The Punisher, Vol. 2: Border Crossing

The Punisher (2014) (Collected Editions)

by Nathan Edmondson (Writer), Kevin Maurer (Writer), Mitch Gerads (Artist)

Bestselling author Kevin Maurer joins Nathan Edmondson for a story of jungle warfare!
American soldiers are being held by a South American drug lord, when a new prisoner arrives: Frank Castle! But not all is as it seems on either side of the bars, and now a wounded Frank and a Special Forces medic must hazard dangerous terrain and merciless mercenaries to escape! Then, the Punisher finds himself fighting alongside — or against? — Black Widow for access to a deadly criminal network. But can either survive being trapped on an abandoned oil rig with Crossbones and his Skull Squad? And back in Los Angeles, a new crimelord with a personal vendetta against Frank Castle has arisen — and the Howling Commandos set their sights on Frank! Can the Punisher save his adopted home?

Collecting: The Punisher 7-12 & Black Widow 9

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Superheroes, Fiction, Crime, Graphic Novels Comics

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 20, 2015

About the author

Comic book and screenwriter Nathan Edmondson is a native of Augusta, GA. His Eisner-nominated book Who Is Jake Ellis? will soon be a major motion picture from 20th Century Fox, and The Activity film will come soon from Paramount Pictures. NPR has listed his work among the “Top 6 Comics to Draw You In” and USA Today and CNN are among those who have listed him in their Top 10 lists.

Nathan currently lives near Los Angeles, USA.

Reviews

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

When last we left Frank he was escaping the Howling Commandos with a bullet in his chest. He’s now south of the border and desperate for a doctor – and that’s when he’s captured by a drug cartel and handed over to the villainous Crossbones. Frank’s rambling quest to end the supply of drugs into LA takes him into the jungles of Central America, a Mexican prison, a covert ship, an unexpected crossover with Black Widow, and the murder of the current Fantastic Four movie cast (but not really)!

Boring - that pretty much sums up this series of The Punisher! I love the character but Nathan Edmondson’s treatment of him really isn’t winning me over. Frank’s just so blah in this book! I think this shows how The Punisher isn’t just some psycho with a skull t-shirt shooting criminals repeatedly. Garth Ennis can take Frank Castle and make him the most interesting person in the Marvel Universe; in the hands of a lesser writer, the same character is rendered sterile and lifeless.

Edmondson tries, I’ll give him that. Frank teams up with a special ops guy as they fight their way out of the jungle, which sounds exciting but was just ok. The only thing that stood out to me was the sudden use of military acronyms, and, looking at the credits, someone called “bestselling author Kevin Maurer” co-wrote these two issues with Edmondson (a quick google shows that he’s written several books on modern warfare). Find out that CAS and ISR stand for Close Air Support and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance, then wonder why you should care.

The other issues felt like lesser versions of stories already told. The Black Widow crossover was a lot like the night raid from the Winter Soldier movie when Cap and Black Widow storm a boat (the “was he wearing a parachute?” scene), but not as exciting. Also, Frank getting the hell out of the Mexican prison was a crappier version of Garth Ennis’ The Cell (check out The Punisher MAX: From First to Last, for that story). The Black Widow crossover was so pointless it may as well not have happened.

Also, I’m not sold on Frank in LA - I’m not sure why the location is being emphasised for the character so much but it’s not jibing for me. Those last few pages too, when Frank goes to all that trouble for THAT, just felt stupid and out of character to me. Why is Frank so enamoured with LA all of a sudden - because he’s got himself a coyote?!

I know Marvel have to legally claim otherwise but three of the four cast members of the latest Fantastic Four make a cameo in the final chapter. This issue got some attention when it came out because some people said Marvel was having Frank kill them, but that’s not true. They’re in a building near to an explosion but there’s no indication that they’re hurt in any way - and Frank’s definitely not responsible (the movie’s going to bomb without Frank planting any near the cast anyway!).

Mitch Gerads and Carmen Carnero’s art isn’t bad, it just doesn’t stand out. Much like Edmondson’s script, the art is just there. It doesn’t make you pay attention, there’s no eye-catching style, it’s got this generic look to it, and it’s workmanlike more than anything. It’ll do and nothing else. Phil Noto’s artwork on the Black Widow issue was nice though.

The Punisher, Volume 2: Border Crossing is a very poor follow up to an average first book. I wish Edmondson’s Punisher series was as good as Ennis’ or Jason Aaron’s but it’s instead very far away from those quality writers’ books.

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this one slightly less than Black and White. However, it's still good. Definitely more gritty than the last volume. Castle goes south of the border and ends up doing some time as a result. Of course, Castle always turns it around to his advantage. The storyline touches on the respect that Castle garners from other soldiers, due to his integrity and extreme focus and willingness to give his all to a cause. I loved the cameo by an old comrade of Castle. It brought my spirits up. Very intense read.

Overall rating: 3.5/5.0 stars

[Jesse A · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was fine. Not great in any way, just solid.

[Benji Glaab · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5🌟

[Judah Radd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Diggin this Punisher run.

Very cinematic. They could make this a movie, and it would work.

Many of my favorite Punisher tropes are on full display here. He has an awesome jungle fight with Crossbones, he teams up with Black Widow, and he ends up in prison and kills a bunch of people. The way this ends definitely makes me want the next one.

I like the art. It’s engaging, tells the story, but definitely isn’t flashy.

The 4 starts (instead of 5) was due to the pacing, which occasionally got too slow. Not a huge hindrance, but it was noticeable.

Frank’s characterization was spot on. This is the guy.

I definitely recommend this volume.

[Sud666 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't been a huge fan of the new Punisher run..but this was not a bad volume. It collects Punisher #7-12 and Black Widow #9.

The first part of the story has Punisher in Central America and Southern Mexico killing drug lords. But he comes across a missing Special Forces unit and what follows is a huge mash up of a fight in the jungle. Frank and the SF guy do a great job in showing the Punisher doing his jungle warfare thing. It was a pretty decent story.

The second part of it-with the Black Widow and Punisher infiltrating a Prison is merely ok. The artwork isn't bad at all..some of the issues are slightly better drawn than others-but on the whole not bad at all.

This wasn't a bad story, not at all. But I was hoping for more. The Punisher is one of my favorite characters and I enjoyed the old Punisher Max stories. Hopefully this will begin to steer that way-instead of silly sidekick tropes like the girl cop, the coyote and some Spec Ops guy. The Punisher does not play well with others and neither does he need to.

We shall see where this series goes from here-for now I am intrigued.

[Milo · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favourite Marvel ongoings right now and Nathan Edmondson is a super reliable writer with some excellent books. Love this series.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was super happy when Rachel Cole-Alves made an appearance. I really hope it's more than just a one issue thing

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second volume in Marvel NOW!'s series of The Punisher graphic novels (titled Border Crossing and originally released as individual issues) is once again penned by Nathan Edmondson (this time with additional writing by Kevin Maurer) and with art by Mitch Gerads, Carmen Carnero, and Phil Noto. It collects seven issues, The Punisher issues 7-12 and Black Widow issue 9. (The Black Widow issue is included because it crosses over with issue 9 of The Punisher.) Like the graphic novel's predecessor, which is titled Black and White, I very much enjoyed reading Border Crossing. Frank Castle (the eponymous antihero) isn't quite as amicable as he is in Black and White, but given what he endures in this graphic novel, that is totally understandable. He is still an incredibly interesting character, especially as he thinks about the ineffectiveness of prison systems and how his methods are much more effective. (Reading these thoughts makes for very interesting reading to say the least.) I really only have three complaints regarding Border Crossing, and all three complaints have to do with the Black Widow issue being included. I don't mind its inclusion in and of itself, but it does pose some problems. (1) If you haven't read Marvel NOW!'s Black Widow comics, which I haven't, then the cliffhanger at the end of her issue won't likely make any sense, as it didn't make any sense to me; that last part should have been omitted. (2) Even though much of the dialogue is the same between The Punisher issue 9 and Black Widow issue 9, as it should be since they cross over, the art is not, and Frank and Natasha (Black Widow) are sometimes shown doing something slightly different between the two issues even though they're saying exactly the same thing; their facial expressions are sometimes even drastically different, so I wish that more collaborating had happened there. (3) The art, as I said, in the Black Widow issue is drastically different from the art in The Punisher issues, and I normally try my hardest not to let that kind of thing bother me because (a) I have to keep in mind that even though I am reading a graphic novel and want to read it as a cohesive work, it was, as previously stated, originally released as separate issues and (b) the Black Widow issue is not only a different issue but is, in fact, an issue from a different series. The problem here, however, is that the art in the Black Widow issue resembles watercolor painting (which, for all I know, could be exactly what it is), and characters, characters' faces, shapes, and so forth are not very sharp. It's not bad art; it just isn't really my taste. (I am no artist myself and therefore have no business negatively critiquing professional artists.) These complaints did very little to cause me to dislike this graphic novel, however, and I cannot wait to get my hands on Last Days, the third and final volume of this series.

[47Time · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frank has rarely been this low. Fatally wounded, he makes it to Mexico where he is patched up by an iffy surgeon. Then he is sold to Mr. Ortiz who revels in torturing the famed Punisher. He then sells Frank to the highest bidder, Mr. Rumlow who sends the mercenary Crossbones for retrieval. Frank teams up with another captive, a US soldier, and make their very loud getaway. The US team who was tracking the soldier also joins the fray from their drone. Still, it's not going to be easy.

Frank and the soldier make their stand, but the opposition is too strong. Frank offers himself as a willing hostage to Crossbones, in exchange for letting the soldier go free. The latter makes it to home base and later returns to active duty. He will forever remember Frank and his sacrifice.

Frank manages to escape Crossbones by jumping from the helicopter into the ocean below. Crossbones was detoured to destroy a ship and prevent Black Widow from finding something. She overpowers Crossbones and puts Frank in a Central American prison for the next part of the plan.

Frank quickly learns the ins and out, the major gangs and builds an escape plan. He starts a riot as a cover for meeting with Mr. Ruiz, an influential figure in the prison. Frank escapes the prison with info for Black Widow as agreed, but little motivation to go on. His former associate Rachel convinces him to return to LA and save it from the Dos Soles gang, now led by Hector, the brother of the man he killed in the first volume.

LA is in flames. On top of it all, the Howling Commandos kidnap the last family Frank has to draw him into a trap. Frank will knock some heads off in the next one.

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it may not pack the punch of Volume 1, Punisher still knows how to keep things interesting. Watching Los Angeles slowly crumble under siege as Frank Castle makes his way back is a solid hook, and it’s fun seeing how the city’s falling apart around him. The chaos is great, but some of the obstacles Frank faces, like being constantly interrupted by groups and stuck somewhere for a issue, even including because of Black Widow, are a bit over the top. It’s almost like the writer hit the "stretch out the story" button to drag this into three arcs. It's both hilarious and a little bit of a drag at times, kind of like watching someone almost make it to the finish line, only to be tripped up every step of the way.

But once Frank finally returns to LA, the pieces are in place for what could be an epic next volume. The stage is set for some serious payoff, so fingers crossed that the next chapter brings the heat we’ve been waiting for. This one is a solid 3/5

[Eric Butler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd say 3.5 but I rounded up. There is a drop from the first collection, but not by much. There was a section that stood out where the rough art - which I don't mind - seemed to manufacture some confusion between characters and took me out of the story. That said, overall the story is interesting, and once Frank gets back to L.A., I think it will get better.

This is classic style Punisher - not Ennis, but still good.

[Chris W · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dull. Doesn't feel like a true punisher story. Frank just gets beat up , tossed around and somehow gets by. I want this to be better but it has none of the elements that made Garth Ennis or Jason Aaron's run on punisher so great.

[David Dalton · Rating 4 out of 5]

These are some great Punisher stories. The Punisher in LA. Why not? Thanks to Comixology Unlimited I was able to read the first two Volumes in this series. CU just put the 3rd volume on sale and I just had to know the ending to this series of stories. So I just picked it up. Shaping up to be Die Hard in LA again.

I recently downloaded several issues of Punisher collections via CU and then picked up another 4 collections on sale. Got Punisher stories for a while.

[Des Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Edmondson write a convincing Punisher title, that while never living up to the highs of Ennis' work, feels more convincing in tone than his previous effort. We revisit Frank's military roots, with South American jungle combat, grounding the character in his origins, an aspect that was removed early in Edmondson's run with Franks relocation to L.A. A strong case is made for why we need the Punisher, and the messy threads of volume one start to finally twine together. The Black Widow crossover was small and non-intrusive, but nothing to write home about. Frank made his way to some unique locations, handling an interesting smattering of baddies, before finding his way back to L.A. We even got cameos from a couple of great characters in Castle's history.

Edmondson's take on the character is fun, with some amazing art in tow. Volume two ends on a note that guarantees I'll be coming back for number three.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good Punisher volume, but once again still the middle of the story. In this volume the Punisher battles Crossbones as well as a fight/team up with the Black Widow. I do like how these stories are placing the Punisher firmly in the middle of the Marvel Universe. The Punisher is still battling the cartel of the Dos Soles, who are attempting to combine every street gang in the US into one large army. The Howling Commandos are still on the Punisher's trail, but at this point we still arent sure why.

As with the last volume, if you are a fan of the Punisher, you will enjoy this volume.

[Jordan Lahn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving this gritty, spec ops Punisher. Great take on the character.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good Punisher story here.

[Daniel Sepúlveda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best Comics of the moment!

[TJ Shelby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Punisher to the rescue in Los Angeles.

[Lionel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a typical Punsiher story, nothing exceptionnal, but i just love it. And come on, can you make it more badass than the last image ???

[Michael Emond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still enjoying this series...as a bit of a warning I did not enjoy the last volume as much as the first two.

Mitch Gerads are is still not the Mitch we know and love of today and there are some clarity issues of story telling when we get into fight scenes but overall the art is solid.

My favourite part of the story is The Punisher interacting with a fellow army guy trying to seek an extraction. Frank's interactions with other people who respect him are some of the best moments in this run.

My least favourite part was a Black Widow crossover shown from each character's POV. That was hugely unneeded and unsuccessful. Those "let's see it from different perspectives" only work if something new is revealed by the new POV. But really - you could read the Punisher's story and fill in all the blanks from the Black Widow story. Then they try to end on one of those "we tricked you" cuts where Black Widow is holding a gun to Frank's head and next we see him in prison. Oh ho!! She put him in prison - we are supposed to think. But - as was pretty obvious - the cut happened just before she said "I need to plant you in prison to get a guy in there". It is lazy writing because in reality holding the gun to his head makes no sense and is ONLY done to fool a reader.

We end on a cliffhanger with Frank going after the Howling Commandos who are holding a sister I didn't know he had hostage with her CHILDREN!!! and husband. In case you didn't read volume one - the Howling Commandos are the good guys working for the government and they kidnap Americans to get Frank out in the open. Um...wow. Moments like this really stretch my credulity and this is a super hero book where having a man fly doesn't make me blink twice.

[Krzysztof Grabowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Album zawiera zeszyty z: The Punisher 7-12 (2014) & Black Widow 9 (2014).

Punisher to jednostka która nigdy nie ma łatwo, ale wszyscy grabarze świata mogą mu uścisnąć dłoń, bo stałe im zapewnia pracę. Jednocześnie dziwię się, że w świecie Marvela ktokolwiek chce być złoczyńca trzeciego i dalszego sortu, bo to oznacza zazwyczaj brutalną śmierć. Tym bardziej, jeżeli ma się do czynienia z Frankiem.

Po serii Punisher MAX moja sympatia do postaci pozostaje na wysokim poziomie. Jak się okazuje ta seria też nie jest wcale taka zła, choć nie udaje się tu uniknąć pewnych klisz gatunkowych. Poprzednio Castle dostał strzała ze strzelby na klatę. Został dzięki temu pojmany przez ludzi na których polował. Więziony i torturowany ma zostać przejęty przez samego Crossbonesa. Na miejscu znajduje się jednak dobra dusza, z którą Frank łączy siły. Zaczyna się regularna bitka.

Mamy też niedługo potem mały crossover z Czarną Wdową, który przedstawia akcje na pewnym statku i jest to soczysty kawał dobrej akcji, tak wizualnie jak i pod względem sieczki. Zaraz potem Frank ląduje w... więzieniu. Tam musi się mieć na baczności, bo z racji jego "sławy" ini więźniowie raczej nie darzą go sympatią. Ale w tym szaleństwie też jest metoda.

Końcówka to powrót do Ameryki i fala przemocy jaka rozlewa się bodajże po Los Angeles. Powraca znajomy gang, więc i Castle będzie musiał włożyć do akcji trochę serca i ołowiu. Szakal nadal rządzi. Warto też zerknąć co się dzieje w głowie panny Stone, która rośnie nam tu na godną następczynię antybohatera.

Pod względem kreski jest naprawdę fajnie. Miałbym zastrzeżenia do kilku pomysłów, bo widok z góry był okropny. Kreska bywa też czasami monotonna, ale akcja wynagradza wszelkie braki. Drugi tom przygód Franka w ramach Marvel NOW uznaje zatem za udaną operację.

[I DRM Free · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this volume, Castle is wounded and dying in South America. He finds a cartel doctor who patches him up, but also sells him out to the highest bidder. And then he is sold, again and again and again for even higher prices. Finally he ends up in a small drug cartels compound waiting to be picked up by another buyer. When he is thrown into the jail there is an American soldier who had been captured the day before. Together they work together to escape.

Eventually Castle ends up on a ship in the middle of the Pacific, when Black Widow shows up and frees him. But then she sells him out and drops him off in a South American jail.

In the meantime Dos Soles older brother has returned to LA and LA is in Anarchy. Officer Stone is put on official leave and she decides to return justice to the streets Punisher style.

The city of LA is burning to the ground with rampant crime literally rampaging through the streets when The Punisher returns, and he marks his return in a fantastic way.

This is an EXCELLENT series of comics. If you at all like action then READ The Punisher! Unfortunately it has DRM, so -1.

[Gauthier · Rating 4 out of 5]

After being nearly killed by a mysterious trio of professional soldiers, the Punisher goes under the radar, but as he is wounded, he is handed over to a local South American gang. After managing to escape guns blazing, he eventually ends up in a prison where he hopes to obtain some answers. In pure Punisher fashion, he causes a riot to facilitate his escape and finally finds his way back to LA, which became a war zone in his absence. Now that the Punisher is back, the party is over.

An excellent continuation of the 1st volume where the presence of other superheroes is at the bare minimum and leaves the reader to enjoy the Punisher fighting his way through his enemies. Frank is still as unperturbed as ever, and his enemies keep paying an expensive price. Contrary to what one might believe, he has more friends than one would expect, and this is crucial for him to wage his war. The end finishes on a pretty badass scene that makes the reader sigh in relief just as LA's inhabitants must have. Truly an enjoyable read and one of the better Punisher stories I've read so far.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Title: The Punisher Vol. 2: Border Crossing
Author: Nathan Edmondson
Series: The Punisher (2014), 2
Format: ebook
Length: N/A
Rating: 3 stars

Synopsis: American soldiers are being held by a South American drug lord, when a new prisoner arrives: Frank Castle! But not all is as it seems on either side of the bars, and now a wounded Frank and a Special Forces medic must hazard dangerous terrain and merciless mercenaries to escape! Then, the Punisher finds himself fighting alongside — or against? — Black Widow for access to a deadly criminal network. But can either survive being trapped on an abandoned oil rig with Crossbones and his Skull Squad? And back in Los Angeles, a new crimelord with a personal vendetta against Frank Castle has arisen — and the Howling Commandos set their sights on Frank! Can the Punisher save his adopted home?

Favourite character: Frank
Least favourite character: Crossbones

Mini-review: Not as good as the first one but I still enjoyed it. There was a brief Fantastic Four cameo where Reed, Ben and Sue look like their 2015 movie counterparts (Miles Teller, Jamie Bell and Kate Mara). I can't wait to read the next volume.

[Amy Braun · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great, action packed follow-up to "Black and White," which features Frank Castle crossing paths with all kinds of baddies like Crossbones and goodies like Black Widow. Fantastic action scenes, great artwork, and some killer lines. Crossbones aside, I didn't really care about the villains, but this was an entertaining read nonetheless!

[Glen Pettifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok...

This was the second of a three book series, I thought the first was better.
Art was questionably ok, storyline was ok too. It wasn't an easy out down and pick up whenever read like some I've read but it was ok.
Worth it to read a bit of Punished if you've never read the character basis before. But just ok.

[Angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Punisher is wounded and in hiding after the events of the first graphic novel. He runs into Black Widow and ends up being in prison. An okay story where the Punisher does what he does best, get bad guys. His team up with a military person was touching. A good read.

[DOUGLAS J BERRY · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slow moving story

I like the plot. Two of the issues are repetitive, told from black widow and then the punisher s viewpoint. The story is about a nasty drug war. Some wars the punisher seems to fight over and over again.