Editor’s Note: Spoilers ahead for Daredevil: Born Again, Season 1, Episode 3While it may technically be an MCU superhero show, the latest episode of Daredevil: Born Again, “The Hollow of His Hand”, showed why fans loved the Netflix original. Versatility. Some of the best scenes in the show are action sequences, such as the show’s recurring hallway fights, yet there are just as many scenes where the quality comes from great writing as two characters connect or conflict on an ideological level. This episode was full of those scenes, with the trial of Hector (Kamar de los Reyes) providing numerous character beats where we explore Matt’s (Charlie Cox) inner conflict; so many that it is hard to pick one moment that made us most emotional.

However, there can be no doubt that the most shocking moment of the episode was Hector’s execution. Although his days were numbered after the police showed how desperate they were to protect their colleagues’ posthumous reputation, his final desire to go back to being White Tiger showed how principled the man was. When he is shot, it is horrific, but the real gut punch comes when we see that the mystery killer is wearing the Punisher logo. What makes this stinger so effective is that, no matter how hard I try, I cannot accept that that is Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal). This brutality may be his style, and he isn’t a good person, but there are too many reasons that make me doubt this is him.

Hector’s Murderer Could Be a Police-Officer-Copycat-Killer in ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

It may be a shocking way to introduce the awe-inspiring Punisher, but we cannot ignore that there are far more characters we have met who have the means and motive to kill Hector. Throughout Daredevil: Born Again, we have seen multiple cops with the same insignia tattooed on them, with one cop who whispered about killing Nicky Torres (Nick Jordan) displaying it proudly on his neck. A police officer being the murderer would fit with the nature of the killing more than Frank Castle would.

Firstly, Frank is not an ally to police officers as these cult followers seem to think he is. He has no respect for the rule of law or its servants at all and is, therefore, unlikely to kill someone because they are accused of killing a police officer. Furthermore, he is more likely to believe Hector’s innocence if Matt was his lawyer. Frank trusted him in the Netflix original, with trailers seemingly confirming that he knows Matt is Daredevil after calling him “red” while Matt is in civilian attire.

Lastly, while Frank is brutal in his violence, a point-blank shot in the head feels rather different to the sniper style we have seen from him during his assassinations before. If we instead think of this as a police officer getting revenge by killing Hector, an execution-style murder makes more sense. These are people who see themselves as justly taking the law into their own hands and want to be in as much control as possible.

Wilson Fisk’s Implied Involvement in Hector’s Death Makes Frank’s Involvement Less Likely in ‘Daredevil: Born Again’

Perhaps the biggest red flag to this being done by Frank is Fisk’s (Vincent D’Onofrio) speech to BB Urich (Genneya Walton) at the end of the episode. The ominous tone of the scene seems to heavily imply that Fisk was involved in this murder, as he speaks about the need to rectify the court’s “wrong” verdict. While we’ve seen Punisher work with Fisk before in Daredevil Season 2, this was because of mutual necessity, as Fisk wanted a rival killed and Punisher wanted to get closer to knowing who killed his family. Without this, why would Frank work for or with this man? Plus, with Fisk’s current political battle with the police commissioner and knowing there are police officers who love him, the use of Punisher-worshipping cops works for Fisk on two fronts. He can vilify vigilantes and sow discord in the police department.

Punisher’s Appearances in the ‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Trailer Hint He May Be on the Run

Another clue that makes Frank’s involvement difficult for me to believe is the shot of Frank in the show’s trailer, which appears to be when he and Matt meet this season. He is depicted in a wild man state as he swings a hatchet at Matt, almost not recognizing him until Matt tells him to put it down. This paranoia could mean that everyone is searching for him for a crime he did not commit, and he cannot trust anyone who he thought he could. Certainly, the disheveled appearance of Frank in the trailer feels in high contrast to the calm killer who coldly murdered Hector and walked off without a break in stride. Perhaps, in failing to save one falsely accused man in Hector, Matt’s true mission of this season will be to save Frank and, in turn, all vigilantes from Fisk’s persecution.

I understand that some of this is mental gymnastics and intently reading between the lines, and some may think I’m looking too deep into this. Perhaps they’d argue that Frank is not a good person, and therefore, we cannot predict what he will do and how he will do it. Maybe he is disheveled because he is running from a crime he did commit. However, and maybe this is because he is a character I love so much because of his ability to never break, but I just can’t believe this is the Frank Castle we have gotten to know over numerous seasons of television. The nature of the murder, its execution, the people involved, and how we will see Frank later in the series all point to this not being him. If that makes me crazy, then maybe I am, but while Frank may be a bad person, he does have lines he doesn’t cross. One of those was to not kill the innocent, and that is what Hector was, and surely Frank wouldn’t believe crooked cops over Matt Murdock?

New episodes of Daredevil: Born Again are released weekly on Disney+.