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** [[EatTheRich Mr. Payback]] can be seen as a critique of the Punisher's [[KillThemAll methods.]] While Payback's grievances are legitimate his solution of gunning down the nearest bad guys he can get to is unlikely to solve complex international socioeconomic problems (such as the inhumane Taiwanese labor practices he mentions in his MotiveRant). Payback also highlights the amount of collateral damage and innocent victims the Punisher's violence would cause if he wasn't crazy-prepared.
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Changed line(s) 85,86 (click to see context) from:
** [[KillThePoor Elite]] is the Punisher if he really did shoot people for jaywalking. Elite also highlights the racist and xenophobic UnfortunateImplications of the Punisher.
** [[AxCrazy The Holy]] can be viewed as a parody of the Punisher's Heaven story-arc and the criticism that his character is little more a homicidal psychopath.
** [[AxCrazy The Holy]] can be viewed as a parody of the Punisher's Heaven story-arc and the criticism that his character is little more a homicidal psychopath.
to:
** [[KillThePoor Elite]] is the Punisher if he really did shoot people for jaywalking. Elite also highlights the racist and xenophobic UnfortunateImplications of the Punisher.
Punisher's frequent wars on a GenericEthnicCrimeGang.
** [[AxCrazy The Holy]] can be viewed as a parody of the Punisher's Heaven story-arc and the criticism that his character is little more than a homicidal psychopath.
** [[AxCrazy The Holy]] can be viewed as a parody of the Punisher's Heaven story-arc and the criticism that his character is little more than a homicidal psychopath.
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** [[AxCrazy The Holy]] can be viewed as a parody of the Punisher's Heaven story-arc and the criticism that his character is little more a homicidal psychopath.
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* {{Foil}}: Each member of the 'Vigilante Squad' highlights common criticisms of the Punisher as a character.
** [[KillThePoor Elite]] is the Punisher if he really did shoot people for jaywalking. Elite also highlights the racist and xenophobic UnfortunateImplications of the Punisher.
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As per How To Create A Work Page - fan reaction and critical reception do not belong on work pages, only on ymmv. Cutting popularity statements.
Changed line(s) 9,10 (click to see context) from:
The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A [[ComicBook/ThePunisherPurgatory previous series]], subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. Needless to say, fans did not like this at all, so they were promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
to:
The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A [[ComicBook/ThePunisherPurgatory previous series]], subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. Needless to say, fans did not like this at all, so they were They are promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
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Changed line(s) 9,10 (click to see context) from:
The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A [[ComicBook/ThePunisherPurgatory previous series]], subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. They're promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
to:
The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A [[ComicBook/ThePunisherPurgatory previous series]], subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. They're Needless to say, fans did not like this at all, so they were promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
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* EveryoneHasStandards: For all of Frank's brutality in dealing with his chosen targets, he always makes sure that he goes after people who have committed actual crimes and is careful to avoid harming innocents. This is the main reason he [[spoiler:rejects the "Vigilante Squad"; Mr Payback in particular is called out for causing collateral damage and the Elite is dismissed as a Nazi who just goes after certain social groups of people he doesn't like, while the Holy is basically crazy]].
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Changed line(s) 65,66 (click to see context) from:
** “Loved ones” may be pushing it, but Carlo Gnucci shows concern and fear when he thinks his girlfriend has fallen out a window (really, Punisher just intimidated her into leaving the room).
** Fascistic murderer the Elite has a brief friendly conversation with his son.
** Fascistic murderer the Elite has a brief friendly conversation with his son.
to:
** “Loved ones” may be pushing it, but Carlo Gnucci shows concern and fear when he thinks his girlfriend has fallen out a window (really, the Punisher just intimidated her into leaving the room).
room as he prepares to kill Carlo).
** Fascistic murderer the Elite has a brief friendly conversation with hisson.son about what their family is having for dinner.
** Fascistic murderer the Elite has a brief friendly conversation with his
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Changed line(s) 53 (click to see context) from:
* CurbStompBattle: The Russian is introduced when a squad of elite commandos called Team Bravo, hired as mercenaries to kill him, invade his house only to be brutally slaughtered down to a man, who the Russian sends running away in the nude to tell his superiors that he's getting annoyed at their attempts on his life.
to:
* CurbStompBattle: The Russian is introduced when a squad of elite commandos called Team Bravo, Bravo Force, hired as mercenaries to kill him, invade his house house... only to be brutally slaughtered down to a man, who whom the Russian sends running away in the nude (and with his assault rifle wrapped around his neck) to tell his superiors that he's getting annoyed at their attempts on his life.
Changed line(s) 57 (click to see context) from:
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:The criminal profiler Buddy Plugg hangs himself]] after receiving disparaging comments from Soap(There's also his pretty crappy childhood and his own name).
to:
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:The criminal profiler Buddy Plugg hangs himself]] after receiving disparaging comments from Soap(There's Soap (there's also his pretty crappy childhood and his own name).
Changed line(s) 68 (click to see context) from:
** Downplayed or averted with Ma Gnucci. She does hire assassins to kill Punisher after he kills her sons (and later her brother), but barely acknowledges their existence and seems more determined to avenge the physical injuries he inflicts on her.
to:
** Downplayed or averted with Ma Gnucci. She does hire assassins to kill the Punisher after he kills her sons (and later her brother), but barely acknowledges their existence and seems more determined to avenge the physical injuries he inflicts on her.
Changed line(s) 89,90 (click to see context) from:
* HateSink: Elite of the Vigilante Squad. Mr. Payback targets corrupt corporate types responsible for enough death and misery that even one of *them* admits they probably have it coming, and The Holy is at least somewhat tragic as he clearly suffers from some kind of mental illness. Meanwhile, all of Elite's appearances only further show what a massive piece of garbage he is.
* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but he's alive! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but he's alive! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
to:
* HateSink: Elite of the Vigilante Squad. Mr. Payback targets corrupt corporate types responsible for enough death and misery that even one of *them* ''them'' admits they probably have it coming, and The Holy is at least somewhat tragic as he clearly suffers from some kind of mental illness. Meanwhile, all of Elite's appearances only further show what a massive piece of garbage he is.
* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by the Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but he's alive! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by the Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but he's alive! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
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** Mr. Payback showed up at a corporate room, accused the people in there of several corporate crimes, and killed them. One guy was complaining later about those horrible things he said... but the CEO corrected him: he was right, they DID commit those crimes, and managed to conceal them.
** Interestingly, the Punisher himself is fully aware of this, and brings it up when he confronts Payback. The Punisher tells him he's killed four ''innocent'' people, one of them being a cleaning lady who died when one of Payback's bullets went through a wall and hit her. Not only does this show Frank's contempt for vigilantes who don't properly plan ahead to prevent innocent people from getting killed, but it also shows that Frank had no problem whatsoever with Payback killing corrupt corporate execs.
** Interestingly, the Punisher himself is fully aware of this, and brings it up when he confronts Payback. The Punisher tells him he's killed four ''innocent'' people, one of them being a cleaning lady who died when one of Payback's bullets went through a wall and hit her. Not only does this show Frank's contempt for vigilantes who don't properly plan ahead to prevent innocent people from getting killed, but it also shows that Frank had no problem whatsoever with Payback killing corrupt corporate execs.
to:
** Mr. Payback showed up at a corporate room, accused the people in there of several corporate crimes, and killed them. One guy was complaining later about those horrible things he said... but the CEO corrected him: he was right, they DID ''DID'' commit those crimes, and managed to conceal them.
** Interestingly, the Punisher himself is fully aware of this, and brings it up when he confronts Payback. The Punisher tells him he's killed four ''innocent'' people, one of them being a cleaning lady who died when one of Payback's bullets went through a wall and hit her. Not only does this show Frank's contempt for vigilantes who don't properly plan ahead to prevent innocent people from getting killed, but it also shows that Frank had no problem whatsoever with Payback killing corrupt corporateexecs.execs; it was Payback's sloppiness in being a vigilante that signed his death warrant.
** Interestingly, the Punisher himself is fully aware of this, and brings it up when he confronts Payback. The Punisher tells him he's killed four ''innocent'' people, one of them being a cleaning lady who died when one of Payback's bullets went through a wall and hit her. Not only does this show Frank's contempt for vigilantes who don't properly plan ahead to prevent innocent people from getting killed, but it also shows that Frank had no problem whatsoever with Payback killing corrupt corporate
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* RasputinianDeath: After the burnings, beating, stabbings, it takes being suffocated under a tremendously obese man and the Punisher to take out the Russian. And even then his head gets cut off. [[spoiler:And even ''that'' didn't [[OnlyMostlyDead completely]] finish him, as the story arc after this one showed.]]
* ReluctantPsycho: The Holy is a genuinely insane man who kills people in a rage, only to regain control of himself afterwards. He's tormented by this until he sees a newspaper article about The Punisher, which encourages him to embrace his insanity.
* ReluctantPsycho: The Holy is a genuinely insane man who kills people in a rage, only to regain control of himself afterwards. He's tormented by this until he sees a newspaper article about The Punisher, which encourages him to embrace his insanity.
to:
* RasputinianDeath: After the burnings, beating, beatings and stabbings, it takes being suffocated under a tremendously obese man and the Punisher to take out the Russian. And even then his head gets cut off. [[spoiler:And even ''that'' didn't [[OnlyMostlyDead completely]] finish him, as the story arc after this one showed.]]
* ReluctantPsycho: The Holy is a genuinely insane man who kills people in a rage, only to regain control of himselfafterwards.afterwards and be horrified of what he has done. He's tormented by this until he sees a newspaper article about The Punisher, which encourages him to embrace his insanity.
* ReluctantPsycho: The Holy is a genuinely insane man who kills people in a rage, only to regain control of himself
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* SomethingWeForgot: Busy of Ma Gnucci, Punisher did not had time to locate and deal with the "Vigilante Squad"; but did so at the end.
to:
* SomethingWeForgot: Busy of With Ma Gnucci, Gnucci keeping him busy, the Punisher did not had have the time to locate and deal with the "Vigilante Squad"; but did so Squad" until at the end.
Changed line(s) 121 (click to see context) from:
* StrawLoser: Soap and Molly Von Richthofen do not have the slightest hope of doing anything to Punisher or Ma Gnucci (nor was the police expecting them to, considering that the cops like the Punisher's methods and Ma Gnucci had the NYPD on her payroll, so it's a catch-22 anyway). The best plan they could come up with was just to let things happen and let the whole crisis solve itself.
to:
* StrawLoser: Soap and Molly Von Richthofen do not have the slightest hope of doing anything to the Punisher or Ma Gnucci (nor was were the police expecting them to, considering that the cops like the Punisher's methods and Ma Gnucci had the NYPD on her payroll, so it's a catch-22 anyway). The best plan they could come up with was just to let things happen and let the whole crisis solve itself.
Changed line(s) 123,124 (click to see context) from:
* TitleDrop: At the end of the first issues. "''Welcome back, Frank. Says New York City''".
* ToiletHumour: Officer Soap is promoted to Chief Inspector at the end of the series, proudly looks out of his office to the Golden Sunset of New York... only to have a passing pigeon defecate on his head. Nevertheless, he warmly quotes "I love this town", for compared to all the hardships he endured trying to catch The Punisher, he is not going to let something as trivial as bird poop rain on his parade.
* ToiletHumour: Officer Soap is promoted to Chief Inspector at the end of the series, proudly looks out of his office to the Golden Sunset of New York... only to have a passing pigeon defecate on his head. Nevertheless, he warmly quotes "I love this town", for compared to all the hardships he endured trying to catch The Punisher, he is not going to let something as trivial as bird poop rain on his parade.
to:
* TitleDrop: At the end of the first issues.issue. "''Welcome back, Frank. Says New York City''".
* ToiletHumour: Officer Soap is promoted toChief Inspector Commissioner at the end of the series, proudly looks out of his office to the Golden Sunset of New York... only to have a passing pigeon defecate on his head. Nevertheless, he warmly quotes says "I love this town", town," for compared to all the hardships he endured trying to catch The Punisher, he is not going to let something as trivial as bird poop rain on his parade.
* ToiletHumour: Officer Soap is promoted to
Changed line(s) 126 (click to see context) from:
* WhatMeasureIsAMook: The various mob goons are frequently upset about the deaths of their friends (at the hands of both Punisher and BadBoss Ma) and many are terrified about having to go after Punisher but are forced into it. One is also shown eating a candy bar and reading ''Literature/TheBridgesOfMadisonCounty'' right before Frank dispatches bum. However, this overlaps with BaitTheDog for Benny and Billy, who get a few scenes where they act as comic relief or seem appalled by how ruthless Ma is, only for them to brutally torture Spacker Dave in their final appearance.
to:
* WhatMeasureIsAMook: The various mob goons are frequently upset about the deaths of their friends (at the hands of both the Punisher and BadBoss Ma) and many are terrified about having to go after the Punisher but are forced into it. One is also shown eating a candy bar and reading ''Literature/TheBridgesOfMadisonCounty'' right before Frank dispatches bum.him. However, this overlaps with BaitTheDog for Benny and Billy, who get a few scenes where they act as comic relief or seem appalled by how ruthless Ma is, only for them to brutally torture Spacker Dave in their final appearance.
Changed line(s) 128,129 (click to see context) from:
* WithinArmsReach: During a scene where Frank is getting the absolute shit beat out of him by the Russian, he notices a gun he dropped lying under a piece of furniture. Averted in that Frank does manage to pick up the gun, but the Russian easily takes it away from him and breaks off the barrel, then proceeds with beating down Frank. Frank finally killed the Russian by throwing a piping hot, freshly delivered pizza in his face and then suffocating him by pushing his morbidly obese neighbor on his face and then piling on so the Russian couldn't get away. Played straight because both the pizza and Mr. Bumpo were within Frank's reach.
to:
* WithinArmsReach: During a scene where Frank is getting the absolute shit beat beaten out of him by the Russian, he notices a gun he dropped lying under a piece of furniture. Averted in that Frank does manage to pick up the gun, but the Russian easily takes it away from him and breaks off the barrel, then proceeds with beating down Frank. Frank finally killed the Russian by throwing a piping hot, freshly delivered pizza in his face and then suffocating him by pushing his morbidly obese neighbor on his face and then piling on so the Russian couldn't get away. Played straight because both the pizza and Mr. Bumpo were within Frank's reach.
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Changed line(s) 28 (click to see context) from:
* BackAlleyDoctor: [[spoiler:Frank has to pay one to fix up Dave after he's tortured, and to remove the bullets there are still in his body after a nasty shootout. Frank thinks that he would've done it himself, but he needed someone who could help Dave]]. Frank also doesn't trust the hospital's doctors since they could be on Ma Gnucci's payroll -- the back alley doctor otoh is "old-school".
to:
* BackAlleyDoctor: [[spoiler:Frank has to pay one to fix up Dave after he's tortured, and to remove the bullets there that are still in his Frank's body after a nasty shootout. Frank thinks that he would've done it himself, but he needed someone who could help Dave]]. Frank also doesn't trust the hospital's (more sober) doctors since they could be on Ma Gnucci's payroll -- the back alley doctor otoh doctor, on the other hand, is "old-school".
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Example bullets need to stand alone and shouldn't refer to other things on the page.
Changed line(s) 49 (click to see context) from:
** Referenced by Frank when he kills the aforementioned Desert Storm sniper by repeatedly running him over.
to:
** Referenced by Frank when he kills the aforementioned Desert an ex-Desert Storm sniper sniper, now a mob hitman, by repeatedly running him over.
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Deleted line(s) 24 (click to see context) :
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Changed line(s) 51 (click to see context) from:
** Referenced by Frank when he kills the aforementioned Desert Storm sniper.
to:
** Referenced by Frank when he kills the aforementioned Desert Storm sniper.sniper by repeatedly running him over.
* CovertPervert: Benny, a nebbish and a strait-laced Gnucci goon, is on familiar terms with an adult bookshop clerk although he claims he only visits the place to use the phone.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes:
** Rapist and mobster Bobby Gnucci visits the morgue to see the body of his brother Eddie and is upset by the scene.
** “Loved ones” may be pushing it, but Carlo Gnucci shows concern and fear when he thinks his girlfriend has fallen out a window (really, Punisher just intimidated her into leaving the room).
** Fascistic murderer the Elite has a brief friendly conversation with his son.
** One of the drug dealers Elite kills has a sister who is upset enough about his death that an acquaintance promised her he would kill the Elite. He tries, but it goes poorly for him.
** Downplayed or averted with Ma Gnucci. She does hire assassins to kill Punisher after he kills her sons (and later her brother), but barely acknowledges their existence and seems more determined to avenge the physical injuries he inflicts on her.
** Rapist and mobster Bobby Gnucci visits the morgue to see the body of his brother Eddie and is upset by the scene.
** “Loved ones” may be pushing it, but Carlo Gnucci shows concern and fear when he thinks his girlfriend has fallen out a window (really, Punisher just intimidated her into leaving the room).
** Fascistic murderer the Elite has a brief friendly conversation with his son.
** One of the drug dealers Elite kills has a sister who is upset enough about his death that an acquaintance promised her he would kill the Elite. He tries, but it goes poorly for him.
** Downplayed or averted with Ma Gnucci. She does hire assassins to kill Punisher after he kills her sons (and later her brother), but barely acknowledges their existence and seems more determined to avenge the physical injuries he inflicts on her.
Changed line(s) 65 (click to see context) from:
* EvilCripple: [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci following the incident with the polar bears]].
to:
* EvilCripple: [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci is left a brutal quadruple amputee following the incident with the polar bears]].
* SpareAMessenger: The Russian's EstablishingCharacterMoment has him killing an elite hit squad and letting one man run away (stripped naked) to tell their bosses not to try again.
Changed line(s) 120 (click to see context) from:
* WhiteMaskOfDoom: The Elite wears one of there.
to:
* WhatMeasureIsAMook: The various mob goons are frequently upset about the deaths of their friends (at the hands of both Punisher and BadBoss Ma) and many are terrified about having to go after Punisher but are forced into it. One is also shown eating a candy bar and reading ''Literature/TheBridgesOfMadisonCounty'' right before Frank dispatches bum. However, this overlaps with BaitTheDog for Benny and Billy, who get a few scenes where they act as comic relief or seem appalled by how ruthless Ma is, only for them to brutally torture Spacker Dave in their final appearance.
* WhiteMaskOfDoom: The Elite wearsone of there.a creepy white mask.
* WhiteMaskOfDoom: The Elite wears
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Spoiler tagging. Deleted Hes Back - doesn't really apply to the Punisher's starting point here
Changed line(s) 26 (click to see context) from:
* AnArmAndALeg: Ma Gnucci loses both of her arms and legs to a polar bear attack.
to:
* AnArmAndALeg: Ma [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci loses both of her arms and both legs to a polar bear attack.attack]].
Changed line(s) 30 (click to see context) from:
* BackAlleyDoctor: Frank has to pay one to fix up Dave after he's tortured, and to remove the bullets there are still in his body after a nasty shootout. Frank thinks that he would've done it himself, but he needed someone who could help Dave. Frank also doesn't trust the hospital's doctors since they could be on Ma Gnucci's payroll -- the back alley doctor otoh is "old-school".
to:
* BackAlleyDoctor: Frank [[spoiler:Frank has to pay one to fix up Dave after he's tortured, and to remove the bullets there are still in his body after a nasty shootout. Frank thinks that he would've done it himself, but he needed someone who could help Dave.Dave]]. Frank also doesn't trust the hospital's doctors since they could be on Ma Gnucci's payroll -- the back alley doctor otoh is "old-school".
Changed line(s) 32,33 (click to see context) from:
* BandagedFace: Spacker Dave's face is covered entirely in bandages after being tortured by Ma Gnucci's goons. Even after his face heals up, he decides to keep them on because he decides he likes them more than his piercings.
* BearsAreBadNews: Ma Gnucci will always regret following Castle into the bear's cage. And he had just attacked them and ran, so they are more angry than the average bear!
* BearsAreBadNews: Ma Gnucci will always regret following Castle into the bear's cage. And he had just attacked them and ran, so they are more angry than the average bear!
to:
* BandagedFace: Spacker [[spoiler:Spacker Dave's face is covered entirely in bandages after being tortured by Ma Gnucci's goons. Even after his face heals up, he decides to keep them on because he decides he likes them more than his piercings.
piercings]].
* BearsAreBadNews:Ma [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci will always regret following Castle into the bear's cage. And he had just attacked them and ran, so they are more angry than the average bear!bear!]]
* BearsAreBadNews:
Changed line(s) 37,39 (click to see context) from:
* BodyHorror: Ma Gnucci ends up bald and limbless after getting mauled by bears.
* BondOneLiner: "The Holy" was pleading Punisher to lead him and the other two vigilantes, that together they can create a super group and destroy crime. Isn't that what Punisher wants?
-->'''Punisher:''' No. ''[kills them]''
* BondOneLiner: "The Holy" was pleading Punisher to lead him and the other two vigilantes, that together they can create a super group and destroy crime. Isn't that what Punisher wants?
-->'''Punisher:''' No. ''[kills them]''
to:
* BodyHorror: Ma [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci ends up bald and limbless after getting mauled by bears.
bears]].
* BondOneLiner:"The [[spoiler:"The Holy" was pleading Punisher to lead him and the other two vigilantes, that together they can create a super group and destroy crime. Isn't that what Punisher wants?
wants?]]
-->'''Punisher:'''No. ''[kills them]''[[spoiler:No. ]]''[[spoiler:[kills them]]]''
* BondOneLiner:
-->'''Punisher:'''
Changed line(s) 48,50 (click to see context) from:
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: When Ma Gnucci says she wants to kill the one who crippled her, one of her mooks says, "You want us to put a hit on the ''bear''?"
-->'''Ma:''' [[SurroundedByIdiots On THE PUNISHER!]]\\
'''Mook:''' Oh.
-->'''Ma:''' [[SurroundedByIdiots On THE PUNISHER!]]\\
'''Mook:''' Oh.
to:
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: When [[spoiler:When Ma Gnucci says she wants to kill the one who crippled her, one of her mooks says, "You want us to put a hit on the ''bear''?"
-->'''Ma:''' [[SurroundedByIdiots On THE PUNISHER!]]\\
'''Mook:''' Oh.''bear''?"]].
-->'''Ma:''' [[SurroundedByIdiots On THE PUNISHER!]]\\
'''Mook:''' Oh.
Changed line(s) 57 (click to see context) from:
* DecapitationPresentation: Frank holds the Russian's severed head at the gate of Ma Gnucci's mansion. That's enough to make every mobster just walk away.
to:
* DecapitationPresentation: Frank [[spoiler:Frank holds the Russian's severed head at the gate of Ma Gnucci's mansion. That's enough to make every mobster just walk away.away]].
Changed line(s) 67,68 (click to see context) from:
* EvilCripple: [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci]] following the incident with the polar bears.
* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: [[AvertedTrope No, it is not]], as the Vigilante Squad shows. They all have differing motivations, which leads them to constantly bicker with each other. In fact, they're so awful at working together that as soon as they join forces, they completely stop killing people because they're too busy arguing about plans to actually get out on the street.
* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: [[AvertedTrope No, it is not]], as the Vigilante Squad shows. They all have differing motivations, which leads them to constantly bicker with each other. In fact, they're so awful at working together that as soon as they join forces, they completely stop killing people because they're too busy arguing about plans to actually get out on the street.
to:
* EvilCripple: [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci]] Gnucci following the incident with the polar bears.
bears]].
* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: [[AvertedTrope No, it is not]], as the Vigilante Squad shows. They all have differing motivations, which leads them to constantly bicker with each other.In [[spoiler:In fact, they're so awful at working together that as soon as they join forces, they completely stop killing people because they're too busy arguing about plans to actually get out on the street.street]].
* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: [[AvertedTrope No, it is not]], as the Vigilante Squad shows. They all have differing motivations, which leads them to constantly bicker with each other.
Changed line(s) 74 (click to see context) from:
* FacialHorror: Ma Gnucci's goons interrogate Spacker Dave by pulling out his piercings.
to:
* FacialHorror: Ma [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci's goons interrogate Spacker Dave by pulling out his piercings.piercings]].
Changed line(s) 82 (click to see context) from:
** When Ma Gnucci is in the hospital after being mauled by polar bears, there's a get well card on the bed with a picture of a teddy bear on it.
to:
** When [[spoiler:When Ma Gnucci is in the hospital after being mauled by polar bears, there's a get well card on the bed with a picture of a teddy bear on it.it]].
Deleted line(s) 87 (click to see context) :
* HesBack: Punisher is back!
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A SequelSeries, also simply titled ''{{ComicBook/The Punisher|2021}}'', swiftly followed in June 2001, initially with the same creative team.
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A SequelSeries, also simply titled ''{{ComicBook/The Punisher|2021}}'', Punisher|2001}}'', swiftly followed in June 2001, initially with the same creative team.
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The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A [[ComicBook/ThePunisherPurgatory previous ''Punisher'' series]], subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. They're promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
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The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A [[ComicBook/ThePunisherPurgatory previous ''Punisher'' series]], subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. They're promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
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* ATeamFiring / MoreDakka: Mr. Payback's modus operandi. [[spoiler:When a bullet hits and kills an innocent cleaning lady behind a wall, Payback gets put on Frank's list.]]
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* MoreDakka: Mr. Payback's modus operandi. [[spoiler:When a bullet hits and kills an innocent cleaning lady behind a wall, Payback gets put on Frank's list.]]
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The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A previous ''Punisher'' series, subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. They're promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
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The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, serves as a SoftReboot for the Punisher. A [[ComicBook/ThePunisherPurgatory previous ''Punisher'' series, series]], subtitled ''Purgatory'' (1998), had reinvented the character - normally a BadassNormal vigilante - by giving him magical powers. They're promptly removed again prior to the start of ''Welcome Back, Frank'', something which is briefly explained in the first issue and then never mentioned again.
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* RevisitingTheRoots: No surveillance, no weird ammo, no strange techs, no partners... this is a return to the basics: Punisher, guns and petty criminals. In fact, this story undid the previous status of Punisher [[DorkAge as a supernatural celestial enforcer]] (which got him cancelled), and turned him into a "normal" character once more.
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* RevisitingTheRoots: No surveillance, no weird ammo, no ammo or strange techs, technology, no partners... partners or backup... this is a return to the basics: basics. The Punisher, guns and petty criminals. In fact, this The story undid the previous immediately removes his shortlived [[EmpoweredBadassNormal magical powers]] and returns him to his BadassNormal status of Punisher [[DorkAge as a supernatural celestial enforcer]] (which got him cancelled), and turned him into a "normal" character once more.quo.
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A SequelSeries, also simply titled ''{{ComicBook/The Punisher|2021}}'', swiftly followed in June 2001, initially with the same creative team.
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''Welcome Back, Frank'' is a story arc by Creator/GarthEnnis and Creator/SteveDillon, with the long awaited return of ComicBook/ThePunisher.
Punisher is back in town, ready to end the criminal family of Ma Gnucci once and for all. But first, to make things easier, he killed several of her hitmen, including her sons. She gets more and more hitmen, and eventually they trapped him without weapons at the local zoo. Still, he manages to use the animals to his advantage and kill people for him. He left Ma Gnucci with the polar bears, but she survived. Armless and legless, but she survived. He retreated for some days to the hotel (where he uses the alias "[[MrSmith John Smith]]") until he heals and can go into action again. One of his neighbours noticed that it was him, and outed his identity to Ma Gnucci in exchange of a reward. The criminal attacked him and hurt him, but he was saved by his other wacky neighbors, Spacker Dave and Joan the Mouse.
Needing more power to finish the job, Ma Gnucci called The Russian, who attacked Castle as well. Punisher killed him, returned to the mansion of Ma Gnucci, killed all her remaining henchmen, and set the building on fire, with the crippled Ma Gnucci still inside.
Oh, and don't forget about Soap. The police does not want to move a finger against Punisher, who saves them so much work, but they ''have'' to. So, they assigned the "Punisher case" to the most pathetic couple of losers they could find.
Punisher's return also inspired three other vigilantes, "The Holy", "Elite" and "Mr. Payback".
Punisher is back in town, ready to end the criminal family of Ma Gnucci once and for all. But first, to make things easier, he killed several of her hitmen, including her sons. She gets more and more hitmen, and eventually they trapped him without weapons at the local zoo. Still, he manages to use the animals to his advantage and kill people for him. He left Ma Gnucci with the polar bears, but she survived. Armless and legless, but she survived. He retreated for some days to the hotel (where he uses the alias "[[MrSmith John Smith]]") until he heals and can go into action again. One of his neighbours noticed that it was him, and outed his identity to Ma Gnucci in exchange of a reward. The criminal attacked him and hurt him, but he was saved by his other wacky neighbors, Spacker Dave and Joan the Mouse.
Needing more power to finish the job, Ma Gnucci called The Russian, who attacked Castle as well. Punisher killed him, returned to the mansion of Ma Gnucci, killed all her remaining henchmen, and set the building on fire, with the crippled Ma Gnucci still inside.
Oh, and don't forget about Soap. The police does not want to move a finger against Punisher, who saves them so much work, but they ''have'' to. So, they assigned the "Punisher case" to the most pathetic couple of losers they could find.
Punisher's return also inspired three other vigilantes, "The Holy", "Elite" and "Mr. Payback".
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''The Punisher'' (2000), subtitled ''Welcome Back, Frank'' for collected editions, is a
The series, set in the
Now returned to his old self, the Punisher is back in
Oh, and don't forget about Soap. The police does not want to move a finger against Punisher, who saves them so much work, but they ''have'' to. So, they assigned the "Punisher case" to the most pathetic couple of losers they could find.
Punisher's
Meanwhile, New York's police can't just let a murderous vigilante run free, but they also broadly approve of the Punisher, who saves them so much work, So, the "Punisher case" gets assigned to the most pathetic pair of losers they can find, who are now getting entangled in all of this. Lord help them.
The first issue was released on April 1, 2000. The series ended with #12, released on March 1, 2001.
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Replacing image with cover of #1 - same pic, but less text, no left hand black bar and better color quality
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[[quoteright:342:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/punisherwelcomebackfrank_5031.jpg]]
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%%[[caption-width-right:350:some caption text]]
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Spoilers don't belong in the intro - and that was literally the last scene in the whole arc
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Punisher's return also inspired three other vigilantes, "The Holy", "Elite" and "Mr. Payback". [[spoiler:Punisher killed all of them.]]
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Punisher's return also inspired three other vigilantes, "The Holy", "Elite" and "Mr. Payback". [[spoiler:Punisher killed all of them.]]\n
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* HateSink: Elite of the Vigilante Squad. The Holy and Mr. Payback show some arguably redeeming qualities, whereas all of Elite's appearances only further show what a massive piece of garbage he is.
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* HateSink: Elite of the Vigilante Squad. The Holy and Mr. Payback show targets corrupt corporate types responsible for enough death and misery that even one of *them* admits they probably have it coming, and The Holy is at least somewhat tragic as he clearly suffers from some arguably redeeming qualities, whereas kind of mental illness. Meanwhile, all of Elite's appearances only further show what a massive piece of garbage he is.
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* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but [[IMAlive he's alive]]! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
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* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but [[IMAlive he's alive]]! alive! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
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* FamilialFoe: The Punisher kills the three Gnucci brothers in the opening issue. The rest of that arc (and a few other comics) feature him clashing with the brothers' mother, uncle, and cousins.
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Now IUEO; the work must remark on the unfortunateness
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* UnfortunateNames: With a name like Budd Plugg it's no wonder [[spoiler:[[DrivenToSuicide he killed himself.]]]]
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!!The Punisher: Welcome Back Frank'' contains examples of:
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!!The PunisherWelcome Back Frank'' contains examples of:
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!!The PunisherWelcome Punisher: Welcome Back Frank'' contains examples of:
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%% PLEASE read Administrivia/ExampleIndentationInTropeLists
%%
[[quoteright:342:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/punisherwelcomebackfrank_5031.jpg]]
''Welcome Back, Frank'' is a story arc by Creator/GarthEnnis and Creator/SteveDillon, with the long awaited return of ComicBook/ThePunisher.
Punisher is back in town, ready to end the criminal family of Ma Gnucci once and for all. But first, to make things easier, he killed several of her hitmen, including her sons. She gets more and more hitmen, and eventually they trapped him without weapons at the local zoo. Still, he manages to use the animals to his advantage and kill people for him. He left Ma Gnucci with the polar bears, but she survived. Armless and legless, but she survived. He retreated for some days to the hotel (where he uses the alias "[[MrSmith John Smith]]") until he heals and can go into action again. One of his neighbours noticed that it was him, and outed his identity to Ma Gnucci in exchange of a reward. The criminal attacked him and hurt him, but he was saved by his other wacky neighbors, Spacker Dave and Joan the Mouse.
Needing more power to finish the job, Ma Gnucci called The Russian, who attacked Castle as well. Punisher killed him, returned to the mansion of Ma Gnucci, killed all her remaining henchmen, and set the building on fire, with the crippled Ma Gnucci still inside.
Oh, and don't forget about Soap. The police does not want to move a finger against Punisher, who saves them so much work, but they ''have'' to. So, they assigned the "Punisher case" to the most pathetic couple of losers they could find.
Punisher's return also inspired three other vigilantes, "The Holy", "Elite" and "Mr. Payback". [[spoiler:Punisher killed all of them.]]
----
!!The PunisherWelcome Back Frank'' contains examples of:
* AchillesHeel: Heat is the only thing that causes the Russian any significant amount of pain and it doesn't take very much of it. A hot pizza is enough to incapacitate him for several crucial seconds.
* AnArmAndALeg: Ma Gnucci loses both of her arms and legs to a polar bear attack.
* AndCallHimGeorge: The Russian gives a mook a sidehug, crushing him without even noticing.
* AscendedFanboy: The Russian may be a villain, but he's a huge fan of American superheroes. He's even one of the founding members of the Daredevil Man Without Fear Fan Club in Smolensk. And when he's done with Punisher, he will go to meet the others and ask for autographs. Or perhaps he will join the Fantastic Four? Who is stronger, The Thing or The Russian?
* ATeamFiring / MoreDakka: Mr. Payback's modus operandi. [[spoiler:When a bullet hits and kills an innocent cleaning lady behind a wall, Payback gets put on Frank's list.]]
* BadBoss: Ma Gnucci orders one of her thugs to kill her own cousin, Stevie, simply because he asked her how she was doing after the polar bear attack, when that thug questions her, she orders another thug to kill that thug and Stevie, that thug also questions her, so she orders a third thug to kill the three of them, that thug complies. Then warns everyone else that anyone doubting that she means what she says would do well to remember she was fed to a pack of polar bears ten days prior.
* BackAlleyDoctor: Frank has to pay one to fix up Dave after he's tortured, and to remove the bullets there are still in his body after a nasty shootout. Frank thinks that he would've done it himself, but he needed someone who could help Dave. Frank also doesn't trust the hospital's doctors since they could be on Ma Gnucci's payroll -- the back alley doctor otoh is "old-school".
* BarredFromTheAfterlife: Punisher's speech in the first issue about the afterlife. The angels would give him peace and reunion, if he did some work for them. He refused. So they sent him back to a world filled with petty criminals, thinking that in comparison it would be like hell for him...[[{{Unishment}} but they were mistaken]].
* BandagedFace: Spacker Dave's face is covered entirely in bandages after being tortured by Ma Gnucci's goons. Even after his face heals up, he decides to keep them on because he decides he likes them more than his piercings.
* BearsAreBadNews: Ma Gnucci will always regret following Castle into the bear's cage. And he had just attacked them and ran, so they are more angry than the average bear!
* BerserkButton: The Russian no-sells virtually everything Punisher throws against him, with one exception; he has a low tolerance for heat. The only times he expresses pain is when Frank burns his hand on the stove and throws a scalding pizza in his face. Unfortunately, this also makes him ''furious''.
%%* BigEater: Mr. Bumpo.
* BloodKnight: The Russian, who we're told visits war zones for money or for fun.
* BodyHorror: Ma Gnucci ends up bald and limbless after getting mauled by bears.
* BondOneLiner: "The Holy" was pleading Punisher to lead him and the other two vigilantes, that together they can create a super group and destroy crime. Isn't that what Punisher wants?
-->'''Punisher:''' No. ''[kills them]''
* BulletproofHumanShield: Punisher took advantage of it at the morgue.
-->'''Punisher:''' Gunfight in the morgue, rule one: Don't hide behind the thin guy.
* TheCanKickedHim: The Russian very nearly manages to kill the Punisher with his own toilet!
* CarFu: The mafia hires a former Desert Storm sniper to kill Punisher. Frank just runs the guy over with an SUV, then backs up.
* CarnivalOfKillers: Deconstructed. A gangster employs three badass killers to take out the Punisher. The first guy is some kind of Neo-Cowboy Gunslinger, famous for a firefight with four State Troopers, where he ducked the last bullet fired at him, and shot the last cop dead. The Punisher riddles him with an UZI. [[note]]("Dodged a bullet. But not thirty.")[[/note]] The second guy is a Martial Arts expert "with a black belt in anything you care to name." Punisher says that he [[{{Understatement}} knows "a little myself"]], but settles on simply shoving the guy onto a subway track. Lastly we have an ex-Marine sniper and [[UsefulNotes/TheGulfWar Desert Storm]] veteran. [[CarFu Punisher runs him over with a car, then backs up on him for good measure.]]
* {{Catchphrase}}: Elite likes to mention that "This is a nice neighborhood."
* CheatedDeathDiedAnyway: Frank Castle interrogates a mafioso in his car on the freeway, before telling him to get out (while the car is still moving). The man does so, miraculously survives... only to get run over by a food truck. Belonging to a company called Frank's.
* CoincidentalBroadcast: All three new vigilantes watch the same broadcast about them and the Punisher, and say "''This gives me an idea''!" at the same time.
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: When Ma Gnucci says she wants to kill the one who crippled her, one of her mooks says, "You want us to put a hit on the ''bear''?"
-->'''Ma:''' [[SurroundedByIdiots On THE PUNISHER!]]\\
'''Mook:''' Oh.
* CombatPragmatism:
** One of the hitmen sent against Punisher was a black belt in all disciplines. Castle followed him in secret, stood behind him at the subway station when the subway was coming, and used his own martial art: Splat-fu.
** Referenced by Frank when he kills the aforementioned Desert Storm sniper.
--->'''Frank:''' When you're on your own -- behind enemy lines -- no artillery, no air strikes, no hope of an evac -- you don't fight dirty. You do things that make dirty look good.
* CulturalTranslation: Where one of the hitmen is said to shoot "quick as lightning", the French translation went with "[[ComicBook/LuckyLuke shoots faster than his own shadow]]".
* CurbStompBattle: The Russian is introduced when a squad of elite commandos called Team Bravo, hired as mercenaries to kill him, invade his house only to be brutally slaughtered down to a man, who the Russian sends running away in the nude to tell his superiors that he's getting annoyed at their attempts on his life.
* DecapitationPresentation: Frank holds the Russian's severed head at the gate of Ma Gnucci's mansion. That's enough to make every mobster just walk away.
-->'''Frank:''' ''IS THIS THE BEST YOU GOT, MA?!!''
* DisproportionateRetribution: Elite's EstablishingCharacterMoment, after killing a small drug dealing gang, is shooting a dog dead because the dog is pissing on the sidewalk, and in a later issue he drops a grenade into a hot dog cart (luckily, the vendor ran away). All in the name of a "nice neighborhood".
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:The criminal profiler Buddy Plugg hangs himself]] after receiving disparaging comments from Soap(There's also his pretty crappy childhood and his own name).
* DumbMuscle: The Russian.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment:
** The first thing Frank does is toss a mafia goon off a building.
** Elite kills drug dealers, dogs doing their necessities on the sidewalk and threatens hot dog vendors by blowing up their businesses, for a "[[StepfordSuburbia nice neighborhood]]".
** The first we ([[GoryDiscretionShot sort of]]) see the Russian do is completely and utterly destroy a special ops team sent to kill him, sending the leader running naked, with his rifle bent around his neck, and crying "I want my Mommeeee...!".
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Mr. Payback is utterly appalled by Elite's blatant racism and and classism, and calls him a fascist to his face. [[ZigZaggedTrope He still tries to work with him, though.]]
* EvilCripple: [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci]] following the incident with the polar bears.
* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: [[AvertedTrope No, it is not]], as the Vigilante Squad shows. They all have differing motivations, which leads them to constantly bicker with each other. In fact, they're so awful at working together that as soon as they join forces, they completely stop killing people because they're too busy arguing about plans to actually get out on the street.
* EvilOldFolks: Ma Gnucci. Calling her an old hag would be kind.
* {{Expy}}:
** Detective Soap for Detective Paul Bridges, a similarly unlucky cop from an early arc of ''Comicbook/{{Preacher}}''.
** Ma Gnucci also has distinct similarities to Jesse's grandmother, Marie L'Angelle, in ''Preacher''.
* EyeAmWatchingYou: Punisher killed two rival gangs, but spared a guy who said that he was just an addict. He told him that he would be watching, and left. The guy called a friend, to come and retrieve the fortune in drugs that was lying there... and Punisher came out of the shadow, and killed the guy.
* FacialHorror: Ma Gnucci's goons interrogate Spacker Dave by pulling out his piercings.
* TheFaceless: Elite is never seen without his mask. When he takes it off, we only see the back of his head.
* {{Fanboy}}: The Russian is a superhero fan and, according to himself, a founding member of the ''Daredevil Man Without Fear''-fan club in Smolensk. He also expresses a hope of getting Spider-Man's autograph while in New York.
* FatComicRelief: Frank's neighbor, Mr. Nathaniel Bumpo, is very big and fat and it's a running gag that almost every time Frank sees him that he's in some comedic situation because of his weight. First he was stuck on his door and had to be pulled through. Then he had to get his toilet replaced again because he keeps breaking his, this time with ''plate steel'' with some skepticism that would even be enough, with him asking if they come in adamantium.
* FriendOnTheForce: Frank uses Soap as an informant, since the latter has figured out he's never going to actually catch Frank.
* FunnyBackgroundEvent:
** On a filing cabinet in the police station, there is a stuffed pig in a policeman's uniform. Those cops must have a [[SelfDeprecation good sense of humor]].
** When Ma Gnucci is in the hospital after being mauled by polar bears, there's a get well card on the bed with a picture of a teddy bear on it.
* GiveChaseWithAngryNatives: Frank runs through a cage of sleeping polar bears. The pursuing Mafia runs through a cage of pissed-off, very much awake polar bears.
* GiveMeASign: While burying his latest victim, The Holy begs for God to give him a sign on how he should confront his madness. A newspaper blows into his face, and on the front page is a news story about The Punisher.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: Frank uses the morbidly obese Mr. Bumpo to [[spoiler:smother the Russian to death.]]
* HateSink: Elite of the Vigilante Squad. The Holy and Mr. Payback show some arguably redeeming qualities, whereas all of Elite's appearances only further show what a massive piece of garbage he is.
* HesBack: Punisher is back!
* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but [[IMAlive he's alive]]! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
* ILetYouWin: The Punisher lets [[spoiler:Daredevil]] beat him down because he feels bad about the trap he's set that the latter doesn't have a chance against.
* ImplacableMan: The Russian, albeit a much more jovial version than is typically encountered.
* InsistentTerminology:
** Dave.
--->''Spacker'' Dave!
** Subverted when Frank finally uses the name right ("''Spac-- Hey!'' Mr. Smith, dude! ''You got it''!").
* JerkassHasAPoint:
** Mr. Payback showed up at a corporate room, accused the people in there of several corporate crimes, and killed them. One guy was complaining later about those horrible things he said... but the CEO corrected him: he was right, they DID commit those crimes, and managed to conceal them.
** Interestingly, the Punisher himself is fully aware of this, and brings it up when he confronts Payback. The Punisher tells him he's killed four ''innocent'' people, one of them being a cleaning lady who died when one of Payback's bullets went through a wall and hit her. Not only does this show Frank's contempt for vigilantes who don't properly plan ahead to prevent innocent people from getting killed, but it also shows that Frank had no problem whatsoever with Payback killing corrupt corporate execs.
* KarmaHoudini: A porn shop clerk accidentally catches the Punisher limping back to his hideout after the fight at the zoo, and rats him out to Ma Gnucci, and gets a $10,000 dollar reward for it. He gets off completely scot-free with the money and is never seen again.
* KickedUpstairs: Hey, Soap! Now you have an important case to lead, and your office, and your own special operations team! Yes, it was too good for that loser to be true...
* LaughablyEvil: The Russian's every other line is a joke.
* OhCrap:
** Ma Gnucci's boys have plenty of these moments throughout the comic when face-to-face with the Punisher, but none more emblematic than when [[spoiler:he walks up to her mansion with the decapitated head of the Russian. Every last one of her goons drops their guns and walks away, leaving her to face her fate alone.]]
** Frank's reaction when he notices the Russian has torn a toilet loose from the fixtures and is coming after him.
--->'''Frank:''' No...
* PetTheDog: Frank sneaks back into his abandoned apartment and leaves behind huge piles of cash (taken from the safe of a crime boss he'd just killed) for his three neighbors to find. Each of them had helped him several times during the arc, and he felt obligated. The last panel shows him standing on the street outside, listening to them laughing with joy and planning on improving their lives with the money. Frank walks away, thinking: "Best I can do. Maybe I am damned. But I'm not dragging you good people down with me."
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: The Elite shows extreme disdain towards poor people and minorities, and settles for insulting them when he isn't actively killing them.
* PsychopathicManchild: The Russian. His guileless expression and easygoing attitude make everything about him more frightening.
* RasputinianDeath: After the burnings, beating, stabbings, it takes being suffocated under a tremendously obese man and the Punisher to take out the Russian. And even then his head gets cut off. [[spoiler:And even ''that'' didn't [[OnlyMostlyDead completely]] finish him, as the story arc after this one showed.]]
* ReluctantPsycho: The Holy is a genuinely insane man who kills people in a rage, only to regain control of himself afterwards. He's tormented by this until he sees a newspaper article about The Punisher, which encourages him to embrace his insanity.
* RevisitingTheRoots: No surveillance, no weird ammo, no strange techs, no partners... this is a return to the basics: Punisher, guns and petty criminals. In fact, this story undid the previous status of Punisher [[DorkAge as a supernatural celestial enforcer]] (which got him cancelled), and turned him into a "normal" character once more.
* ScatterbrainedSenior: Mrs. Pearse, the cleaning lady at the church, is zealous about her duties, but forgetful (she can't seem to get cleaning day right) and nearly blind and deaf, so much so that Father Redondo can say out loud that he killed the criminals who went to confess with him and she still won't listen. And she cleans up all the blood nicely and without reservations, because she thinks it's spilt communion wine.
* ScrewThisImOutOfHere: When Frank shows up at Ma Gnucci's house with The Russian's head, he stares down her remaining thugs. They all throw their guns on the ground and leave Ma to her fate.
* ShoutOut: A mook walking in on Ma Gnucci from behind and getting startled by the sight of machines lowering the wig onto her scarred head is a clear homage to [[Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack ''The Empire Strikes Back'']].
* ShutUpHannibal: The Punisher gives fatal ones to [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci and the Vigilante Squad]] when they try to lecture him on his moral failings.
* SinisterMinister: Father Redondo, a.k.a. The Holy, who is ready to [[AxCrazy axe murder]] you in his confessional the second you say something he doesn't like.
* SomethingWeForgot: Busy of Ma Gnucci, Punisher did not had time to locate and deal with the "Vigilante Squad"; but did so at the end.
* StrawLoser: Soap and Molly Von Richthofen do not have the slightest hope of doing anything to Punisher or Ma Gnucci (nor was the police expecting them to, considering that the cops like the Punisher's methods and Ma Gnucci had the NYPD on her payroll, so it's a catch-22 anyway). The best plan they could come up with was just to let things happen and let the whole crisis solve itself.
* TakeOurWordForIt: We never get to see Spacker Dave's face after his piercings are torn out. What little we see of his ear looks like fried plastic. Even after he heals, he decides to keep the bandages on because they make him stand out.
* TitleDrop: At the end of the first issues. "''Welcome back, Frank. Says New York City''".
* ToiletHumour: Officer Soap is promoted to Chief Inspector at the end of the series, proudly looks out of his office to the Golden Sunset of New York... only to have a passing pigeon defecate on his head. Nevertheless, he warmly quotes "I love this town", for compared to all the hardships he endured trying to catch The Punisher, he is not going to let something as trivial as bird poop rain on his parade.
* UnfortunateNames: With a name like Budd Plugg it's no wonder [[spoiler:[[DrivenToSuicide he killed himself.]]]]
* TheUnreveal: The true identities of Elite and Mr. Payback are never revealed.
* WhiteMaskOfDoom: The Elite wears one of there.
* WithinArmsReach: During a scene where Frank is getting the absolute shit beat out of him by the Russian, he notices a gun he dropped lying under a piece of furniture. Averted in that Frank does manage to pick up the gun, but the Russian easily takes it away from him and breaks off the barrel, then proceeds with beating down Frank. Frank finally killed the Russian by throwing a piping hot, freshly delivered pizza in his face and then suffocating him by pushing his morbidly obese neighbor on his face and then piling on so the Russian couldn't get away. Played straight because both the pizza and Mr. Bumpo were within Frank's reach.
----
%% PLEASE read Administrivia/ExampleIndentationInTropeLists
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[[quoteright:342:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/punisherwelcomebackfrank_5031.jpg]]
''Welcome Back, Frank'' is a story arc by Creator/GarthEnnis and Creator/SteveDillon, with the long awaited return of ComicBook/ThePunisher.
Punisher is back in town, ready to end the criminal family of Ma Gnucci once and for all. But first, to make things easier, he killed several of her hitmen, including her sons. She gets more and more hitmen, and eventually they trapped him without weapons at the local zoo. Still, he manages to use the animals to his advantage and kill people for him. He left Ma Gnucci with the polar bears, but she survived. Armless and legless, but she survived. He retreated for some days to the hotel (where he uses the alias "[[MrSmith John Smith]]") until he heals and can go into action again. One of his neighbours noticed that it was him, and outed his identity to Ma Gnucci in exchange of a reward. The criminal attacked him and hurt him, but he was saved by his other wacky neighbors, Spacker Dave and Joan the Mouse.
Needing more power to finish the job, Ma Gnucci called The Russian, who attacked Castle as well. Punisher killed him, returned to the mansion of Ma Gnucci, killed all her remaining henchmen, and set the building on fire, with the crippled Ma Gnucci still inside.
Oh, and don't forget about Soap. The police does not want to move a finger against Punisher, who saves them so much work, but they ''have'' to. So, they assigned the "Punisher case" to the most pathetic couple of losers they could find.
Punisher's return also inspired three other vigilantes, "The Holy", "Elite" and "Mr. Payback". [[spoiler:Punisher killed all of them.]]
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!!The PunisherWelcome Back Frank'' contains examples of:
* AchillesHeel: Heat is the only thing that causes the Russian any significant amount of pain and it doesn't take very much of it. A hot pizza is enough to incapacitate him for several crucial seconds.
* AnArmAndALeg: Ma Gnucci loses both of her arms and legs to a polar bear attack.
* AndCallHimGeorge: The Russian gives a mook a sidehug, crushing him without even noticing.
* AscendedFanboy: The Russian may be a villain, but he's a huge fan of American superheroes. He's even one of the founding members of the Daredevil Man Without Fear Fan Club in Smolensk. And when he's done with Punisher, he will go to meet the others and ask for autographs. Or perhaps he will join the Fantastic Four? Who is stronger, The Thing or The Russian?
* ATeamFiring / MoreDakka: Mr. Payback's modus operandi. [[spoiler:When a bullet hits and kills an innocent cleaning lady behind a wall, Payback gets put on Frank's list.]]
* BadBoss: Ma Gnucci orders one of her thugs to kill her own cousin, Stevie, simply because he asked her how she was doing after the polar bear attack, when that thug questions her, she orders another thug to kill that thug and Stevie, that thug also questions her, so she orders a third thug to kill the three of them, that thug complies. Then warns everyone else that anyone doubting that she means what she says would do well to remember she was fed to a pack of polar bears ten days prior.
* BackAlleyDoctor: Frank has to pay one to fix up Dave after he's tortured, and to remove the bullets there are still in his body after a nasty shootout. Frank thinks that he would've done it himself, but he needed someone who could help Dave. Frank also doesn't trust the hospital's doctors since they could be on Ma Gnucci's payroll -- the back alley doctor otoh is "old-school".
* BarredFromTheAfterlife: Punisher's speech in the first issue about the afterlife. The angels would give him peace and reunion, if he did some work for them. He refused. So they sent him back to a world filled with petty criminals, thinking that in comparison it would be like hell for him...[[{{Unishment}} but they were mistaken]].
* BandagedFace: Spacker Dave's face is covered entirely in bandages after being tortured by Ma Gnucci's goons. Even after his face heals up, he decides to keep them on because he decides he likes them more than his piercings.
* BearsAreBadNews: Ma Gnucci will always regret following Castle into the bear's cage. And he had just attacked them and ran, so they are more angry than the average bear!
* BerserkButton: The Russian no-sells virtually everything Punisher throws against him, with one exception; he has a low tolerance for heat. The only times he expresses pain is when Frank burns his hand on the stove and throws a scalding pizza in his face. Unfortunately, this also makes him ''furious''.
%%* BigEater: Mr. Bumpo.
* BloodKnight: The Russian, who we're told visits war zones for money or for fun.
* BodyHorror: Ma Gnucci ends up bald and limbless after getting mauled by bears.
* BondOneLiner: "The Holy" was pleading Punisher to lead him and the other two vigilantes, that together they can create a super group and destroy crime. Isn't that what Punisher wants?
-->'''Punisher:''' No. ''[kills them]''
* BulletproofHumanShield: Punisher took advantage of it at the morgue.
-->'''Punisher:''' Gunfight in the morgue, rule one: Don't hide behind the thin guy.
* TheCanKickedHim: The Russian very nearly manages to kill the Punisher with his own toilet!
* CarFu: The mafia hires a former Desert Storm sniper to kill Punisher. Frank just runs the guy over with an SUV, then backs up.
* CarnivalOfKillers: Deconstructed. A gangster employs three badass killers to take out the Punisher. The first guy is some kind of Neo-Cowboy Gunslinger, famous for a firefight with four State Troopers, where he ducked the last bullet fired at him, and shot the last cop dead. The Punisher riddles him with an UZI. [[note]]("Dodged a bullet. But not thirty.")[[/note]] The second guy is a Martial Arts expert "with a black belt in anything you care to name." Punisher says that he [[{{Understatement}} knows "a little myself"]], but settles on simply shoving the guy onto a subway track. Lastly we have an ex-Marine sniper and [[UsefulNotes/TheGulfWar Desert Storm]] veteran. [[CarFu Punisher runs him over with a car, then backs up on him for good measure.]]
* {{Catchphrase}}: Elite likes to mention that "This is a nice neighborhood."
* CheatedDeathDiedAnyway: Frank Castle interrogates a mafioso in his car on the freeway, before telling him to get out (while the car is still moving). The man does so, miraculously survives... only to get run over by a food truck. Belonging to a company called Frank's.
* CoincidentalBroadcast: All three new vigilantes watch the same broadcast about them and the Punisher, and say "''This gives me an idea''!" at the same time.
* ComicallyMissingThePoint: When Ma Gnucci says she wants to kill the one who crippled her, one of her mooks says, "You want us to put a hit on the ''bear''?"
-->'''Ma:''' [[SurroundedByIdiots On THE PUNISHER!]]\\
'''Mook:''' Oh.
* CombatPragmatism:
** One of the hitmen sent against Punisher was a black belt in all disciplines. Castle followed him in secret, stood behind him at the subway station when the subway was coming, and used his own martial art: Splat-fu.
** Referenced by Frank when he kills the aforementioned Desert Storm sniper.
--->'''Frank:''' When you're on your own -- behind enemy lines -- no artillery, no air strikes, no hope of an evac -- you don't fight dirty. You do things that make dirty look good.
* CulturalTranslation: Where one of the hitmen is said to shoot "quick as lightning", the French translation went with "[[ComicBook/LuckyLuke shoots faster than his own shadow]]".
* CurbStompBattle: The Russian is introduced when a squad of elite commandos called Team Bravo, hired as mercenaries to kill him, invade his house only to be brutally slaughtered down to a man, who the Russian sends running away in the nude to tell his superiors that he's getting annoyed at their attempts on his life.
* DecapitationPresentation: Frank holds the Russian's severed head at the gate of Ma Gnucci's mansion. That's enough to make every mobster just walk away.
-->'''Frank:''' ''IS THIS THE BEST YOU GOT, MA?!!''
* DisproportionateRetribution: Elite's EstablishingCharacterMoment, after killing a small drug dealing gang, is shooting a dog dead because the dog is pissing on the sidewalk, and in a later issue he drops a grenade into a hot dog cart (luckily, the vendor ran away). All in the name of a "nice neighborhood".
* DrivenToSuicide: [[spoiler:The criminal profiler Buddy Plugg hangs himself]] after receiving disparaging comments from Soap(There's also his pretty crappy childhood and his own name).
* DumbMuscle: The Russian.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment:
** The first thing Frank does is toss a mafia goon off a building.
** Elite kills drug dealers, dogs doing their necessities on the sidewalk and threatens hot dog vendors by blowing up their businesses, for a "[[StepfordSuburbia nice neighborhood]]".
** The first we ([[GoryDiscretionShot sort of]]) see the Russian do is completely and utterly destroy a special ops team sent to kill him, sending the leader running naked, with his rifle bent around his neck, and crying "I want my Mommeeee...!".
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Mr. Payback is utterly appalled by Elite's blatant racism and and classism, and calls him a fascist to his face. [[ZigZaggedTrope He still tries to work with him, though.]]
* EvilCripple: [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci]] following the incident with the polar bears.
* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: [[AvertedTrope No, it is not]], as the Vigilante Squad shows. They all have differing motivations, which leads them to constantly bicker with each other. In fact, they're so awful at working together that as soon as they join forces, they completely stop killing people because they're too busy arguing about plans to actually get out on the street.
* EvilOldFolks: Ma Gnucci. Calling her an old hag would be kind.
* {{Expy}}:
** Detective Soap for Detective Paul Bridges, a similarly unlucky cop from an early arc of ''Comicbook/{{Preacher}}''.
** Ma Gnucci also has distinct similarities to Jesse's grandmother, Marie L'Angelle, in ''Preacher''.
* EyeAmWatchingYou: Punisher killed two rival gangs, but spared a guy who said that he was just an addict. He told him that he would be watching, and left. The guy called a friend, to come and retrieve the fortune in drugs that was lying there... and Punisher came out of the shadow, and killed the guy.
* FacialHorror: Ma Gnucci's goons interrogate Spacker Dave by pulling out his piercings.
* TheFaceless: Elite is never seen without his mask. When he takes it off, we only see the back of his head.
* {{Fanboy}}: The Russian is a superhero fan and, according to himself, a founding member of the ''Daredevil Man Without Fear''-fan club in Smolensk. He also expresses a hope of getting Spider-Man's autograph while in New York.
* FatComicRelief: Frank's neighbor, Mr. Nathaniel Bumpo, is very big and fat and it's a running gag that almost every time Frank sees him that he's in some comedic situation because of his weight. First he was stuck on his door and had to be pulled through. Then he had to get his toilet replaced again because he keeps breaking his, this time with ''plate steel'' with some skepticism that would even be enough, with him asking if they come in adamantium.
* FriendOnTheForce: Frank uses Soap as an informant, since the latter has figured out he's never going to actually catch Frank.
* FunnyBackgroundEvent:
** On a filing cabinet in the police station, there is a stuffed pig in a policeman's uniform. Those cops must have a [[SelfDeprecation good sense of humor]].
** When Ma Gnucci is in the hospital after being mauled by polar bears, there's a get well card on the bed with a picture of a teddy bear on it.
* GiveChaseWithAngryNatives: Frank runs through a cage of sleeping polar bears. The pursuing Mafia runs through a cage of pissed-off, very much awake polar bears.
* GiveMeASign: While burying his latest victim, The Holy begs for God to give him a sign on how he should confront his madness. A newspaper blows into his face, and on the front page is a news story about The Punisher.
* GrievousHarmWithABody: Frank uses the morbidly obese Mr. Bumpo to [[spoiler:smother the Russian to death.]]
* HateSink: Elite of the Vigilante Squad. The Holy and Mr. Payback show some arguably redeeming qualities, whereas all of Elite's appearances only further show what a massive piece of garbage he is.
* HesBack: Punisher is back!
* HopeSpot: One of the hitmen was forced by Punisher to jump out of the car, which was going at high speed in the highway. That, or get a bullet in the face. He jumped, and crawled on his feet: he was very badly hurt, needing immediate hospital care, but [[IMAlive he's alive]]! And then, a truck in high speed finished him. A truck of [[VisualPun Tasty Franks]] no less.
* ILetYouWin: The Punisher lets [[spoiler:Daredevil]] beat him down because he feels bad about the trap he's set that the latter doesn't have a chance against.
* ImplacableMan: The Russian, albeit a much more jovial version than is typically encountered.
* InsistentTerminology:
** Dave.
--->''Spacker'' Dave!
** Subverted when Frank finally uses the name right ("''Spac-- Hey!'' Mr. Smith, dude! ''You got it''!").
* JerkassHasAPoint:
** Mr. Payback showed up at a corporate room, accused the people in there of several corporate crimes, and killed them. One guy was complaining later about those horrible things he said... but the CEO corrected him: he was right, they DID commit those crimes, and managed to conceal them.
** Interestingly, the Punisher himself is fully aware of this, and brings it up when he confronts Payback. The Punisher tells him he's killed four ''innocent'' people, one of them being a cleaning lady who died when one of Payback's bullets went through a wall and hit her. Not only does this show Frank's contempt for vigilantes who don't properly plan ahead to prevent innocent people from getting killed, but it also shows that Frank had no problem whatsoever with Payback killing corrupt corporate execs.
* KarmaHoudini: A porn shop clerk accidentally catches the Punisher limping back to his hideout after the fight at the zoo, and rats him out to Ma Gnucci, and gets a $10,000 dollar reward for it. He gets off completely scot-free with the money and is never seen again.
* KickedUpstairs: Hey, Soap! Now you have an important case to lead, and your office, and your own special operations team! Yes, it was too good for that loser to be true...
* LaughablyEvil: The Russian's every other line is a joke.
* OhCrap:
** Ma Gnucci's boys have plenty of these moments throughout the comic when face-to-face with the Punisher, but none more emblematic than when [[spoiler:he walks up to her mansion with the decapitated head of the Russian. Every last one of her goons drops their guns and walks away, leaving her to face her fate alone.]]
** Frank's reaction when he notices the Russian has torn a toilet loose from the fixtures and is coming after him.
--->'''Frank:''' No...
* PetTheDog: Frank sneaks back into his abandoned apartment and leaves behind huge piles of cash (taken from the safe of a crime boss he'd just killed) for his three neighbors to find. Each of them had helped him several times during the arc, and he felt obligated. The last panel shows him standing on the street outside, listening to them laughing with joy and planning on improving their lives with the money. Frank walks away, thinking: "Best I can do. Maybe I am damned. But I'm not dragging you good people down with me."
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: The Elite shows extreme disdain towards poor people and minorities, and settles for insulting them when he isn't actively killing them.
* PsychopathicManchild: The Russian. His guileless expression and easygoing attitude make everything about him more frightening.
* RasputinianDeath: After the burnings, beating, stabbings, it takes being suffocated under a tremendously obese man and the Punisher to take out the Russian. And even then his head gets cut off. [[spoiler:And even ''that'' didn't [[OnlyMostlyDead completely]] finish him, as the story arc after this one showed.]]
* ReluctantPsycho: The Holy is a genuinely insane man who kills people in a rage, only to regain control of himself afterwards. He's tormented by this until he sees a newspaper article about The Punisher, which encourages him to embrace his insanity.
* RevisitingTheRoots: No surveillance, no weird ammo, no strange techs, no partners... this is a return to the basics: Punisher, guns and petty criminals. In fact, this story undid the previous status of Punisher [[DorkAge as a supernatural celestial enforcer]] (which got him cancelled), and turned him into a "normal" character once more.
* ScatterbrainedSenior: Mrs. Pearse, the cleaning lady at the church, is zealous about her duties, but forgetful (she can't seem to get cleaning day right) and nearly blind and deaf, so much so that Father Redondo can say out loud that he killed the criminals who went to confess with him and she still won't listen. And she cleans up all the blood nicely and without reservations, because she thinks it's spilt communion wine.
* ScrewThisImOutOfHere: When Frank shows up at Ma Gnucci's house with The Russian's head, he stares down her remaining thugs. They all throw their guns on the ground and leave Ma to her fate.
* ShoutOut: A mook walking in on Ma Gnucci from behind and getting startled by the sight of machines lowering the wig onto her scarred head is a clear homage to [[Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack ''The Empire Strikes Back'']].
* ShutUpHannibal: The Punisher gives fatal ones to [[spoiler:Ma Gnucci and the Vigilante Squad]] when they try to lecture him on his moral failings.
* SinisterMinister: Father Redondo, a.k.a. The Holy, who is ready to [[AxCrazy axe murder]] you in his confessional the second you say something he doesn't like.
* SomethingWeForgot: Busy of Ma Gnucci, Punisher did not had time to locate and deal with the "Vigilante Squad"; but did so at the end.
* StrawLoser: Soap and Molly Von Richthofen do not have the slightest hope of doing anything to Punisher or Ma Gnucci (nor was the police expecting them to, considering that the cops like the Punisher's methods and Ma Gnucci had the NYPD on her payroll, so it's a catch-22 anyway). The best plan they could come up with was just to let things happen and let the whole crisis solve itself.
* TakeOurWordForIt: We never get to see Spacker Dave's face after his piercings are torn out. What little we see of his ear looks like fried plastic. Even after he heals, he decides to keep the bandages on because they make him stand out.
* TitleDrop: At the end of the first issues. "''Welcome back, Frank. Says New York City''".
* ToiletHumour: Officer Soap is promoted to Chief Inspector at the end of the series, proudly looks out of his office to the Golden Sunset of New York... only to have a passing pigeon defecate on his head. Nevertheless, he warmly quotes "I love this town", for compared to all the hardships he endured trying to catch The Punisher, he is not going to let something as trivial as bird poop rain on his parade.
* UnfortunateNames: With a name like Budd Plugg it's no wonder [[spoiler:[[DrivenToSuicide he killed himself.]]]]
* TheUnreveal: The true identities of Elite and Mr. Payback are never revealed.
* WhiteMaskOfDoom: The Elite wears one of there.
* WithinArmsReach: During a scene where Frank is getting the absolute shit beat out of him by the Russian, he notices a gun he dropped lying under a piece of furniture. Averted in that Frank does manage to pick up the gun, but the Russian easily takes it away from him and breaks off the barrel, then proceeds with beating down Frank. Frank finally killed the Russian by throwing a piping hot, freshly delivered pizza in his face and then suffocating him by pushing his morbidly obese neighbor on his face and then piling on so the Russian couldn't get away. Played straight because both the pizza and Mr. Bumpo were within Frank's reach.
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