Grimlock ♥ Ultra Magnus

The Punisher, I imagine, is a hard character to write.   Much like Elektra, or Deadpool, there's only so much you can do with a one-trick pony.   Then again, he is one of my favorite characters due to the sympathy I feel for him because I understand why he lost it and went on his extended murdering spree.   His family was killed by violent criminals, and now he goes after the same kind of people - evil, violent people - in an attempt to make sure no one goes through his same loss.   Also, I hate vigilantes who suddenly have abilities - even ones they would have had to train hard for - suddenly after something horrible happens to them, or someone they love.   In Frank Castle's case, he was trained for years and a decorated soldier, who has exactly the kind of training someone like the Punisher needs.

And while the details may change, The Punisher has one mission: to punish evil.   He's a man, with no superpowers at all, although friends who are willing to supply him with information or the equipment that he needs do help him out in the end.   I always worry that one day, I'll be reading a Punisher story and realize that, no, it's all the same.   It simply will have stopped moving me.   And I think that would be a shame.   Fear of evil, and hatred of that evil, and the desire for retribution?   I think dispelling those emotions is a good thing, and I think one of the best ways I've found for the later is reading revenge fantasies, such as every single Punisher series I've ever read.   When the evil that goes unpunished, unrevenged, gets too much for me to bear, when the awful things that I see or hear about in the newspapers or on the news get too crushingly sad for me, there's always Frank Castle, righting the wrongs, even if only in fiction.   It's not that it gives me hope that someone like him will spring up in real life because I think that would be horrific.   But I can read a Punisher story, and somehow, seeing the fictional violence done against those evils makes me less horribly depressed.   Because maybe it's not that simple in the real world, but it is in Castle's world.

This had some nice elements that aren't super common in Punisher stories.   His suppliers aren't that uncommon, as he's had helpers before.   People who route guns and ammo his way, a hacker who helped him find his targets, friends who hide and shelter him with needed.   He's even had at least one protégé.   But he hasn't had animal companions that often, and seeing him make arrangements for his coyote, Loot - short for Lieutenant - is moving, as is the banter between Castle and his ally when talking about those arrangements.   It's casual, but there's something deeper there. 

And while it starts off as Castle going up against a drug gang - nothing new - the fact that they're using both biological weapons and Electro, a supervision, isn't as common.   It's nice to see Castle being completely overpowered by Electro, and seeing what he has to do to take control of the situation again. 

Anyway, I'm excited by this reboot so I'll continue on, even though I really liked the art and I noticed the artist seems to change for the next volume.  I think I've seen Noto's art, and I think I like it, so I have high hopes for volume two.