Marvel Comics Gives Us The Match We've All Been Waiting For: The Punisher vs The Defenders!

Marvel's Netflix shows have been an astonishing success. The five series to date have been remarkably comic-book-accurate, leaving fans thrilled at this darker, more brutal corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Recently though, Marvel Comics has taken a tip from the Netflix shows; they've reassembled the Defenders, in a roster that matches with the Netflix group.

Now it looks as though these heroes are about to take on a whole new threat — one that will leave fans cheering. Yes, it's time for the Defenders to go head-to-head with the #Punisher himself!

The Punisher Versus the Defenders: What Do We Know?

Oddly enough, there's typically no relation between comic sales and a film's release. To date, the only exceptions has been Watchmen, where retailers reported the book selling better after the movie's release, and Guardians of the Galaxy — and Marvel pushed a lot of muscle behind that particular success. That said, TV shows — particularly darker shows — seem to have a different impact. Check out sales of The Walking Dead, for example, where the comic's getting more readers with every season.

So nobody was too surprised when Marvel announced The Defenders, a street-level team comic book that would unite Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Daredevil, and Iron Fist. They put their best writers and artists behind it, too; Brian Bendis, David Marquez and Christian Ponsor. Now, continuing the Netflix-themed approach, we've been given a single cover — one that reveals the Punisher in pitched battle with the Defenders!

We don't even have a synopsis yet, but that image alone has fans practically drooling. Let's face it: on that single cover, you have literally every single star of a Marvel Netflix show to date.

Could This Ever Happen on Netflix?

But let's move on from the comics, and cast our eyes to Netflix. Could we ever see a similar situation? Jon Bernthal's Punisher was introduced in Daredevil Season 2, and is going on to star in his own series - due for release later this year. Meanwhile, our other Netflix heroes are due to unite for the first time on August 18th, but we don't actually know whether or not the series will end with them remaining allies.

Going forward, the next year is a busy one for Marvel Netflix; we already have Jessica Jones Season 2 and Daredevil Season 3 confirmed, and Luke Cage Season 2 has been signed off on as well. So it's unlikely 2018 will see either a Punisher Season 2 or Defenders Season 2. Of course, that doesn't mean it couldn't happen in 2019; it's such an obvious idea that I can't imagine Marvel not being interested in exploring it.

Let's face it, Marvel fans are going to be seriously hyped for this future Defenders arc. With some of Marvel's top creative talent associated with the book, too, it's sure to be a hit. And that comic's success will just make it all the more likely that Jeph Loeb will decide to give it a shot too...