The Punisher is an anti-hero because he never set out to be a hero, does things no hero would do, yet often does heroic acts in the process of stopping bad guys. He makes clear mistakes in the process, though, sometimes killing people who didn't deserve their fate.
The Punisher (real name Frank Castle, Sr.) is a violent vigilante from Marvel comics and varies from being a dark anti-hero to being an outright protagonist villain depending on the writer and/or story.
He served as the central antagonist-turned-one of the two tritagonists (alongside Stick) of Marvel's Daredevil's second season, the titular anti-heroic protagonist of the spin-off series Marvel's The Punisher and will return in some capacity in the upcoming Disney+ show Daredevil: Born Again.
Frank CastlePunisher. Frank Castle was an honest ex-Marine with a family he loved. But when that family was murdered, he became a vigilante with a uniquely brutal brand of justice.
Marvel's Punisher is finally becoming a villain, and it's about time. The antihero often toes the line between good and evil, especially when it comes to his most memorable trait: unlike virtually every other Marvel superhero, the Punisher kills his enemies.
While Punisher would never go out of his way to kill Spider-Man, he still has no respect for him. This was most evident in Punisher's Marvel Knights run. He scolded Spider-Man for being an inexperienced teenaged vigilante whose misplaced idealism stopped him from exacting justice properly (read: killing criminals).
Frank Castle has post-traumatic stress disorder, and he's not alone. The Punisher deals directly with the topic of PTSD as a mental illness, specifically through the lens of American veterans, among which Castle can count himself.
Given the uniform and the shield, Frank quickly took on the role with great pride. Castle became a member of the Avengers after he proved himself against multiple enemies like the Red Skull and the cosmic being Thanos.
Daredevil finds that in addition to hunting the drug dealer, he now has to protect every criminal involved in the case from getting killed by The Punisher. They fight several times, and Punisher is only able to stop Daredevil by shooting him with tranquilizers.
The Punisher seemingly has one purpose in life: he kills bad guys, knowing that most of the time the system doesn't work. After Frank Castle's wife and children died at the hands of mobsters, he set out to make sure villains died before they could hurt anyone else.
Kingpin - A ruthless crime lord and the archenemy of Daredevil, indeed uncontested as Daredevil's greatest enemy. The Kingpin also serves as an enemy for the Punisher and Spider-Man.
Daredevil is More Powerful Than the Punisher
Matt, though, sees Frank as an abomination and knows from the events of Shadowland that the Beast is the devil. Frank puts up a brutal fight, using guns, blades and his martial arts. But Matt's drive and resolve are too much for him, especially with magic backing him up.
Billy Russo deciding to call himself "Jigsaw". Billy Russo, better known as Jigsaw, is a vicious criminal mastermind from the Marvel universe. He mainly appears as the archenemy to the violent vigilante Frank Castle, and is the main antagonist of the Punisher franchise.
DESPISE HIM: Punisher
Frank Castle genuinely despises Spider-Man and you can be guaranteed the feeling is more than mutual. Spider-Man always looks for the best in everyone around him but he wrote the Punisher off years ago. Castle also has little use for Spider-Man.
The strongest, and arguably the most cruel, of all the Spider-Man villains that MCU Peter Parker has faced. With the combination of advanced military tech and super soldier serum, the malice that Green Goblin puts forward is unparalleled with any other villain.
The Punisher is an anti-hero because he never set out to be a hero, does things no hero would do, yet often does heroic acts in the process of stopping bad guys. He makes clear mistakes in the process, though, sometimes killing people who didn't deserve their fate.
Daredevil and Punisher have a deep connection. That's not to say they're friends. Even if Frank Castle were capable of maintaining healthy relationships, he doesn't much care for Matt Murdock's non-lethal approach to vigilantism. That's really the crux of this particular Marvel rivalry.
Daredevil and the Punisher have a long and bitter rivalry in Marvel Comics. One wouldn't exactly call it friendly at first glance. However, Matt has never put the Punisher away for good, and Frank has never killed Daredevil.
So, by episode 4, we know that Frank knows that DD is blind and relies on hearing. It's probably why he never questioned how DD could prevent Frank from killing more Irish despite not seeing his attempts.
The Punisher and Deadpool have fought a few times and also worked together. The comics that the Punisher and Deadpool appear together in are: Deadpool: Suicide Kings #1-5. Hulk #15-18.
Iron Man: Rise of Technovore (Video 2013) - Norman Reedus as Frank Castle, The Punisher - IMDb.
In the Marvel Universe, Frank Castle (aka the Punisher) has always been a fan of Captain America. No matter how many times he feuded with the Avengers, he always stood down against the Sentinel of Liberty due to a healthy respect for the first man to wear the iconic mantle, Steve Rogers.
The skull is a reminder of the time the comics character spent in Vietnam: there, he used the emblem to taunt the soldiers who captured him.