While the Netflix Defenders-verse is dead, that doesn’t stop us fans from speculating about things that could have happened within this world. The Punisher season two brought in an amnesiac Billy Russo, who had completely forgotten everything he had did in season one of the show. This included his colluding with Agent Orange and that he had known of the attack on Frank Castle’s family and decided not to forewarn Castle, despite claiming that he was his best friend.
Billy Russo was cool, calm, and collected in season one, pretty much the opposite of season two’s version of the character. With the series really wanted to drive home that he was “Jigsaw” in the sense that his mind was in pieces, Russo not only couldn’t remember what he had done, but would have spells of mental anguish and horrific dreams at night.
When Billy was first confronted by Frank, the two engaged in an all-out fire-fight. Afterward, Billy went to Krista Dumont, heartbroken that his best friend would even do that to him. Without fully understanding the reasons behind Frank’s motives, Billy simply thinks that something is wrong with Castle and that he is the victim in this situation. Even when Billy finds out some part of the reason why his former friend is after him, he believes that he is still the victim, as Frank should have simply killed him.
Which, Billy got his wish when he reached out to Curtis for help and Frank showed up instead. Billy wasn’t able to fully speak to Frank, before the Punisher pumped two rounds in hi – thus ending the cycle. While it seems like there wouldn’t have been any other outcome between these two, some did feel a little unfulfilled by the abruptness of Billy’s death. Although, I have argued that Frank needed to perform that quickly, as Billy was his best friend and if he had stayed to talk, he may not have gone through with it.
Which, leads me into the whole point of this opinion piece – could Frank and Billy have made up at some point? The obvious answer is no. How could Frank ever forgive Billy? Despite Billy having been his “brother” and best friend, Billy still had a hand in his family’s death. Billy didn’t pull the trigger, but he knew about the massacre beforehand and chose not to say anything. That was already unforgivable, but Billy had almost given Frank to Agent Orange wrapped up in a bow and tried to kill him on the stairwell in episode ten of the first season.
But, it’s been suggested slightly online and I agree that it would have been something to see Frank and Billy forced to work together. If they had reworked the plot a little to season two, you could have had Billy and Frank needing to begrudgingly work together to take down John Pilgrim. Or if there had been a season three, work in a way for the two to work together against a really big bad. Both are trained Marines and former best friends, but neither are the same person they once were. It would have been interesting to see the two fight together and now that Billy is dead and The Punisher is canceled, we can only imagine what would have happened.
What do you guys think? Let me know.
A girl with too many fandoms to count.
