When It Comes Down To It, It’s Only Fair (if Not Painfully Canonical) For Karen To Be There—helping

When the Smoke Clears

Frank thought pushing Karen away was the only way to keep her safe. Then the Snap happened, and he learned just how wrong he was.

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“You gotta walk away.  Right now. That’s what has to happen, you hear me?”

Frank’s voice is unwavering, but his eyes are pleading as he stares at Karen.  She’s standing at the foot of his bed like a sentry, her arms folded defensively across her chest.  She’s wearing one hell of a poker face, but the look in her eye is obvious.  He’s hurting her, and he hates himself for it. 

“You don’t get to do this,” she exclaims.  “You don’t get just… decide who gives a shit!  That’s not on you, Frank.”

“Not on me?”  He looks to the side, a huff of dry laughter rising from his throat.  “No, it is on me.”  Throwing off the scratchy hospital blankets, he swings his legs over the edge of the bed with more effort than he cares to think about.  

“Because I know you, Karen.  You’re strong, and you’re brave, but you’re so goddamn stubborn; you’ll do whatever it takes when it comes to me.”  He pauses, dark eyes boring into her. “Tell me I’m wrong.” 

But she just turns her head away, scoffing. 

“Yeah.” Frank hums. “That’s what I thought.”

He pushes himself to stand. More effort.  The cuts on his face and the bruises on his body weigh him down, but not as much as the knowledge of how he got them.  He’d been one-upped by Russo, played like a jackass; beaten.  Beaten so badly that Karen dropped everything– the good, stable life she’d been building for herself– to sit by his side and wait for him to wake up.  

“You put yourself before others,” he says.  “And I can’t let you do that.  Not for me.”

Blue eyes, alarming in their brightness, shoot toward him.  Karen motions toward the door, where Midani and Amy are probably waiting somewhere outside, hearing every word.  “So it's okay for them to risk everything, but not me?”  

It isn’t, but that’s beside the point.  This is different. Everything is, with her.

“What do you think’s gonna happen?” He growls.  

He takes slow steps in Karen’s direction. It’s like wading through water, trying to get to her, being drawn in and pushed back by the same current.  Part of him thinks it’d be easier to just lay down, let the current sweep him in, but he knows that life isn’t meant for him, not while breath still fills Billy Russo’s lungs. 

Frank allows his expression to harden.  He has to puff out his chest, show his teeth; be the monster everyone thinks he is.  

Everyone except Karen. 

When she looks at him, he sees something else behind her eyes.  He’s now sure what it is— or maybe he is and is too much of a coward to admit it— but he knows it's dangerous. Every time he sees it, sees her , his heart rattles a little harder against his ribcage; whispers things he knows he can’t have. That feeling has no place here. He needs to change her mind; make her see him like the rest of the world.  Maybe then she’ll walk away… so he doesn’t have to.

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Still kinda crazy how kastle is this completely unplanned ship that was brought to life by the chemistry of Jon and Deb, and became so popular to where it's now in a love triangle with the comicbook canon ship. That's insane. And how? Before dd:ba, it was **mostly** subtext and tension; loaded looks, heavy silences, things not said and pure unadulterated yearning... And it's crazier when you remember that despite the emotional depth, Karen and Frank actually share a few scenes together compared to the other ships. But with those few scenes, they created a very compelling dynamic and forged a bond so layered and deep, so complex and emotionally intense that you forget they haven't really had much time together. We actually get to see their connection build on raw honesty, recognition, respect, darkness, and their willingness to just sacrifice for each other and it's undeniable. And the show runners saw all that and were smart enough to get with the program and recognize it in canon, endgame or not.

Honestly, major props to Jon and Deborah cos not many actors can do so much with only subtext and so little screen time together. With a few scenes and acting restrictions (they couldn't even kiss, their kiss scene was cut), they delivered on "show, don't tell". That's some A+ talent. They really did that. I'm awed.

The Accountant (2016) // The Accountant 2 (2025)

"Didn't know they were dating" is slowly but surely becoming one of my favorite tropes. What do you mean, these two characters who are soulmates haven't actually been in a long-term relationship like everyone thought? What do you mean they didn't know? Everyone knows!

The funny thing is Karen stops Matt from attacking the bad guys, telling him to think it through because he was hurt and numbers and losing, blah blah blah. But she didn't know Frank was beaten up and kept there, and honestly I think logic would have flown out the window the moment she realized and It would have been Matt stopping HER.

People that can hurt you, the ones that can really hurt you, are the ones that are close enough to do it. People that get inside you and... and... and tear you apart, and make you feel like you're never gonna recover.

I thought that I was flyin' But I was crawlin' on my knees

—Blind Spot, Bruce Springsteen

Daredevil Born Again

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@imnez-daydreams @pepper2605 @bullseyelover @midnightslark @htchnr

Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page ↳ Daredevil, S3E5 "The Perfect Game"