Line #11 ComicBook/ThePunisher2001


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4	''The Punisher'' is a 2001 comic book series by Creator/MarvelComics, released under the ''Creator/MarvelKnights'' imprint. It's written by Creator/GarthEnnis, with some of Ennis's issues also having art by Creator/SteveDillon, reuniting the creative team from the previous series. The series is the sixth volume of ''ComicBook/ThePunisher''.
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6	The series, set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, stars the titular [[Characters/MarvelComicsFrankCastle Punisher]], Frank Castle, and serves as a SequelSeries to ''ComicBook/ThePunisherWelcomeBackFrank''.
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8	Although it's set in the shared Franchise/MarvelUniverse, the stories tend to focus on Frank, a BadassNormal and lethal vigilante, confronting criminals rather than supervillains. There are occasional references to stranger happenings (one story includes ghosts), and some well-known superheroes do appear (such as [[Characters/MarvelComicsPeterParker Spider-Man]], [[Characters/MarvelComicsLogan Wolverine]] and [[Characters/MarvelComicsMattMurdock Daredevil]]), but they're very much the exception. The stories featuring superheroes are at the more comedic end of the scale, whereas some of the mundane crime stories are bleaker and very much played for drama.
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10	The first issue was released June 13, 2001. The series ended with issue 37, released February 01, 2004.
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13	!!''The Punisher'' (2001) contains examples of:
14	* AlcoholInducedBisexuality: Detective Soap, generally portrayed as heterosexual, ends up in bed with John 'Bubba' Prong, who he meets in a bar, after an especially drunken night. It's played for laughs, portrayed as just one more poor drunken decision by Soap. [[spoiler:And then briefly played for drama, with the reveal that John is a serial killer]].
15	* EnemyRisingBehind: [[spoiler:Sid Saggio, the only gangster to survive the initial massacre in "Squid", was mocked by his associates for spending his weekends diving off Brooklyn, hoping to see a GiantSquid. When he finally confronts the Punisher on a pier, a huge tentacle rises up behind him and he's dragged into the sea and crushed to death. He does get a little post-mortem satisfaction from telling his associates' ghosts that he was right, though]].
16	* GiantSquid: Sid Saggio, antagonist of the single-issue story "Squid", spends his weekends diving off Brooklyn in the hope that he'll see a giant squid. His thinking is that they wash up everywhere when they die, so why ''not'' Brooklyn? [[spoiler:At the end of the story he has the Punisher, who's wounded and seemingly disarmed, held at gunpoint on a pier. And then a huge tentacle [[EnemyRisingBehind rises up behind Sid]], grabs him and drags him into the sea, saving the Punisher. Sid gets a very ''close'' look at the squid before he dies, though]].
17	* TamperingWithFoodAndDrink: Frank rescues a man with IdentityAmnesia from the mob and looks after him for a few days. His guest complains that the food doesn't taste right. [[spoiler:That's because his guest is an amnesiac [[Characters/MarvelComicsBruceBanner Bruce Banner]], and Frank's putting C-4 plastic explosive in his food so that he can detonate it to subdue the Hulk later]].
18	* TemporarilyExaggeratedTrait: Ennis writes [[Characters/MarvelComicsLogan Wolverine]] as a broad parody of his usual Franchise/MarvelUniverse portrayal. His intelligence and skills are downplayed and he's portrayed as a violent drunk who relies on his healing factor to survive.
19	* WriterOnBoard: "Downtown" takes Frank to [[UsefulNotes/NorthernIreland Belfast]], where he's caught up in the sectarian violence and gang wars that followed the Good Friday Agreement and the end of UsefulNotes/TheTroubles. Writer Creator/GarthEnnis grew up in Northern Ireland and Frank's ally Yorkie Mitchell's explanation of the history and the current situation is a blunt and bitter WallOfText.

Context ComicBook / ThePunisher2001