‘The Punisher: One Last Kill’ Review – Frank Castle Fights Back, Mentally And Physically

This is a first for Marvel Studios and their Marvel Television branch for their Special Presentations. We’ve had others like Werewolf By Night that introduced a new character, but not one for an already established character like The Punisher. The Punisher: One Last Kill comes off the heels of his appearance in Daredevil: Born Again season one, where he was helping out Matt Murdock in his fight against Mayor Fisk and his task force.

Now, Frank Castle is a broken man, haunted by his past, unable to move forward with his life. Castle is once again played by Jon Bernthal, who continues his work from the Netflix version of the character and the one we saw in Daredevil: Born Again. It’s hard to describe just exactly what The Punisher: One Last Kill is. It’s not an episode of TV, and it’s not a movie. There’s some ambiguous in-between zone that it fits into, and it really is two twenty-minute halves that tell very different stories. One has Frank as a character study, watching him as he floats through his day in a violent and crime-riddled area, and the other has him straight-up kicking ass for twenty minutes.

The portion where Frank is kind of shellshocked and vulnerable is the most interesting aspect of the entire special. Bernthal gives off a natural tough-guy energy, but there’s a massive vulnerability underneath that facade here. Frank is tormented by the ghosts of his past, whether that’s his family, his friends, or his time in combat. It adds a new layer that we don’t get to see with him, which makes when that switch flips in the middle of the special all the more satisfying.

Feels Like An Incomplete Piece Though

This feels like an incomplete part of a whole story, though. We are getting more Frank Castle in the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day, but if this is the start of a new era of the character, sure. But as a one-off, it feels more like a proof-of-concept than anything else. Outside of that, there are some scenes that use CGI that stick out like a sore thumb. I’m not normally the type to complain about CGI, but when the CG makes it look like Frank is floating down to crash into an AC unit, instead of falling, it sticks out more. The action is heavy and hard-hitting when it gets going, though. People are on fire, limbs get broken, bullets fly, it’s a feast for the eyes for any action fan.

So yes, The Punisher: One Last Kill is still worth watching, but it feels somewhat hollow because it doesn’t know what it wants to be. Seeing Frank Castle go nuts on criminals will always be entertaining, and it has one of the most satisfying endings to one of these Marvel Specials, but with some weaker CGI and a runtime that could have used some more juice, this isn’t appointment viewing for Marvel fans.

The Punisher: One Last Kill releases on Disney+ on May 12th, 2026.

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