Papercuts! - A column about Comic Books
In 1985, Wolverine was my favorite comic book character. He was the
perfect fit for an 11-year-old boy's adolescent power fantasies -- you
couldn't hurt him, he had a bad attitude, he was a samurai, he got all
the cool dialogue, and he had foot-long claws that shot out of the back
of his hands. He was the baddest bad ass that ever did bad ass on the
pages of a comic book.
My brother, two years my junior, was a fan of Spider-Man. But there was
a problem. Spidey was cool, and he was an everyman, but he wasn't
bad-ass. Sure, he fought Hobgoblin while burning buildings collapsed
around them, but he didn't have that edge.
That all changed one fateful day in 1987 in Sugar Creek Food Shop. You
see, back then you could actually buy comics from a number of different
places aside from comic shops. SCFS was one of our regular haunts --
they always had a decent selection of the latest Marvel comics. One of
the issues they had available that day was the first issue of the new
Punisher ongoing series.
The cover image was striking, the Punisher hanging off a fire escape
outside an apartment packed with crooks up to no good. He was
brandishing a huge bazooka and one of the bad guys inside was letting
out a silent scream. Plastered across the top of the book was a
headline that announced it was the "First issue in an ongoing series!"
I turned to my brother and pointed at the comic.
"You should get that," I said. "It's going to be worth something someday."
Little did I know it would launch an obsession for him.
Who'd have thought a merciless vigilante with a penchant for big
weapons and even bigger explosions would fascinate an 11-year old? My
brother had found his new favorite character. He went crazy for The
Punisher. Crazy, I tell you. Spider-Man had NOTHING on the Punisher.
All kidding aside, those early issues of the first Punisher ongoing,
written by Mike Baron and ably illustrated by regular Frank Miller
collaborator Klaus Janson and later eventual Image Comics founder
Whilce Portacio, are still some flat-out amazing comics.
He fought Columbian drug lords, white collar criminals, a Charles
Manson-like maniac with a cult following, and a brutal war against the
Kingpin of Crime. It was unlike anything my brother and I had ever
seen. It was no-holds barred violence that simultaneously examined the
fragile psyche of the most dangerous man in the Marvel Universe.
The rest of America apparently liked it too, because Marvel quickly
capitalized on the character's newfound popularity, launching an
unprecedented second title -- Punisher War Journal (with future
superstar Jim Lee on art duties). It didn't stop there. Marvel
published Punisher Graphic novels by the fistful, along with a few
other ongoings -- Punisher Armory (for future NRA members), and
Punisher War Zone. There were specials out the wazoo, where he teamed
up with Ghost Rider, Wolverine, Spider-Man and anyone else who had even
a smidgen of popularity at the time.
But the overexposure caused problems. They spread ol' Frank too thin
and Marvel editorial started resorting to nonsense storytelling and
gimmicks to keep the character fresh and interesting. Most infamous was
the story arc where, due to complications from plastic surgery, the
Punisher became a black man. And naturally, because he was African
American, he had to observe the then-mandatory rule that every African
American character has to team up with Luke Cage and fight The Man.
Yeah. It was that bad.
One by one, each of the individual Punisher titles were cancelled,
including the book that started it all for my brother back in '87.
Marvel tried one more time to bring The Punisher back to form in the
early 90s with writer John Ostrander, but it was not to be. The book
was cancelled again, and he disappeared into the sunset, as a homeless
dude with amnesia.
Enter Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmiotti.
In 1998, the guys behind Event Comics got four long-suffering titles to
relaunch under their Marvel Knights imprint and one of them was the
Punisher. The shining star of the line was clearly Kevin Smith's
Daredevil. The turd in the punchbowl was The Punisher, which featured
the character now as an undead demon hunter.
Thankfully they jettisoned the idea and went back to basics, hiring
Preacher creators Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon for a 12-issue
maxi-series called "Welcome Back Frank." The book brought the character
back to his roots and saw The Punisher launch a one-man war on Ma
Gnucci and her "family." The book was HEAVY with black humor and a huge
success. The Punisher was back.
Shortly after the end of the maxi-series, a new ongoing was launched
with the same creators. Highlights include "Do Not Fall In New York
City," Ennis and Dillon's post-9/11 story that was, in my opinion, the
single best issue of 2001, and the most hilarious confrontation between
The Punisher and Wolverine of all time. Dillon eventually left the
book, and aside from a short arc by Tom Peyer and a dreadful one shot
by Ron Zimmerman (we'll leave it at that) the 37-issue Marvel Knights
run was a lot of fun.
From there, Ennis moved away from the black humor and slapstick and
into MAX, Marvel's mature reader's imprint. The series was set inside
the Marvel Universe, but completely void of any superhero presence.
This is where Ennis TRULY shines, free of any "normal" restrictions.
And it was outstanding, unlike anything we've ever seen done with the
character before. It had a gritty, real-world feel that let you
understand the gravitas of Frank Castle's world. He took on drug
runners, corrupt cops, slavers, and the nastiest assassin ever dreamed
up: Barracuda.
During the MAX run, Ennis also did several one-shots and special
miniseries, including BORN, a look at how Frank Castle's time in
Vietnam was more responsible for the creation of the Punisher than the
gang violence that took his family from him. Born's final page is
chilling and an exclamation point on the storyline itself. If you're a
Punisher fan, it's required reading.
Ennis' final story arc -- "Valley Forge, Valley Forge, the Slaughter of
a U.S. Marine Garrison and the Birth of the Punisher" -- is currently
running and not only will it tie up all his outstanding loose ends, it
signifies that Ennis is going to leave this character on the strongest
note possible. The villains of the piece aren't sleazy drug dealers,
they're worse. They're military brass who will do everything in their
power to keep their dirty laundry from seeing the light of day. And
that includes The Punisher.
Very few writers are intrinsically linked to a company owned comic
character in the way Garth Ennis has become with The Punisher over the
past 9 years. His run on isn't just seminal, it's the best run a writer
has on the character -- and it defined the character better than anyone
else in The Punisher's 30-years of existence, and that includes Mike
Baron who wrote some damn good Punisher stories. Frank Castle has never
been better, and I'm sad to say he'll never be better than he was in
Ennis' hands.
If you like the Punisher at ALL, do yourself a huge favor and pick up
ANYTHING Ennis has done with the character. They're all collected in
Trade Paperback and hardcover editions. If you're of age, pick up BORN
first (it's suggested for mature readers). I can't encourage it enough.
Carl or any of the other MGU team will be more than happy to order them
for you.
If your only memory of Frank Castle is from the early 90s, you're truly
missing the boat. Garth Ennis has made him a multi-dimensional
character that it completely hypnotic and unforgettable.
If you are interested in special ordering any trade paperbacks, or starting any subscriptions, come into our store and talk to someone on staff, or email Carl (cmorgan@mguinc.com) and we'll get you set up!
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