Daredevil: Born Again - Did The Punisher Kill White Tiger in Episode 3?

Warning: this nonfiction contains afloat spoilers for Daredevil: Born Again Episode 3! If you haven’t already, beryllium definite to cheque retired IGN’s reappraisal of Episode 3.

Daredevil: Born Again is definite delivering immoderate riveting superhero television, adjacent if Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock seems perfectly determined not to enactment the reddish armor backmost on. Episode 3 serves arsenic a tense, high-stakes ineligible drama, arsenic Matt defends his lawsuit Hector Ayala (Kamar de los Reyes) successful tribunal against charges of murdering an NYPD officer. That communicative takes a tragic crook successful the end, arsenic Hector is exonerated and freed lone to beryllium gunned down by a vigilante wearing the Punisher skull.

That twist ending raises a hugely important question. Was that really Jon Bernthal’s Frank Castle who killed Hector? What does it mean if The Punisher has abruptly started targeting costumed vigilantes? And wherever does the White Tiger storyline spell from here? Let’s research the large questions lingering aft Episode 3’s melodramatic cliffhanger.

Did The Punisher Kill White Tiger?

In Episode 3, Hector Ayala is enactment connected proceedings for supposedly murdering an undercover constabulary officer. While the information is that Hector was simply trying to beryllium a bully samaritan successful a concern gone horribly awry, Matt Murdock faces a steep uphill conflict successful convincing a assemblage of Hector’s innocence. Only by taking “a large swing” and outing Hector’s relation arsenic White Tiger does Matt negociate to crook the tide successful Hector’s favor.

Unfortunately, that enactment proves to beryllium Hector’s undoing. Hector makes it wide helium has nary volition of giving up his nightly vigilante activities, contempt the ample people the proceedings has painted connected his back. No sooner does Hector resume patrolling the streets than he’s gunned down, executioner-style, by a rogue fig wearing a bulletproof vest adorned with the iconic Punisher skull.

Again, the question present is whether that was really Frank Castle who pulled the trigger. To date, Frank has mostly shied distant from the superhuman broadside of the MCU, preferring to people mean criminals and corrupt officials. Targeting costumed vigilantes would decidedly service arsenic a large displacement successful Frank’s methods and motivations.

That’s not to accidental that Punisher has ne'er directed his wrath astatine costumed villains successful the comics. Matt Fraction’s Punisher: War Journal is 1 notable illustration of a bid wherever Frank grows fed up with the harm caused by the supervillains of the Marvel Universe and directs his wrath astatine men similar Hate-Monger and Kraven the Hunter. But this mentation would necessitate that Frank views White Tiger arsenic a villain who evaded justice. Does The Punisher spot White Tiger arsenic a bull killer? Did Hector transverse an unforgivable enactment successful Frank’s eyes?

Historically, Marvel has ne'er been that accordant erstwhile it comes to depicting Frank Castle’s sentiment of the police. When it comes to subject work members, it’s a antithetic story. Frank holds a clear, fierce respect for those who hazard their lives to service their state similar helium did. Captain America - the eventual worker - is the 1 superhero Frank reveres.

But arsenic for the police, things alteration from 1 mentation of the quality to another. In the classical Marvel Universe, Frank usually goes retired of his mode to debar targeting cops, adjacent crooked cops. But successful the Ultimate Universe, Punisher is an ex-cop himself who specifically targets corrupt officers.

Based connected Frank’s erstwhile appearances successful Daredevil: Season 2 and The Punisher spinoff series, it doesn’t look arsenic though Bernthal’s Frank Castle holds immoderate peculiar affection oregon respect for the police. Certainly, it’s hard to ideate him switching up his methods to specifically people a vigilante acquitted of sidesplitting a cop. Frank’s beef with men similar Daredevil and White Tiger has ever been that they don’t spell acold capable successful their methods. So it seems hard to judge that Frank is the 1 who changeable Hector successful Episode 3. Instead, there’s another, overmuch much apt possibility.

Is This Punisher a Copycat Killer?

Frankly (no pun intended), there’s a crushed we don’t spot the killer’s look astatine the extremity of Episode 3. The bid wants america to question whether Frank Castle would stoop to sidesplitting White Tiger, but the information is that this astir apt isn’t Frank. It’s astir apt a copycat killer.

The bid has already established that The Punisher has developed a spot of a instrumentality pursuing among members of the NYPD. We’ve seen aggregate cops sporting tattoos of the Punisher skull, including Brian D. Cohen’s Detective Flynn. These cops look to idolize Frank and the mode helium takes the instrumentality into his ain hands, meting retired a precise lethal signifier of justness to criminals successful New York. Clearly, they’d similar thing much than to travel successful his footsteps. And based connected however Episode 3 ends, it would look 1 of these cops has done conscionable that.

It’s wide the bid is diving headlong into addressing real-world controversies surrounding the Punisher character. The Punisher skull has so been appropriated by immoderate constabulary officers and subject members who fetishize Frank Castle’s ruthless marque of vigilante justice. The transportation was arguably cemented by the precocious Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, who was known for adorning his instrumentality with the Punisher emblem and adjacent nicknaming his portion "The Punishers." In caller years, the Punisher emblem has besides been adopted by the Blue Lives Matter movement.

Marvel Comics has addressed this improvement successful the past. 2019’s The Punisher #13 features a country wherever an injured Frank Castle is approached by 2 NYPD officers who uncover themselves to beryllium rabid fans. To their surprise, Frank reacts with disgust, telling them, "We're not the same. You took an oath to uphold the law. I gave each that up a agelong clip ago. You don't bash what I do. Nobody does."

Art by Szymon Kudranski. (Image Credit: Marvel)

With Born Again, Marvel seems to beryllium addressing the Punisher skull contention connected a wider, much disposable scale. We cognize Bernthal volition beryllium reprising his relation successful the series, and there’s nary crushed to judge the character’s absorption to the thought of NYPD officers co-opting his representation and ngo volition beryllium immoderate antithetic than the comic publication version. It’s wholly imaginable that Frank pushing backmost against this fanatical obsession with The Punisher volition signifier the ground of the precocious announced Punisher Disney+ special.

“There is simply a Frank Castle storyline that is, I think, heavy and affluent and has been begging to beryllium told,” showrunner Dario Scardapane told IGN successful a caller roundtable interview. “It was successful 1 of the comics, but Frank's quality is not random. It comes backmost to [the] question of who is simply a vigilante, who's good, who's bad, and Frank is 1 of those incredibly galvanizing characters. And Frank comes into our satellite with a purpose. That intent is executed. Does it person thing to bash with these men that we spot successful [Nicky Torres’] apartment? Yes.”

It’s ever imaginable that Episode 4 volition uncover Frank did so termination Hector, fueling a renewed struggle betwixt Frank and Matt. But astatine this stage, it seems overmuch much apt that New York City has a increasing Punisher problem. Certain members of the constabulary idolize The Punisher, and that’s thing Frank is going to person to confront.

Will White Tiger’s Story Continue successful the MCU?

But what of White Tiger and the Ayala family? Is this the extremity of a comparatively caller summation to the MCU’s lineup of New York-based heroes? Probably not.

With the White Tiger storyline, Born Again is drafting a just spot of inspiration from Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev’s Daredevil comics. Similar to the show, the comics picture Hector arsenic a vigilante wrongfully accused of murder. In this case, Hector is changeable dormant by the constabulary portion trying to flee, lone for grounds to aboveground proving his innocence.

Following Hector’s death, his Jade Tiger amulets are passed down to his niece, FBI cause Angela Del Toro. She reluctantly becomes the caller White Tiger and is trained by Daredevil himself. Later, the amulets and mantle walk connected to Hector’s teenage sister, Ava.

Ava Ayala inherits the White Tiger mantle. Art by Valerio Schiti. (Image Credit: Marvel)

While the series’ absorption successful Episode 3 is connected Hector and his beleaguered wife, Soledad (Ashley Marie Ortiz), we larn the mates was staying with Hector’s sister and her daughter, Angela. It’s casual to representation a script wherever Angela inherits her uncle’s amulet and continues his ngo of protecting the guiltless civilians of the Bronx. Angela whitethorn beryllium a mash-up of the Angela Del Toro and Ava Ayala characters from the comics.

If that happens, we ideate Matt Murdock volition person a vested involvement successful protecting and mentoring the caller White Tiger. He failed to support Hector. His determination to retired Hector’s White Tiger individuality whitethorn person contributed successful immoderate mode to the vigilante’s death. Matt Murdock is thing if not a antheral driven by guilt, and we fishy he’s not done atoning for his nonaccomplishment with Hector.

What astir you? Do you deliberation Frank Castle killed the White Tiger, oregon is this the enactment of a copycat killer? Vote successful our canvass and fto america cognize what you deliberation successful the comments below.

For much connected Daredevil: Born Again, spot the formed and unit interruption down Episode 1’s tragic twist and brushwood up connected each Marvel movie and bid successful development.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by following @jschedeen connected BlueSky.