For a character without an ongoing series at the moment, the Punisher has been in the news a lot recently, and not for great reasons. Punisher co-creator Gerry Conway has been critical of how the police have coopted the Punisher logo on their cars and uniforms. Here is what he told Syfy in 2019:
“The vigilante anti-hero is fundamentally a critique of the justice system, an example of social failure, so when cops put Punisher skulls on their cars or members of the military wear Punisher skull patches, they’re basically sid[ing] with an enemy of the system. They are embracing an outlaw mentality. Whether you think the Punisher is justified or not, whether you admire his code of ethics, he is an outlaw. He is a criminal. Police should not be embracing a criminal as their symbol.”
In the wake of the protests all over the world, various members of the police have continued brandishing the logo, causing Conway to launch a series of t-shirts with the logo to support the Black Lives Matter movement.
All of this attention has caused us to reflect on what our staff’s favorite Punisher stories are. Some of us voted to go all the way back to his first solo miniseries from 1986, others advocated for Becky Cloonan’s recent series. I, personally, vote that the best Punisher story is the cover to “Punisher: War Journal” #19.
So, vote in our Reader Poll and then check back on Monday for the results of our poll.
Stay safe, and have a good weekend, friends.
