4 issues in and still going strong
The Good
We see Mr. Rucka giving this Punisher series an actual consistent story with each issue building off the last. Mr. Rucka is showing good clean writing taking us the readers on a journey that is clear and precise without wandering off the beaten path like so many other comics out there. The world building is continuing which I find utterly fantastic since its not like Fraction and Remender's run where it was just the Punisher killing then and going on to some other mission. What we are getting here is good character development and building on Frank's world and what it looks like in the marvel universe. The last writer to do this was Garth Ennis in his Punisher MAX series so Mr Rucka definately deserves an A+ here for what he is doing.
We see Norah Winters becoming a prominent character in this issue and a taste of how her and Frank Castle will be like when they are together. We see Oscar Clemons view of Castle which differs quite a bit from his partners and it will be interesting to see Oscar's reaction to Walter and the Punisher's past if he ever finds out about it. All in all the world of the Punisher is coming together quite well and is politically grounded and not overshadowed by other things going in the marvel universe. Mr. Rucka has Frank part of the 616 world but he is not thrusting the Punisher into the center of it blindly like other writers have done so before him. The greatest compliment I can give this issue is that this series with this issue really...REALLY feels much more like a graphic novel than just a few single issues of action which more then a few previous Punisher writers have been quite guilty of.
The Bad
Honestly I don't think anything was bad about this issue. It feels like a MAX issue which some people may not like but to me is fantastic so I have absolutely no complaints.
The Verdict
I'd recommend this comic to anyone unless they hate the Punisher character and/or violent comic books. Seriously, this series has been f***ing brilliant.
