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The Punisher (2004) (Collected Editions) #0-5
Punisher Max by Garth Ennis Omnibus Vol. 1 (The Punisher
Collects Born (2003) #1-4, Punisher (2004) #1-30.
Hard-hitting Punisher tales by one of Frank Castle's signature writers! But do the Punisher's origins trace back even farther than the fateful day in the park when he lost his family? In Vietnam, with his platoon under attack, Captain Castle must make a grim choice. And in the modern day, Punisher's old partner, Microchip, resurfaces with a startling offer! Nick Fury has a proposition, too - a dangerous mission involving a Siberian nuclear missile silo and a lethal retrovirus. But Castle's actions set off a chain reaction that will bring him into conflict with a ruthless Russian general - and take the world to the brink of war. Mobster Nicky Cavella returns to plague the Punisher, and a wave of violence rocks New York to its core!
Hard-hitting Punisher tales by one of Frank Castle's signature writers! But do the Punisher's origins trace back even farther than the fateful day in the park when he lost his family? In Vietnam, with his platoon under attack, Captain Castle must make a grim choice. And in the modern day, Punisher's old partner, Microchip, resurfaces with a startling offer! Nick Fury has a proposition, too - a dangerous mission involving a Siberian nuclear missile silo and a lethal retrovirus. But Castle's actions set off a chain reaction that will bring him into conflict with a ruthless Russian general - and take the world to the brink of war. Mobster Nicky Cavella returns to plague the Punisher, and a wave of violence rocks New York to its core!
828 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 2006
36 people are currently reading
354 people want to read
About the author
Garth Ennis
2,627 books3,175 followersEnnis began his comic-writing career in 1989 with the series Troubled Souls. Appearing in the short-lived but critically-acclaimed British anthology Crisis and illustrated by McCrea, it told the story of a young, apolitical Protestant man caught up by fate in the violence of the Irish 'Troubles'. It spawned a sequel, For a Few Troubles More, a broad Belfast-based comedy featuring two supporting characters from Troubled Souls, Dougie and Ivor, who would later get their own American comics series, Dicks, from Caliber in 1997, and several follow-ups from Avatar.
Another series for Crisis was True Faith, a religious satire inspired by his schooldays, this time drawn by Warren Pleece. Ennis shortly after began to write for Crisis' parent publication, 2000 AD. He quickly graduated on to the title's flagship character, Judge Dredd, taking over from original creator John Wagner for a period of several years.
Ennis' first work on an American comic came in 1991 when he took over DC Comics's horror title Hellblazer, which he wrote until 1994, and for which he currently holds the title for most issues written. Steve Dillon became the regular artist during the second half of Ennis's run.
Ennis' landmark work to date is the 66-issue epic Preacher, which he co-created with artist Steve Dillon. Running from 1995 to 2000, it was a tale of a preacher with supernatural powers, searching (literally) for God who has abandoned his creation.
While Preacher was running, Ennis began a series set in the DC universe called Hitman. Despite being lower profile than Preacher, Hitman ran for 60 issues (plus specials) from 1996 to 2001, veering wildly from violent action to humour to an examination of male friendship under fire.
Other comic projects Ennis wrote during this time period include Goddess, Bloody Mary, Unknown Soldier, and Pride & Joy, all for DC/Vertigo, as well as origin stories for The Darkness for Image Comics and Shadowman for Valiant Comics.
After the end of Hitman, Ennis was lured to Marvel Comics with the promise from Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada that he could write The Punisher as long as he cared to. Instead of largely comical tone of these issues, he decided to make a much more serious series, re-launched under Marvel's MAX imprint.
In 2001 he briefly returned to UK comics to write the epic Helter Skelter for Judge Dredd.
Other comics Ennis has written include War Story (with various artists) for DC; The Pro for Image Comics; The Authority for Wildstorm; Just a Pilgrim for Black Bull Press, and 303, Chronicles of Wormwood (a six issue mini-series about the Antichrist), and a western comic book, Streets of Glory for Avatar Press.
In 2008 Ennis ended his five-year run on Punisher MAX to debut a new Marvel title, War Is Hell: The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle.
In June 2008, at Wizard World, Philadelphia, Ennis announced several new projects, including a metaseries of war comics called Battlefields from Dynamite made up of mini-series including Night Witches, Dear Billy and Tankies, another Chronicles of Wormwood mini-series and Crossed both at Avatar, a six-issue miniseries about Butcher (from The Boys) and a Punisher project reuniting him with artist Steve Dillon (subsequently specified to be a weekly mini-series entitled Punisher: War Zone, to be released concurrently with the film of the same name).
Taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garth_Ennis
Another series for Crisis was True Faith, a religious satire inspired by his schooldays, this time drawn by Warren Pleece. Ennis shortly after began to write for Crisis' parent publication, 2000 AD. He quickly graduated on to the title's flagship character, Judge Dredd, taking over from original creator John Wagner for a period of several years.
Ennis' first work on an American comic came in 1991 when he took over DC Comics's horror title Hellblazer, which he wrote until 1994, and for which he currently holds the title for most issues written. Steve Dillon became the regular artist during the second half of Ennis's run.
Ennis' landmark work to date is the 66-issue epic Preacher, which he co-created with artist Steve Dillon. Running from 1995 to 2000, it was a tale of a preacher with supernatural powers, searching (literally) for God who has abandoned his creation.
While Preacher was running, Ennis began a series set in the DC universe called Hitman. Despite being lower profile than Preacher, Hitman ran for 60 issues (plus specials) from 1996 to 2001, veering wildly from violent action to humour to an examination of male friendship under fire.
Other comic projects Ennis wrote during this time period include Goddess, Bloody Mary, Unknown Soldier, and Pride & Joy, all for DC/Vertigo, as well as origin stories for The Darkness for Image Comics and Shadowman for Valiant Comics.
After the end of Hitman, Ennis was lured to Marvel Comics with the promise from Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada that he could write The Punisher as long as he cared to. Instead of largely comical tone of these issues, he decided to make a much more serious series, re-launched under Marvel's MAX imprint.
In 2001 he briefly returned to UK comics to write the epic Helter Skelter for Judge Dredd.
Other comics Ennis has written include War Story (with various artists) for DC; The Pro for Image Comics; The Authority for Wildstorm; Just a Pilgrim for Black Bull Press, and 303, Chronicles of Wormwood (a six issue mini-series about the Antichrist), and a western comic book, Streets of Glory for Avatar Press.
In 2008 Ennis ended his five-year run on Punisher MAX to debut a new Marvel title, War Is Hell: The First Flight of the Phantom Eagle.
In June 2008, at Wizard World, Philadelphia, Ennis announced several new projects, including a metaseries of war comics called Battlefields from Dynamite made up of mini-series including Night Witches, Dear Billy and Tankies, another Chronicles of Wormwood mini-series and Crossed both at Avatar, a six-issue miniseries about Butcher (from The Boys) and a Punisher project reuniting him with artist Steve Dillon (subsequently specified to be a weekly mini-series entitled Punisher: War Zone, to be released concurrently with the film of the same name).
Taken from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garth_Ennis
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
August 14, 2019
Collecting the first six story arcs from Garth Ennis's famous Punisher series for Marvel's MAX line, this is a must-read for any fans of Frank Castle or anyone interested in the character. These stories are dark and brutal, holding nothing back, and illustrative of Castle and the world he inhabits. This includes classic Punisher stories like The Slavers, Born, and Mother Russia.
I previously reviewed all of the books included here in more detail in the series' first two deluxe editions:
The Punisher: The Complete MAX Collection, Vol. 1
★★★★
The Punisher: The Complete MAX Collection, Vol. 2
★★★★★
The individual story arcs featured here are:
I previously reviewed all of the books included here in more detail in the series' first two deluxe editions:
The Punisher: The Complete MAX Collection, Vol. 1
★★★★
The Punisher: The Complete MAX Collection, Vol. 2
★★★★★
The individual story arcs featured here are:
October 28, 2024
(Zero spoiler review)
Holy cancel culture, Batman! Given the state of Marvel... the comics industry... pop culture... the western world, I cannot believe that Marvel ever deigned to publish this, much less reprint it recently (even though I've had my copy for years. Don't get me wrong, I'm very glad there used to be room for mature / provocative storytelling in comics at one time, giving us this most 'Ennissiest' of Garth Ennis runs. OK, that's probably his Crossed stuff, but you get what I'm saying. It's just so far removed from Marvel's furious distancing from their most 'problematic' of characters (when they're not outright destroying him this is).
Ennis, as usual, turns in a properly solid showing on the writing side, with the art, ably handled by a number of different artists (which Derrick Robertson arguably being the highlight).
As with most Ennis stories, he has a penchant for taking things a little too far into the absurd at times, but even then its still fairly entertaining. There are a couple of less than stellar stories which ultimately rob this of a full five stars. That and I would have loved to see a few shorter arcs, rather than the five - six issue stories we got here, but these are fairly minor quibbles against what is a really, really good collection of stories. 4/5
OmniBen.
Holy cancel culture, Batman! Given the state of Marvel... the comics industry... pop culture... the western world, I cannot believe that Marvel ever deigned to publish this, much less reprint it recently (even though I've had my copy for years. Don't get me wrong, I'm very glad there used to be room for mature / provocative storytelling in comics at one time, giving us this most 'Ennissiest' of Garth Ennis runs. OK, that's probably his Crossed stuff, but you get what I'm saying. It's just so far removed from Marvel's furious distancing from their most 'problematic' of characters (when they're not outright destroying him this is).
Ennis, as usual, turns in a properly solid showing on the writing side, with the art, ably handled by a number of different artists (which Derrick Robertson arguably being the highlight).
As with most Ennis stories, he has a penchant for taking things a little too far into the absurd at times, but even then its still fairly entertaining. There are a couple of less than stellar stories which ultimately rob this of a full five stars. That and I would have loved to see a few shorter arcs, rather than the five - six issue stories we got here, but these are fairly minor quibbles against what is a really, really good collection of stories. 4/5
OmniBen.
February 10, 2018
A middle aged, white, American, hetero male sees corruption, and knows that the only way to solve it is with violence, and to do it alone. Fuck the system. Those bureaucrats and politically correct whiners don't know anything about the reality of how to deal with this scum. Let The Lone Hero deal with it like A Man.
Yah.
There is obviously a lot that can be said about how gross this cliche of a story has become. And there is a lot to be said about how tired and cliche this gross story has become. I'm glad that in 2018, machismo is finally falling out of popularity.
But that doesn't mean I am necessarily ready to give up on the genre altogether. And I think it is a genre. There is a story there, and a way to tell it using the tropes of the genre to say something fresh. For example, I would be into a story like the one I described above, but with one element changed. Have The Hero be gay, or a woman, or fighting against, instead of for, the United States (practically or figuratively). Or have them fail, miserably, and in failing reveal that it just doesn't work (as I write this, I am reminded of certain incidents in The Last Jedi).
Besides the tired cliches, this massive collection also has the writer Garth Ennis for and against it. I believe Ennis, like Miller, even at his best, is best in small doses. As a consequence, Each story taken alone in this collection was better than the whole. There is a dark, gross bitterness to Ennis that gets under my skin when I have too much of him. Though this book didn't delve as far into potty humour as Preacher, it flirted with the line. I also think that the book was partially saved from the most perverse of Ennis tendencies by not also being combined with Steve Dillon. Those two together make a combo that often has me putting a book down for a few days because I feel ill. This one merely had me cringe and close my eyes to let the mild nausea pass. Win!
Taken in one big gulp, some troubling similarities between these stories rise to the surface. Our White Hetero Male Protagonist is almost always fighting, and killing, immigrants. Too many times they are told to go back to their own country. Racist epithets are aplenty. That doesn't alone make the book racist, of course. But it doesn't go out of its way to show negative consequences to that kind of racism. Female characters are few, and very shallow when they appear. One in particular, a cardboard cutout of a horny woman who was motivated to sleep with Frank Castle, was very difficult to read. But when each story is taken alone, these patterns are less obvious. And, with the final story, The Slavers, the book makes a surprising turnaround and seems to address almost every single issue I just mentioned, and do it well. It actually becomes nearly like one of the stories I suggested that could be told in this genre and be effective by its subversion. So my feelings on this are mixed.
The book is at its best when it shows the limits of its title character. When he fails, or his successes are shown to be hollow, the book works.
I wouldn't recommend reading this collection. I think Born is worth reading as a simple and effective war story. Mother Russia is a good character study, and the high point of the collection. After that, Slavers is worth reading to see something a little more emotionally complex. I would skip the rest, even Volume One, whose sexist female cop character just stuck in my gut and turned sour as I processed the book in the days after finishing it.
The following are my thoughts on each story included in this collection. As you'll see, the I am more positive about the individual parts than I am about the whole:
Born:
The first story in this collection is one of Frank Castle in Vietnam, before his family is killed. It shows him learning to kill, his beginning to like and even need to do so, and compares it to others fighting beside him who are addicted to sex and smack. It suggests he likes killing more than he likes his family. It is grim, cynical, pessimistic, and very American in the way every Vietnam War story can be.
Four Stars
In The Beginning:
There is a verisimilitude to this comic that is truly amazing. For a story that is undeniably about a "superhero" (actually an antihero), the tone and circumstance, events, characters, and dialogue all ring true (but for an unfortunate female character who is a walking cliche, and portrayed in a horribly sexist way - this storyline's biggest flaw). I don't know if Ennis ever served in the military. If not, he probably had someone from the military as an advisor. Frank Castle's character is very well developed. His motivations make sense. Considering what a horrible person he his, it is amazing how Ennis is able to make us sympathize. Castle is cynical and intelligent, and even righteous in his own way. The art in this book is phenomenal. The covers are perfect. I am really amazed at this book. I didn't think mainstream superhero comics could be this good.
Four Stars
Kitchen Irish:
Hm. This story wasn't nearly as good as the first two. It was more of a pulp crime novel than a Punisher book, really. Frank Castle was in it. But he was not the protagonist. In truth, he wasn't really important to the story. The art was, unfortunately, not as good as the first two, either. While the first two were among the best of how the medium can look, this one started weak, and worked its way up to competent. I found it ugly to even look at until halfway through, and never good enough to not be distracting. This was disappointing. That this same illustrator comes back for the fifth and sixth story in this collection does not excite me. But maybe, by then, he will have improved, as he improved during these six chapters. The covers/chapter breaks continue to be amazing.
Two Stars
Mother Russia:
After expecting from the last story to see this series begin to go downhill, Mother Russia pulls it right out of the fire. It isn't without flaws. But it is still my favourite so far. The interior art is excellent, though the covers/chapter breaks aren't as good as previous stories. But the story is fantastic. This one is worth reading alone, without any of the others. I was skeptical at first, because of the portrayal of Nick Fury and Frank Castle's characters. They are established at the beginning of this book in a way perfect for this story, but inconsistent with how they are portrayed elsewhere. For Nick Fury, in the Punisher Max world he is being portrayed as nearly as much of an antihero as Castle. He's a whoring, grizzled, bad mouthed asshole. This I can forgive if I read it as an interpretation of his character in a different universe, this one, one in which colourful Avengers and Spider-men don't really fit, either. But Frank Castle is established early in this story as someone a little too willing to work with Nick Fury, who is himself working with the military. It was made clear in earlier stories of this same collection that Castle won't do this. However, I believe the story in its completion justifies the hole. It's just that good. I can imagine a few minor changes that could have been made to close that hole, and justified The Punisher teaming up. These minor story details aren't clearly communicated. But room is made for them so that I can allow the discrepancies to slide. All that said, the story taken as its own story outside of any continuity is just excellent. It is tightly plotted, character driven, tense, and in the end, beautiful. Frank Castle's character is developed in some very beautiful ways that honour his past and even more clearly define his motivations and convictions now. Without giving too much away, Ennis does this mostly through Castle's relationship with an innocent little girl. Great story.
Five Stars
Up is Down and Black is White:
Well, this one was bad. And it was bad in all the ways I thought it might be bad. Fernández has returned on pencils. His work looks even uglier than the last volume he illustrated, Kitchen Irish. That the last books were named for the ethnicity of the gang targeted by The Punisher made me nervous when I saw "black" in the title of this one. And yes, there is a panel of The Punisher blasting a young black man's head open with a high powered gun. That's pretty gross, on every level. He also makes fun of how the black gang members hold their guns, a cheap shot since they were written that way in this book to copy rap videos, not reality. This is also the first book to include rape (at least as far as I can remember - this one is explicit and frequent). . It is by no means sensitive in its portrayal. The story is just a series of gratuitous violent incidents. Gross ones. Basically, this book reads less like the thoughtful high points in this series and more like exploitation trash fiction.
One Star
The Slavers:
I must admit that once I came to this story, I didn't even want to enjoy these anymore. I was a cynical sonofabitch, ready to dismiss this story outright, having just had enough Ennis in my system than I prefer. I already knew I didn't like the artist. I expected that Ennis' good writing had dried up several chapters ago.
But then . . . it was actually good.
The addition of two police officer characters, one a woman with actual character and motivation, the other a gay black man, was exactly what this book needed. Also, by adding a social worker, also a woman and a person of colour, we get to see the limits of what The Punisher can and can't do. The epilogue gives the reader an opportunity to reflect on The Punisher's methods, and the reality of the many risks that real human beings take every day in their own front line wars against real oppression and abuse.
The Slavers was, predictably, grim, violent, pessimistic, and cynical. But it also had a shred of a conscience that has been missing in the series up until now. This was enough to make me decide to keep reading Omnibus 2.
Four Stars
☠
Read as trade paperbacks Born, The Punisher: In The Beginning, The Punisher: Kitchen Irish, The Punisher: Mother Russia, The Punisher: Up is Down and Black is White, and The Punisher: The Slavers
Max/Marvel 2004/2018
Originally published as Born Issues 1-4 and The Punisher Issues 1-30
Illustrated by Darick Robertson, Lewis Larosa, Leandro Fernández, and Doug Braithwaite
Three Stars
February 2-10, 2018
☠
Yah.
There is obviously a lot that can be said about how gross this cliche of a story has become. And there is a lot to be said about how tired and cliche this gross story has become. I'm glad that in 2018, machismo is finally falling out of popularity.
But that doesn't mean I am necessarily ready to give up on the genre altogether. And I think it is a genre. There is a story there, and a way to tell it using the tropes of the genre to say something fresh. For example, I would be into a story like the one I described above, but with one element changed. Have The Hero be gay, or a woman, or fighting against, instead of for, the United States (practically or figuratively). Or have them fail, miserably, and in failing reveal that it just doesn't work (as I write this, I am reminded of certain incidents in The Last Jedi).
Besides the tired cliches, this massive collection also has the writer Garth Ennis for and against it. I believe Ennis, like Miller, even at his best, is best in small doses. As a consequence, Each story taken alone in this collection was better than the whole. There is a dark, gross bitterness to Ennis that gets under my skin when I have too much of him. Though this book didn't delve as far into potty humour as Preacher, it flirted with the line. I also think that the book was partially saved from the most perverse of Ennis tendencies by not also being combined with Steve Dillon. Those two together make a combo that often has me putting a book down for a few days because I feel ill. This one merely had me cringe and close my eyes to let the mild nausea pass. Win!
Taken in one big gulp, some troubling similarities between these stories rise to the surface. Our White Hetero Male Protagonist is almost always fighting, and killing, immigrants. Too many times they are told to go back to their own country. Racist epithets are aplenty. That doesn't alone make the book racist, of course. But it doesn't go out of its way to show negative consequences to that kind of racism. Female characters are few, and very shallow when they appear. One in particular, a cardboard cutout of a horny woman who was motivated to sleep with Frank Castle, was very difficult to read. But when each story is taken alone, these patterns are less obvious. And, with the final story, The Slavers, the book makes a surprising turnaround and seems to address almost every single issue I just mentioned, and do it well. It actually becomes nearly like one of the stories I suggested that could be told in this genre and be effective by its subversion. So my feelings on this are mixed.
The book is at its best when it shows the limits of its title character. When he fails, or his successes are shown to be hollow, the book works.
I wouldn't recommend reading this collection. I think Born is worth reading as a simple and effective war story. Mother Russia is a good character study, and the high point of the collection. After that, Slavers is worth reading to see something a little more emotionally complex. I would skip the rest, even Volume One, whose sexist female cop character just stuck in my gut and turned sour as I processed the book in the days after finishing it.
The following are my thoughts on each story included in this collection. As you'll see, the I am more positive about the individual parts than I am about the whole:
Born:
The first story in this collection is one of Frank Castle in Vietnam, before his family is killed. It shows him learning to kill, his beginning to like and even need to do so, and compares it to others fighting beside him who are addicted to sex and smack. It suggests he likes killing more than he likes his family. It is grim, cynical, pessimistic, and very American in the way every Vietnam War story can be.
Four Stars
In The Beginning:
There is a verisimilitude to this comic that is truly amazing. For a story that is undeniably about a "superhero" (actually an antihero), the tone and circumstance, events, characters, and dialogue all ring true (but for an unfortunate female character who is a walking cliche, and portrayed in a horribly sexist way - this storyline's biggest flaw). I don't know if Ennis ever served in the military. If not, he probably had someone from the military as an advisor. Frank Castle's character is very well developed. His motivations make sense. Considering what a horrible person he his, it is amazing how Ennis is able to make us sympathize. Castle is cynical and intelligent, and even righteous in his own way. The art in this book is phenomenal. The covers are perfect. I am really amazed at this book. I didn't think mainstream superhero comics could be this good.
Four Stars
Kitchen Irish:
Hm. This story wasn't nearly as good as the first two. It was more of a pulp crime novel than a Punisher book, really. Frank Castle was in it. But he was not the protagonist. In truth, he wasn't really important to the story. The art was, unfortunately, not as good as the first two, either. While the first two were among the best of how the medium can look, this one started weak, and worked its way up to competent. I found it ugly to even look at until halfway through, and never good enough to not be distracting. This was disappointing. That this same illustrator comes back for the fifth and sixth story in this collection does not excite me. But maybe, by then, he will have improved, as he improved during these six chapters. The covers/chapter breaks continue to be amazing.
Two Stars
Mother Russia:
After expecting from the last story to see this series begin to go downhill, Mother Russia pulls it right out of the fire. It isn't without flaws. But it is still my favourite so far. The interior art is excellent, though the covers/chapter breaks aren't as good as previous stories. But the story is fantastic. This one is worth reading alone, without any of the others. I was skeptical at first, because of the portrayal of Nick Fury and Frank Castle's characters. They are established at the beginning of this book in a way perfect for this story, but inconsistent with how they are portrayed elsewhere. For Nick Fury, in the Punisher Max world he is being portrayed as nearly as much of an antihero as Castle. He's a whoring, grizzled, bad mouthed asshole. This I can forgive if I read it as an interpretation of his character in a different universe, this one, one in which colourful Avengers and Spider-men don't really fit, either. But Frank Castle is established early in this story as someone a little too willing to work with Nick Fury, who is himself working with the military. It was made clear in earlier stories of this same collection that Castle won't do this. However, I believe the story in its completion justifies the hole. It's just that good. I can imagine a few minor changes that could have been made to close that hole, and justified The Punisher teaming up. These minor story details aren't clearly communicated. But room is made for them so that I can allow the discrepancies to slide. All that said, the story taken as its own story outside of any continuity is just excellent. It is tightly plotted, character driven, tense, and in the end, beautiful. Frank Castle's character is developed in some very beautiful ways that honour his past and even more clearly define his motivations and convictions now. Without giving too much away, Ennis does this mostly through Castle's relationship with an innocent little girl. Great story.
Five Stars
Up is Down and Black is White:
Well, this one was bad. And it was bad in all the ways I thought it might be bad. Fernández has returned on pencils. His work looks even uglier than the last volume he illustrated, Kitchen Irish. That the last books were named for the ethnicity of the gang targeted by The Punisher made me nervous when I saw "black" in the title of this one. And yes, there is a panel of The Punisher blasting a young black man's head open with a high powered gun. That's pretty gross, on every level. He also makes fun of how the black gang members hold their guns, a cheap shot since they were written that way in this book to copy rap videos, not reality. This is also the first book to include rape (at least as far as I can remember - this one is explicit and frequent). . It is by no means sensitive in its portrayal. The story is just a series of gratuitous violent incidents. Gross ones. Basically, this book reads less like the thoughtful high points in this series and more like exploitation trash fiction.
One Star
The Slavers:
I must admit that once I came to this story, I didn't even want to enjoy these anymore. I was a cynical sonofabitch, ready to dismiss this story outright, having just had enough Ennis in my system than I prefer. I already knew I didn't like the artist. I expected that Ennis' good writing had dried up several chapters ago.
But then . . . it was actually good.
The addition of two police officer characters, one a woman with actual character and motivation, the other a gay black man, was exactly what this book needed. Also, by adding a social worker, also a woman and a person of colour, we get to see the limits of what The Punisher can and can't do. The epilogue gives the reader an opportunity to reflect on The Punisher's methods, and the reality of the many risks that real human beings take every day in their own front line wars against real oppression and abuse.
The Slavers was, predictably, grim, violent, pessimistic, and cynical. But it also had a shred of a conscience that has been missing in the series up until now. This was enough to make me decide to keep reading Omnibus 2.
Four Stars
☠
Read as trade paperbacks Born, The Punisher: In The Beginning, The Punisher: Kitchen Irish, The Punisher: Mother Russia, The Punisher: Up is Down and Black is White, and The Punisher: The Slavers
Max/Marvel 2004/2018
Originally published as Born Issues 1-4 and The Punisher Issues 1-30
Illustrated by Darick Robertson, Lewis Larosa, Leandro Fernández, and Doug Braithwaite
Three Stars
February 2-10, 2018
☠
July 26, 2022
If you can overlook how graphic it is in it's portrayal of violence and how explicit the dialogue turns at points, the omnibus contains some of the most gripping storylines of any graphic novel.
August 15, 2024
I feel like the creators just wanted an excuse to use slurs every other page
March 17, 2025
Taking a bit over a month to read, the first omnibus of “Punisher Max” was a work that I needed to take frequent breaks from.
I’d read an arc here, another there, I’d take a bit to digest it (the violence here is something I really haven’t seen in comics before) and I’d spend a few days thinking about what I had just read.
“Punisher: Born” acts as a sort of Year 0 to this iteration of the character, showing him fight in Vietnam and rapidly experience changes within himself, going from a person that follows orders to acting on his own accord and with his own form of Justice. By the end, he ends up coming home to a wife and kids that don’t quite recognize the man they last saw leaving. It’s bittersweet, and introduces a narrator, Frank’s inner conscience, that regularly crops up throughout the rest of the text. 5 stars. The art is really something else, and Ennis’ writing is extremely strong and politically driven. I know that “Born” was released a bit later in the run, though it’s put at the beginning to really present the thesis for the character. It’s what really colored the rest of the book for me.
However, it is followed up with “In The Beginning,” which reintroduces Frank’s “sidekick” or “guy in the chair” of Micro, along with some supporting characters that we see a bit later one. It is a slog.
Like, I think this story was really trying to find its footing. If I recall correctly, the original Marvel Knights Punisher, written by Ennis, was more comedic, and I think that Ennis was trying to figure out the balance between the comedy found within Knights and the grit of Max. So you have a man’s testicles get cut off and he has to carry them around in a cup. A psychotic murderer that only says “huh.” And “uhm,” and a detective that is extremely attracted to Frank. The final issue of this arc; part 6, is the best of that story, as it plays with showing a sort of list of victims and details that the Agency aiming to recruit Frank for their own agenda write or leave out. It’s the balance between words and pictures we come for in these stories. It’s strong, and I think that had the rest of that arc been like that issue, it would’ve been great.
Early on in those collections, you also might realize that Frank’s head is shaped like a skull. I know, I know, ridiculous of me to say, but Frank is usually casted in shadow. His features like his eyes and mouth are blocked. Occasionally, you can’t even tell it’s a face. He’s this hulking mass that is inhuman; everyone is afraid of this guy and what he might or will do.
So, when you read Kitchen Irish, a story that involves Frank for about 50% of the overall text, you feel that this guy is genuinely a threat. We follow 4 individuals that are seeking the fortune left behind by this Irish mob boss. Each one of them has some relation to this guy, and we get to feel a sense of urgency as each one of them is like “holy shit, the punisher is after us.” All because they blew up the wrong diner. If Frank faces off against one of these guys, he’s like a ghost; his logo really the only thing visible on him. It’s really cool art, and I enjoyed it.
Mother Russia was fun because we got to have Nick Fury in it, but I didn’t really care for it outside of Frank’s code surrounding children. The guy will fight to save a child’s life, even if that means he will lose his. It’s cool, action packed, and it’s also pretty politically poignant, but it’s also reminds me of older punisher stories that I’ve seen; of him shooting people while skiing down slopes and stuff. It’s a bit more in that zany side of the character, and it’s in a weird spot where it works but also doesn’t.
I think the last two stories, “Up is Down and Black is White” and “The Slavers” is some of the best comic stuff I’ve read. Period. In the former story, Ennis returns to characters we first met in “In the Beginning,” and gives everyone more depth. From the Italian mobsters to the testicalless investigator and that one lady that was really attracted to Frank, they’re all given a bit more depth and background. Frank is not opposed to taking stuff personally — someone desecrated his wife and kids’ graves, and that just won’t stand. Here we deal with the philosophy of such senseless violence. You get a sense for the character and his motivations. Hell, you even have a moment where this man, who has been doing this for 30 years at this point, has a moment where he allows himself some peace and quiet. There’s moments in this arc that will stick for a long, long time. Dialogue between Frank and Kate O’Brien after everything has happened to them is really remarkable. This is their life now, and so they must live with it.
Meanwhile, the slavers is a bit more lowkey of a story. Nonetheless, it talks about how Frank serves as the action when the police — our protectors — are put into inaction, either through not being aware or because of corruption. It grapples with the ever-pertinent sex trafficking rings that exist, and the most upsetting thing about it is, though Frank succeeds in taking down this one ring, there are ultimately so many more. The pit is never ending. His war on crime will never end. The last page of the book is a sad note to end on, but I think it really shapes how people ought to approach Frank Castle’s whole mindset and mission.
People talk about Ennis in this way that had really put me off from reading him. Oftentimes on forums, in work, among comic readers, I had heard that the guy had no respect for the superhero genre. However, I think that’s false. I believe that “Punisher Max” shows us what Garth Ennis thinks a “Comic hero” would have to be in a “modern,” (2004) context. Frank Castle is not a good person. He does things out of selfishness. He defeats bad people because he’s looking for something to do. Things fall into his lap and he goes, “okay, I need to start shooting shit.” However, he cares about women, and children, and victims of violence and abuse. He’s not racist (notice how throughout the entire text, villains use rather derogatory terms while Frank does not) and punishes those that engage in depraved acts of violence and organized (and disorganized) crime.
As a whole, I think Ennis is trying to say that those that fight senselessly only breed further violence. However, I believe the further message is a question: “what else can we do?”
I’m not saying that Ennis or Frank promote violence, or are advocating for violence against people of power, but I think that Ennis is grappling with a world in which things are not changing on a systematic level. I think he’s questioning what more is there to be done besides a man going on his own personal warpath. I think it’s scary to think about those that read this and come out of it thinking that change can ONLY be made with a person like this. I don’t think that’s what Ennis is saying, either. I think he’s grappling with a lot and is struggling to find a proper response to a world that had experienced a new form of violence in the form of Terrorism. Ultimately, stories like “The Slavers,” serve to say “there has to be a better way of remedying this that isn’t how it currently is done, nor what the Punisher would do.”
Ugh, I have a lot of thoughts. I wish volume 2 wasn’t Out of Print. Some of the language in here is groan-worthy, but it’s as a whole not the mindlessly violent text I was told that it was. It’s violent, yes, but I think the writer is grappling with a lot of feelings. Some mid stories in this bring the book down to a 4/5.
I’d read an arc here, another there, I’d take a bit to digest it (the violence here is something I really haven’t seen in comics before) and I’d spend a few days thinking about what I had just read.
“Punisher: Born” acts as a sort of Year 0 to this iteration of the character, showing him fight in Vietnam and rapidly experience changes within himself, going from a person that follows orders to acting on his own accord and with his own form of Justice. By the end, he ends up coming home to a wife and kids that don’t quite recognize the man they last saw leaving. It’s bittersweet, and introduces a narrator, Frank’s inner conscience, that regularly crops up throughout the rest of the text. 5 stars. The art is really something else, and Ennis’ writing is extremely strong and politically driven. I know that “Born” was released a bit later in the run, though it’s put at the beginning to really present the thesis for the character. It’s what really colored the rest of the book for me.
However, it is followed up with “In The Beginning,” which reintroduces Frank’s “sidekick” or “guy in the chair” of Micro, along with some supporting characters that we see a bit later one. It is a slog.
Like, I think this story was really trying to find its footing. If I recall correctly, the original Marvel Knights Punisher, written by Ennis, was more comedic, and I think that Ennis was trying to figure out the balance between the comedy found within Knights and the grit of Max. So you have a man’s testicles get cut off and he has to carry them around in a cup. A psychotic murderer that only says “huh.” And “uhm,” and a detective that is extremely attracted to Frank. The final issue of this arc; part 6, is the best of that story, as it plays with showing a sort of list of victims and details that the Agency aiming to recruit Frank for their own agenda write or leave out. It’s the balance between words and pictures we come for in these stories. It’s strong, and I think that had the rest of that arc been like that issue, it would’ve been great.
Early on in those collections, you also might realize that Frank’s head is shaped like a skull. I know, I know, ridiculous of me to say, but Frank is usually casted in shadow. His features like his eyes and mouth are blocked. Occasionally, you can’t even tell it’s a face. He’s this hulking mass that is inhuman; everyone is afraid of this guy and what he might or will do.
So, when you read Kitchen Irish, a story that involves Frank for about 50% of the overall text, you feel that this guy is genuinely a threat. We follow 4 individuals that are seeking the fortune left behind by this Irish mob boss. Each one of them has some relation to this guy, and we get to feel a sense of urgency as each one of them is like “holy shit, the punisher is after us.” All because they blew up the wrong diner. If Frank faces off against one of these guys, he’s like a ghost; his logo really the only thing visible on him. It’s really cool art, and I enjoyed it.
Mother Russia was fun because we got to have Nick Fury in it, but I didn’t really care for it outside of Frank’s code surrounding children. The guy will fight to save a child’s life, even if that means he will lose his. It’s cool, action packed, and it’s also pretty politically poignant, but it’s also reminds me of older punisher stories that I’ve seen; of him shooting people while skiing down slopes and stuff. It’s a bit more in that zany side of the character, and it’s in a weird spot where it works but also doesn’t.
I think the last two stories, “Up is Down and Black is White” and “The Slavers” is some of the best comic stuff I’ve read. Period. In the former story, Ennis returns to characters we first met in “In the Beginning,” and gives everyone more depth. From the Italian mobsters to the testicalless investigator and that one lady that was really attracted to Frank, they’re all given a bit more depth and background. Frank is not opposed to taking stuff personally — someone desecrated his wife and kids’ graves, and that just won’t stand. Here we deal with the philosophy of such senseless violence. You get a sense for the character and his motivations. Hell, you even have a moment where this man, who has been doing this for 30 years at this point, has a moment where he allows himself some peace and quiet. There’s moments in this arc that will stick for a long, long time. Dialogue between Frank and Kate O’Brien after everything has happened to them is really remarkable. This is their life now, and so they must live with it.
Meanwhile, the slavers is a bit more lowkey of a story. Nonetheless, it talks about how Frank serves as the action when the police — our protectors — are put into inaction, either through not being aware or because of corruption. It grapples with the ever-pertinent sex trafficking rings that exist, and the most upsetting thing about it is, though Frank succeeds in taking down this one ring, there are ultimately so many more. The pit is never ending. His war on crime will never end. The last page of the book is a sad note to end on, but I think it really shapes how people ought to approach Frank Castle’s whole mindset and mission.
People talk about Ennis in this way that had really put me off from reading him. Oftentimes on forums, in work, among comic readers, I had heard that the guy had no respect for the superhero genre. However, I think that’s false. I believe that “Punisher Max” shows us what Garth Ennis thinks a “Comic hero” would have to be in a “modern,” (2004) context. Frank Castle is not a good person. He does things out of selfishness. He defeats bad people because he’s looking for something to do. Things fall into his lap and he goes, “okay, I need to start shooting shit.” However, he cares about women, and children, and victims of violence and abuse. He’s not racist (notice how throughout the entire text, villains use rather derogatory terms while Frank does not) and punishes those that engage in depraved acts of violence and organized (and disorganized) crime.
As a whole, I think Ennis is trying to say that those that fight senselessly only breed further violence. However, I believe the further message is a question: “what else can we do?”
I’m not saying that Ennis or Frank promote violence, or are advocating for violence against people of power, but I think that Ennis is grappling with a world in which things are not changing on a systematic level. I think he’s questioning what more is there to be done besides a man going on his own personal warpath. I think it’s scary to think about those that read this and come out of it thinking that change can ONLY be made with a person like this. I don’t think that’s what Ennis is saying, either. I think he’s grappling with a lot and is struggling to find a proper response to a world that had experienced a new form of violence in the form of Terrorism. Ultimately, stories like “The Slavers,” serve to say “there has to be a better way of remedying this that isn’t how it currently is done, nor what the Punisher would do.”
Ugh, I have a lot of thoughts. I wish volume 2 wasn’t Out of Print. Some of the language in here is groan-worthy, but it’s as a whole not the mindlessly violent text I was told that it was. It’s violent, yes, but I think the writer is grappling with a lot of feelings. Some mid stories in this bring the book down to a 4/5.
June 18, 2022
One of the best runs I’ve ever read. This book is just simply…great. Garth Ennis is the Quentin Tarantino of the graphic novel world. These stories would have never been released in todays PC world, so enjoy it if you’re still able to get your hands on it.
February 11, 2025
Absolutely incredible piece of crime noir through and through.
Born - A harrowing origin for the Punisher fully taking advantage of the brutal setting of the end of the Vietnam war. I’m not a huge fan of painting Frank Castle as a through and through psycho before the death of his family, but still an interesting angle to look at the character from.
In The Beginning - Honestly the weakest of the arcs in this collection but still very good. The back and forth between Frank and Micro was incredibly well done and I honestly wish we got more of it. Nicky Cavella and his goons are effective villains to begin this version of the punisher. However, this arc is where I think Garth Ennis’s infamous inappropriate humor shines through a bit too much here primarily with the character of O’Brien.
Kitchen Irish - Solid cat and mouse chase about all these different Irish gangs with interesting and different motivations and means of hunting down a lost treasure. Each of them are excellently defined and imposing for Frank to take down.
Mother Russia - Absolutely bonkers spy story that ultimately proves to have the most effective emotional anchor in the entire book. Frank’s brief relationship with Galina was a heartwarming reminder that Frank still is a human being under all the pain and bloody violence.
Up Is Down, Black Is White - An effective sequel to In The Beginning that ultimately outshines its predecessor. Nicky Cavella cements himself as an absolute menace that I wish we had gotten more of but his ending here proves to be incredibly satisfying. In spite of my reservations about the character, O’Brien’s development here really helps create sympathy for the character and further define her.
The Slavers - A harrowing and absolutely devastating look at human trafficking through the eyes of the Punisher. Like with the rest of the book, Ennis pulls zero punches in showcasing the disgusting world Frank has found himself embroiled in and frivolously tries to make right the only way he knows how. One of the most devastating endings I’ve ever read in the medium of comics.
Born - A harrowing origin for the Punisher fully taking advantage of the brutal setting of the end of the Vietnam war. I’m not a huge fan of painting Frank Castle as a through and through psycho before the death of his family, but still an interesting angle to look at the character from.
In The Beginning - Honestly the weakest of the arcs in this collection but still very good. The back and forth between Frank and Micro was incredibly well done and I honestly wish we got more of it. Nicky Cavella and his goons are effective villains to begin this version of the punisher. However, this arc is where I think Garth Ennis’s infamous inappropriate humor shines through a bit too much here primarily with the character of O’Brien.
Kitchen Irish - Solid cat and mouse chase about all these different Irish gangs with interesting and different motivations and means of hunting down a lost treasure. Each of them are excellently defined and imposing for Frank to take down.
Mother Russia - Absolutely bonkers spy story that ultimately proves to have the most effective emotional anchor in the entire book. Frank’s brief relationship with Galina was a heartwarming reminder that Frank still is a human being under all the pain and bloody violence.
Up Is Down, Black Is White - An effective sequel to In The Beginning that ultimately outshines its predecessor. Nicky Cavella cements himself as an absolute menace that I wish we had gotten more of but his ending here proves to be incredibly satisfying. In spite of my reservations about the character, O’Brien’s development here really helps create sympathy for the character and further define her.
The Slavers - A harrowing and absolutely devastating look at human trafficking through the eyes of the Punisher. Like with the rest of the book, Ennis pulls zero punches in showcasing the disgusting world Frank has found himself embroiled in and frivolously tries to make right the only way he knows how. One of the most devastating endings I’ve ever read in the medium of comics.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 25, 2024
The definitive Punisher run, the premise is simple: a mentally troubled and traumatized war veteran with an insatiable bloodlust fights an eternal one man war against crime after his family is slaughtered in a gang shootout. Not only is there the catharsis of the Punisher punishing the most wicked and depraved people out there, but the run also deals with the complexities of the Punisher as a character and the societal ills that may birth such a character. If you've ever looked at the world around you and found yourself dumbfounded or enraged by the evil and suffering others could inflict, The Punisher: MAX is the comic for you.
Those not familiar with Ennis' writing might find the comic a bit edgy or try hard at first, but it's worth sticking through. The "Kitchen Irish" arc is by far the worst of this first omnibus with disjointed writing and little to actually do with the Punisher as a character. Every other arc is great though with this omnibus culminating in "The Slavers" arc, my personal favorite, arguably the best arc of the whole run, and just peak Punisher all around. It's real, visceral, and bleak.
The art is great too. I love the dark, shadowy, and grimy look that permeates the entire run. I love the use of color that accentuates the violent scenes, and I even love the use of black empty space all throughout the run that just emphasizes the bleakness of it all.
Good luck to any writer trying to write another Punisher run after Ennis' run.
Those not familiar with Ennis' writing might find the comic a bit edgy or try hard at first, but it's worth sticking through. The "Kitchen Irish" arc is by far the worst of this first omnibus with disjointed writing and little to actually do with the Punisher as a character. Every other arc is great though with this omnibus culminating in "The Slavers" arc, my personal favorite, arguably the best arc of the whole run, and just peak Punisher all around. It's real, visceral, and bleak.
The art is great too. I love the dark, shadowy, and grimy look that permeates the entire run. I love the use of color that accentuates the violent scenes, and I even love the use of black empty space all throughout the run that just emphasizes the bleakness of it all.
Good luck to any writer trying to write another Punisher run after Ennis' run.
June 24, 2018
I heard so many good things about Garth Ennis' run on the Punisher, and to my surprise, they were all true.
The characters are all so well fleshed out, so evil and psychotic that I couldn't help but feel that Castle put my own thoughts into words when he says in "The Slavers": It had been a long, long time since I hated anyone the way I hated them.
Marvel's MAX series was an attempt to publish comics for adults, so be aware that there are no stops for political correctness, language, violence or sexual topics. This omnibus collection includes the 4 issue prequel "Born" for which I didn't care much, and five stories from the first 30 issues of Ennis' Punisher, which are all excellent. "Kitchen Irish" may be the weakest of these, mainly because all Irish are morons in this book. But Ennis is from Belfast, and you can't be racist by mocking your own people, so he's forgiven for that. Plus, it introduces a very interesting character who re-appears later.
Castle himself is quite different to what you've seen before: He's old. He's alone. He's psychotic, even borderline insane. It's probably the realization that there are not enough bullets for all the evil people that's bringing him down in the end.
The characters are all so well fleshed out, so evil and psychotic that I couldn't help but feel that Castle put my own thoughts into words when he says in "The Slavers": It had been a long, long time since I hated anyone the way I hated them.
Marvel's MAX series was an attempt to publish comics for adults, so be aware that there are no stops for political correctness, language, violence or sexual topics. This omnibus collection includes the 4 issue prequel "Born" for which I didn't care much, and five stories from the first 30 issues of Ennis' Punisher, which are all excellent. "Kitchen Irish" may be the weakest of these, mainly because all Irish are morons in this book. But Ennis is from Belfast, and you can't be racist by mocking your own people, so he's forgiven for that. Plus, it introduces a very interesting character who re-appears later.
Castle himself is quite different to what you've seen before: He's old. He's alone. He's psychotic, even borderline insane. It's probably the realization that there are not enough bullets for all the evil people that's bringing him down in the end.
September 12, 2025
95%
Good lord, this was grim. But an amazing read nonetheless. Frank’s character writing is immensely interesting, and complex, absolutely written to perfection by Ennis. He knows that he isn’t a hero, but he sees it as a necessary evil to rid the world of even worse evils.
Every extremely dark moment isn’t glorified - it’s gritty, and serves a purpose imo, whether to pull back the curtain on real life events or demonstrate just how deplorable some of the characters Frank puts down can be.
The stories are all pretty gripping, but it may occasionally make you grit your teeth from some of the content. I’d only recommend this if you know you enjoy darker reads, or you like Ennis’ other works like Preacher or his mainline universe Punisher run. Although some of the content here goes even further than those two series at their darkest by a good margin, so be warned.
I need omnibus 2 to come back into print now😭 please asap Marvel🙏🏻 at least there’s the Punisher / Fury omnibus they announced for next year😙
Good lord, this was grim. But an amazing read nonetheless. Frank’s character writing is immensely interesting, and complex, absolutely written to perfection by Ennis. He knows that he isn’t a hero, but he sees it as a necessary evil to rid the world of even worse evils.
Every extremely dark moment isn’t glorified - it’s gritty, and serves a purpose imo, whether to pull back the curtain on real life events or demonstrate just how deplorable some of the characters Frank puts down can be.
The stories are all pretty gripping, but it may occasionally make you grit your teeth from some of the content. I’d only recommend this if you know you enjoy darker reads, or you like Ennis’ other works like Preacher or his mainline universe Punisher run. Although some of the content here goes even further than those two series at their darkest by a good margin, so be warned.
I need omnibus 2 to come back into print now😭 please asap Marvel🙏🏻 at least there’s the Punisher / Fury omnibus they announced for next year😙
November 12, 2020
I’m not a comic / graphic novel guy by any stretch of the imagination, but I am a huge Punisher fan, and what Garth Ennis achieved with this series is completely sublime. Dark, gritty, and violent, these crime tales are utterly engrossing and incredibly cinematic. I honestly can’t fault it; the stories, characters, dialogue, illustrations… it all comes together beautifully, and plays out like an intense Martin Scorsese film. It also helps that it’s bound up in this stunning hardback omnibus, which just looks / feels amazing to read, creating a wonderfully tactile experience. I can’t thank my wife enough for spoiling me with this special treat; it’s an easy five stars.
July 27, 2024
Great stuff. More like this please... Hurry!
Great stories with awesome artwork and kickass action sequences.
The story was a little abrupt but good and realistic. Perfect for the type of narrative of this MAX series.
Hopefully the second omnibus is not too far away because I already need another fix.
Aide from the ending, the only other complain is that there isn't enough extras on this book in my opinion.
Get this omnibus you won't regret it.
Great stories with awesome artwork and kickass action sequences.
The story was a little abrupt but good and realistic. Perfect for the type of narrative of this MAX series.
Hopefully the second omnibus is not too far away because I already need another fix.
Aide from the ending, the only other complain is that there isn't enough extras on this book in my opinion.
Get this omnibus you won't regret it.
November 27, 2024
Garth Ennis writes a brilliant Punisher, this book works so well, dark, gritty, sometimes even comedic. The perfect display of vigilante justice. Frank Castle isn’t going up against wacky costumed villains with powers and a complex but real, human scumbags. From “born” up until “The Slavers” this book is action and brilliant storytelling. The art although done by a handful of artists is consistent and greatly detailed. In my opinion, this is the definitive Punisher series.
August 12, 2018
I am only giving 4 stars because I found the that the first story Born was a little slow.
After that it's a pure gem though.
This is the first time I read any punisher comic and I think I started with the best.
This is no surprise since this is Garth Ennis and everything I have read so far by him has been Golden ( loved The Boys)
After that it's a pure gem though.
This is the first time I read any punisher comic and I think I started with the best.
This is no surprise since this is Garth Ennis and everything I have read so far by him has been Golden ( loved The Boys)
August 27, 2020
The quintessential Punisher.
December 14, 2023
Garth Ennis was born to write for The Punisher.
September 29, 2024
Awesome! Want to read for Ennis and punisher
October 15, 2024
edgy af dropped at #12
November 16, 2024
GREAT READ!!!
Best punisher story I’ve ever read! I loved every single page the art was really good too. I would highly recommend
Best punisher story I’ve ever read! I loved every single page the art was really good too. I would highly recommend
November 20, 2024
Fantastic comic run,fav arc was Born,Irish kitchen and the very dark “the slavers”.
June 21, 2025
Genuinely one of the best comics I’ve ever read
July 2, 2025
Definitive Punisher run.
July 5, 2025
Good book, 3.5. Dark art, palate and scenes. Well composed stories, especially the earlier ones in the volume. Enjoyed it until the end but definitely need a break from Punisher now.
January 16, 2023
Esplosivo, crudo, maturo
Offre spunti di riflessione su molto più ci ciò che un fumetto di super eroi trasmetta normalmente
Storie come born , o gli schiavisti hanno un impatto forte , e portano un messaggio molto attaccato a quello che viviamo
Offre spunti di riflessione su molto più ci ciò che un fumetto di super eroi trasmetta normalmente
Storie come born , o gli schiavisti hanno un impatto forte , e portano un messaggio molto attaccato a quello che viviamo
May 5, 2025
(This review covers the complete run)
A grim, uncompromisingly grounded take on Frank Castle, this run strips away the superhero elements and focuses on street-level violence, war crimes, and the lasting damage of vengeance. Castle is written as a cold, relentless figure, in stories that range from tightly plotted revenge tales to bleak examinations of corruption and cruelty, with the gritty, atmospheric artwork matching the tone.
A grim, uncompromisingly grounded take on Frank Castle, this run strips away the superhero elements and focuses on street-level violence, war crimes, and the lasting damage of vengeance. Castle is written as a cold, relentless figure, in stories that range from tightly plotted revenge tales to bleak examinations of corruption and cruelty, with the gritty, atmospheric artwork matching the tone.
September 8, 2025
Undoubtedly, the best iteration of The Punisher of all time.
May 28, 2025
Inconclusive some hits some misses, born and the slavers stand out, especially the slavers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews