Alizé Lavasseur

Frank Castle and Karen Page's oft-romanticized, criminally misunderstood, and brutally dysfunctional relationship is a fan favorite, thanks in part to actors Jon Bernthal and Deborah Ann Woll's portrayals of this fascinating dynamic that starts in Daredevil Season Two (2) and continues to The Punisher Season Two (2).

Frank serves as an unlikely mentor to Karen, fulfilling the crucial narrative role of revealing the thematic argument of the story. While many characters serve to represent aspects of this, the mentor archetype is the most crucial voice for uncovering the core truth that the story’s premise argues for.

In Daredevil, Frank has an impact on the protagonist, Matt Murdock, but he has equal importance to the character arc of Karen, Matt’s love interest and co-protagonist, who is on her own transformative journey. A mentor’s role is not simply to guide and advise the main characters; Frank serves as a catalyst to enlighten them about their misaligned trajectories and discover the deeper authenticity that they are searching for within themselves.

Frank serves to hold up a mirror to reflect Matt and Karen’s inner selves, but Karen is also playing a mentor role, reflecting Frank’s evolution from antagonist to protagonist in his own show. The story’s premise is that anyone can be a hero if they choose to be, and Frank and Karen define it for themselves; Frank grows into his antihero identity, and Karen learns to accept that she is capable of being a true hero and wants to be.

Frank and Karen’s unlikely bond is formed over their shared experience taking other peoples’ lives, but their motives and psychological makeup are wildly mismatched. Frank and Karen are both searching for answers to the desperate grief they feel and look to each other for help to define the truth about their inner nature, their future intentions, and how they want to live their lives. Frank and Karen help each other, but they ultimately find the answer within themselves.

Chapter One: Trauma

Frank loses his family in what he believes is gang-on-gang crossfire at a family outing to the Central Park carousel. Frank's wife, son and daughter are shot to death, and he is shot in the head himself but survives. During his recovery, the vigilante superhero Daredevil is making news in Hell's Kitchen by using violent extra-legal means to capture criminals and bring them to justice within the court system.

Frank's personality, worldview, and life experience as a Marine leads him to emulate the vigilante in the hunt for the perpetrators of his family's murders. ("My moment of clarity? It came from the strangest of places. What kind of name is the 'Devil of Hell's Kitchen', anyway?"[1]) However, Frank thinks Daredevil's approach is ineffective and the criminals need to die so they can't continue to victimize people.

Frank becomes a one-man army, methodically gunning down gang members involved in the shooting. When he commits a massacre at the Burren Club, there is only one survivor - Elliott "Grotto" Grote. Grotto seeks legal counsel from Nelson and Murdock, so that he can have the best chance at escaping with his life. Karen, Nelson and Murdock's office manager, is convinced by his seemingly sincere desire to start over his life with a second chance, just like she wanted when she moved to New York (“It’s a clean slate, Miss Page. A chance to put it all behind you. Now, isn’t that what you want?”[2]).

Grotto was injured in the shooting and Karen uses assumed identities to help hide him at the hospital. This isn't enough to stop the singularly focused Frank Castle, whose mission is his only purpose for being alive. Frank terrorizes the hospital as an active shooter, all to flush out Grotto. Karen bravely drags Grotto to safety while Frank shoots at them. Frank shoots the windows out of Karen's car as she flees to the police precinct, but Karen and Grotto survive (thanks to the interference of Daredevil, but they don't know that).

Frank later claims he is such a good shooter that Karen was never in any danger at the hospital. Even if one were to accept this implausible, improbable statement at face value, which Frank almost certainly believes, it doesn't minimize the profound trauma it caused for Karen.

Karen has post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from violence in her past, having been repeatedly targeted for death by organized crime boss Wilson Fisk. PTSD is a disorder in which a person has difficulty recovering from experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, and the condition may last indefinitely, with triggers provoking intense emotional memories and physical reactions. Symptoms include nightmares, unwanted memories, avoidance of situations that trigger symptoms, heightened reactions, anxiety, a depressed mood, and paradoxically, ruminating on the terrifying event.

Karen suffers from the hospital shooting ("I'm terrified"[3]), having narrowly escaped death yet again. She ruminates on how close she came by studying morgue reports of Frank's numerous victims ("I could have been one of those people."[4]). Karen has a cascade of self-blaming thoughts ("How long can I tell myself this is just bad luck? Fisk - and now this guy? I mean, what if I'm drawing this stuff my way?"[5]).

Karen also suffers immense guilt from the three deaths she is responsible for - her brother Kevin, her mentor Ben Urich, and her abductor James Wesley. Karen didn't intend to kill Kevin in a car accident, or to inveigle Ben into a scenario he got murdered for participating in, and she shot Wesley in self-defense, but Karen firmly puts the blame and moral responsibility directly on her own shoulders. Karen thinks of herself as a killer who has escaped justice for her crimes. Karen isn't religious, but she has an agnostic open mind about the existence of God and maybe karma ("If there is a God, you have to believe he'll get what he deserves."[6]), with almost superstitious belief that she will be punished one way or another ("What if I deserve it?"[7]).

Karen seeks comfort from Matt ("I'm barely holding on. I really don't enjoy being used for target practice."[8]) and expresses yet more fear of Frank ("He's very scary."[9]).

Karen's sense of guilt is so consuming she even considers that she, in some part, is directly responsible for the Punisher's choice to become a murderous vigilante, because she participated in the crowd that cheered on Daredevil. Sgt. Mahoney compared Daredevil to the Punisher ("Makes everybody stop and think twice about the whole 'hero' proposition."[10]) and prompted Karen to reconsider the consequences of vigilantism ("Daredevil practiced vigilante justice in our back yard and we applauded him for it - I know that I did - and we never stopped to think that maybe his actions could open the door for men like this. Men with guns. Men who think the law belongs to them."[11]).

Karen doesn't consider shooting James Wesley an act of self-defense, which any court would, because she had a choice between taking the gun and running for the cops or choosing to shoot him dead instead. Karen knew that Wesley had not told Fisk about her meeting with his mother, so Karen chose to kill Wesley so Fisk would never find out. Karen thinks of this as her own act of vigilante justice, of taking the law into her own hands, even though the circumstances of her abduction and the previous attempts upon her life would make this a clear-cut case of self-defense in the eyes of the court.

Karen sympathizes strongly with the idea that the law fails because it failed her, and she had to shoot someone to save herself and her loved ones ("There's something about this city that makes good people want to shoot their way out of bad situations."[12]). Karen identifies with the "copycat" Punisher, desperately trying to absolve herself of her own sense of guilt by shifting the blame onto the city and Daredevil. It is too hard to live with the weight and consequences of her own actions, and she has found no sure way to lessen her burden.

Chapter Two: More to the Story

Karen has an earnest, insatiable desire to help others and pursue justice and the truth, even though she has a complicated relationship with both. She has escaped justice but helped bring justice to Wilson Fisk and hides the truth about herself but seeks it out elsewhere, never daring to hope she can be accepted as she is.

Karen's belief that she deserves punishment makes her devalue her own life. She persistently places herself in danger in the act of helping others, just like Matt. ADA Tower remarks upon her bleeding-heart attitude for career criminal Grotto ("You're talking about him like he's a lost puppy."[13]). Karen questions her own doggedness ("Am I insane?"[14]) but Matt approves ("I think you are…compassionate. It's a good quality, Karen. Stuff of saints."[15]).

Karen's investigative eye is trained right on DA Samantha Reyes, whose witheringly condescending treatment of Karen, Foggy, and their client escalates into direct threats against their firm. DA Reyes claims to want to use Grotto to capture a drug dealer, but it turns out to be a set-up to bait the Punisher to shoot him dead.

Karen uncovers ruthlessly unethical career maneuvering by Reyes and persuades ADA Tower to hand over the Punisher files, which is everything the District Attorney has collected on his case. Karen examines the files and finds an X-ray of Frank's skull with a clear bullet wound in it and finds out Frank's family was shot dead. To Karen, all of this indicates "there's gotta be more to the story"[16], and she thinks the best chance of protecting Nelson and Murdock is by getting to the bottom of it.

Karen doesn't waste any time in finding a witness to get her closer to finding Frank Castle. It leads her to his abandoned house, (suspiciously) untouched since the murders. Frank's house is a totally ordinary suburban home full of the detritus of a happy family life, cluttered with toys, drawings and photographs of a normal dad with his beloved wife and young children. In addition, there are framed military medals and pictures of Frank in his Marine uniform.

This setting paints a clear image of an honorable, patriotic soldier with a perfect family - the antithesis of the murderous villain who terrorized her. Karen now sees Frank as a grieving father, not a cold-blooded psychopath, and her heart goes out to him. If someone as terrifying and bloodthirsty as him can have facets, then she can accept that she is not all bad, either. Karen is on the first baby step of her journey into challenging her own relentless self-recrimination.

Karen triggers a motion detector which signals a van to pull up to the house, cementing Karen's suspicions that a conspiracy is afoot. That evening, it was on the news that the Punisher had been caught by law enforcement. Karen is bitterly cynical that Reyes will be able to use his prosecution for her upward career trajectory. Karen is dismayed by the press's portrayal of Frank as "nothing more than a deranged lunatic[17]" and all the holes in the DA's statement. Karen is determined that there's more to the story, and Matt thinks she's right, even though he's worried about her safety.

ADA Tower visits the office to try to get his hands on Grotto's files in exchange for "scratching the names Nelson and Murdock off her shit list[18]," but Foggy refuses.

Karen's next move is to go to Ben Urich's old boss, Mitchell Ellison, editor-in-chief at the New York Bulletin. Together, Karen and Ellison dig in back issues and find evidence that Frank's family was murdered in a gang-on-gang massacre in Central Park, which doesn't match the official story that Frank's family was killed in a car on a public road.

Chapter Three: Answers

Castle's public defender visits Nelson and Murdock to get Karen to sign off on a statement that completely defies what she told the police about her experience at the hospital shooting, which Karen calls "flat out wrong[19]" and "a complete work of fiction.[20]" The PD states Frank is eligible for the death penalty and that Castle's death is inevitable if Reyes has her way. Karen refuses to sign.

Matt suggests they help Castle themselves ("If we stand up to her, we could actually end her incessant bullying."[21]) and Karen enthusiastically agrees, thinking they could "possibly save this guy's life.[22]" Matt and Karen are hellbent on helping Castle, whatever the risk to their lives and their firm.

When Foggy reminds Karen that Frank is a murderer who shot at her, Karen responds that he did it "for reasons I don't fully understand yet.[23]" Karen is willing to entertain that there are justifiable reasons for shooting at her, indicating she still disregards her own value as a person, but also that she's looking for a reason why fatal violence could be necessary or excusable.

Matt and Karen are eager to question Castle about the truth about what happened to his family, why Reyes wants him dead, to give Frank a fair chance at justice, and to prove to the DA that she's not above the law. Matt and Karen practically steamroller Foggy into going along with their plan, both feeling that "If we walk away, we're letting him die," and that it's simply "the right thing to do.[24]"

Matt, Karen and Foggy go to the hospital to offer Frank their services. They spell out that they are sure the District Attorney wants him dead, and they want to know why, and if they are permitted to take his case, they will soften his sentence and possibly find out who's responsible for what happened to him and his family.

Frank is unimpressed, aware that Nelson and Murdock represented Grotto, a "shitbag[25]" who he taunts them about failing to protect (since Frank shot him). This touches a nerve with Karen, who took it hard that she personally made promises to Grotto and failed to deliver. She loses her temper and says, "You want answers? So do we, but none of us will get them if you're dead." She shows him the family photograph she took from Castle's house, revealing to him that she broke into his house.

Karen doesn't just want answers for Frank. She is advocating for his family, too. Karen sat in his daughter Lisa's bedroom and paged through her storybooks, identifying strongly with her. Karen was once an innocent little daddy's girl like her (“Dad wanted his little girl to be safe.”[26]), and Karen wants to find and expose the people responsible for Lisa's painfully premature death. In addition, Karen wants to reclaim her inner child and reintegrate the part of her identity she regards as lovable and worthy, who was victimized by uncontrollable circumstances. Right now, Karen is struggling to reconcile that she is culpable for her mistakes, but also thrust into situations with impossible decisions and no correct answers. Karen is trying to allow herself to acknowledge that she was hurt, too, and not just a perpetrator.

Frank's sole concern is for some sense of justice for his family, and he has no interest in talking to anyone but Karen, who is clearly deeply passionate about what happened to his family. This woman had to be physically restrained by her boyfriend in her eagerness to impress upon him her commitment to the case. On top of this, she was willing to break the law to gather information. She's exactly the person he needs if he wants to get to the bottom of this.

Karen recounts the "horseshit" police report story that Reyes is running with, and Frank confirms what Karen has already pieced together. The Castle family was killed at the carousel in a firefight between warring gangs. When Frank's trauma from the murders resurfaces, Karen is full of compassion Frank needs but doesn't expect. Frank finds it easy to confide in her how he failed them, like he confided in "Red" (Matt as Daredevil) at the graveyard.

Frank seeks to assure Karen that she was never in any danger at the hospital, but Karen skeptically rebuffs him ("Guess I'm just supposed to take your word on that."[27]). Frank is offended, supremely confident in his skills as scout sniper, but also his rigid code: "I only hurt people that deserve it."[28] Karen balks at the thought that Grotto, the man who wanted a second chance, deserved it - but Frank challenges her with the revelation that Grotto used to do hits for the Irish, and shot an old lady because she saw his face. This is eye-opening to Karen, who believed Grotto's crimes were not so serious.

Deep down, Karen must be aware that her crimes do not compare, planting the seed of potentially admitting the truth to another person for the first time. Although Frank doesn't yet know the truth about her, Frank doesn't believe Karen deserves punishment. Karen has a longstanding pattern of pretending to be innocent (“You always treated me like I was…innocent. That was nice…It was nice you thought of me like that.”[29]), because she hasn't forgiven herself, but Karen must wonder what Frank would think if he knew.

Annoyed and impatient with Frank's remorseless arrogance and blunt communication style, Karen wants to know why he asked her to stay. Frank is achingly honest: "I guess I worry the memories are just gonna go away."[30] Suddenly, Karen's opinion of him turns on a dime. Karen knows what it is to grieve for a lost family. Karen's mother died of cancer, her brother died in a car accident she caused, and then her dad severed their relationship.

Karen is moved by Frank's admission that he never returned to his home after his family were killed, because Karen is practically exiled from her home in Vermont. Karen kindly listens to Frank's recollections about his son's funny habits, which were like Karen's as a child. Karen recalls that she needed to escape, which Frank understands ("I guess we need that, right? We need to get away sometimes."[31]).

Karen is relieved to have someone she can share these things with, and to have someone she can offer her support to. She is good at consoling an emotionally disturbed and grieving man. She has valuable traits to give that have never been accepted before, and it feels good to exercise her nurturing skills. Karen has made attempts to break through to Matt and do the same for him when he's clearly hurting ("When or if you ever feel like you can tell me what's really going on with you, I promise I'm here."[32]), but Matt continually keeps her at arm's length, which stings.

This authentic moment with Frank feels like a breakthrough in developing her self-esteem. She helped someone in their darkest moments and had something valuable to offer a person who really needed it. It's what Karen wishes she could share with Matt. She is desperate for answers from him, too.

Chapter Four: A Single Cluster of Seconds

Frank seems to cooperate with her regarding his case until push comes to shove, and he defies the plan they agreed upon and pleads "not guilty" instead, unloading on the DA in an angry tirade. Karen is shocked but ultimately understanding ("Maybe he just wants the truth. About Grotto, about his family, about the cover-up. I mean, if we go to trial, then it all comes out, right?"[33]).

Matt, Karen, and Foggy get into the weeds of Frank's case but they (absurdly) haven't settled on a defense. Karen wants to push for a mistrial, get more time, and get Reyes kicked off the case, but they have no proof that will stand up in court. They consider insanity and PTSD, and Karen wonders if the war is what made Frank what he is. Karen is desperate to find a concrete reason she can point to that turns someone into a vigilante killer. She is looking for solid answers to a question that can't really be answered. Karen is eager to excuse him for his crimes so that she can ease her own burden - if his heinous crimes are justifiable, then hers can be, too.

Karen is totally unafraid of Frank now, because she both believes him that he won't hurt her, and because she simply doesn't value herself enough to care if he hurts her. Matt insists she should be afraid of Frank, and it's not a matter of her gender or her capability - Matt knows Frank is ruthless, lethal, and overconfident about his ability to keep innocents out of the crossfire (especially after having been shot in the head by Castle himself). Plus, Matt knows that Karen is reckless with her own life and doesn't recognize danger the way an ordinary person would. Karen doesn't really hear the depth of his concern, unable to accept love the same as Matt is unable to accept love, and merely placates him.

Karen shares the PTSD defense idea with Frank, who is offended on behalf of soldiers who suffer from it, believing he doesn't have it because his life didn't go "to shit[34]" on a battlefield. Frank and Karen both misunderstand PTSD to be exclusively combat-related, even though they both suffer from it. Karen probably suffered from it while she went through prison security to get to this very meeting, reminding her of when she was detained for murder.

Frank pushes for answers from Karen, unkindly and disdainfully goading her, but Karen claps back in a towering temper. ("You are on trial for multiple homicides, and you don't have a defense strategy in place. You don't cooperate with us; it doesn't matter if I help you figure out who killed your family. You will never see justice. All you will do, the rest of your life, is rot in a goddamn jail cell!"[35]) Karen's backbone earns Frank's respect, and he starts cooperating by giving her a character witness to contact. He even teases her about losing her temper, and she shares what's she's been digging into. He's dismissive that she could find anything when he's already looked, but Karen is utterly confident in her investigative skills.

Karen shares with Foggy what she and Frank went over at the meeting. Foggy is skeptical that there's anything useful for the trial and blasé about it, so Karen urges him to put himself in Frank's shoes, so that he can be fully committed to defending Frank. Karen is desperate for Foggy to defend Frank, because in her mind, she is Frank. She remembers how she felt after killing her brother or losing her mom to cancer.

Karen is speaking from her own point of view. ("Just for a minute, try…try to be Frank Castle. To be solely fueled by…by a single cluster of seconds. One moment in your entire life. And every time you close your eyes, you relive that moment. And every time you open them, you find only the briefest peace before you realize that that nightmare is real. That nothing has changed. Your family isn't coming back. And so, you watch them die all over again, right in front of you. We're not talking about something that happened to Frank Castle, we're talking about something that is happening to him."[36]).

This prompts Foggy to have an epiphany about how to proceed with the trial.

Chapter Five: Misunderstanding

Astonishingly, Matt is late for the opening of Frank's trial, where he's supposed to be giving opening statements. Karen is getting unglued with anxiety ("Should we be worried? I mean, there's no way Matt misses this, right?"[37]).

Frank is hyperaware of Karen and Matt's dynamic, being someone as observant as he is. He identified them as a couple immediately when they first met at the hospital, noticing the way Matt dove in to pull her back when she lost her temper, how she tolerated being manhandled by him, and the intimate and lingering way they touched one another. Now, Frank can see that Karen is deeply personally invested in Matt's whereabouts beyond that of a concerned co-worker; she's practically vibrating with worry, fidgeting out of her seat.

Frank stores this fact away for when it might be relevant, but he has no interest in their relationship drama. In fact, he barely cares that his lead attorney is MIA (missing in action). Frank is participating in this trial to get answers, but if he doesn't, he'll find another way. The outcome matters very little to him because he knows he will find what he needs, one way or another, no matter what, and nothing will stop him.

Foggy steps in to recklessly improvise opening statements in Matt's absence. Frank considers his statement "a pretty thick slice of bullshit,"[38] especially because Foggy characterized him as a "good husband and excellent father,"[39] which Frank can never believe again, since he failed to protect them. It's possible he did not think he was a particularly good father before the murders, because he was absent from milestones like sports wins ("I was a gone a lot, so I didn't - I missed a lot of that."[40]). He also recalls incidents where he treated his son harshly[41].

After court, perhaps with a tongue loosened by wine, Karen attempts to confide in Matt about her confused, unclear, and evolving thought process regarding vigilantism ("What about when the law fails? Like it did with me, like it did with Frank. You know, what are we supposed to turn to? What should we…what should we believe will protect us then?"[42]). Matt is cagey and noncommittal about the subject for reasons Karen doesn't yet understand. Matt is the vigilante who saved her, but he is too afraid to admit it and risk Karen withdrawing her love for him.

Karen tries out her most extreme idea yet ("I keep asking myself if there's really a difference between…between someone who saves lives, and someone who prevents lives from needing to be saved at all."[43]) Karen is thinking about how James Wesley threatened to kill Matt, Foggy and her family, and she might have saved their lives by killing him. (Wesley told her, "You won't be the first to die, Miss Page, no. No, I think Mr. Urich will have that honor. Then we'll go to your place of employment, see to Mr. Nelson, Mr. Murdock. After that, your friends, family, everyone you've ever cared about. And when you have no tears left to shed, then then we'll come for you, Miss Page."[44]). Karen shot him before he could act on his threats.

Karen wants Matt to understand and validate where she's coming from, but he is unexpectedly prickly and defensive about the subject, adopting a hard line about Frank ("Frank Castle should be behind bars. I mean, he deserves a fair trial, but he's murdered people. It's not Frank's decision who lives or dies. That's up to God, or sometimes a jury. What happened to Frank's family is a tragedy, Karen, but it doesn't give him the right to kill."[45]).

Matt's most sensitive insecurities about this subject have been picked at by Frank ("You're one bad day away from being me."[46]), and Elektra, who insists she knows the real him, a killer who wanted to slit Roscoe Sweeney’s throat ("I didn’t push you into anything. And you didn’t kill anyone. But you wanted to."[47]). Matt has protested to Ben that “I’m not a killer,”[48] to Mahoney that “I’m not the bad guy,”[49] to Vladimir Ranskahov that “I don’t kill people,”[50] and to Fisk that “I’m nothing like you,”[51] even though he did attempt to kill Fisk (“I’m gonna kill you.”[52]). Stick has pushed him to kill (“I need a soldier.”[53]) and told him, “You’re still afraid to cross that line. Someday, it’s gonna come down to you or the other guy.”[54] Matt is afraid they are all right and he is unlovable because of this.

Matt is in love with Karen's moral qualities, calling her "compassionate,"[55] comparing her to "saints,"[56] characterizing their date as "perfect," implying to Elektra that Karen is the example of "what real love is,"[57] and kissing Karen affectionately when she says, 'It's the right thing to do."[58] Matt is relying on Karen to be his beacon of moral clarity, and his tether to the parts of himself that he is proud of. When she comes too close to the subject that he is most ashamed of and proves to be yet another person in his life with murky moral questions, he balks.

Karen backpedals, clumsily trying to reroute the conversation ("Right or wrong, you can't deny that it works."[59]) but Matt shuts down communication completely. Karen's takeaway can only be that Matt believes there is no nuance about murder, when his view is just as complex as hers. Matt has attempted to murder Fisk ("I went to kill him."[60]), was responsible for accidentally killing Nobu (“I’m came here for Fisk. Guess I’ll have to settle for you.”[61]), and he feels responsible for his dad's death ("I did it! I killed him!"[62]).

Matt and Karen aren’t secure enough to give each other the whole context for this conversation, or to fully and honestly explain their points of view. It's a classically tragic miscommunication about a subject they agree on, or at least have common ground on. Matt has no way to understand that she's talking about herself, and Karen has no clue Matt supports vigilantism, because he is one. Most importantly, neither of them has any clue that they are both intimate with the guilt from mortally harming people.

Later, to Frank, Karen expresses almost exactly what Matt says ("I don't like what you do. And ultimately, I think you probably belong in jail."[63]). Karen is reaching out for Matt's approval, because she respects and trusts his moral compass and values his opinions. Karen is hiding her true intentions by framing the conversation around Frank, while Matt takes it at face value, perplexed by what appears to be Karen's moral U-turn about vigilantism. A short time ago, she expressed the fear that "Maybe we created [the Punisher]"[64] by wrongly cheering on Daredevil. Later, Matt apologizes for "dragging [her] into this,"[65] indicating he believes he is corrupting her.

Sadly, Karen doesn't yet know how Matt will react to the truth that she shot Wesley and killed her brother. He ultimately tells her when she finally confesses in S3, "We're all just trying to do some good, and I'd say you're ahead on that score."[66] It's exactly what she's searching for right now, but there is no way for Matt to understand that.

[Author note: The cascade of communication failures in this one conversation are almost disastrous in scope, but true to two people who don't yet understand themselves and are not yet ready emotionally to commit to the vulnerability of a real, honest relationship. Matt and Karen have a lot of personal issues to iron out before they can be a healthy couple, but they are both introspective people interested in self-improvement. Damaged and blundering though they are, Matt and Karen share the same deeply-held values and interests, are professionally compatible, and bring out the best in one another, when they aren't lying to each other (and themselves). Even their lies and omissions are motivated by a wish to be seen by the other person in the best light, borne of insecurity, and don't reflect true judgment of one another. They simply aren't mature enough to participate in this romantic relationship yet, much as they both long for it.]

Chapter Six: Two Killers

Things go from bad to worse when the testimony of the trial witness Frank's case hinged on is dismissed by the judge. The medical examiner's bombshell testimony that he covered up significant aspects of the Castle family's murders could blow the case wide open, but the judge throws it out because there was possible witness tampering.

Matt and Foggy have a blow-out argument in private, but when Karen demands a shred of communication from Matt ("Enough of the dodgy bullshit. I deserve to know what's going on with you two. With you."[67]), Matt dismisses her and literally walks away. He rejects her as both his girlfriend and his co-worker.

Karen is unsure about the future of this relationship. She has been patient with Matt's lack of self-disclosure for a long period of time, aware that she is hiding significant secrets herself, but her secrets do not directly affect their business, careers, or the life and future of their client. Karen is a reliable employee and colleague who doesn't miss work, communicates with their client, moves the case forward, and supports the whole firm. Matt is chronically absent, won't say why, and blows up his two most significant relationships, Foggy and Karen, his business partners and best friends.

Matt doesn't show up the next day at court again. Karen is forced to prioritize Frank's case, because Foggy is now the sole lawyer working on it and he didn't even want to take the case. Karen encouraged Matt and Foggy to take the case under the assumption that Matt would be professionally committed. Karen is totally confused by Matt's behavior, because he seemed personally driven to help Frank when they first took him on as a client, and now he's disappeared without leaving any clue why. The whole thing was his idea.

Luckily, Foggy scores a point for Frank's case with the character witness Karen drummed up, Col. Schoonover, who gives compelling and evocative testimony about Frank's wartime heroics.

The next day, Foggy and Karen march on as a team with their next witness, which goes well until the son of one of Frank's victims has a devastating outburst in court ("You killed my dad! I don't give a shit what you've been through! You killed him! I saw him in his coffin. He was my dad and now he's gone!"[68]). Karen is perturbed by the stark reality of Frank's actions ("That was tough for you, right? It was, um, hard?"[69]).

Karen is a particularly empathetic and compassionate person who cares deeply for people, especially those who are suffering. However, Karen is still completely unwilling to let herself off the hook ("Look, Frank, I can't judge you."[70]). Karen has fully committed to the idea that she and Frank are the same at this point -- two killers.

Karen has looked everywhere for guidance or insight regarding her guilt. She considered Father Lantom's religious perspective ("Father Lantom's eulogy really got to me, I guess."[71]). She weighed Sgt. Mahoney's law enforcement view ("Daredevil kicks ass, this whole city cheers like we just won the World Series. But this guy? He does it and the streets get bloody."[72]). A couple of times, she tested out her thoughts to gauge Matt's reaction as her friend and boyfriend. She tried to convince Foggy to put himself in Frank Castle's shoes as a lawyer.

Karen has fully identified herself with Frank…and now his guilt or innocence are in a jury's hands. Karen's only hope for herself is if they have mercy upon Frank. Karen wants them to know that his trauma led him to his actions ("The jury has to know what happened to you, what you go through every single day."[73]).

It's of life-and-death importance to Karen that the jury know Frank's not a monster, but Frank is more prosaic ("What if this is just me now?"[74]). Karen considers this, wondering to herself if she is irredeemable. (Karen once had a dream where she was tormented by Fisk, and he told her, "It gets easier, the more you do it,"[75] revealing her deepest fear about herself). She convinces Frank to testify on his own behalf, so that he can answer that for himself, too.

It is likely Frank suspects Karen is also a killer. He has a sharp, astute grasp of interpersonal details. Col. Schoonover described it ("[He had] a sixth sense about ticks and subconscious behaviors and the way a brain works. It was spot-on, really. Unnerving, the way he could look into a person's soul."[76]). Frank is undoubtedly certain that Karen has been the victim of violence and certainly mistreated by the legal system, but is she just a bleeding heart with a soft spot for bad boys, or has she been a wrongdoer herself? He knows that she broke into his house, but she had a noble cause. Is she so coddled that this is her idea of vigilante justice?

The strongest clue is perhaps when Karen says she can't judge him with absolute certainty, and significant unwavering eye contact. This is the moment when Frank is sure Karen has taken a life.

Chapter Seven: Caught

Karen persuades Foggy to get on board with Frank going on the witness stand by appealing to Foggy's sense of basic decency ("Do you think that Frank is completely and totally mentally healthy?"[77]). Foggy thinks he's "batshit." ("Yeah? Well, that's why you help him."[78]).

In turn, Karen is convinced to ask Matt to do the questioning. Karen is skeptical, still hurt and angry at the way Matt let them down as a lawyer, friend and boyfriend, and she's not entirely certain Matt is the best person to do the job, since he has spent so little time working on the case. (Notably, sadly, Karen doesn't see that Matt is not "completely and totally mentally healthy" until midway through S3, when she is granted an epiphany).

Karen is shocked when Matt doesn't answer his door. Instead, she's greeted by an abrasive old blind man with poor manners. Karen has no idea who this person is or how he knows Matt, very jarring considering Karen has known Matt for a year now and worked with him almost every day, spent her leisure time with him, and is (maybe, maybe not) dating him. Karen should at least casually know of Matt's closest relationships - and this man must be close because he's answering the door for him - but he's a total unknown. The strange man leads Karen to Matt's bedroom. ("You've got company."[79])

Matt is fully dressed in athleisure, standing over a beautiful woman in his bed, wearing his dress shirt just like Karen did when they first met, and sleeping in his bed like Matt insisted Karen should that night. Karen once told him about that night, “You gave me your shirt. You made me feel safe. You made me feel like I could trust everything you say.”[80] More recently, she told Matt, “I remember everything about that night.”[81] That night was life-changing for her, when she fell in love with him. In her words, Matt “gave [her] hope.”[82]

It is crushing to see another woman in that intimate, secure place under Matt’s care and protection. In this moment, Karen believes it was not a special and precious night for him, like it was for her. It couldn’t be a clearer message: she can’t trust him.

Karen can't make sense of this scene, but Matt's expression is guilty and "caught," which doesn't bode well. Karen's mind likely jumped to the simplest, most obvious explanation - cheating - which isn't much of a leap considering what she's heard about Matt's love life from Foggy (and it would explain why he declined sex with her - because he was already satisfied by someone else). Then, there are the nonstop lies and disappearances. Matt is a master of "dodgy bullshit,"[83] and Karen has no interest in entertaining his excuses, explanations or evasions.

Even if there is an innocent reason for it, the whole situation is humiliating for Karen, who Matt has wholeheartedly blocked from almost every meaningful aspect of his personal life. Karen has been strung along, taken for granted, and disrespected. Matt and Karen never clearly defined their relationship as exclusive, and Karen isn't even sure what the status of their relationship is at all, but this demonstrates that it's not something Karen is willing to tolerate anymore.

How can she feel secure enough to disclose her deeply guarded secrets when Matt is hiding as much or more? His secrets are presently and actively impacting both their lives professionally and personally, but it's also an immediate, ongoing situation: he's sick, he's injured, there are strange people she didn't know about, he's excluding her from his conversations with Foggy, she can't rely on him to show up or even get through one date without rejecting her somehow.

Karen has longed to open her heart to him, but the truth is that Karen just doesn't trust Matt enough because he hasn't earned it. Karen has been patient, tolerant, reliable and as open as she can, without exposing herself unnecessarily. Matt didn't even bother to ask her about her family after an entire year of knowing her. Karen has proven herself to be a good and trustworthy friend, even though she's struggled with her own demons. Karen is no saint, but she has reached the limit of what she'll accept as someone who is supposed to be his friend, let alone a romantic partner.

Karen is acutely aware of Frank’s psychological disturbances, having been the repeated victim of them and studying them in detail for his case. Frank wears his heart on his sleeve. Unfortunately, Karen is entirely in the dark about Matt’s catastrophic and rapidly declining mental health. While Matt has revealed vague symptoms, he has masterfully hidden the true scope of his emotional downfall currently in progress. Karen has a rudimentary understanding of psychiatry and mental illness, not even knowing she herself has post-traumatic stress, and she is not qualified to spot the subtle signs Matt exhibits. Since Matt is falling victim to a trauma bond and doesn’t have the tools or resources to address his own problems, either, they do not handle this misunderstanding with the maturity and clarity more healthy and informed individuals would.

Chapter Eight: Moment of Truth

Karen is a survivor and has no intention of withering and dying because Matt hurt her so badly. She's glad he showed up to court like she and Foggy needed him to, but she's nowhere near ready to let it rest. Karen gets teary-eyed just looking at him, thoroughly confused by him as usual. She is tired of the constant wondering about what he's thinking, if he's okay, what his intentions are, if he's trustworthy or not, what he's hiding, if it's serious, or if she's deluding herself.

Karen has a lot to process, and this is a very bad time. It's Frank's moment of truth.

All Matt must do is get Frank to tell his story in a way that makes the jury believe that he believes his version of events is true. Then, Frank can finally get psychiatric help. However, Frank gets a mysterious message from a cop: "Think about what you want, Frank."[84] Frank has a choice: accept help or continue his mission. It's that simple. Frank is still deciding as Matt starts his questioning. (Observant Frank can't help but notice that Karen's eyes have filled with tears as she looks at her boyfriend's back).

When Murdock asks if he can call him by his first name, Frank recognizes his familiar voice from when they fought on the rooftop ("Frank. That's your real name?"[85]) and when Murdock mentions psychology, Frank remembers that he suspected Daredevil might have a job as a psychologist ("You a shrink, Red? Now, come on, you must be something when you're not wearing the long johns, right?"[86]). It dawns on him that Murdock’s job is as an attorney, and he is Daredevil.

Frank puts it together at rapid speed: Murdock took him as a client because of their interaction on the rooftop and he's been absent from the trial because of it, and of course Karen might be struggling with this vigilante debate because of him.

Frank immediately sours on Murdock, flashing back to their violent rooftop clash. Murdock got in his way, tried to stop him, psychoanalyzed him, judged him, lectured him, pried into his life, tried to get in his head, made it clear he thought he was better than him, and even mocked him ("You know you're not the only one, right? Who did you lose? Huh? Was it someone you loved? Well, boo-hoo. Let me tell you something, buddy. Everybody's lost someone. Doesn't mean you have to do this."[87]).

Frank is enraged. This guy acted like he had all the answers, and that he was a big hero. Then, he inserted himself into his legal case, but he couldn't bother to show up and left all the heavy lifting to his girlfriend! Frank is disgusted with this smug, hypocritical, cowardly half-measure of a man, who doesn't have an ounce of self-awareness. Frank is dripping with derision: "I don't think you understand shit."[88]

Murdock concludes he's "hostile."[89] No shit. Then, he says something that shocks Frank to the core ("I'm gonna tell you exactly what kind of man you are. You're the kind of man this city needs."[90]). Frank reels from surprise at Murdock's passionate tangent directed at the jury, which they are eating up. Even Frank finds himself a little convinced ("Frank Castle wanted to help but he took it too far. He shot people. He killed people. It's against the law. And he broke that law many, many times. Now, I don't like him any more than you do, but here's the thing - he's not a common criminal. He's not malicious in intent. Frank Castle is actually a good man. He just - he doesn't know the difference between right and wrong anymore. And he doesn't need punishment for that. He needs help."[91]).

Frank considers the judge, the jury, the reporters, and the crowd. The veil falls from Frank's eyes. All of this is a circus, a charade, an act. Bullshit, just like everything else that comes out of Red's mouth ("You really are a nutjob. You're unhinged, Frank. You're insane."[92]). There's no such thing as hope, redemption, or Santa Claus. Frank has made his decision. ("I ain't crazy! I'm not crazy. OK? I know what I did. I know who I am."[93])

Frank loses it in a frightening rant, screaming at the court exactly what he's chosen to be now. ("You people, you call me the Punisher, ain't that right? The big bad Punisher. Well, here I am! You want it, you got it! I am the Punisher!"[94]). Frank has disabused himself of any notions that he can be helped in any way ("What, you think you're gonna send me to a nuthouse? Some doctor -- they're gonna get me to stop from doing what I want to do? Well, that ain't happening! Not on my watch!"[95]). Just in case anyone doesn't get the message, he makes it clear: "I'm guilty!"[96]

Chapter Nine: Done

Devastatingly, bewilderingly, Frank tanks his case in spectacular fashion and gets the worst possible sentence. All this drama was for nought.

Matt believes someone got to him, but Karen is in no mood to hear anything Matt has to say. The stress of it makes Karen lose her temper and she unloads on Matt ("I don't want to hear another bullshit excuse! Maybe you are an alcoholic. Maybe you're in a fight club. Maybe you are sleeping with a whole harem of women. I don't care, I'm done."[97]). Karen was willing to hear any wild excuse from Matt for a very long time, from alcoholism to a fight club to sex addiction. She is fed up with searching for answers.

Matt’s outburst in court looked very ugly from Karen’s perspective. Matt says Frank is “the sort of man this city needs,”[98] and that “we need heroes.”[99] When he said this, he looked back at Karen, because he was telling her his real answer to her question about what he thinks about vigilantism, and who should “protect us.” Matt is not evading that he’s a “Catholic lawyer”[100] anymore. Matt wants her to know who he really is, but she has no way to know what that really means.

Karen has always considered Matt her hero since the night she stayed with him, and this indicates that maybe he thinks of himself as a hero and is justifying the fact that he had another woman in his bed, being her hero, too. This is why Karen makes a point to say to him, “You’re right. This city really needs heroes. But you’re not one of them.”[101]

This stops Matt in his tracks, partly because of abandonment trauma and rejection sensitivity (which Karen doesn’t yet know about), but also because he can see Karen’s perspective. He has let her down in the worst way, and she deserves better. Matt chooses not to pursue her, try to call her, or explain himself, because he thinks she’s better off without him. Like his dad believed Matt was better off without him, Matt thinks he is inflicting himself upon her, dragging her down, and abandoning her is the loving thing to do. He takes her at her word that she's "done," and honors that decision. From Karen’s perspective, Matt just gives up, indicating he doesn’t really care as much as she wanted to believe, or he’s just not ready for, or capable of, a relationship.

Karen takes the day to process and reexamine her files on the case, coming up with a new lead that could break the case open. Karen has considered what her priorities are, which is what she cares about most - her work with Matt and Foggy. She shows up to work a little weary but renewed in her determination to "get Nelson and Murdock back on top."[102]

Karen has cooled off her anger toward Matt, who, to be fair, never stated their relationship was as serious as she thought, did the gentlemanly thing and declined to sleep with her even though he could have, never told her he was ready to confide in her, and he did show up when she asked. He made mistakes by being professionally unreliable, but he never actually misled her about their romance. He kissed her, asked her on a date, stated clearly that he wasn't ready to be intimate with her, and agreed with her statement that they weren't officially labelling it.

Some of the burden of their relationship's failure is on her, because in general, Karen believes both parties are responsible for a relationship ("Everyone shares the blame in a relationship. That's just the way that it works."[103]). Her expectations were clearly sky-high, and perhaps misaligned with Matt's intentions all along (based on what she knows). Karen could have wondered if she wasn't the one who pressured him into moving too fast, even though he was the one who kissed her. Karen heard a lot about Matt's rapid-fire love life from Foggy and was set up to assume he'd be all-in from the jump. She ignored all his signals that he wasn't ready, and never talked to him about it, because she was not ready, either.

Now that she has had time to decompress, Karen is willing to talk to him about it and listen to what he has to say, if he wants to. Karen is loyal to Matt, who has been good to her in numerous ways since the day they met. She hasn't forgotten how he helped her, supported her, gave her a chance at his firm, and has been kind and polite to her all along. He has demonstrated care and concern, respected her ideas and opinions, and comforted her emotionally.

Karen is particularly sensitive about the scenario of Matt helping a vulnerable woman in need, because it was so personally significant to her. However, it remains in the back of her mind that it could be precisely what it looks like: cheating. She's still doubtful about what she saw, so she tries to see how Foggy reacts; does his best friend of so many years think it's plausible he's cheating on her? ("There was a woman there. In his bed."[104]). Unfortunately, Foggy's reaction is the worst possible. He's utterly unsurprised and even knows something about it. Karen is gutted, but unwilling to let it stand in the way of her most important relationships ("[Matt] and Foggy are the best parts of my life."[105]).

Karen knows Matt had a traumatic childhood and suffers emotional problems. She accepts that they are in different stages of readiness for a relationship ("Whatever is going on with Matt, he's either not capable or not willing to make room for anything else in his life…right now."[106]). Karen hesitates, placing emphasis on the phrase “right now,” not ready to let go completely, believing wholeheartedly in their compatibility and the "magic,"[107] and still wants to pursue a relationship with him in the future, but the one thing she can't stand anymore is being lied to ("If Matt doesn't want to share his life with me, that's between me and him. The same way your friendship with Matt is between you and him. I don't need to be warned, Foggy, I just - I cannot be lied to anymore. All I want is the truth about something."[108]). Perhaps unfairly, Karen requires Matt to open up first before she's willing to trust him enough so she can open up. This leaves them in a standoff.

Unfortunately, Karen doesn't get the chance to resolve anything with Matt. Foggy gives her the news that Matt quit the firm this morning and they need to find work elsewhere, because Nelson and Murdock is over.

This is staggering to Karen. Matt didn't even consult her before imploding her job. It's not just her source of income, it's also her passion, and the basis for her only close relationships in the world. Matt and Foggy are her family. This brings back the trauma of when her dad rejected her after her brother's death. Karen feels worthless, without a home or a purpose, and defeated. All of Karen's bright hopes about turning the ship around and resolving their issues are dashed. Once again, Karen is alone in the world. This is the absolute worst thing he could have done to her, and the fact that he didn't even talk to her about this monumental decision is shattering.

Chapter Ten: No Retreat

Karen Page is not one to give up, however. The Castle case tanking was not her failure, and she still wants answers, even if she can't be the one to get them.

Karen goes back to Ellison, who she worked with while they were preparing for the trial and tells him about what she found: evidence of the John Doe the medical examiner said he covered up. Ellison is on board to identify the John Doe and find out why he was important enough to hide, but Karen hesitates ("Actually, I think that, um…I think you should do this. Trial's over. Frank is in prison, and everyone's retreated to the corners, including my bosses, one of whom has repeatedly told me to let it go and move on."[109]).

Karen is suffering a moment of doubt about herself. She trusted her instincts before, and it got her precisely nowhere. Maybe her dogged approach is not working. After all, her one goal to help Castle was all for nought ("Case is closed. Castle tanked his own case. He got put away."[110]).

Karen found the lead expecting to get her life back on track. ("Look, this was supposed to be about saving my law firm, and I didn’t."[111]). Ellison is not having it, however - he's thoroughly impressed with Karen's work, getting many phone calls about the information she supplied him, and believes she's "shaking the right trees," so he convinces her to keep going. ("This thing ain't over. Not yet. Not by a long shot. You know it. 'Cause you know you're onto something."[112]).

This is a relief for Karen to hear, because she's lost personal and professional confidence. She needed to be reminded that she has the right investigative instincts, even if she has suffered setbacks. Ellison invites Karen to come with him to talk to the medical examiner.

Karen convinces the medical examiner to open the door to her and Ellison, even though he is paranoid about people following him, because he's a target because of what he knows. The medical examiner is afraid, but Karen has rediscovered her confidence ("You can continue to be trapped by what you've done, or you can tell us what you know so that we can go out and expose the real bad guys. And then you can get back to living your life, because this is not where your story ends."[113]).

Karen has identified what has been holding her back. She is the one who has felt trapped by what she did and is ready to go out and expose the real bad guys, so she can return to her life and keep working on herself. Karen intends to move on from her trauma and not let it define her, however long that takes. She knows that a life constrained by guilt and fear can only be freed by bringing the truth to light. The medical examiner is convinced; he tells him that the John Doe was an undercover cop, not a criminal or innocent bystander. This changes everything.

Ellison sees the same spark in Karen that Ben did and intends to honor Ben's legacy by mentoring Karen himself. Karen once told Ben how she wondered about all the stories that could be told about people’s lives, and he told her, "Only thing we have, everything said and done. No buildings named after us, fancy inheritances to leave behind. Just the stories those who were close to us tell to keep us alive. Even if it's just in memory."[114]

Ellison has kept Ben's office untouched in the year since he died, possibly out of guilt for the way their relationship fell apart before Ben died, and especially because their last conversation was when Ellison fired him, and Ben accidentally revealed to Fisk's plant in the office that he visited Fisk's mother.

Ellison has developed personal affection for Karen while they worked on the Castle case and offers Karen Ben's old office ("If you wanna camp out in here, it's all yours. Start digging."[115]). Ellison has examined the file Ben made on Karen when he first researched her, which details Karen's role in her brother's death. Karen is shocked and raw with emotion - her worst and deepest secret is exposed. Ellison is clear: "Ben didn't care and I don't, either."[116]

Chapter Eleven: Escape

Wilson Fisk has summoned Frank Castle to meet him in prison to offer him what he calls an "opportunity."[117] Fisk wants to use Castle to eliminate his greatest enemy within the prison and is responsible for orchestrating Castle's courtroom meltdown; all he had to do was send someone to ask him what he really wanted. Fisk's enemy boasted about having a hand in the massacre in the park.

Castle's not happy about being a trigger man for a has-been mobster, but the fact is, this is his greatest lead for getting to the bottom of the conspiracy. Fisk offers safe passage, some crucial unguarded minutes, and a shiv.

Frank contacts the source about the carousel massacre, who tells him it wasn't gang warfare at all - it was a sting orchestrated to catch a heroin dealer called the "Blacksmith," but the gangs realized he wasn't there, and law enforcement had infiltrated one of their groups, so they started shooting.

Frank's source warned him that there were almost a hundred shooters involved, and his cause was hopeless. ("You know, this crusade of yours…it's never gonna end."[118]). Frank knows he's right, but he has no intention of ever stopping. Unlike Karen, Frank has concluded that he can't ever move on from what happened to him and his family until every last one of them is gone. Frank stabs him and says, “Yeah. Yeah, you're right. You're right.”[119] Frank suspects he has already found his answer to his question ("What if I find these men that did that to my family? What if - what if nothing changes? What if this is just me now?"[120]).

Fisk planned to have Castle killed but now he has a grander plan: free Castle from prison and let him take out all of Fisk's enemies on the outside so that when he is released, the city's his for the taking. Castle accepts so that he can find the Blacksmith, his only priority. If he ever gets the chance, he will kill Fisk, too.

News of the Punisher's escape from prison blows up all over New York City. Matt, Foggy and Karen get an invitation from DA Reyes to talk to her at her office. Matt, Foggy and Karen speculate they are about to be blamed for Castle's escape, somehow. Matt is sure Fisk is responsible, but Reyes has bigger concerns - there has been a threat made against her daughter. A copy of an x-ray of Castle's skull was found in her daughter's backpack.

Reyes confesses the mistakes she made regarding the massacre. She was responsible for organizing the sting to catch the Blacksmith, and she made the call not to clear the park of civilian traffic. Reyes had remorse for the deaths of Castle's family, but her political career was more important to her. She tried to have Castle killed to save it. Now, she wants them to break attorney-client privilege if Castle contacts them and for them to let her know ("I don't give a shit about my job anymore. I just wanna keep my family safe."[121]).

Karen is skeptical, finding it highly unlikely Frank would target her family, because of his strict internal code. He only kills people who he believes deserve it, and an innocent child is the farthest thing from that description. Karen doesn't get the chance to consider this, because the office is showered with a hail of bullets. Reyes is killed and Foggy is shot.

Foggy is treated for his non-life-threatening wound, and Matt takes off without saying goodbye. ADA Blake Tower confesses his role in the cover-up, which was well-underway when he started at the DA's office, and he found out she was altering medical records and police reports and ordered the DNR (“do not resuscitate”) on Castle. He didn't want himself to go down with her, so he slipped Karen the Punisher file with the x-ray in it. Tower is certain Castle is responsible for murdering Reyes, and he plans to flee in case he's next.

Chapter Twelve: Facts or Feelings

Karen returns to the Bulletin office. Karen wants to figure out if Castle was responsible for killing Reyes or not. Ellison asks her what her gut is telling her, but Karen protests ("No! No, my gut is the last thing I can trust. I need facts."[122]). Karen has been operating on instinct this whole time and it's only gotten her confused.

There is no doubt Frank would want Reyes dead, and he could have escaped prison just to do it. After witnessing Foggy get caught in the crossfire, Karen reconsidered whether she could be wrong that Castle would care about collateral damage. After all, she did not see his courtroom meltdown coming at all. Matt could be right about her being in danger from Castle all along. In general, Karen followed her intuition regarding her relationship with Matt, and that turned out to be a disaster.

Karen considers that the medical examiner would be next on Castle's shortlist and plans to go now. Ellison says, "Not alone, you're not."[123] Karen has no trouble accepting this, since Ellison proved he didn't care about what she'd done in the past. He trusts and respects her, regardless. Karen acknowledges that he cares about her by not protesting.

Karen has developed self-confidence and esteem in this transformative experience and is starting to believe she could be worth protecting. It is easy to cooperate with Ellison because she believes him and her insecurity has been put at ease by his approval. Karen has been yearning for a father figure for guidance, and finally there is someone worthy of the role and available to her as true personal support.

Unfortunately, the medical examiner has already been brutally murdered in a bloody, chaotic scene. Karen's instincts are that this is not Frank Castle's "style," based on what she knows about him. However, Ellison urges her to set aside her personal feelings and tries to impress upon her that Frank is out of control ("Whatever good you saw, whatever - you know - code of honor that you understand…it was never there."[124]).

Karen doubts herself again ("You think I projected?"[125]). Karen is considering that she might be guilty of this, because there is significant truth in it. Projection is a psychological defense mechanism in which people attribute what is in their own minds to other people. Karen has been misapplying her thoughts and feelings about herself onto Frank's case - and maybe she has been doing the same regarding Matt, who might not be the person she thought he was, either. Ellison states it explicitly ("Why you'd wanna see good in the man who pulls the trigger is beyond me.” [126]).

Karen is willing to entertain Ellison's theory because it's close to the mark, but she's still trusting her instincts ("No, Frank's not gonna hurt me."[127]). Karen is coming to trust her own judgment that Frank is more than just an indiscriminate psycho killer, just like there's more to her. Karen puts her focus on saving as many people as she can.

When Ellison requests two police officers go with her, Karen smarts ("You would have never pulled this patriarchal shit with Ben. I can take care of myself."[128]). However, Ellison pushes back, because his intentions aren't misogynistic ("You're right. And I'll never make that mistake again. Not about someone I care about."[129]). Karen accepts this, because she is building self-esteem and feels worthy enough to accept an act of protection, which she now recognizes is loving, and not controlling. Ellison has seen who she really is and has made his own judgment. It is a strong step in the right direction.

Chapter Thirteen: Trust

Karen's protection officers are taken out outside her apartment, and she pulls her gun on the culprit - Frank. Karen must decide whether her personal feelings have clouded her good sense and judgment, or if she trusts her original instinct that Frank is who she thinks he is. Karen is the judge and jury now - and she decides she believes him. Frank does have a code of honor and wouldn't kill her.

Karen doesn't need anyone else to tell her what her moral compass is telling her, because she trusts herself now. Karen doesn't need religion, law enforcement, a jury, her boyfriend, her friend, or anyone else to decide whether she's a worthy person or not. She must decide that for herself.

Luckily, Karen's instinct pays off. Her apartment is sprayed with bullets, proving Frank is innocent and another killer is framing him. Frank shields Karen from the bullets, saving her life, and they escape and come up with a plan. Frank is Karen's best hope at finding the killer who wants her dead.

All of law enforcement is wrong about who the real bad guy is, and Karen has no faith she can convince anyone of this fact. ("Frank thinks he can find this guy faster than the NYPD and honestly, I agree with him."[130]). Karen has no trust in the justice system at all. After all, her police "protection" was just taken out in a hot second, and she almost died. She has established where she stands on vigilantism: in extreme circumstances where your life or others' are threatened, it is necessary to take the law into your own hands.

Karen gives the police a false statement that she didn't see anything and agrees to accept police protection even though she has no intention of staying under it, believing it to be worthless anyway, based on her experience. At this point, Karen trusts only herself, and maybe Castle, to protect her life. The risk to her life is too great to sit back. She must be proactive to find this killer.

Karen is surprised by Matt's presence at the police station. She hesitates what to call him, not knowing if he's her friend, her ex, her old boss; their relationship is nonexistent at this point. The last thing Matt did was bail on her and upend her life without even talking to her. Karen appreciates that he cared enough to show up ("I know that you mean well."[131]), but Karen has decided that she does not want to accept his love anymore without honesty and communication. Matt has proven himself to be unreliable in every way. He can't even be relied upon to answer his phone.

Karen is no longer pushing away acts of love because she doesn't believe she is worthy - she is now declining because she knows she deserves better. She is aware of the danger ("You're right! Castle's dangerous."[132]) and acknowledges that she's out of her depth ("Maybe I can't handle this."[133]), but makes it clear she doesn't want his help specifically.

Karen's isn't devaluing herself anymore; she's standing up for herself. Once again, Matt doesn't help his own case ("You need to back off!"[134]), but Karen is not going to take orders. Karen is making the fully informed choice to accept the risk to herself, and Matt has lost the right to contribute to her choices. He's made one too many unilateral decisions for her.

Chapter Fourteen: Bait

Karen ditches her police protection to meet up with Frank in the hotel parking garage ("You said you'd bring a car, not steal mine."[135]). What Matt said is making Karen have second thoughts about the legal repercussions of what she's doing. Frank leaves the decision fully up to her ("So walk away. Go."[136]) -- precisely the opposite of what Matt did ("I'm coming with you."[137]). Karen makes the decision to stick with the plan ("Blacksmith already tried to get me once. I really don't wanna give him a second chance."[138]).

Frank and Karen stop at a diner in a sketchy neighborhood that makes Karen intensely nervous, parking her car prominently out front for anyone to see. Karen and Frank discuss how the Blacksmith could be getting narcotics into Manhattan. Karen noticed that Frank wasn't surprised she owned a gun ("I guess the only thing that surprised me is that you didn't plug me."[139]). Frank describes the thought put into her choice of gun ("Maybe it's not your first rodeo."[140]).

Karen is relieved to openly talk about this, finally. For the first time ever, Karen is talking about her willingness to use a gun to kill someone ("Almost took the shot."[141]). Karen is assessing herself with more clarity than ever before, admitting to herself that she trusts herself to make that decision again, if she must. She is making peace with the fact that she shot someone in self-defense. Karen has learned to trust her own judgment and that killing Wesley was likely the right decision.

Karen is totally clear that she and Frank are different, now. She can differentiate her actions from his and define exactly where she draws the line ("I don't like what you do. And ultimately, I think you probably belong in jail."[142]). Karen doesn't believe Frank should kill, period, unless it's in self-defense or defense of others. Karen is privately holding out hope that when they find the Blacksmith, they can bring him to justice the way Daredevil would, through the court system.

Karen admits a weakness for him because he's honest and never lies to her. Karen can separate her personal affection for him from her disapproval of his murderous actions. Frank immediately sees that this is because Karen is so deeply hurt by the fact that her boyfriend, Murdock, has been lying to her. She is in desperate need of a friend to be honest with her, so she can feel safe to be honest herself.

Karen stutters over excuses for Matt's lies - "he's got issues," "it's complicated," "he's hard to get to know,"[143] etc. Frank can't tolerate the bullshit - Karen needs honesty, and Frank sees that this has been what their relationship has been all about. Frank has set her up to be bait so he can do what he wants to do, but he can give her a final parting gift of something she truly needs: the truth ("You love him."[144]).

Karen evades some more, unable to vault the one last hurdle of her development - admitting she loves Matt. In doing so, she admits that she wants to be loved by him. Karen expresses how much he's hurt her and that she believes, based on her dad's example, that you need to get a person who hurts people out of your life. If she did that, she would be denying herself the true love she dearly needs and deserves.

Frank finds her reasoning preposterous. He believes that when a person emotionally hurts you, it's just evidence that you care enough to let it hurt in the first place. If she didn't care, it wouldn't hurt - and love is everything, so she should hold on to it and never let go. This is Frank's most important message to Karen, and what he wants her to remember him by.

Frank proceeds to tell Karen to get the waitress and any other diner employees to safety, because he's successfully baited some of the Blacksmith's men into attacking the diner by parking Karen's car out front, and now they are here to kill Karen and Frank ("Wait. You wanted them here. You parked me outside like bait."[145]). Karen sees who Frank has chosen to be and is betrayed by the fact that he used her in such a way ("You're such an asshole."[146]).

Frank brutally murders the men in the diner as Karen hides with the waitress. Karen is traumatized, overcome with tears, and shuddering with fear. Frank instructs Karen to call the police, get protective custody, and get away from Frank's war ("Get away from this thing. Get away from me. Just stay away from me."[147]). Frank knows that he the real hurtful, damaging influence in Karen's life, not Murdock, and she is a good person, who doesn't deserve to be used by a bad man like him. When Karen called him an "asshole," he said, "You got that right."[148]

Chapter Fifteen: Snuffed Out

Frank proceeds to find the pier location where the Blacksmith's heroin is, but he's interrupted by Red (Murdock/Daredevil), who's also after the Blacksmith. Frank loses his temper with Red's interference and his frustration with him boils over; he won't mind his own business, he's sick of him, and Frank childishly blames him for his overall emotional state.

Red doesn't want him to start a war for the wrong reasons, but Frank argues a war is what he needs. Frank impresses upon him again that these are the people responsible for taking his children from him. Red implores Frank to help him find the man who gave the order, so Frank can do right by them. Frank is still unwilling to do it without killing them, and Red finally relents, to Frank's surprise. Red says, "I understand. You're right. My way isn't working. So, maybe just this once. Maybe, yeah, your way is what it's gonna take."[149] Frank is flabbergasted; Red doesn't understand what it really means to take a life.

Matt has come around to what Karen expressed to him about Frank’s methods in their relationship-changing argument, echoing her exact word: “Maybe.”[150] This is a reversal of Karen’s journey, where she just came around to Matt’s point of view and echoed his words: “I think you [Frank] probably belong in jail.”[151] They come to see each other’s perspectives on the exact same day, both with Frank.

Frank has come to know Red's most deeply held values over their time together. First, Frank respected him as a vigilante, even though he found the legal system to be inadequate. Then, when they met, Frank learned Red believed in redemption, the chance to try again, that dominion over life and death was not their call, and that even Frank deserved a chance. Red kindly and empathetically listened to Frank when he described his daughter's death, just like Karen. He put his money where his mouth was and offered to become his advocate, attempted to get him psychiatric help, and even said he was a "good man."[152] All Red ever did was try to help Frank. Now, he's offered to sacrifice his most cherished ideals to assist Frank in finding his family's killer.

Frank has seen that he has a good woman, Karen, who loves him ("You have everything."[153]). To Frank, these two people, Matt and Karen, symbolize what's left in the world worth holding on to. Just like Frank sent Karen away so that she would be uncorrupted by his influence, Frank must now turn Red away ("No, Red. That's not how it works. It's just - you cross over to my side of the line - you don't get to come back from that. Not ever."[154]). Frank physically pushes Red off the boat into the water before he blows it to hell.

Karen ends up at the crime scene with Brett, dismayed at what Frank has done ("Frank, why?"[155]). It appears to be a dramatic suicide sacrifice, possibly to take out the Blacksmith and his heroin. Matt has made it to the surface and overhears her pounding heartbeat. Though physically and relationally apart, both mourn Frank together.

Karen stays with Brett and the police until daylight, as they pull out bodies from the wreckage. Karen checks each and every one ("I know what you're thinking. Maybe Castle survived. Maybe he's still out there. He ain't."[156]). Karen is still hoping there's a chance he could've made it out alive. Karen has lost her job, her friends, her boyfriend - and failed to help this man, which could've been a redemptive act for her. If she could've helped him, maybe she could have alleviated some of her guilt.

Karen has come to know Frank, and while he was often terrifying and used her for his own ends, displaying no qualms about psychically and emotionally harming her, he also saved her life, was mostly honest and a decent man who wanted to help reunite her with the man she loves and did the right thing by sending her away from him. This proves that Karen was right, and she still wants to prove that Frank deserves a second chance at redemption, just like she wants to believe she might. If Frank is dead, that chance is "snuffed out forever,"[157] as Matt phrased it - the saddest tragedy Karen can imagine. As Matt told Frank, the people Frank murders deserve the chance to try again, and so does Frank, because “There is goodness in people, even in you.”[158]

Chapter Sixteen: Already Dead

Karen is feeling totally hopeless and alone, back at the Bulletin office. Her defeats are stacking up. On top of it, she has no story, because Reyes, the Blacksmith, and Frank are all dead. Ellison challenges her to ask herself why she still cares.

Karen is passionate: there is more to Frank than his crimes. They don't define him. It matters to her because she, too, grieves for her family and is looking for an answer to the all-consuming loss. She knows Frank never found the answer ("What he did was wrong."[159]), but he at least deserves to have his full story told as a grieving father and husband, because a little human empathy and kindness is the remedy to the pain and violence. Like Karen wants the world to understand that there’s more to her than her mistakes, she wants the world to see Frank. The philosophy she and Matt have passionately espoused should be spread to the world: everyone deserves a second chance.

Karen is now writing a profile on Frank instead of an exposé, and she arranges a meet with his character witness, Col. Schoonover ("You're the only person I can find that has anything kind at all to say about him."[160]). Karen is writing the article to "show people that Mr. Castle wasn't just the Punisher." Karen asks about their bond as Marines and if he liked him as a friend.

As Col. Schoonover shares anecdotes, Karen notices that a soldier in one of the pictures on his wall has a matching hair color and injury to one of the bodies she saw at the dock. She puts it together that Schoonover is the Blacksmith, and that she is in imminent danger. Unfortunately, the Blacksmith notices Karen's revelation, and intends to kill her. He forces her at gunpoint into her car, which is mysteriously playing a song Frank previously teased her about, alerting Karen to the fact that Frank is alive and nearby.

Karen drives into the forest until her car is violently intercepted by a truck driven by Frank, who crashed into it so hard Karen was knocked unconscious. When the force of an impact transfers through the skull and into brain tissue, brain cells are damaged and impaired, resulting in a blackout, and months of recovery after even a mild concussion, and risks potential fatal cerebral hemorrhage, and lasting or permanent memory loss, paralysis, seizures, and behavioral changes.

Frank mercilessly leaves her there, and drags out the injured Blacksmith, his old Colonel, into the forest to interrogate him. Karen wakes alone in her car, crawls out bloodied and limping, and follows the trail of blood to where Frank and Schoonover are in an altercation.

Karen has reached her moment - who is she at her core? Years ago, Karen was in a car crash just like this one, where she killed her brother. This defining moment gouged a lifelong wound into her life and self-concept (“Killing anyone... it will change everything that you... that you feel about yourself.”[161]). Karen has questioned her worth as a person ever since.

She is not a remorseless villain, and she wants Frank to have the chance to prove he isn't, either. This could be his moment, too. It's her last chance. "Frank, stop. You don't have to kill him."[162] Karen urges him to tell the truth for his family -- the angel on Frank's shoulder, while Schoonover is the devil, egging him on. "Listen to me, Frank! You do this, and you are the monster that they say you are."[163]

Karen uses the only persuasion she can think of in her desperate and concussed state: "You do this, and I am done. That's it. You're dead to me."[164] It's the same argument she used to get Matt to step up, which also backfired. It's the worst threat she could think of, to withhold friendship and compassion.

She clearly doesn’t mean it when she says she’s done, because she has a pattern of threatening it, but always lets Matt and Frank back into her life. Karen believes this dire threat will provoke both men into doing the right thing and stepping up for her, but it never works. Karen is also trying to protect herself from caring so much, lying to herself that she’s done, but that’s not who she is. Karen will always care.

Frank makes his choice: "I'm already dead."[165] He kills Schoonover.

Karen weeps alone in the forest, totally abandoned and having lost her battle to save Frank's soul…but she has proven to herself that she's not a monster. Frank embraces his identity as The Punisher. Frank Castle is dead. He returns to his home and spray-paints a memento mori skull on his body armor and blows up his family home.

Chapter Seventeen: Heroes

Karen struggles to put into writing what she experienced, so she gives up and goes home…only to be abducted by a cult of ninjas wielding swords and guns (!).

Karen is forced onto a school bus with twenty other hostages being used to lure Daredevil. Karen no longer believes this is the karmic punishment she's been waiting for - it's just rotten luck. Karen is secure in her identity now. Karen can be a hero even after she hurt people, and she believes she can give herself the second chance to make the right decisions, like the one she gave to Castle that he turned down. Her mission is to do what she can to help rescue the hostages.

Karen persuades fellow hostage Turk Barrett to turn on his ankle monitor so the police will find their location. It works, but a hostage and police officers are killed at the abandoned warehouse the hostages are taken to.

Daredevil crashes through the window and frees the hostages, stopping to cut Karen's zip ties. In her terrified and concussed state, Karen has a surreal moment, believing that she is hallucinating - when she looks at Daredevil's face, she sees Matt's lips. He is the person who she needs most at moments like these, just like after Frank shot at her at the hospital, and when Matt made her feel safe after she was strangled last year (“You made me feel safe.”[166]). Like Daredevil, Matt is still her hero.

Karen helps the hostages out of the warehouse and to safety with the police. Brett pulls Karen aside and she explains that a weird cult has abducted hostages as bait to lure Daredevil. Foggy shows up under the guise of curiosity. Karen thinks it might be "the end of vigilantes in New York,"[167] but Daredevil prevails with the help of Frank Castle. Karen hears his gunfire and suspects it's him, a vast relief - at least he's using his deadly skills for good this time. Maybe there is hope for him. Karen lets go of this relationship feeling secure that she did all she could for him, and this was the best outcome she could have reasonably expected.

Foggy and Karen meet at Josie's for a drink. Karen laments her loneliness and the fact that she found a home here, but it doesn't feel the same anymore. Most of all, Karen misses Matt (“And now, no Matt.”[168]). Foggy grieves the end of Nelson, Murdock and Page, but assures Karen that he's still her friend. They both try to find the upsides about their lives going forward, and close out their long-running tab.

Chapter Eighteen: Her Own Hero

On Christmas Eve, Karen is still suffering writer's block. ("I care, probably too much, about all of it."[169]).

Ellison tells her that her fears about addressing the hostage crisis, Frank, and vigilante justice are garbage - all she must do is write something new, different, and something only she can write: the truth. Ellison calls it "her truth - all of it - everything she's been through"[170] since moving to New York, from her rescue by "the man in the mask" to her second rescue by "Daredevil." (The article is later revealed to be published as "Twice Saved."[171]).

Karen starts writing about the nature of heroism. She posits that everyone has heroic qualities within them because they have all endured, suffered and lost the things they care about most and survived. She thinks some are more heroic than others, but no one is truly alone in their anguish. Vigilantes like Daredevil and the Punisher use different philosophies to stem the tide of crime, cruelty and disregard for human life, but their guardianship isn't the answer, but merely an example. One must choose to be your own hero and adopt your own home as your protected turf. Karen is clear: everyone can choose to be a hero. “You're a hero."[172]

Karen has accepted that she doesn't need to be rescued from herself. She is her own hero, so long as she chooses to be and as she defines it, not anyone else. Karen resolves to make decisions based on that philosophy from now on.

Karen's very next choice tests her: when Matt asks her to give him a chance, does she find it within herself to be open-minded, forgiving, and patient? Does she give him the unearned second chance she so dearly wanted when she moved to New York? Karen refuses to remain a hypocrite. How can she expect Matt to not judge her when she's unwilling to hear him out? Karen resolves to be the best version of herself and to give Matt the chance to tell her the truth and redeem himself. All she's ever wanted was the truth from him, and she can't chicken out now.

Chapter Nineteen: A Second Chance

Matt reveals he's Daredevil. Karen's whole reality is thrown into question. Everything she thought was the absolute truth is another illusion, it's proven she can't trust her own view, and her steadfast belief in Matt is upended. She doesn't know who he is - and by extension, she doesn't know who she is anymore. Every lesson she learned was turned upside down.

Karen takes a walk, drinks and goes to her and Matt's favorite Indian restaurant to think it through and consider what facts she knows, but also what her feelings tell her. She returns to her original choice to give him that second chance to prove himself.

Matt explains and apologizes, saying she has every right to be angry, and acknowledging how he broke her trust. Karen feels humiliated by the epic degree of deception since they met, but she's also deeply grateful that he saved her life (twice). She's personally hurt by the fact that Matt clearly thought she would judge him, even though she did the exact same thing, afraid he would judge her. All Karen can think is that it is unconceivable that she would ever condemn him, especially after she was obviously open-minded enough to champion Frank Castle, of all people. She doesn't pause to think that Matt might feel the same if he got the chance to learn about her.

Karen has accepted that she isn't an irredeemable monster, but she still regards herself as morally inferior to Daredevil/Matt, who she believes is a true hero. Karen has reached another barrier to self-acceptance. She might be a decent person after all, but how can she expect the self-sacrificing, morally righteous and idealistic Catholic lawyer superhero to love her? It's a simple case of believing he's too good for her.

Then, there's the fact that he is still one hundred percent lying - to himself as much as her. He says he is done as Daredevil. She trusts her instincts that he does not want to stop, and perhaps can't. Karen wants to believe him, but she has seen the pattern of choices he's made over the last year or so since they met. He has consistently prioritized Daredevil over his job, his career, his clients, his best friend, his girlfriend, and most especially his own health and well-being. She's seen the bruises, the broken bones, and the sick days. She has also reviewed his role in locking up Wilson Fisk, which wouldn't have been possible without his extralegal activity, so she is aware of the necessity for Daredevil to reach their goals and approves of his actions.

Karen tells Matt, "I want to believe you, but I don't think Daredevil is the problem."[173] Karen means that she is the problem. Karen has finally found the strength to accept herself, but she hasn’t fully figured herself out, like Matt clearly hasn’t, and she can’t maintain this new healthy self-esteem if she is comparing herself unfavorably to her hero. All this time, Karen's problem with him was explained by the fact that he was out being her hero, so now he's a "double hero" in her eyes. The betrayal and humiliation is severe, but deep down, her real issue is herself.

Matt takes it to mean he is the problem (especially after hearing Foggy tell him, "Elektra's not the problem, Matt. You are."[174]). Matt has severe abandonment trauma that Karen doesn't know about, so she doesn't know that her rejection of him is enough to send him spiraling into self-protective mode, and his automatic response is to pull away and shut her out.

Then, there’s the fact that Karen can’t tolerate lying anymore. Karen still (understandably but unfairly) puts the onus on Matt to be honest first, the only way she can feel safe to be honest. It’s even harder for her now, because Matt is on an even higher pedestal than ever before.

Conclusion

Through Karen's journey since meeting Frank Castle, she has come to learn the deeper truth about herself, but her fears and insecurities are profound, and severely challenged by her circumstances. She suffers setbacks in her self-esteem, but Karen has built a firmer foundation thanks to the mental exploration that was facilitated by this unlikely relationship. Karen continues to expand on this self-development in The Defenders and The Punisher Season One (1), continued in Parts Two (2) and Three (3) - coming soon!

[1] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[2] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Three (3) “Rabbit in a Snowstorm”

[3] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[4] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[5] Daredevil Season Two (2) Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[6] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Nine (9) “Speak of the Devil”

[7] Daredevil Season Two (2) Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[8] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[9] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[10] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[11] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[12] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[13] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[14] Daredevil Season Two (2). Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[15] Daredevil Season Two (2). Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[16] Daredevil Season Two (2). Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[17] Daredevil Season Two (2). Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[18] Daredevil Season Two (2). Episode Five (5) “Kinbaku”

[19] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[20] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[21] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[22] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[23] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[24] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[25] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[26] Daredevil Season Three (3), Episode Five (5) “The Perfect Game”

[27] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[28] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[29] Daredevil Season Three (3), Episode Eleven (11) “Reunion”

[30] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[31] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[32] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[33] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[34] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[35] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[36] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[37] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[38] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[39] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[40] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[41] The Punisher Season One (1)

[42] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[43] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[44] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Eleven (11) “The Path of the Righteous”

[45] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[46] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[47] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Five (5) “Kinbaku”

[48] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Eight (8) “Shadows in the Glass”

[49] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Twelve (12) “The Ones We Leave Behind”

[50] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Six (6) “Condemned”

[51] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Six (6) “Condemned”

[52] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Nine (9) “Speak of the Devil”

[53] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Seven (7) “Stick”

[54] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Seven (7) “Stick”

[55] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[56] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[57] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Five (5) “Kinbaku”

[58] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Six (6) “Regrets Only”

[59] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[60] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Ten (10) “Nelson v. Murdock”

[61] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Nine (9) “Speak of the Devil”

[62] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Seven (7) “Stick”

[63] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[64] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[65] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[66] Daredevil Season Three (3), Episode Thirteen (13) “A New Napkin”

[67] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[68] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[69] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[70] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[71] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[72] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Two (2) “Dogs to a Gunfight”

[73] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[74] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[75] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Twelve (12) “The Ones We Leave Behind”

[76] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Twelve (12) “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel”

[77] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[78] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[79] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[80] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Eleven (11) “The Path of the Righteous”

[81] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[82] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[83] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[84] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[85] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[86] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[87] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[88] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[89] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[90] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[91] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[92] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[93] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[94] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[95] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[96] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[97] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[98] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[99] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[100] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[101] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[102] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[103] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Thirteen (13) “Daredevil”

[104] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[105] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Twelve (12) “The Ones We Leave Behind”

[106] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[107] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Four (4) “Penny and Dime”

[108] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[109] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[110] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[111] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[112] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[113] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[114] Daredevil Season One (1), Episode Ten (10) “Nelson v. Murdock”

[115] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[116] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[117] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[118] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[119] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Nine (9) “Seven Minutes in Heaven”

[120] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[121] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[122] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[123] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[124] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[125] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[126] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[127] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[128] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[129] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Ten (10) “The Man in the Box”

[130] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[131] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[132] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[133] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[134] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[135]Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[136] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[137] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[138] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[139] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[140] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[141] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[142] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[143] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[144] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[145] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[146] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[147] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[148] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[149] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[150] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[151] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[152] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eight (8) “Guilty as Sin”

[153] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[154] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[155] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[156] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “.380”

[157] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[158] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Three (3) “New York’s Finest”

[159] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Twelve (12) “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel”

[160] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Twelve (12) “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel”

[161] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Eleven (11) “Reunion”

[162] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Twelve (12) “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel”

[163] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Twelve (12) “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel”

[164] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Twelve (12) “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel”

[165] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Twelve (12) “The Dark at the End of the Tunnel”

[166] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

[167] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Thirteen (13) “A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen”

[168] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Thirteen (13) “A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen”

[169] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Thirteen (13) “A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen”

[170] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Thirteen (13) “A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen”

[171] Daredevil Season Three (3), Episode Seven (7) “Aftermath”

[172] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Thirteen (13) “A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen”

[173] Daredevil Season Three (3), Episode One (1) “Resurrection”

[174] Daredevil Season Two (2), Episode Seven (7) “Semper Fidelis”

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