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The Punisher by Greg Rucka
The Punisher, Vol. 1
Collects The Punisher #1-5 + Punisher story from Spider-Island: I Love New York City. The biggest gun of all is back with blood on his hands and vengeance in his eyes to serve his own brand of justice with everything's he's got - but can the Punisher survive the darkness stored in his own arsenal? Plus: a violent look at how the Punisher deals with a world where every criminal is now a super hero.
129 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 14, 2012
About the author
Greg Rucka
1,511 books1,939 followersGreg Rucka, is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews
December 13, 2018
A grim Punisher reboot (Frank fought in Middle East instead of 'Nam because of comics characters aging issues) after the sci-fi/horror Franken-Castle storyline.
I was expecting something more from the storyline and sexy marine (Really???) Rachel Cole-Alves is obviously going to be another Lady Punisher after 90s Lynn Michaels' one, but I always been a fan of Checchetto's art and some shocking scenes that were never going to be published in the Comics Code Authority Age of Comics, together with the hilarious Spider-Island tale in the end, just made my day.
March 1, 2020
"Let me ask you a question, Norah: Is there a story here, one you need to report?"
"Yeah, there's a story here. A big story, maybe."
"Not every truth we learn is a story, Norah. Not every story needs to be told. Back when I was on the beat, I learned a secret. A big one, one about a costume. The kind of story that, had I broken it, would've made me famous. Would've made me rich."
"And being that you're neither..."
"Never told a soul what I knew. To this day."
"Why not?"
"Because the only person it would have served is me. And that's the litmus test, Norah. You tell what you know, who are you serving? The public... or yourself?"
I also liked this:
"Just because you don't weep for the people he kills, Detective, doesn't make Castle a hero."
A Marine's whole wedding is slaughtered and she, the bride, is the only survivor. Needless to say, she and Castle have a lot in common.
I like the way this set of comics is laid out. I like the set up. I like the artwork. I like the interrogation of Bolt taking credit for Punisher's kills and him feeding Punisher information.
I like Norah and her subplot in all this.
It's weird that the bad guys hire Vulture to murder Castle, but I guess the weird thing actually is that this doesn't happen more frequently.
Castle saying "Five by five" like he's Faith Lehane cracks me up, even though I know the term predates her by a few decades. :D
Weird ending comic about how lots of people in NYC end up with Spiderman's powers.
TL;DR Actually this is pretty good. Even the kid subplot didn't annoy me, and that's difficult to do. Nice art, nice set-up.
"Yeah, there's a story here. A big story, maybe."
"Not every truth we learn is a story, Norah. Not every story needs to be told. Back when I was on the beat, I learned a secret. A big one, one about a costume. The kind of story that, had I broken it, would've made me famous. Would've made me rich."
"And being that you're neither..."
"Never told a soul what I knew. To this day."
"Why not?"
"Because the only person it would have served is me. And that's the litmus test, Norah. You tell what you know, who are you serving? The public... or yourself?"
I also liked this:
"Just because you don't weep for the people he kills, Detective, doesn't make Castle a hero."
A Marine's whole wedding is slaughtered and she, the bride, is the only survivor. Needless to say, she and Castle have a lot in common.
I like the way this set of comics is laid out. I like the set up. I like the artwork. I like the interrogation of Bolt taking credit for Punisher's kills and him feeding Punisher information.
I like Norah and her subplot in all this.
It's weird that the bad guys hire Vulture to murder Castle, but I guess the weird thing actually is that this doesn't happen more frequently.
Castle saying "Five by five" like he's Faith Lehane cracks me up, even though I know the term predates her by a few decades. :D
Weird ending comic about how lots of people in NYC end up with Spiderman's powers.
TL;DR Actually this is pretty good. Even the kid subplot didn't annoy me, and that's difficult to do. Nice art, nice set-up.
June 14, 2018
"Frank Castle died with his family. Now, he simply is the Punisher. And the war goes on . . ."
Fast-moving ensemble story (our titular character is more of a supporting player in this one) with two NYPD investigators - who, at least early on, appear to be intentionally illustrated to resemble Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt in the film Seven - working a wedding massacre quagmire. While the volume did not always feel substantial there were good scenes, such as the hired-gun villain literally swooping in to ambush The Punisher and their resulting brawl in the night skies over the Bronx. Another plus was a cameo from grizzled but sage Daily Bugle reporter / editor Ben Urich.
Fast-moving ensemble story (our titular character is more of a supporting player in this one) with two NYPD investigators - who, at least early on, appear to be intentionally illustrated to resemble Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt in the film Seven - working a wedding massacre quagmire. While the volume did not always feel substantial there were good scenes, such as the hired-gun villain literally swooping in to ambush The Punisher and their resulting brawl in the night skies over the Bronx. Another plus was a cameo from grizzled but sage Daily Bugle reporter / editor Ben Urich.
June 1, 2019
The Punisher can be written really bad sometimes...but this is Greg Rucka. So we get the opposite here.
Actually, Rucka decides to try a new spin on things. Instead of focusing on Punisher himself he gives more of the book time on the cops and law enforcement as well as regular people view point on events including the Punisher. It gives the Punisher the more "grand" mythos you hear from bad guys but it's a nice twist here. Seeing the Punisher in action without the Max title and it's still pretty damn brutal. Also, Punisher goes toe to toe with the NEW Vulture and...damn what a fight.
The brutality you'd expect from a Punisher title is all here. The art gives Punisher a more anime look but it somehow still works here. The fights are great, the pacing is wonderful, nothing feels slow or boring which is really nice. The only negative I really thought was the start felt disconnected from the Punisher at first and takes a bit to warm up to.
Overall, Greg does his thing. A awesome crime story with different angles to keep everything fresh. A 4 out of 5.
Actually, Rucka decides to try a new spin on things. Instead of focusing on Punisher himself he gives more of the book time on the cops and law enforcement as well as regular people view point on events including the Punisher. It gives the Punisher the more "grand" mythos you hear from bad guys but it's a nice twist here. Seeing the Punisher in action without the Max title and it's still pretty damn brutal. Also, Punisher goes toe to toe with the NEW Vulture and...damn what a fight.
The brutality you'd expect from a Punisher title is all here. The art gives Punisher a more anime look but it somehow still works here. The fights are great, the pacing is wonderful, nothing feels slow or boring which is really nice. The only negative I really thought was the start felt disconnected from the Punisher at first and takes a bit to warm up to.
Overall, Greg does his thing. A awesome crime story with different angles to keep everything fresh. A 4 out of 5.
July 5, 2014
I wasn't sure about this series. I loved the first movie and hated the second (I'm totally excluding the very first movie with Dolph Lundgren, which was execrable), and I am not 100% sold on the idea of the Punisher. I like some vigilantes, such as Batman and Daredevil. I can understand what drives them to use force and violence in the cause of justice. In the case of the Punisher, his justice is very final and brutal. He doesn't kill innocent people, but if you're a violent criminal, you're fair game.
I decided to give this a try because I have read other work by Greg Rucka, and I figured this character would be in good hands with him. My conclusion is that I was right that he would do a good job with Castle.
Castle's motivations are completely understandable, and he doesn't come off as a sociopath or someone who has parted entirely with morality. Instead he is a fatal solution to the devastating disease of crime. With criminals of the sort in this book, I think Castle is probably necessary. I'm not saying I condone lethal violence in real life, so let me make that clear.
This story arc features a young bride whose entire wedding party (including her husband) were murdered. She survived and has to deal with the aftermath of losing everyone. Castle goes on the hunt for all the men who committed the savage mass murder. The survivor turns out to lead to a cabal of organized criminals who are even worse. They know the Punisher is on their trail and he won't stop until he's Punished them all. They take some measures to see that he is unable to get his work done, but they have underestimated how determined the Punisher is to 'punish' criminals, like the ones who savagely murdered his innocent family.
The artwork is good. While the imagery is violent, it's not over-the-top and too graphic. The movie Punisher: War Zone is an example of how excessive violence can be depicted in the wrong way, and stands in sharp contrast to the first movie, which was also violent, but certainly not shlocky about it. The artist has a way of capturing motion in an extremely vivid way that feels real time. The depiction of the wedding massacre was done in a way that was transmitted the horror of the situation without being gratuitous or exploitative. I liked that particularly violent scenes are given soft focus. While there was some gory imagery, it wasn't over the top.
I like the look of the Punisher. His spray-painted shirt and his slightly flyaway black hair. The rocklike expression that reveals little and inspires fear in his prey. It takes talent to depict a character like the Punisher without him appearing wooden. Instead, his face is a mask that hides so much emotion and thought, but most of all, sheer, adamant determination.
I'm glad I gave this series a chance. I really liked this book and plan to read more by Rucka. I'm not sure I'm ready for Ennis' incarnation, but we'll see.
I decided to give this a try because I have read other work by Greg Rucka, and I figured this character would be in good hands with him. My conclusion is that I was right that he would do a good job with Castle.
Castle's motivations are completely understandable, and he doesn't come off as a sociopath or someone who has parted entirely with morality. Instead he is a fatal solution to the devastating disease of crime. With criminals of the sort in this book, I think Castle is probably necessary. I'm not saying I condone lethal violence in real life, so let me make that clear.
This story arc features a young bride whose entire wedding party (including her husband) were murdered. She survived and has to deal with the aftermath of losing everyone. Castle goes on the hunt for all the men who committed the savage mass murder. The survivor turns out to lead to a cabal of organized criminals who are even worse. They know the Punisher is on their trail and he won't stop until he's Punished them all. They take some measures to see that he is unable to get his work done, but they have underestimated how determined the Punisher is to 'punish' criminals, like the ones who savagely murdered his innocent family.
The artwork is good. While the imagery is violent, it's not over-the-top and too graphic. The movie Punisher: War Zone is an example of how excessive violence can be depicted in the wrong way, and stands in sharp contrast to the first movie, which was also violent, but certainly not shlocky about it. The artist has a way of capturing motion in an extremely vivid way that feels real time. The depiction of the wedding massacre was done in a way that was transmitted the horror of the situation without being gratuitous or exploitative. I liked that particularly violent scenes are given soft focus. While there was some gory imagery, it wasn't over the top.
I like the look of the Punisher. His spray-painted shirt and his slightly flyaway black hair. The rocklike expression that reveals little and inspires fear in his prey. It takes talent to depict a character like the Punisher without him appearing wooden. Instead, his face is a mask that hides so much emotion and thought, but most of all, sheer, adamant determination.
I'm glad I gave this series a chance. I really liked this book and plan to read more by Rucka. I'm not sure I'm ready for Ennis' incarnation, but we'll see.
September 23, 2012
With Jason Aaron’s fantastic ending to the old Punisher, Greg Rucka steps in to reboot the character for the new Marvel Universe. In this version, Frank Castle is no longer a Vietnam vet but a vet of a war (the conflict is never specified so as not to age him - he looks about 30 though) - other than this, the rest of the Punisher origin story is untouched.
I can’t say I’m the biggest fan of Greg Rucka so I approached this book not expecting much - which turned out to be right as Rucka presents a very mild Punisher story. There is a massacre at a wedding whose culprits Frank begins to hunt down. Organized crime gets wind of Frank’s war against them and hires the Vulture (also rebooted - with a mohawk!) to take down the Punisher.
I think what I disliked the most about this story is how mundane it is. This is the first volume and yet for anyone whose first exposure to the Punisher is this book, there’s no sense of who the character is. There’s a brief paragraph at the start saying that because he lost his family to “random, savage violence” that he is now determined to “punish the wicked”, but it’s not enough. What’s his personality? All we see in this first book is an unstoppable killing machine. Rucka doesn’t do the work to establish who Frank Castle is so the reader doesn’t know nor care about him. And if you’ve read Punisher books before, this is a really forgettable one with no real challenge for Frank nor any new revelations.
There is a cool aerial knife battle between Frank and the Vulture but besides this, this is your template Punisher book. Garth Ennis’ run on the character remains the gold standard for the Punisher with Jason Aaron’s take coming in at a close second. Greg Rucka’s generic approach to the character is bland to say the least. The Punisher is a great character with the potential for incredible storylines; unfortunately, Rucka fails to find the heart of the character with this book.
I can’t say I’m the biggest fan of Greg Rucka so I approached this book not expecting much - which turned out to be right as Rucka presents a very mild Punisher story. There is a massacre at a wedding whose culprits Frank begins to hunt down. Organized crime gets wind of Frank’s war against them and hires the Vulture (also rebooted - with a mohawk!) to take down the Punisher.
I think what I disliked the most about this story is how mundane it is. This is the first volume and yet for anyone whose first exposure to the Punisher is this book, there’s no sense of who the character is. There’s a brief paragraph at the start saying that because he lost his family to “random, savage violence” that he is now determined to “punish the wicked”, but it’s not enough. What’s his personality? All we see in this first book is an unstoppable killing machine. Rucka doesn’t do the work to establish who Frank Castle is so the reader doesn’t know nor care about him. And if you’ve read Punisher books before, this is a really forgettable one with no real challenge for Frank nor any new revelations.
There is a cool aerial knife battle between Frank and the Vulture but besides this, this is your template Punisher book. Garth Ennis’ run on the character remains the gold standard for the Punisher with Jason Aaron’s take coming in at a close second. Greg Rucka’s generic approach to the character is bland to say the least. The Punisher is a great character with the potential for incredible storylines; unfortunately, Rucka fails to find the heart of the character with this book.
January 13, 2018
Fast read! Good story. Just expected more
June 26, 2016
So Greg Rucka does the Punisher. The Punisher is one of my favorite characters, thus I appreciate it when writers make him into a smart, ruthless, merciless killing machine. Rucka's Punisher does a good job on that account. While this is a "reboot" of sorts, Punisher fighting in the ME versus 'Nam, the main facet of what makes the Punisher the Punisher remains- the guilty must be punished.
Rucka's Punisher is well done. He is grim and a man of few words-in fact he says no more than a dozen throughout this volume and that's just fine. If I wanted to listen to a monologue by a superhero I'd read Spiderman. The Punisher takes on a crime syndicate that shot up a wedding. The action is violent and well done. He also goes toe to toe with some new Vulture character.
So why didn't I give it more than three stars? For one the artwork leaves something to be desired, at least to me. It's grainy and has that "looking through steam" style that makes things ill defined and washed out. It just doesn't do it for me-here's hoping someone else inks the later issues. The other complaint is Mr. Rucka do 5 or 10 seconds of research, PLEASE. (1) Marines are not, never have been and never will be soldiers. That is an Army term. It's offensive to those of us who served in the Corps. (2) The skinny hot "combat veteran" female Marine is a trite trope. If you insist on having a female Marine "combat" vet, then well..fine..it's 2016 how about a woman who doesn't look like a Victoria Secret's model who weighs all of 100 lbs soaking wet? (3) Get the uniforms correct..on our Dress Blues the rank insignia for Officers isn't on the collar...it's on the shoulder-tabs (4) Also the hot chick Marine who keeps answering to "Sgt" needs to stop since you showed her in her dress blues with a STAFF Sergeant rank (5) She served in a FET (Female Engagement Team). That is not a part of a MEF, but rather a Division asset assigned to the G2 (Intel). They are NOT a combat anything. Having worked with them in Iraq in real life, they are attached to Field Intel units to help in pat downs and interactions with Arab females-to avoid friction. The FETs I worked with were highly professional, very intelligent and incredibly valuable- but let's not turn them into Recon Marines just yet. (6) Why is Rucka spending so much time on the victim? Please tell me she isn't going to be a Miss Punisher. If she does return in vol 2 maybe uhhh she could do her JOB? You know- Intel? It's kinda sorta important- she can plan out logistics, assess vulnerabilities, set up egress plans, all sorts of valuable help..but apparently Mr. Rucka's imagination/knowledge can only imagine Bikini models with guns.
So we shall see where this goes...it's not bad...but not great. This is for Punisher fans, others may not think so highly of this series. But, I hold out hope that Mr. Rucka will avoid PC tropes and just tell a good story.
Rucka's Punisher is well done. He is grim and a man of few words-in fact he says no more than a dozen throughout this volume and that's just fine. If I wanted to listen to a monologue by a superhero I'd read Spiderman. The Punisher takes on a crime syndicate that shot up a wedding. The action is violent and well done. He also goes toe to toe with some new Vulture character.
So why didn't I give it more than three stars? For one the artwork leaves something to be desired, at least to me. It's grainy and has that "looking through steam" style that makes things ill defined and washed out. It just doesn't do it for me-here's hoping someone else inks the later issues. The other complaint is Mr. Rucka do 5 or 10 seconds of research, PLEASE. (1) Marines are not, never have been and never will be soldiers. That is an Army term. It's offensive to those of us who served in the Corps. (2) The skinny hot "combat veteran" female Marine is a trite trope. If you insist on having a female Marine "combat" vet, then well..fine..it's 2016 how about a woman who doesn't look like a Victoria Secret's model who weighs all of 100 lbs soaking wet? (3) Get the uniforms correct..on our Dress Blues the rank insignia for Officers isn't on the collar...it's on the shoulder-tabs (4) Also the hot chick Marine who keeps answering to "Sgt" needs to stop since you showed her in her dress blues with a STAFF Sergeant rank (5) She served in a FET (Female Engagement Team). That is not a part of a MEF, but rather a Division asset assigned to the G2 (Intel). They are NOT a combat anything. Having worked with them in Iraq in real life, they are attached to Field Intel units to help in pat downs and interactions with Arab females-to avoid friction. The FETs I worked with were highly professional, very intelligent and incredibly valuable- but let's not turn them into Recon Marines just yet. (6) Why is Rucka spending so much time on the victim? Please tell me she isn't going to be a Miss Punisher. If she does return in vol 2 maybe uhhh she could do her JOB? You know- Intel? It's kinda sorta important- she can plan out logistics, assess vulnerabilities, set up egress plans, all sorts of valuable help..but apparently Mr. Rucka's imagination/knowledge can only imagine Bikini models with guns.
So we shall see where this goes...it's not bad...but not great. This is for Punisher fans, others may not think so highly of this series. But, I hold out hope that Mr. Rucka will avoid PC tropes and just tell a good story.
April 29, 2026
Absolutely a great start. Brutal gun fights, Frank feeling like a boogie man, introducing a great cast of characters. Awesome art on top of it. Yeah this was Punisher at his best outside of Max.
December 23, 2012
Rucka instantly sets a mood - gritty, sparse, cryptic, rainy, bloody, heavy. No spare words - no spare emotions. More intense looks, less of the omniscient narrator that spoils a good tense mystery build-up.
Checchetto composes some amazing scenes and looks: evocative, nothing unnecessary, and the transitions seem cinematic. Using the comics medium to its greatest effect, Checchetto and Rucka present a vignette - an introduction - in the first issue that rivals some of the most thrilling, heart-pounding action movies I've ever seen.
(I have to call attention to the colour artist as well - Hollingsworth adds an incredible layer of depth, wash and dynamism to the scenes that he takes a great artist and makes him look amazing.)
Have you seen Thomas Jane's short fan-film of the Punisher online? Where he plays Frank caught in grubby violence he didn't want, even tries to avoid - but when it crosses his breaking point, he unleashes unholy fury on those bastards? Issue one feels like its conceptually reminiscent of that somehow - and I mean that in the best possible way.
The most surprising moment for me - and the place where Rucka stamps his piss-soaked signature on this version of Frank - is the second-to-last page of that issue. You'll know it when you see it - haven't seen that out of Frank in a dog's age, not even when Fraction was writing him.
I'm a big fan of this creative team - they stripped Frank down to a human - driven, highly skilled, morally ambiguous but very clearly human. And surrounded him with thick, rich, hard-to-reach but easy-to-understand characters. After so many notably superb runs on Punisher recently, it's gratifying to see more talent finding new ways to tell this tale.
Further, I find myself responding to this take on Frank in a way I could never with the higher-amped versions this follows. I can actually see myself as part of this universe - its not fan-fiction, aggrandising Frank to an unreachable but distantly-admirable/fearful degree, so I'm waving my fist in the air like I would at an 80's action movie. Instead it feels more like how Frank would seem in a warped approximation of real life, and I think as someone reading about this dude on Gawker or NYT.com, we'd know this much about him (or less) and end up obsessing over the details of the people that the press *would* have access to.
Checchetto composes some amazing scenes and looks: evocative, nothing unnecessary, and the transitions seem cinematic. Using the comics medium to its greatest effect, Checchetto and Rucka present a vignette - an introduction - in the first issue that rivals some of the most thrilling, heart-pounding action movies I've ever seen.
(I have to call attention to the colour artist as well - Hollingsworth adds an incredible layer of depth, wash and dynamism to the scenes that he takes a great artist and makes him look amazing.)
Have you seen Thomas Jane's short fan-film of the Punisher online? Where he plays Frank caught in grubby violence he didn't want, even tries to avoid - but when it crosses his breaking point, he unleashes unholy fury on those bastards? Issue one feels like its conceptually reminiscent of that somehow - and I mean that in the best possible way.
The most surprising moment for me - and the place where Rucka stamps his piss-soaked signature on this version of Frank - is the second-to-last page of that issue. You'll know it when you see it - haven't seen that out of Frank in a dog's age, not even when Fraction was writing him.
I'm a big fan of this creative team - they stripped Frank down to a human - driven, highly skilled, morally ambiguous but very clearly human. And surrounded him with thick, rich, hard-to-reach but easy-to-understand characters. After so many notably superb runs on Punisher recently, it's gratifying to see more talent finding new ways to tell this tale.
Further, I find myself responding to this take on Frank in a way I could never with the higher-amped versions this follows. I can actually see myself as part of this universe - its not fan-fiction, aggrandising Frank to an unreachable but distantly-admirable/fearful degree, so I'm waving my fist in the air like I would at an 80's action movie. Instead it feels more like how Frank would seem in a warped approximation of real life, and I think as someone reading about this dude on Gawker or NYT.com, we'd know this much about him (or less) and end up obsessing over the details of the people that the press *would* have access to.
January 3, 2019
I accidentally read volume 2 before volume 1, because the numbers weren't clearly visible in my Kindle app! Aaaand then I read them close on the heels of each other, so I'm just going to write a combined review for both.
In general, I've now fallen hard for Greg Rucka's run on The Punisher. I've only read Garth Ennis apart from this, from Ennis' more cartoony bonkers stuff in 2000, to his grimdark Punisher MAX in 2004-2009 -- and now Rucka takes on the mantle in 2011. And it is lovely. It's dark and sparse and emotional without being over-the-top; in a refreshing change of pace, the violence is actually more subdued and less in-your-face. It pulls back from Frank and centers the narrative perspective on the NYPD nipping at his heels instead -- and, perhaps most refreshingly of all, on the POV of a female Marine named Rachel Cole-Alves, who endured a personal tragedy like Frank's and is starting to go down the same path he did. Their meeting in volume 2 is such a fascinating meeting of like-minds, and that immediate partnership is, predictably, my new platonic OTP. (But I absolutely ship Rachel/Norah Winters ty leave me alone)
The artwork is gorgeous, too: it's not afraid to be silent, to sometimes communicate largely through imagery alone. I can't wait to read volume 3.
I also already flailed at Jaci about this (hi), but imo the most subtly telling detail between Ennis and Rucka's takes on the Punisher is this: Ennis' version killed the mafia's guard dogs. In a similar situation, Rucka's version tranked them with dosed meat.
It is a really important detail for me. My version of Frank wOULD NEVER shoot the dogs. ♥
In general, I've now fallen hard for Greg Rucka's run on The Punisher. I've only read Garth Ennis apart from this, from Ennis' more cartoony bonkers stuff in 2000, to his grimdark Punisher MAX in 2004-2009 -- and now Rucka takes on the mantle in 2011. And it is lovely. It's dark and sparse and emotional without being over-the-top; in a refreshing change of pace, the violence is actually more subdued and less in-your-face. It pulls back from Frank and centers the narrative perspective on the NYPD nipping at his heels instead -- and, perhaps most refreshingly of all, on the POV of a female Marine named Rachel Cole-Alves, who endured a personal tragedy like Frank's and is starting to go down the same path he did. Their meeting in volume 2 is such a fascinating meeting of like-minds, and that immediate partnership is, predictably, my new platonic OTP. (But I absolutely ship Rachel/Norah Winters ty leave me alone)
The artwork is gorgeous, too: it's not afraid to be silent, to sometimes communicate largely through imagery alone. I can't wait to read volume 3.
I also already flailed at Jaci about this (hi), but imo the most subtly telling detail between Ennis and Rucka's takes on the Punisher is this: Ennis' version killed the mafia's guard dogs. In a similar situation, Rucka's version tranked them with dosed meat.
It is a really important detail for me. My version of Frank wOULD NEVER shoot the dogs. ♥
January 29, 2019
I'm back on the Greg-Rucka-train! This time focusing on The Punisher.💀
This reads like a detective story: Punisher rarely shows up. The art on the other hand, is excellent!
February 9, 2017
Your basic Punisher story wrapped up with a new creative team.
Innocents shot at a wedding. Punisher comes. Punisher kills.
Actually, Frank Castle is so monolithic in T-800 mode that the rest of the cast shines all the better, even though they still have to be developed: the pair of detectives, one of them being a snitch for Castle and the upstart blonde journalist in a Urich/Daredevil situation. Nothing too original but it can do the trick if played correctly in next volumes.
Another POI would be the Vulture, one short-lived ugly mofo, with whom Castle fight an impressive aerial battle.
I just hope our main character will develop some personality soon. The unstoppable mute killing machine act might rapidly wear down on me.
Innocents shot at a wedding. Punisher comes. Punisher kills.
Actually, Frank Castle is so monolithic in T-800 mode that the rest of the cast shines all the better, even though they still have to be developed: the pair of detectives, one of them being a snitch for Castle and the upstart blonde journalist in a Urich/Daredevil situation. Nothing too original but it can do the trick if played correctly in next volumes.
Another POI would be the Vulture, one short-lived ugly mofo, with whom Castle fight an impressive aerial battle.
I just hope our main character will develop some personality soon. The unstoppable mute killing machine act might rapidly wear down on me.
February 1, 2013
I'd heard mixed things about this. But I wanted to check it out to try some of Rucka's work, since I'm not that familiar. I also like crime comics, which is what this is, basically.
Punisher is almost a background character. It's more about his presence in the world rather than him being front and centre on the panel. For the first issue he doesn't even talk. It's a take that some people won't like. But I always appreciate writers trying to do something new with Marvel characters.
The story opens with a shooting at a wedding. We letter learn that the wedding is for a former marine. Rucka is mirroring Castles origin for this new character (who I think becomes a literal Lady Punisher in the next arc). There's a lot of panels that don't feature dialogue or captions. This gives artist Marco Checcehetto a chance to tell the story through visuals alone, and it really works. His art throughout the entire arc is great.
I'm not well versed in Punisher comics, so I don't know how this book works in comparison with some of the higher regarded stuff, but it works in and of itself. It's accessible for new readers and its good crime comics set in the marvel universe.
Punisher is almost a background character. It's more about his presence in the world rather than him being front and centre on the panel. For the first issue he doesn't even talk. It's a take that some people won't like. But I always appreciate writers trying to do something new with Marvel characters.
The story opens with a shooting at a wedding. We letter learn that the wedding is for a former marine. Rucka is mirroring Castles origin for this new character (who I think becomes a literal Lady Punisher in the next arc). There's a lot of panels that don't feature dialogue or captions. This gives artist Marco Checcehetto a chance to tell the story through visuals alone, and it really works. His art throughout the entire arc is great.
I'm not well versed in Punisher comics, so I don't know how this book works in comparison with some of the higher regarded stuff, but it works in and of itself. It's accessible for new readers and its good crime comics set in the marvel universe.
April 9, 2012
Greg Rucka, I love you. Man can't write a book worth a damn, but puts his hand on a comic script and becomes Raymond Chandler. Just like Mark Waid on Daredevil, Rucka is bringing the Punisher up out of the zany, silly, slapstick corner that other writers painted him into. A complete revamp of the character and series by Rucka could make this one of the best books Marvel has to offer. Especially with the way their top writers like Bendis and Aaron like to go overboard on their books, its nice to see that the non-powers are back in character.
As for the art- it is flawless. Perfectly fluid motion, cinematic paneling, perfect inks. Checchetto is a treasure. Where the hell has this man been?
Writing and Art Grade: A
As for the art- it is flawless. Perfectly fluid motion, cinematic paneling, perfect inks. Checchetto is a treasure. Where the hell has this man been?
Writing and Art Grade: A
July 28, 2012
The skull on Frank Castle's iconic tee is now a melting hominid -- braincase minus mandible as always, but melancholy, proto-human, threatening. In earlier Punisher comics you figured he found a skull shirt in a sewer, but here it's like he designed it from scratch -- it's the only concession to a putative inner life you get in this reboot. And therein lies Rucka's charm. In the past, we always endured some attempt to make the Punisher a fellow human, from his ambiguous origin story to PTSD escape clauses to getting beat down by the endlessly likeable Barracuda. Here, Rucka sticks by him as a psychopathic life force on the side of the good guys. Prey, revenger, medical miracle, and clumsy asshole all wrapped up in a kick-ass t-shirt.
December 8, 2022
review for full series at https://amanjareads.com/2022/12/06/th...
May 24, 2017
Read in the comics: Rucka adds to the cast. This artist is quite good. Matt Hollingsworth's color art adds quite a bit. But, it's still the Punisher...
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December 15, 2023Tão intenso, o Punisher...
Não admira que o Pancrácio o leia em barda (e ande numa espiral assassina, espalhando horror entre pequenos roedores e passeriformes).
Não admira que o Pancrácio o leia em barda (e ande numa espiral assassina, espalhando horror entre pequenos roedores e passeriformes).
October 31, 2015
Punisher always works best as the strong, silent type. A pastiche of the best 70s action anti-heroes.
Writer Greg Rucka and artist Marco Checchetto get this and take it a step further, dropping the inner monologue found in most Punisher stories and presenting the revenge-fueled Frank Castle as a supporting character in his own book.
Can you imagine Paul Kersey or Dirty Hero as background characters in their own stories? Well, Rucka and Checchetto make it work with Castle. Likely they realized that Punisher can't grow or change, so they focus on developing the people around him.
Through the eyes of characters like reporter Norah Winters (a highlight of the “Brand New Day” era Spider-Man titles), Oscar Clemons and Walter Bolt of the NYPD, former SHIELD agent Christian and Rachel Cole
Sorry, Rachel Alves, a bride who witnesses the death of her husband on family on their wedding day, we see just how chilling it is having someone like Punisher out there.
Rucka and Checchetto also give this story an almost horror vibe, with Punisher appearing as a shadowy force of nature with just as much in common with the ever pervasive Michael Myers and Jason... to his victims. If David Fincher directed a straight horror film, this would it.
The writing is great, which should come to no surprise to readers of Rucka’s crime-fueled books like Gotham Central and Queen and Country. But it’s Checchetto’s dark and moody art which really carries this book, with Rucka trusting his partner to carry much of the wordless action.
I’d rank this run right below the Garth Ennis take, which is pretty high praise.
kit: Twitter | Tumblr
Writer Greg Rucka and artist Marco Checchetto get this and take it a step further, dropping the inner monologue found in most Punisher stories and presenting the revenge-fueled Frank Castle as a supporting character in his own book.
Can you imagine Paul Kersey or Dirty Hero as background characters in their own stories? Well, Rucka and Checchetto make it work with Castle. Likely they realized that Punisher can't grow or change, so they focus on developing the people around him.
Through the eyes of characters like reporter Norah Winters (a highlight of the “Brand New Day” era Spider-Man titles), Oscar Clemons and Walter Bolt of the NYPD, former SHIELD agent Christian and Rachel Cole
Sorry, Rachel Alves, a bride who witnesses the death of her husband on family on their wedding day, we see just how chilling it is having someone like Punisher out there.
Rucka and Checchetto also give this story an almost horror vibe, with Punisher appearing as a shadowy force of nature with just as much in common with the ever pervasive Michael Myers and Jason... to his victims. If David Fincher directed a straight horror film, this would it.
The writing is great, which should come to no surprise to readers of Rucka’s crime-fueled books like Gotham Central and Queen and Country. But it’s Checchetto’s dark and moody art which really carries this book, with Rucka trusting his partner to carry much of the wordless action.
I’d rank this run right below the Garth Ennis take, which is pretty high praise.
kit: Twitter | Tumblr
January 22, 2014
For me, same as many others, Ennis' Punisher is the definitive version of the character. I've had a hard time diving into the 616 version of the character, but being a serious Rucka fan, I figured it was time to take the plunge. This volume is written smartly, focusing on a main cast entirely apart from Frank, as his return rocks the NYPD and the local news. Checchetto's art is a sort of MacFarlane inspired Eastern affair at times, creating a different look for Frank than we may be used to, but his action is perfectly fluid, and his story-telling is as expert as Rucka's. The two synchronize perfectly to deliver an impressively human narrative, just as a Punisher book should. It's odd to see Frank tangle with supervillians, but the book is not handled gingerly just because it's not on the MAX line. The script is clever, the cast is diverse and interesting, and Hollingsworth's colors are always on point. If you have any interest in the character, don't let the lack of a MAX label scare you off.
May 27, 2026
I’ve read few Punisher comics not written by Garth Ennis, but I’d heard Rucka’s run was worth checking out. After this first book, I agree. This is basically a noir/crime story like much of Rucka’s work. There’s a wedding massacre and mob vengeance, while we mainly follow two detectives (and a journalist) on the trail. As for Frank, Rucka doesn’t use narration. Instead, Frank is a supporting character. We see him upfront, but more often he’s a looming presence in the shadows, a very real threat who lets his guns do the talking. That could be a negative, I suppose, that the Punisher is more force of nature than character. But he beings to gain depth by the end. Also, the storytelling is somewhat fragmented, which I can chalk up to this being the first part of the story.
In the end, these issues are well-written, and Rucka sets up interesting relationships between the characters. Also, he knows when to step away and let the art tell the story. There are several silent (or near-silent) pages here that are very effective.
In the end, these issues are well-written, and Rucka sets up interesting relationships between the characters. Also, he knows when to step away and let the art tell the story. There are several silent (or near-silent) pages here that are very effective.
September 28, 2020
I just downgraded this from 3 stars to 2. Because apparently I read this about 7 years ago, and I have ZERO memory of it. Nothing about it felt familiar when I was reading it, and it's only when I came to goodreads to slap some stars on it that I realized I'd read it before.
That's really all you need to know about this one. It's nothing awful, but it's pretty standard Punisher shit, pretty forgettable. Mob stuff, Punisher punishes, Punisher goes up against a C-level supervillain who tries to kill him in a pretty typical way. A wide-eyed kid dispenses some kid wisdom.
Maybe the later volumes are better and this builds to something more memorable. But I guess I wasn't motivated to find out 7 years ago, and while my body has aged and betrayed me in so many ways, so, so many ways in the last 7 years, my interest in this series has gone unchanged.
That's really all you need to know about this one. It's nothing awful, but it's pretty standard Punisher shit, pretty forgettable. Mob stuff, Punisher punishes, Punisher goes up against a C-level supervillain who tries to kill him in a pretty typical way. A wide-eyed kid dispenses some kid wisdom.
Maybe the later volumes are better and this builds to something more memorable. But I guess I wasn't motivated to find out 7 years ago, and while my body has aged and betrayed me in so many ways, so, so many ways in the last 7 years, my interest in this series has gone unchanged.
July 18, 2013
Greg Rucka is a great crimewriter - as evidenced by the fantastic Gotham Central series; The Punisher is a great crime character/world to write about. This is a fantastic match. The first Volume collects the new intro of the Punisher, this time as a combat vet, not specifically a Vietnam Vet. It also focuses more on what the Punsher's actions do and cause than on the man himself. It's a good look at it, and I enjoyed the book and the way Frank doesn't look 50yrs old anymore, but I think the next Volume has potential to be even better.
The fight scene between Punisher and the Vulture is fantastic.
Well worth a read.
The fight scene between Punisher and the Vulture is fantastic.
Well worth a read.
August 13, 2014
Read this for work when it first came out; still hasn't grown on me. I mean, I love Rucka, but his version of the Punisher is so shallow and bland that I can't help but be pulled out of the story by the inconsistent bits. (Maybe this isn't the book to show off how much you love the Chevy SS.) If this was only about Alves and Winters? Four stars. But this isn't my Frank.
October 5, 2017
Now for some actually good Punisher! Overall I liked the art, although it was at times difficult to figure out the action scenes, and some characters looked too alike (and he has one character, an old detective that is clearly traced from shots of Morgan Freeman in Seven). Not much actually happened in this volume, its all a bunch of setup. But that's ok, mostly because I know where its going, having read the one issue crossover that this series had with Mark Waid's Daredevil. Where this story really stood out is exactly what I was hoping for/expecting: side female characters. Greg Rucka always manages to insert some badass lady cop or agent or reporter into his stories ostensibly about a male hero. And Punisher is no exception. I can't wait for the widowed bride character to start coming into her own. Plus, a great scene with a little boy of color talking to the Punisher about his parents being away in the military. I have high hopes for the rest of this series.
June 30, 2020
The Punisher is great, but this isn't his best incarnation.
The vulture is a terribly lame assassin. He scoops up his targets and drops them to their deaths. one would think with that MO he would be adept at getting people to let go, but the Punisher climbs him like a ladder and stabs him to death.
The idea of a female Frank Castle, clearly being set up in the sole survivor of a wedding massacre, could be interesting, but I don't know what a gender bent Punisher does for the world. I think that an African American incarnation would be more interesting.
The vulture is a terribly lame assassin. He scoops up his targets and drops them to their deaths. one would think with that MO he would be adept at getting people to let go, but the Punisher climbs him like a ladder and stabs him to death.
The idea of a female Frank Castle, clearly being set up in the sole survivor of a wedding massacre, could be interesting, but I don't know what a gender bent Punisher does for the world. I think that an African American incarnation would be more interesting.
May 23, 2023
Greg Rucka's run on The Punisher is on par with the Garth Ennis. It's not as "edgy", visually gory, or over the top. It's just a solid action story about Frank Castle vs the criminals of New York.
I'm reading this because it feeds into the Daredevil Omega Drive story, but even on its own, this is a solid fun read that requires only the most basic knowledge of The Punisher.
I'm reading this because it feeds into the Daredevil Omega Drive story, but even on its own, this is a solid fun read that requires only the most basic knowledge of The Punisher.
April 17, 2020
Svižná akční rasírna jak jsme zvyklí, jen Punisher je tady spíše za mocnou sílu v zákulisí, po které zůstávají všeříkající stopy. Záznamy svědků, kteří byli přítomni a přežili to. Rucka sází na civilní přístup a to je dobře. Kresba je čistokrevný mainstream, osobně mám raději Castla starého a nevrlého, ale může být. Bonus s vražděním Spidermanů potěší.
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