- "People I went after, I stood in front of 'em. I looked them in the eye before I put 'em down. Not you. You're a coward."
- ―Punisher to Lewis Wilson[src]
Front Toward Enemy is the ninth episode of the first season of the television series The Punisher.
Synopsis
Following a deadly explosion, Karen lands in a bomber's crosshairs -- and Frank isn't happy about it. Meanwhile, Curtis makes a grisly discovery.
Plot
Dinah Madani is seemingly crippled by guilt over Sam Stein's death. She talks to her mother about the operation, and she tries to help her daughter deal with her feelings. Frank Castle and Micro watch her through the window from a nearby rooftop in preparation for approaching her. As they watch, the street below is rocked by an explosion.
The new reports of the explosions show a birthday celebration at an ATF office. Thankfully, there are no fatalities, but two other explosions at other law enforcement offices claim lives.
The bomber, Lewis Wilson writes a manifesto and mails it to Karen Page. He believes that Page will support him because of her defense of Castle during his trial. Page shows the manifesto to Mitchell Ellison, who insists on bringing in the FBI. Wilson wants Page to print the manifesto as a call to arms, and threatens the paper and its staff if they do not. Page wants to print the letter and a reply – Ellison agrees to print an editorial if the FBI allows it.
Castle and Micro watch the news where he states he hates cowardly bombers. Castle says they are putting their plan to contact Madani on hold because of the current situation.
Rafael Hernandez visits Madani and questions her about the false plans she submitted for the operation. He tells her that if the operation was in any way connected to her obsession with the murder of Ahmad Zubair, then he cannot help or protect her.
Page prints her reply to Wilson, calling him a coward and terrorist. She is also a guest on a radio talk show, Ricky Langtry Show, alongside Senator Stan Ori. During the talk show, Wilson calls in and threatens her. Castle is listening, and recognizes a phrase that Wilson say "sic semper tyrannis" and remembers that he heard it before at Curtis Hoyle's support group. He gets Micro to track him down for threatening Page – who Castle now considers to be family.
Castle is not the only one to recognise Wilson on the radio. Hoyle tries to find Wilson, going to his home first and then to O'Connor's. There, he finds O'Connor's corpse and Wilson's bomb-making supplies. Wilson discovers him and the two fight; eventually Lewis gets the upper hand and beats Hoyle unconscious with his prosthetic leg.
Micro finds information about Wilson, and Castle tries to find him at his father's home. He calls Page and tells her to stay out of Wilson's way while he deals with him. Billy Russo encourages Madani to return to work and to stop blaming herself for Stein's death. However, he mentions that Stein was killed with a knife, which Madani seems to register.
Micro finds out that Wilson' cell was last at another address, and directs Castle to O'Connor Residence. He also says that Hoyle is at the address as well. Senator Ori, a gun control advocate, hires Russo and Anvil to provide security for him.
Castle arrives at O'Connor's home to find Hoyle tied up and rigged with mines. Castle tries to find a way to disarm the explosives. Wilson, watching from a rooftop, calls him. Madani finally decides to attend Stein's memorial and to tell the truth about the failed operation, no matter the cost to her career.
Castle can't figure out how to disarm the bomb. Hoyle tells Castle to leave him and admits that he is living a lie. Despite looking like he has things together, he is as miserable and scared as the other veterans. Part of him thinks it would have been better to die rather than just lose his leg. Wilson has called the cops so that there will be a witness to the explosion, but Castle wants Wilson to tell him how to disarm the bomb.
Castle tells Wilson the story of how Hoyle lost his leg, and how Castle was to blame for not shooting a suicide bomber in time because she was pregnant. Wilson tells him to cut the white wire then escapes. Castle disarms the bomb then flees before the police arrive. However, he is spotted and chased. Cornered by a squad car, Castle knocks out the two police officers and steals the cruiser.
Prior to attending Stein's memorial, Madani is approached in a bar by Micro. He reveals everything about the Operation Cerberus that she did not know; the drug-smuggling operation, Rawlins' involvement and that Castle was a witness.
News breaks that the Punisher is still alive – the cop car that he stole captured a clear image of him via its dash camera.
Cast
Main Cast:
- Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle/Punisher
- Ebon Moss-Bachrach as David Lieberman/Micro
- Ben Barnes as Billy Russo
- Amber Rose Revah as Dinah Madani
- Daniel Webber as Lewis Wilson
- Jason R. Moore as Curtis Hoyle
- Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page
Guest Stars:
- Shohreh Aghdashloo as Farah Madani
- Tony Plana as Director Rafael Hernandez
- Geoffrey Cantor as Mitchell Ellison
- Rick Holmes as Senator Stan Ori
- Dov Davidoff as Ricky Langtry
- Jordan Mahome as Isaac Lange
- Marlene Ginader as Producer
- Kathleen Mary Carthy as Barmaid
- Leajato Amara Robinson as FBI Agent
- Vishaal Reddy as Aide
- Pat Kiernan as Himself
- Roma Torre as Herself
- Valisa Tate as Birthday Girl (uncredited)
- Unknown Actor as Simon (uncredited)
Appearances
Locations
- New York City, New York
- Madani Residence
- New York Bulletin Building
- O'Connor Residence
- Wilson Residence
- Micro's Hideout
- WNEX Station
- Royal Hospitality
- ATF Field Office (footage)
- 10th Precinct Police Station (mentioned)
- Columbia University (mentioned)
- Fordham University (mentioned)
- Kandahar, Afghanistan (mentioned)
- Washington, D.C. (mentioned)
- Quantico, Virginia (mentioned)
- Baghdad, Iraq (mentioned)
Events
- Bombings of New York City
- Kidnapping of Curtis Hoyle
- Ambush at the Abandoned Warehouse (mentioned)
- Attack on David Lieberman (mentioned)
- Duel of Harlem (newspaper)
- Battle of New York (newspaper)
- Operation Cerberus (mentioned)
- Assassination of Ahmad Zubair (mentioned)
- Frank Castle's War (mentioned)
- Assassination of O'Connor (mentioned)
- September 11 attacks (indirectly mentioned)
Items
Vehicles
Creatures
- Leviathans (newspaper)
Organizations
- United States Department of Homeland Security
- New York Bulletin
- New York City Police Department
- Anvil
- FBI
- FBI National Academy (mentioned)
- WNEX New York
- WHiH World News
- NY1
- ATF (footage)
- United States Army (mentioned)
- 1st Infantry Division (mentioned)
- United States Marine Corps (mentioned)
- CIA (mentioned)
- New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (mentioned)
Mentioned
- Sam Stein
- Sam Stein's Mother
- Hulk (newspaper)
- Abomination (newspaper)
- Ahmad Zubair
- Sarah Lieberman
- O'Connor (corpse)
- Clay Wilson
- Maria Castle
- Lisa Castle
- William Rawlins
- Patrick Henry
- United States Constitution
Music
| Song title | Artist | Location(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Happy Birthday to You |
| |
| Escape the Base | Tyler Bates |
|
Trivia
- The episode title is referring to a M18 Claymore mine with words "Front Towards Enemy" stamped on the front of every Claymore mine.
References
External Links
| Season One | 3 AM • Two Dead Men • Kandahar • Resupply • Gunner • The Judas Goat • Crosshairs • Cold Steel • Front Toward Enemy • Virtue of the Vicious • Danger Close • Home • Memento Mori |
| Season Two | Roadhouse Blues • Fight or Flight • Trouble the Water • Scar Tissue • One-Eyed Jacks • Nakazat • One Bad Day • My Brother's Keeper • Flustercluck • The Dark Hearts of Men • The Abyss • Collision Course • The Whirlwind |