https://youtube.com/shorts/8qkfn6oMgCQ?feature=share
The problem with this is it's more an example of plot armor than badassery 😅 Prior to this moment, it was never established that the Penance Stare wouldn't work if you had no regrets. It's simply an attack that turns all the pain you've caused over your lifetime back on you. What would regretting it have to do with that? Nothing; that is, until a couple of writers came along and wanted to slap that in to get Punisher fans hyped up. Another instance of writing like this, also with the Punisher, is that time The Punisher "scared" The Joker by threatening to blow his brains out. Another feat that really makes no sense in the long run. Are we really expected to believe that in his entire career of being a homicidal maniac, The Joker never had a gun held to his head by someone who was willing to actually pull the trigger? Joker has been shown to have absolutely no fear of death. As established in The Killing Joke, he already mentally died the moment he crawled out of that puddle of chemicals. Everything he lives for as the Joker are, ironically, things he doesn't need to be alive achieve. But of course, all of that crumbles because Punisher threatens to blow his head off, because... I dunno, his skull shirt is spoopy?
I don't mind cool character moments, including an awesome crossover moment where a character like The Punisher gets the better of The Joker, but the writers also need to know how to... Write. Like, I can see The Joker being *mad.* All his plans for Batman would be ruined because this military meathead is gonna blow his brains out. That would be amazing to see. Punisher just smirking as Joker is throwing a temper tantrum. But no, they make him *scared* because that makes Punisher look cooler, and gives the fanboys something to rub their PP tips to. Coming back around from that egregious digression, it would be much cooler if, in that moment with Ghost Rider, Franky was simply able to recover from the Penance Stare and keep fighting because, despite the pain and wounds inflicted by the Penance Stare, his conviction to carry out his justice is just *that* strong. A way to make the character look cool while also not spitting on one of the most underratedly powerful abilities in Marvel comics. But no, instead they just make him immune to the Penance Stare, again, so that the fanboys can get their rocks off.
We need to stop this dog shit writing. Stuff like this is why manga is murdering comics. Writer's willingness to just toss logic and established lore out the window in the name of promoting a characters popularity is exactly what's degrading the comic medium so much. We need more stories written for the characters, and not the ridiculous hype surrounding them. This kind of writing is why we have people who actually believe that Batman could beat Superman in a 1 on 1 fight.