE they set the trap. Rawlins tells Bennett they’re setting him up with a new identity.

Micro is both happy and worried at the idea he might finally soon be able to go home. He’s worried how they’ll react, the kind of therapy they’ll all need. Frank tells him it won’t be easy, but he should just go home when everything’s done and hug them til they beg him to stop. Sam and Dinah are VERY quietly searching for the bug in her office. Dinah finds it and waves Sam over. They stare at it for a mmminute but leave it where it is, going back out into the hallway to talk. It’s late and they’re the only ones left in the office so they don’t need to worry about eavesdroppers. Sam laments skipping on a date to be here, but Dinah tells him that’s the facts of life in a job like Homeland where the job comes first. Sam tells her she reminds him of Frank. She balks at the idea.

Micro has tracked Bennett to a CIA Safehouse. Frank prepares to break in. Billy meanwhile has already killed the Dominatrix and kills Bennett too, setting it up to look like they killed eaxch other in a lover’s spat. Back at the safehouse, Rawlins gets the call from Billy that Bennett is dead while Frank watches Rawlins through the scope of his sniper rifle. Frank recites the children’s rhyme and takes the shot, but bulletproof glass stops the shot. Rawlins jumps, and the alarms go off at the safehouse. Frank is lit up like a Christmas tree and we go to credits with a huge “GODDAMMIT!!!” look on Frank’s face.

End of episode.

Penny is a now divorced intersexed disabled lesbian in BC Canada. She's been watching wrestling and reading comics since she was a kid, and knows her stuff. She lives with her pets and passes her free time writing, drawing, doing paid photoshop work (including logos done for Pulse's Own Mike Gojira), and is a part-time Queer model.