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The Punisher MAX: The Complete Collection
The Punisher MAX: The Complete Collection, Vol. 2
Nick Fury has a dangerous mission for the break into a Siberian nuclear missile silo and steal a lethal retrovirus. But Castle soon sets off a chain reaction that will bring him into conflict with a ruthless Russian general - and take the world to the brink of war. Then, mobster Nicky Cavella returns to plague the Punisher. But when his scheme unleashes a wave of violence that rocks New York to its core, other predators emerge from the darkness. Finally, the Punisher targets a human-trafficking operation that supplies kidnapped girls to brothels. Veterans of Eastern Europe's ethnic genocide, the cruel slavers are a quarry unlike any Castle has hunted before. They're ready to go to war to protect what's theirs - but they'll soon find out exactly what war with the Punisher means. Collecting PUNISHER (2004) #13-30.
440 pages, Paperback
First published April 5, 2016
78 people are currently reading
387 people want to read
About the author
Garth Ennis
2,622 books3,172 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 70 reviews
July 1, 2021
This starts with the pretty good 'The Punisher MAX, Vol. 3: Mother Russia', then 'The Punisher MAX, Vol. 4: Up is Down and Black is White' with the return of the Mafia and then the superb 'The Punisher MAX, Vol. 5: The Slavers' where Garth Ennis takes a hard cold look at white slavery and police corruption. The series at the moment seems to have peaks and troughs, with more peaks as it progresses. 8 out of 12.
I read the online comic books Punisher MAX #13-30.
I read the online comic books Punisher MAX #13-30.
February 19, 2018
This continues Garth Ennis's famous run on The Punisher, and saying he stepped his game up in this one is an understatement. I enjoyed the three story arcs in the first collection but this volume seems like it could've even been written by a different person. Frank Castle's personality and character shine
It begins with the "Mother Russia" story, which sees Castle on a rare mission to save a kidnapped little girl from a silo in Russia, a girl who happens to be carrying a deadly retrovirus in her bloodstream. It's like a blockbuster action movie that had me on the edge of my seat, with a lot of it due to it's breakneck pacing and the cutting of parallel action between Castle, the American generals, and the Russian generals. And it guest stars Nick Fury, who pretty much steals the whole show.
It then moves on to the insane "Up is Down and Black is White," which brings the return of crazed Mob guy Nicky Cavella, who has the dumb-as-nails idea to dig up The Punisher's dead family and piss on their skeletons just to draw him out. So you can obviously guess the violent insanity that happens subsequently. There are many returning characters here that really bring flavor to this one. Agent O'Brien and her relationship with Frank is one of the highlights of this story.
And finally we get to "The Slavers," the best story in the collection and considered by many to be one of the best Punisher stories ever written, where Frank stumbles onto a sex trade operation in New York and decides that he can''t stand around and do nothing about it. The story of the girls, the two well-meaning uniform cops, the nasty villains, and the morally-torn social worker are all richly-written and really make this story stand out. It's gripping stuff and very memorable, not only with the action but also with the reverence with which Ennis tackles the issue of sex slavery. And it's all topped off with a powerful ending.
This really impressed me and I hope the subsequent collections keep the same quality. And if not, both this volume and the first one (6 stories in total) will be collected in omnibus hardcover format which will be released this summer. If you're a fan of the well-received Netflix show, do yourself a favor and read this. This one's a stunner.
April 24, 2025
HOLY SHIT.
HOLY. FUCKING. SHIT.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 29, 2018
Loved this!! Ennis is becoming one of my favourite writers. We have Frank travelling to Russia on a mission from Fury. We then have Nicky take him on in the city which has some amazing action scenes. The last story arc involves sex trafficking which is a pretty dark topic, and he takes on the group that organises this. Great art and violent storytelling makes for an amazing read.
June 22, 2018
So Garth Ennis continues his bloody Punisher run in...well Ennis fashion.
So this is broken into 3 different arcs. First one is Mother Russia, which is mostly about Fury sending Frank into Russia to retrieve something (or someone) and lots of twist and turns. Next up is Up is Down and Black is White, which is just fucking insane to be honest. Basically about a mob man who has this dumb fucking idea to dig up Frank's family's skeletons and pissed on them. Yeah...That won't come back to bite him in the ass. The last story is The Slavers, which is probably the most fucked up in some ways, actually in all ways, and mostly focuses on how woman are grabbed up on the street and treated as sex slaves.
Good: Loved a lot of The Slavers. It's actually a great commentary on people not wanting to hear all the bad things to happen to woman sex slaves, but even for me it was hard to read this just to think this really DOES happen, and there is no punisher to help in real life. I also enjoyed a lot of up is down and black is white, because it's over the top, but damn is it entertaining. It also has the best ending so far.
Bad: I didn't like Mother Russia much. It's not horrible but it's kind of boring. To have it as the first story it almost made me want to stop reading for a bit. I also think sometimes Ennis is WAY too wordy and slows the pacing down.
I'd probably end up giving this a 3.5 but I'll bump it up to a 4 because I really enjoyed the last two arcs. Now need to get volume 3!
So this is broken into 3 different arcs. First one is Mother Russia, which is mostly about Fury sending Frank into Russia to retrieve something (or someone) and lots of twist and turns. Next up is Up is Down and Black is White, which is just fucking insane to be honest. Basically about a mob man who has this dumb fucking idea to dig up Frank's family's skeletons and pissed on them. Yeah...That won't come back to bite him in the ass. The last story is The Slavers, which is probably the most fucked up in some ways, actually in all ways, and mostly focuses on how woman are grabbed up on the street and treated as sex slaves.
Good: Loved a lot of The Slavers. It's actually a great commentary on people not wanting to hear all the bad things to happen to woman sex slaves, but even for me it was hard to read this just to think this really DOES happen, and there is no punisher to help in real life. I also enjoyed a lot of up is down and black is white, because it's over the top, but damn is it entertaining. It also has the best ending so far.
Bad: I didn't like Mother Russia much. It's not horrible but it's kind of boring. To have it as the first story it almost made me want to stop reading for a bit. I also think sometimes Ennis is WAY too wordy and slows the pacing down.
I'd probably end up giving this a 3.5 but I'll bump it up to a 4 because I really enjoyed the last two arcs. Now need to get volume 3!
January 10, 2018
Rating Breakdown:
Mother Russia: 5 stars
Up is Down and Black is White: 3.5 stars
The Slavers: 3 stars
Mother Russia: 5 stars
Up is Down and Black is White: 3.5 stars
The Slavers: 3 stars
March 21, 2025
Brutal e sem pudor, o Juticeiro do Garth Ennis com certeza entrou no meu top 10 quadrinhos da Marvel, fácil, principalmente após esse encadernado tão bem feito, pegando problemas de criminalidade que assolam nossa sociedade e colocando o Justiceiro para fazer frente a eles.
É fato que quem conhece o Justiceiro, sabe sobre seu senso de justiça deturpado, o qual é baseado em 100% do julgamento de acordo com a moralidade do Castle. Assim, esse encadernado compila 3 excelentes arcos envolvendo o Justiceiro.
No primeiro deles, Mãe Rússia, Frank é convocado por Nick Fury para uma nissaonultrassecreta, que sua natureza pode até incitar uma terceira guerra mundial caso seja descoberta. Embora exista todo aquele estereótipo do Estado unidense com os rusos, a história é muito boa. Deixando de lado esses estereótipos, temos uma trama de guerra e missão secreta, envolvendo Estados Unidos e Rússia em uma arma biológica. Por motivos que não vou mencionar, a humanidade de Castle é mostrada e o leitor percebe o quanto ele ainda se importa com as pessoas.
Já no segundo arco "A Volta dos Que Não Foram", Castle irá enfrentar um gangster que provocou Frank ao profanar o túmulo de sua família. Em decorrência disso, Frank fica insano e parte para a ofensiva, resultando em cenas absurdamente violentas e brutais, bem no nível Justiceiro. Além desse gangster que Frank enfrenta, o qual tem ligação com o primeiro encadernado dessa fase do Ennis com o Justiceiro, surge um outro antagonista que se alia ao mafioso, e esse antagonista é resultado do arco anterior, do núcleo que envolve os generais americanos.
Por fim, temos o arco "Escravista", que sem dúvidas é o mais pesado de todos,por envolve trafico de mulheres e estupr0. Nesse arco, Castle vai investigar e tentar acabar com uma rede de tráfico de mulheres extremamente violenta, que sequestra mulheres de regiões afestadas por guerras ou desastres climáticos no leste da Europa, e as trazem ao Estados Unidos de maneira forçada para que trabalhem vendendo seus corpos. Além disso, as condições que essas mulheres saem da Europa e vão para os EUA é extremamente violenta, e isso deixa Frank obstinado em acabar com essa rede.
Embora eu não tenha adentrado tanto em cada um dos arcos, é possível dizer, de maneira geral, que o encadernado é excelente e mantém um nível de histórias boas do início ao fim, mas que ao meu ver, vão em uma crescente, pois eu gostei dos arcos sendo o último o meu favorito. Todas as histórias são bem violentas e combinam com o tema da história, bem como com o traço do roteirista que vai muito bem.
Chamo atenção ainda para o último arco, em relação a Assistente Social que aparece, quando a mesma conhece o Frank e fica receosa quanto a seus métodos, porque ela quer fazer algo para salvar as mulheres, mas não do jeito dele, mesmo sabendo que elas sofreram inúmeros abusos e violações. Eu acho que essa parte representa muito o leitor fã do Justiceiro, que vê as situações em que Castle se depara e deve pensar a mesma coisa, o mesmo tipo de solução. Eu acredito que essa discussão da moralidade da personagem com a de Castle condiz com o leitor e foi colocada no quadrinho propositadamente para o leitor refletir.
É fato que quem conhece o Justiceiro, sabe sobre seu senso de justiça deturpado, o qual é baseado em 100% do julgamento de acordo com a moralidade do Castle. Assim, esse encadernado compila 3 excelentes arcos envolvendo o Justiceiro.
No primeiro deles, Mãe Rússia, Frank é convocado por Nick Fury para uma nissaonultrassecreta, que sua natureza pode até incitar uma terceira guerra mundial caso seja descoberta. Embora exista todo aquele estereótipo do Estado unidense com os rusos, a história é muito boa. Deixando de lado esses estereótipos, temos uma trama de guerra e missão secreta, envolvendo Estados Unidos e Rússia em uma arma biológica. Por motivos que não vou mencionar, a humanidade de Castle é mostrada e o leitor percebe o quanto ele ainda se importa com as pessoas.
Já no segundo arco "A Volta dos Que Não Foram", Castle irá enfrentar um gangster que provocou Frank ao profanar o túmulo de sua família. Em decorrência disso, Frank fica insano e parte para a ofensiva, resultando em cenas absurdamente violentas e brutais, bem no nível Justiceiro. Além desse gangster que Frank enfrenta, o qual tem ligação com o primeiro encadernado dessa fase do Ennis com o Justiceiro, surge um outro antagonista que se alia ao mafioso, e esse antagonista é resultado do arco anterior, do núcleo que envolve os generais americanos.
Por fim, temos o arco "Escravista", que sem dúvidas é o mais pesado de todos,por envolve trafico de mulheres e estupr0. Nesse arco, Castle vai investigar e tentar acabar com uma rede de tráfico de mulheres extremamente violenta, que sequestra mulheres de regiões afestadas por guerras ou desastres climáticos no leste da Europa, e as trazem ao Estados Unidos de maneira forçada para que trabalhem vendendo seus corpos. Além disso, as condições que essas mulheres saem da Europa e vão para os EUA é extremamente violenta, e isso deixa Frank obstinado em acabar com essa rede.
Embora eu não tenha adentrado tanto em cada um dos arcos, é possível dizer, de maneira geral, que o encadernado é excelente e mantém um nível de histórias boas do início ao fim, mas que ao meu ver, vão em uma crescente, pois eu gostei dos arcos sendo o último o meu favorito. Todas as histórias são bem violentas e combinam com o tema da história, bem como com o traço do roteirista que vai muito bem.
Chamo atenção ainda para o último arco, em relação a Assistente Social que aparece, quando a mesma conhece o Frank e fica receosa quanto a seus métodos, porque ela quer fazer algo para salvar as mulheres, mas não do jeito dele, mesmo sabendo que elas sofreram inúmeros abusos e violações. Eu acho que essa parte representa muito o leitor fã do Justiceiro, que vê as situações em que Castle se depara e deve pensar a mesma coisa, o mesmo tipo de solução. Eu acredito que essa discussão da moralidade da personagem com a de Castle condiz com o leitor e foi colocada no quadrinho propositadamente para o leitor refletir.
September 29, 2019
Punisher Max: Complete collection vol 2 continues Garth Ennis' take on the character with no holds barred. You've got three stories all 5-6 issues each.
Before getting into the stories it should be noted that I love Ennis on the character. When he writes him the character of Frank is so simple. The situations around him complex but he's always got the same simple answer and his way of going about things. Frank Castle isn't justified, he doesn't have any delusions of heroics. As he says in this collection he learned up is down, black is white. And Punisher wasn't born because his family died, his family was the price for what he is now.
Anyway the first story here is Mother Russia which before looking at how well it's put together is the most fun and easiest story to read in this collection. Essentially Nick Fury gets called in because the Russians have something the Americans want. And by that Nick Fury calls in Frank Castle because Castle's the only one who can get the job done. The story twists and turns with each issue and is highly entertaining throughout but also characterizes Frank and Fury well as two long gone soliders who do indeed have things they won't do. It's not complex it's good hard boiled high concept story with great characterization and an interesting ever unfolding plot.
The second story is Up is Down and Black is White which starts with Nicky Cavello digging up and pissing on the Punisher's family. From there it uses characters and payoffs from "In the beginning" an earlier Max story. Nicky Cavello is one fucked up individual, in his methods sure but his backstory is worse then he is. Seeing this up against the Punisher and how Frank goes about it is great stuff and you go even further in finding out what Frank Castle is and how detached he is. Also this has the most satisfying ending in the collection.
The third and possibly my favorite, which is hard to say because I think all of these stories are a knock out for different reasons but the end result is the same, The Slavers. Five parts and each issue wastes no time in getting down to it. It starts with an escaped sex slave gunning down a few men because of what they've done to her. Castle takes an interest because maybe he has a soft spot, maybe he feels pity, or he wants to know why. The first issue ends with him finding out why and each issue in this stroy ends perfectly in some very iconic pages. So this story is Punisher taking down a sex ring of forced prostitution. The head honchos are father and son former military. These two and their organization also have ties in the police and they use that for extensive media coverage of the punisher. It also becomes apparent around this time that more of the continuity of Ennis' Marvel Knights Punisher happened and the implication of that is very nice because they're good comics worth reading. But this story is very hard edged because it can get uncomfortable because there are people out there that do this. That use sex slaves as a business. Besides the entertainment factor and the edge the story is well paced, utilizing each of the beats well to deliver the most satisfying story possible. It has as happy an ending as it can even if it does leave you dissatisfied but it the way that leaves you thinking about the issue as it is in the real world. Because this is fiction but people such as that are out there operating, and it makes you think about it and the people who participate even if they don't run it but use it.
Garth Ennis on the Punisher is not for everyone. It's violent, full of cussing, and deals with subject matter like warfare, nuclear arms, white collar crime, and forced prostitution. But never from it do I get the sense that it does it without merit. Because I think it is well written, well handled and bloody good entertainment that if it were being published today I'd eagerly read on an issue to issue basis. I look forward to Ennis coming back for the start of a six issue mini series Soviet in November.
Now I've gone for many paragraphs without mentioning the art teams. Dougie Braithwaite pencils Mother Russia and he does very well bringing the signature grit and masculine overtones to an Ennis story. Inks are done by Bill Reinhold, colors by Raul Trevino. The art tells the story well in a classic panel to panel fashion by which I mean the art is structed in your basic panel lineups with little to no splash pages.
Up is down and Black is White and The Slaver are both penciled by Leandro Fernandez who is the best Punisher artist along with Steve Dillion in my mind. Inks are Scott Hanna and colors are Dan Brown. Punisher Max has a signature look to it that is very grimy and hard boiled that took me some adjusting but it works, hell does it work.
The covers are all done by Tim Bradstreet who kills it with interesting covers every single time.
I loved this collection and it's my favorite take on the Punisher. It also probably has my favorite Punisher story.
5 stars, have already started collection 3.
Before getting into the stories it should be noted that I love Ennis on the character. When he writes him the character of Frank is so simple. The situations around him complex but he's always got the same simple answer and his way of going about things. Frank Castle isn't justified, he doesn't have any delusions of heroics. As he says in this collection he learned up is down, black is white. And Punisher wasn't born because his family died, his family was the price for what he is now.
Anyway the first story here is Mother Russia which before looking at how well it's put together is the most fun and easiest story to read in this collection. Essentially Nick Fury gets called in because the Russians have something the Americans want. And by that Nick Fury calls in Frank Castle because Castle's the only one who can get the job done. The story twists and turns with each issue and is highly entertaining throughout but also characterizes Frank and Fury well as two long gone soliders who do indeed have things they won't do. It's not complex it's good hard boiled high concept story with great characterization and an interesting ever unfolding plot.
The second story is Up is Down and Black is White which starts with Nicky Cavello digging up and pissing on the Punisher's family. From there it uses characters and payoffs from "In the beginning" an earlier Max story. Nicky Cavello is one fucked up individual, in his methods sure but his backstory is worse then he is. Seeing this up against the Punisher and how Frank goes about it is great stuff and you go even further in finding out what Frank Castle is and how detached he is. Also this has the most satisfying ending in the collection.
The third and possibly my favorite, which is hard to say because I think all of these stories are a knock out for different reasons but the end result is the same, The Slavers. Five parts and each issue wastes no time in getting down to it. It starts with an escaped sex slave gunning down a few men because of what they've done to her. Castle takes an interest because maybe he has a soft spot, maybe he feels pity, or he wants to know why. The first issue ends with him finding out why and each issue in this stroy ends perfectly in some very iconic pages. So this story is Punisher taking down a sex ring of forced prostitution. The head honchos are father and son former military. These two and their organization also have ties in the police and they use that for extensive media coverage of the punisher. It also becomes apparent around this time that more of the continuity of Ennis' Marvel Knights Punisher happened and the implication of that is very nice because they're good comics worth reading. But this story is very hard edged because it can get uncomfortable because there are people out there that do this. That use sex slaves as a business. Besides the entertainment factor and the edge the story is well paced, utilizing each of the beats well to deliver the most satisfying story possible. It has as happy an ending as it can even if it does leave you dissatisfied but it the way that leaves you thinking about the issue as it is in the real world. Because this is fiction but people such as that are out there operating, and it makes you think about it and the people who participate even if they don't run it but use it.
Garth Ennis on the Punisher is not for everyone. It's violent, full of cussing, and deals with subject matter like warfare, nuclear arms, white collar crime, and forced prostitution. But never from it do I get the sense that it does it without merit. Because I think it is well written, well handled and bloody good entertainment that if it were being published today I'd eagerly read on an issue to issue basis. I look forward to Ennis coming back for the start of a six issue mini series Soviet in November.
Now I've gone for many paragraphs without mentioning the art teams. Dougie Braithwaite pencils Mother Russia and he does very well bringing the signature grit and masculine overtones to an Ennis story. Inks are done by Bill Reinhold, colors by Raul Trevino. The art tells the story well in a classic panel to panel fashion by which I mean the art is structed in your basic panel lineups with little to no splash pages.
Up is down and Black is White and The Slaver are both penciled by Leandro Fernandez who is the best Punisher artist along with Steve Dillion in my mind. Inks are Scott Hanna and colors are Dan Brown. Punisher Max has a signature look to it that is very grimy and hard boiled that took me some adjusting but it works, hell does it work.
The covers are all done by Tim Bradstreet who kills it with interesting covers every single time.
I loved this collection and it's my favorite take on the Punisher. It also probably has my favorite Punisher story.
5 stars, have already started collection 3.
February 20, 2023
The Punisher Max the Complete Collection Volume 2 collects 13-30 of the Marvel Comics series written by Garth Ennis with art by Dougie Braithwaite and Leandro Fernandez.
Three arcs are collected in this volume. In the first volume Nick Fury hires the Punisher to rescue a young girl infected with a deadly man made virus from a Russian lab. The next arc we see Nicky Cavella return to New York to take control of the mafia and kill Frank Castle once and for all. And finally, the last arc has the Punisher investigating the human trafficking and sex trade industry in America.
Another good collection of Punisher comics. I’m actually quite surprised how much I have been enjoying them. I have been more interested in the urban crime stories verse the military issues as they tackle some dark, real world issues. The art continues to be strong throughout and I love seeing one artist being able to do a whole arc.
Three arcs are collected in this volume. In the first volume Nick Fury hires the Punisher to rescue a young girl infected with a deadly man made virus from a Russian lab. The next arc we see Nicky Cavella return to New York to take control of the mafia and kill Frank Castle once and for all. And finally, the last arc has the Punisher investigating the human trafficking and sex trade industry in America.
Another good collection of Punisher comics. I’m actually quite surprised how much I have been enjoying them. I have been more interested in the urban crime stories verse the military issues as they tackle some dark, real world issues. The art continues to be strong throughout and I love seeing one artist being able to do a whole arc.
December 28, 2017
The Punisher doesn't get better than this. Garth Ennis is a master.
March 19, 2017
Following after the events in the first volume, this second volume of Garth Ennis' run on Punisher Max collects issues #13-30, which in essence means the three six-issues story arcs: Mother Russia, Up Is Down and Black Is White, and The Slavers.
The first one, drawn by Dougie Braithwaite, sees Frank Castle being recruited by Colonel Nick Fury to do a covert ops for in Russia for some generals (with a shady agenda, surprise, surprise). As such, it is not your everyday Punisher story, but Ennis makes it work tremendously well. The result is a tense suspense thriller with a lot of stakes, and taken on its own, I would give this five stars.
The second arc is drawn by Leandro Fernandez and deals with fallout from the In the Beginning arc in the previous volume. Thus the reader gets to reconnect with Nicky Cavella and the mob, which has been all but wiped out. Cavella takes an active approach in attacking Castle by literally digging up his dead wife and children, peeing on the remains. The result is a Punisher going out of bounds and wholesale slaughter begins. The execution of the story is solid, but after the very strong opening it is still a small step down (I would rate it four stars).
Finally, we have The Slavers, also drawn by Fernandez, and it is a tense drama thriller on the topic of trafficking and ex-soldiers from Eastern Europe. The Punisher is drawn in by a happenstance, but becomes invested in a case when he encounters a girl who has managed to escape. Being an illegal immigrant (transported there against her will in fact) means that she has little chance of protection from the law, and her captors of course know this. They have not, however, figured on the involvement of Frank Castle. Again, the drama and action are tense, and Ennis is really using the Punisher phenomenally well. Grade-wise, I would actually give this four and a half stars, if possible, but probable round upwards if it came down to it.
All in all, this volume cements how well Ennis can handle the character, and also how much better his work becomes when he is actually not dealing with superpowered characters (since his dislike for these generally tends to bring out his more sophomoric side, in a bad way at that). The overall grade is obviously put together from the ones on the individual arcs, but rounding upwards here, again, makes sense. This is a solid Punisher volume, to be sure.
The first one, drawn by Dougie Braithwaite, sees Frank Castle being recruited by Colonel Nick Fury to do a covert ops for in Russia for some generals (with a shady agenda, surprise, surprise). As such, it is not your everyday Punisher story, but Ennis makes it work tremendously well. The result is a tense suspense thriller with a lot of stakes, and taken on its own, I would give this five stars.
The second arc is drawn by Leandro Fernandez and deals with fallout from the In the Beginning arc in the previous volume. Thus the reader gets to reconnect with Nicky Cavella and the mob, which has been all but wiped out. Cavella takes an active approach in attacking Castle by literally digging up his dead wife and children, peeing on the remains. The result is a Punisher going out of bounds and wholesale slaughter begins. The execution of the story is solid, but after the very strong opening it is still a small step down (I would rate it four stars).
Finally, we have The Slavers, also drawn by Fernandez, and it is a tense drama thriller on the topic of trafficking and ex-soldiers from Eastern Europe. The Punisher is drawn in by a happenstance, but becomes invested in a case when he encounters a girl who has managed to escape. Being an illegal immigrant (transported there against her will in fact) means that she has little chance of protection from the law, and her captors of course know this. They have not, however, figured on the involvement of Frank Castle. Again, the drama and action are tense, and Ennis is really using the Punisher phenomenally well. Grade-wise, I would actually give this four and a half stars, if possible, but probable round upwards if it came down to it.
All in all, this volume cements how well Ennis can handle the character, and also how much better his work becomes when he is actually not dealing with superpowered characters (since his dislike for these generally tends to bring out his more sophomoric side, in a bad way at that). The overall grade is obviously put together from the ones on the individual arcs, but rounding upwards here, again, makes sense. This is a solid Punisher volume, to be sure.
July 16, 2017
The good:
-Great connection with the Marvel Universe.
-The first person narration feels more personal than previous volume.
-The three arcs presented in this volume are tense, interesting, gut-wrenching, and heartbreaking.
-A really neat job from Ennis writing about war, crimes, slavery, and other adult topics.
-Great deal of action.
-I appreciated that this volume presented more strategy from Castle and less humongous massacres with machine guns.
-The art is very expressive.
-The slavery is a really raw and heart breaking story, plus is beautifully narrated.
-Great connection with the Marvel Universe.
-The first person narration feels more personal than previous volume.
-The three arcs presented in this volume are tense, interesting, gut-wrenching, and heartbreaking.
-A really neat job from Ennis writing about war, crimes, slavery, and other adult topics.
-Great deal of action.
-I appreciated that this volume presented more strategy from Castle and less humongous massacres with machine guns.
-The art is very expressive.
-The slavery is a really raw and heart breaking story, plus is beautifully narrated.
January 4, 2017
Hard to put down, harder to pick up.
Up is Down, Black is White is a great read, but it is more of a wrap up on the first story arch for MAX. What really sets this book apart is Slavers. It has actual social commentary and makes you think about human atrocities, and how they tend to slip by the public eye. This book makes you wish there was a real Frank Castle, if only so he could handle the deepest darkest pits of humanity's failings.
Up is Down, Black is White is a great read, but it is more of a wrap up on the first story arch for MAX. What really sets this book apart is Slavers. It has actual social commentary and makes you think about human atrocities, and how they tend to slip by the public eye. This book makes you wish there was a real Frank Castle, if only so he could handle the deepest darkest pits of humanity's failings.
June 15, 2016
Grim and dark... just as the punisher should be.
Gritty and dark story arcs, graphic violence and language. This is how the punisher was meant to be portrayed. I enjoyed these so much I don't think ill be able to read another punisher series that is a toned down teen rating
Gritty and dark story arcs, graphic violence and language. This is how the punisher was meant to be portrayed. I enjoyed these so much I don't think ill be able to read another punisher series that is a toned down teen rating
June 11, 2024
It’s amazing how enthralling this is, even with it being pretty one note. Of course some of it doesn’t age that well, but the language is accurate to a certain time and place and kind of character.
I cannot believe Marvel published this. Now Disney owns these stories. Even crazier.
The thing that really stuck out to me this time is that there are zero sound effects. Is that an Ennis thing that I’ve somehow never noticed???
I cannot believe Marvel published this. Now Disney owns these stories. Even crazier.
The thing that really stuck out to me this time is that there are zero sound effects. Is that an Ennis thing that I’ve somehow never noticed???
October 20, 2018
This is some scary, badass $#!+
February 3, 2024
This is a solid three-part collection of Punisher comics. Part 1 sees Frank trying to infiltrate a Russian missile silo to secure a virus infected girl, Up is Down and Back is White is a standard man vs. mafia tale, and Slavers sees Frank Castle take on a network of sex traffickers. The content is extremely dark, almost nihilistic, and in some instances, photorealistic. Garth Ennis' version of the Punisher is low on dialog and heavy on action, a good formula for the title's target audience. That said, characters are rarely given time to breath and develop, with Ennis corralling the reader into a blood lust against horrific, one-dimensional villains. This is an enjoyable popcorn read, but may require a shower afterwards.
March 13, 2018
While fairly entertaining, these stories are very formulaic. Each story is six issues, featuring a new "villain of the week", an endless army of cannon fodder brutes for Punisher to shoot up or torture, and a couple of moral good guys to advise Punisher and point out the flaws in Frank's idea of justice. Nothing really sticks with you after reading it, it doesn't feel like it is building to much, and Frank feels like just a background character in his own book.
April 22, 2017
Garth Ennis is the best writer for Punisher. The three new story arcs by him only proves that the story of Frank Castle is far from over. If Netflix picks up these stories, I'm die happy.
February 28, 2020
Was afraid that volume 2 would not be as good as the previous volume when I read the first storyline, Mother Russia. It's definitely the weakest Punisher story that I have read so far. Art is by Braithwaite, who turns in really nice work, but the action in his panels is confusing. It's hard to tell when the scene or characters have changed, because the different characters all kind of look the same and the backgrounds usually have that same blue/green color. Also, the story isn't really very interesting.
Anyway, things get much better in the second and third stories in the collection. Up is Down Black is White is probably the best. It's nice the way a few characters have been brought in from previous stories, because those characters are actually more interesting than the Punisher himself. And the art by Leandro Fernandez is really nice, made even better by the colorist. The same team tackles the art in the third storyline and believe me when I tell you that every bad guy violently killed absolutely deserves it.
Anyway, things get much better in the second and third stories in the collection. Up is Down Black is White is probably the best. It's nice the way a few characters have been brought in from previous stories, because those characters are actually more interesting than the Punisher himself. And the art by Leandro Fernandez is really nice, made even better by the colorist. The same team tackles the art in the third storyline and believe me when I tell you that every bad guy violently killed absolutely deserves it.
May 2, 2025
this took me pretty long to read, i think all of franks inner monologue just adds up to alot. unlike the first volume, i think this one featured some great stories and characters. they were all very interesting, and didnt all just depend on the same italian mafia gangs being taken out over and over. seriously, there's NO way there's that much italian mafia active. the secret govt mission ft fury was cool, and seeing frank interact with a child after the death of his own was cool too. the women were interesting too, i liked jen cooke and voirna. o'malley is interesting, dont get me wrong, but shes the stereotypical sexualized woman who frank claps down, just like elektra. you can be badass and not be used as a toy by protagonists too (im thinking of someone like soaps partner, forgot her name, for example), bad case of writing on ennis's part. overall, i would love to own any of these issues, i dont think these stories lack as much as they did in the previous volume.
December 26, 2023
A major improvement over volume 1 of the Punisher Max series. Mother Russia was the weakest of the three stories, but it was okay. Black is White, Up is Down and The Slavers were stories that had me hooked. I could not put them down because this where Ennis found his form. The Slavers, unfortunately, shows a dark reality that happens in real life. We see some of the worst of humanity in this story as young women are abducted and forced into sex slavery. The Punisher describes them as the worst criminals he has ever encountered and the ones he despises the most. It is a dark and disturbing tale.
I thought volume 2 of The Punisher Max series was a major improvement over volume 1. As I sated before, it thought Ennis found his form here.
I thought volume 2 of The Punisher Max series was a major improvement over volume 1. As I sated before, it thought Ennis found his form here.
October 12, 2024
This volume of The Punisher is not so heavy on the hyer-violence though it still has plenty of action. This collection returns Frank Castle to his roots as a lone vigilante who shows no mercy and the story takes precedence over the street justice. This collection has a stronger human element as The Punisher saves a little girl, finds a soul mate in a woman with the same taste for playing outside the rules, and rescues some victims of human traffickers. None of this softness gets in the way of the action and plenty of gruesome violence for the masses. Also, the first-person perspective - now overused in comics - works well. This was a good volume of this series. It was well written with strong characters and quality artwork and the stories were compelling.
November 21, 2016
Once again the Punisher cuts through the bad guys in a swathe of violence.
These stories are shockingly violent, but weirdly addictive. The bad guys are just so evil that the reader feels a sense of justice when the Punisher gets rid of them. He is cold, calm, violent and brutal in the way he dispenses his own form of vigilante justice.
The police both love and hate him. The Government is in denial but are happy to use the Punisher to get the job done. The art is dark. The stories are dark.
As a modern day violent version of Robin Hood the Punisher is gripping and yet ghastly!
These stories are shockingly violent, but weirdly addictive. The bad guys are just so evil that the reader feels a sense of justice when the Punisher gets rid of them. He is cold, calm, violent and brutal in the way he dispenses his own form of vigilante justice.
The police both love and hate him. The Government is in denial but are happy to use the Punisher to get the job done. The art is dark. The stories are dark.
As a modern day violent version of Robin Hood the Punisher is gripping and yet ghastly!
October 22, 2018
Pretty Great
Man, these Punisher Max stories are intense! Super, super violent... Enough to still shock a guy who thought he'd seen everything. The stories are good though. This is an older, more grizzled Frank Castle. No white boots; this comic has completely scrapped all of the more cartoony aspects of older Punisher comics in favor of grim realism. "The Slavers" was one of the best stories. And socially relevant for today, unfortunately. The art is great. The covers look neat, too. Highly recommended!
Man, these Punisher Max stories are intense! Super, super violent... Enough to still shock a guy who thought he'd seen everything. The stories are good though. This is an older, more grizzled Frank Castle. No white boots; this comic has completely scrapped all of the more cartoony aspects of older Punisher comics in favor of grim realism. "The Slavers" was one of the best stories. And socially relevant for today, unfortunately. The art is great. The covers look neat, too. Highly recommended!
May 10, 2019
I know this book isn't for everyone, well the entire character of The Punisher to be honest. Here Garth Ennis flexes his destructive muscles and shows that you don't mess with Frank Castle. Three stories are collected here and they're all good but Up Is Down, Black Is White stands out. This entire book shows the twisted sense of a moral code that Castle has. Ennis is, at times, crass for the sake of being crass, but this is the MAX Punisher title's world. The art, especially by Leandro Fernandez, is dark and gorgeous. Overall, a a gruesome, violent, bloody good time.
March 10, 2017
Its incredibly impactive stuff - hauntingly so at times - and takes the reader to some very dark places indeed. You will find that some of the scenes from these issues will be indelibly burnt into your memory as it dawns on you that you've probably just read a story that defies any and all expectations you might have had of a comic book, a story unlike no other you have ever read before, and one that you will never forget.
December 11, 2017
The Punisher, Complete Collection Volume 2 continues Garth Ennis's run on the character. This volume has three separate story arcs, each of which show a human side to Frank Castle without letting up on the level of violence. This time the villains include the CIA, the Italian mafia and Eastern European sex traffickers. Would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoyed the Netflix series. Five stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
November 29, 2024
I enjoyed Vol. 2 more than the first. MOTHER RUSSIA is fun, gloppy global politics Marvel, and the singed and brutal world that Garth Ennis and Douglas Braithwaite establish is clever and tense. Part Equalizer and part Rambo, these are definitely arch-masculine comics with an edge, but also comics, and so not particularly deep in their meaning, which was kind of refreshing.
March 24, 2017
Amazing
I always love to read the punisher series. Castle never fails to provide action and hard facts. One of my favorite things about him is his down to earth stanza. I also love the illustrations there spot on. This is a definitely worth 5 stars.
I always love to read the punisher series. Castle never fails to provide action and hard facts. One of my favorite things about him is his down to earth stanza. I also love the illustrations there spot on. This is a definitely worth 5 stars.
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