The Punisher (2004 series)
The Punisher was a comic book ongoing series published under the MAX imprint of Marvel Comics, featuring vigilante anti-hero, the Punisher.
Publication history
, also writer of the 2000 and 2001 Punisher series, wrote issues #1-60 of the series. Also like the earlier series, Tim Bradstreet provided the covers for those issues. Continuing his run on the character, Ennis used the freedom of the MAX imprint to write more graphic and hard-edged stories than had previously been seen. Ennis also wrote two miniseries accompanying the main series, The Punisher Presents: Barracuda and . Several one-shots were also produced, some written by Ennis and some by other writers.With issue #61, Gregg Hurwitz replaced Ennis as writer joining artist Laurence Campbell to do a five-issue story arc. With issue #66 released on January 21, 2009, the series was retitled Punisher: Frank Castle, with writer Duane Swierczynski and artist Michel Lacombe coming to the series. Victor Gischler came on board for the storyline "Welcome to the Bayou" in issues #71-74 before the title finished with issue #75, a double-length issue with stories by Thomas Piccirilli, Gregg Hurwitz, Duane Swierczynski, Peter Milligan, and Charlie Huston.
The title was relaunched as PunisherMAX in late 2009, with writer Jason Aaron and artist Steve Dillon.
Plot
Differences with mainstream Punisher
The series explicitly does not use a floating timeline like the Marvel Universe, instead presenting a Punisher who ages in real time. Gravestones and other references indicate that his family was killed in 1976. The Punisher has been active for almost 30 years at the time presented in most stories, with issue #19 specifying that he has killed approximately 2,000 people. The Punisher: Born also establishes that the Punisher's service in the Vietnam War is still in MAX continuity.Promotional art for the cover of Punisher #44, gives Frank Castle's birth date as February 16, 1950, but that was removed for the published issues. The story Valley Forge, Valley Forge corroborates this date, referring to Castle as "a twenty one year old Captain" in April 1971.
Another major difference is the complete lack of superheroes and supervillains in the series, although non-superpowered characters from the Punisher's past, most notably Microchip, do make appearances. Nick Fury also makes several notable appearances, with his characterization echoing Ennis's MAX-imprint Fury stories. However, the character Jen Cooke, a social worker, appeared in the Marvel Knights storyline "Hidden". She then appeared in the MAX storyline "Slavers". The character Yorkie Mitchell made appearances in both the Marvel Knights and the MAX Punisher comics.
In the Civil War Files comic, just before the "Civil War" storyline was published, Iron Man talked about events in the Punisher's past from the Marvel Knights and MAX comics which indicated that it did happen in the main Marvel Universe at some point:
- "Captain Frank Castle, sole survivor of the Firebase Valley Forge massacre".
- "Although recently Castle has escalated his war on crime even further, with record-breaking body counts, he is paradoxically now rarely encountered in the field by any super hero save Daredevil".
- "It's almost like he inhabits two worlds, one where heroes can capture him and one where they can't, and he can slip from one to the other with ease".
Prints
Issues
| No. | Title | Cover date | Comic Book Roundup rating | Estimated sales | Rated |
| #1 | In The Beginning Part One | March 2004 | 9.0 by two professional critics. | 56,350, ranked 20th in North America | PAL/EC |
| #2 | In The Beginning Part Two | March 2004 | 6.5 by one professional critic. | 49,197, ranked 24th in North America | PAL/EC |
| #3 | In The Beginning Part 3 | April 2004 | |||
| #4 | In The Beginning Part 4 | ||||
| #5 | In The Beginning Part 5 | ||||
| #6 | In The Beginning Part 6: Conclusion | ||||
| #7 | Kitchen Irish Part One | ||||
| #8 | Kitchen Irish Part Two | ||||
| #9 | Kitchen Irish Part Three | ||||
| #10 | Kitchen Irish Part Four | ||||
| #11 | Kitchen Irish Part Five | ||||
| #12 | Kitchen Irish Part Six | ||||
| #13 | Mother Russia Part One | ||||
| #14 | Mother Russia Part Two | ||||
| #15 | Mother Russia Part Three | ||||
| #16 | Mother Russia Part Four | ||||
| #17 | Mother Russia Part Five | ||||
| #18 | Mother Russia Part Six | ||||
| #19 | Up is Down and Black is White Part One | ||||
| #20 | Up is Down and Black is White Part Two | ||||
| #21 | Up is Down and Black is White Part Three | ||||
| #22 | Up is Down and Black is White Part Four | ||||
| #23 | Up is Down and Black is White Part Five | ||||
| #24 | Up is Down and Black is White Conclusion | ||||
| #25 | The Slavers Part 1 | ||||
| #26 | The Slavers Part 2 | ||||
| #27 | The Slavers Part 3 | ||||
| #28 | The Slavers Part 4 | ||||
| #29 | The Slavers Part 5 | ||||
| #30 | The Slavers Conclusion | ||||
| #31 | Barracuda Part One | ||||
| #32 | Barracuda Part Two | ||||
| #33 | Barracuda Part Three | ||||
| #34 | Barracuda Part 4 | ||||
| #35 | Barracuda Part 5 | ||||
| #36 | Barracuda Part 6 | ||||
| #37 | Man of Stone Part One | ||||
| #38 | Man of Stone Part Two | ||||
| #39 | Man of Stone Part Three | ||||
| #40 | Man of Stone Part Four | ||||
| #41 | Man of Stone Part Five | ||||
| #42 | Man of Stone Conclusion | ||||
| #43 | Widowmaker Part 1 | ||||
| #44 | Widowmaker Part Two | ||||
| #45 | Widowmaker Part Three | ||||
| #46 | Widowmaker Part Four | ||||
| #47 | Widowmaker Part Five | ||||
| #48 | Widowmaker Part Six | ||||
| #49 | Widowmaker Conclusion | ||||
| #50 | Long Cold Dark Part One | ||||
| #51 | Long Cold Dark Part Two | ||||
| #52 | Long Cold Dark Part Three | ||||
| #53 | Long Cold Dark Part Four | ||||
| #54 | Long Cold Dark Conclusion | ||||
| #55 | Valley Forge, Valley Forge Part One | ||||
| #56 | Valley Forge, Valley Forge Part Two | ||||
| #57 | Valley Forge, Valley Forge Part Three | ||||
| #58 | Valley Forge, Valley Forge Part Four | ||||
| #59 | Valley Forge, Valley Forge Part Five | ||||
| #60 | Valley Forge, Valley Forge Part Conclusion | ||||
| #61 | Girls in White Dresses Part One: Quinceañera | ||||
| #62 | Girls in White Dresses Part 2: Another Day in Paradise | ||||
| #63 | Girls in White Dresses Part 3: She is Dead | ||||
| #64 | Girls in White Dresses Part 4: Satan Dust | ||||
| #65 | Girls in White Dresses Part 5: Jigsaw |
As of issue 66 the series was officially retitled Frank Castle: The Punisher.
| No. | Title | Cover date | Comic Book Roundup rating | Estimated sales | Rated |
| #66 | Six Hours to Kill Chapter One: The Weak End | ||||
| #67 | Six Hours to Kill Chapter Two: Field Day | ||||
| #68 | Six Hours to Kill Chapter Three: Hour Game | ||||
| #69 | Six Hours to Kill Chapter Four: Minute Men | ||||
| #70 | Six Hours to Kill Chapter Five: No More Second Chances | ||||
| #71 | Welcome to the Bayou | ||||
| #72 | Welcome to the Bayou Part 2 | ||||
| #73 | Welcome to the Bayou Part 3 | ||||
| #74 | Welcome to the Bayou Conclusion | ||||
| #75 | Dolls |
Collected editions
;Trade paperbacks| Title | Material collected | Writer | Artist | Year | ISBN |
| Vol. 01: In the Beginning | The Punisher MAX #1-6 | Garth Ennis | Lewis Larosa | 2004 | |
| Vol. 02: Kitchen Irish | The Punisher MAX #7-12 | Garth Ennis | Leandro Fernandez | 2005 | |
| Vol. 03: Mother Russia | The Punisher MAX #13-18 | Garth Ennis | Dougie Braithwaite | 2005 | |
| Vol. 04: Up Is Down and Black Is White | The Punisher MAX #19-24 | Garth Ennis | Leandro Fernandez | 2005 | |
| Vol. 05: The Slavers | The Punisher MAX #25-30 | Garth Ennis | Leandro Fernandez | 2004 | |
| Vol. 06: Barracuda | The Punisher MAX #31-36 | Garth Ennis | Goran Parlov | 2006 | |
| Vol. 07: Man of Stone | The Punisher MAX #37-42 | Garth Ennis | Leandro Fernandez | 2007 | |
| Vol. 08: Widowmaker | The Punisher MAX #43-49 | Garth Ennis | Lan Medina | 2007 | |
| Vol. 09: Long Cold Dark | The Punisher MAX #50-54 | Garth Ennis | Howard Chaykin, Goran Parlov | 2008 | |
| Vol. 10: Valley Forge, Valley Forge | The Punisher MAX #55-60 | Garth Ennis | Goran Parlov | 2008 | |
| Vol. 11: Girls in White Dresses | The Punisher MAX #61-65 | Gregg Hurwitz | Laurence Campbell | 2009 | |
| Vol. 12: Six Hours To Kill | The Punisher: Frank Castle MAX #66-70 | Duane Swierczynski | Michael Lacombe | 2009 | |
| Vol. 13: Welcome to the Bayou | The Punisher: Frank Castle MAX #71-74 | Victor Gischler | Goran Parlov | 2009 |
;Hardcovers
| Title | Material collected | Year | ISBN |
| Volume 1 | The Punisher MAX #1-12 | 2005 | |
| Volume 2 | The Punisher MAX #13-24 | 2006 | |
| Volume 3 | The Punisher MAX #25-36 | 2007 | |
| Volume 4 | The Punisher MAX #37-49 | 2007 | |
| Volume 5 | The Punisher MAX #50-60 | 2009 | |
| Volume 6 | The Punisher MAX #61-74 | 2011 |
;Complete Collection
| Title | Material collected | Year | ISBN |
| Volume 1 | Born In the Beginning Kitchen Irish | February 2016 | |
| Volume 2 | Mother Russia Up Is Down and Black Is White The Slavers | April 2016 | |
| Volume 3 | Barracuda Man of Stone Widowmaker | October 2016 | |
| Volume 4 | Punisher Presents: Barracuda MAX Long Cold Dark Valley Forge, Valley Forge Punisher: The Tyger Punisher: The Cell Punisher: The End | December 2016 | |
| Volume 5 | Punisher MAX Annual 2007 Punisher: Force of Nature Punisher MAX Special: Little Black Book Girls in White Dresses Six Hours To Kill Welcome to the Bayou Punisher #75 | February 2017 | |
| Volume 6 | Punisher MAX: X-Mas Special Punisher MAX: Naked Kill Punisher MAX: Get Castle Punisher MAX: Butterfly Punisher MAX: Happy Ending Punisher MAX: Hot Rods of Death Punisher MAX: Tiny Ugly World Untold Tales of the Punisher MAX | August 2017 |
;Omnibus editions
| Title | Material collected | Year | ISBN |
| Vol. 1 | Born In the Beginning Kitchen Irish Mother Russia Up Is Down and Black Is White The Slavers | May 2018 | |
| Vol. 2 | Barracuda Man of Stone Widowmaker Long Cold Dark Valley Forge, Valley Forge Punisher Presents: Barracuda #1-5 Punisher: The Tyger Punisher: The Cell Punisher: The End | August 2018 |
Reception
The series holds an average rating of 7.9 by 40 professional critics on the review aggregation website Comic Book Roundup.In other media
Film
- The 2008 movie starring Ray Stevenson is inspired by Punisher MAX most notably incorporating characters from that series such as Gaitano Cesare, Carmine "Pittsy" Gazzerra, Ink, Cristu Bulat, Tiberiu Bulat and Maginty. The scene where Frank Castle/The Punisher kills Gaitano Cesare and the other mobsters is also taken directly from the storyline In the Beginning albeit cutting the head for the former instead of a headshot.
Television
- The second season of Daredevil adapts the Kitchen Irish arc while adding in the titular character into the story alongside Frank Castle/The Punisher.
- The first season of The Punisher has William Rawlins as its main antagonist, a character who originated in Punisher MAX.