ComicBook Quality Writing & Catharsis in Spades
The Punisher MAX is a unique beast among the comics I've read. Not only does it forgo supers and their crazy adventures in favor of far more realistic and reality-based conflicts, it also (across several different series) puts surprising detail and thought into how someone like the Punisher could come to be, with Frank's character stemming not solely from his family being murdered, but from much of his life before that fateful day as well, such as his tours in Vietnam and his growing up in Mafia territory. The result is a main character who, while not incredibly deep and dynamic, is someone whose actions you can understand even if you don't necessarily condone them.
Speaking of which, this series is *incredibly* cathartic. It's not always easy, but Frank spends much of his time giving complete monsters exactly what they deserve and sometimes just a bit more for good measure. I'm not sure how anyone can look at any arc other than Mother Russia and not root for Frank to prevail because holy shit, he's up against real scum almost all the time. And while the man himself is no paragon of virtue, there are enough moments of humanity from him to remind you that he's ultimately a force for good even if he himself is not the nicest guy around.
Oh, and Ennis is a fantastic writer, as always. Not much more to say there without spoiling stuff, but he really shines here.
10/10, would recommend reading with Alice in Chains/Stone Temple Pilots/Soundgarden/similarly grungy bands playing in the background. Really enhances the experience.
ComicBook Repetitive and boring
I'll give any series of comic book a try, and although I prefer to stick with Spider-Man and Batman, I enjoyed Moon Knight enough to think that maybe the more violent anti-heroes of in the Marvel Universe had stories worth telling. I just wish I hadn't started with Punisher MAX.
I have the first six volumes of the series and I can describe them all similarly because... they're pretty much all variations on a very repetitive structure. The scene is usually set with a famous criminal figurehead, so famous that they've never been mentioned before. Frank Castle then kills them in case the person reading the comic is unfamiliar with Frank's M.O.
A small stream of petty criminals will die while Frank does some navel-gazing about what he does, while setting his sights on the higher target who will be dying in Issue 6. Maybe at some point he'll get into trouble - maybe he'll be captured - maybe he'll even be held at gunpoint by someone with power to kill him, at which point a Deus ex Machina will occur and Frank will escape. It feels like these scenes only occur so that people can't accuse Frank of being an invincible Marty Stu - I get that superheroes can't die in their own books unless planned for and advertised extensively and then they're brought back in 3 weeks anyway, but it still hurts when the villains leave no impact on the (anti-)hero whatsoever. Daredevil never fully defeats Kingpin. The Joker goes back to Arkham Asylum to escape again later. People who face Frank Castle just... die.
The arc will then end the same way it began; with Frank killing loads of people, but this time they have slightly more plot-relevance and maybe there's some dialogue too. What's left of the supporting cast then draw straws, and whoever is judged to be the most interesting is immediately killed to stop them from taking the spotlight from The Punisher. At least the supporting cast are interesting before they die (and they will die. All of them. Every last one.)
Garth Ennis described the Punisher as seeing the world in black and white, and maybe this interpretation is why it's so boring to me. Punisher, good. Criminals, bad. Punisher kills criminals. Repeat forever. It's not completely devoid of attraction - The Slavers arc was alright - but altogether it doesn't hold my attention.
Still better than the 2001 series though.
ComicBook Intentionally Nihilistic
Comic books are a medium just like any other form of storytelling, not just reserved for superheroics. However, it’s safe to say the niche wouldn’t have survived without them.
Garth Ennis seems to be in resentful denial of that fact.
It’s no secret that Ennis holds nothing beyond absolute contempt for superheroes, with only three known exceptions, chief among them being the Punisher. Why is anyone’s guess, but I think reading this comic will give you a few ideas.
Frank Castle AKA The Punisher - a noted Marvel anti-hero and murdering vigilante whose dead family is one of the few attributes that keep him from being completely unsympathetic - is here recast as a psychotic Serial-Killer Killer Sociopathic Soldier almost completely devoid of any semblance of humanity, fighting criminals that represent the worst dregs that modern society can offer.
This series wears its juvenile interpretation of “maturity” on its sleeve, with stylistic and gritty writing that masterfully tricks the readers into thinking there is depth where there is none. The caricatures that masquerade as characters range from misogynistic to downright racist, without an ounce of relatability that could make them the slightest bit sympathetic, that are all merely walking targets that only exist for Frank to viciously dispatch in the most ruthlessly efficient way possible. The women, meanwhile, mainly serve as objects to be abused or to be madly in lust with Castle’s raw animalistic masculinity. Sometimes both.
Ennis is a noted military buff and it shows in his discripive ways Castle stalks his victims like he is still in the humid wetlands of Vietnam. Now, whether the writer is attempting to glorify or condemn Frank is a matter of debate, but one could argue that Ennis himself doesn’t even know. The Punisher will contemplate ad nauseam the inherent merits of his eternal war, while massacring the poor and disenfranchised with the detachment one would use to kill an irritating mosquito.
It says something when a Terminator can have more believable emotional depth than this Punisher, who possesses a near-permanent Clint Squint scowl, which is about as close as he gets to emoting.
Maybe this wouldn’t be so intolerable if it wasn’t so hypocritical — out of all of the superheroes he hates, Garth Ennis hold particular disdain for Captain America, whom he considers an insult to “real heroes” of WWII. Ignoring that the character was actually created before America entered the war (so was actually a huge anti fascist statement, and was enjoyed by real G.I.s), but generally evolved into an avatar for everything that could be good about the country he represents (something an Irish WWII-buff Americophile like Ennis should love). Conversely, the intention for the Punisher was to be a tragic anti-hero, and as an symbol of the failure of the American military and legal system. The Punisher as a concept is an massive anti-war statement; which should logically be interpreted by Ennis as an insult to the poor soldiers who suffered in a war most of the country was against.
Even ignoring that, the unrepentant, Straw Nihilist, killing machine is as far from a favorable depiction of a veteran as you can possibly get.
Over all, I would recommend this series if only for its attention to realistic action, and more broadly, because it’s almost complete antithesis to the human condition.