Punishermax #4 – Review

by Jason Aaron (writer), Steve Dillon (art), Matt Hollingsworth (colors), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: The Punisher goes head to head with the Mennonite and the Kingpin finally makes his move.

What’s Good: This book really has that R-rated action movie feel that’s pretty integral to a comic like Punishermax.  While the issue never comes close to approaching intellectual fare, it’s fun to watch and read in that blockbuster sort of way.

The bulk of the issue is an extended brawl between Frank and the Mennonite.  It’s beautifully paced and sequenced and has a fantastic flow to it, with one frame naturally and organically following the last.  It’s completely smooth, without any of the hiccupping that often occurs in lengthy fight scenes.  It’s also brutal and unforgiving, while also being fairly creative, visceral, and personal.  I think that a lot of that owes to Aaron steering clear from the over-the-top excess that Ennis often utilized, which ended up turning fight scenes into comedy.  By keeping it relatively realistic, Aaron ups the intensity.  Of course, a lot of this has to do with Steve Dillon, who brings his action chops along, without the goofy faces.

The Mennonite also really delivers, as Aaron really makes the most of the concept.  Leaving the character motivations behind this month, Aaron decides that the character will only use the weapons that his “religion allows.”  In other words, no guns or cars – just horses and a big mallet.  It’s really humorous stuff that colors the book and gives it its own unique personality.  It really livens things up and brings something special to the Mennonite character, enough that I hope to see him again soon.

Aaron also does well with the Frank Castle internal monologues, owning up to the tradition of using the textboxes to have Frank describe his gruesome injuries in detail.  It makes the fight scene that much more difficult to read and ups the desperation and brutality quotients exponentially.

WCBR’s Picks Of The Week

Alex’s Top Picks

Pick of the Week: Scalped #34 – Just a giant, momentous issue for this series and probably the most important issue the series has seen in quite a while.  Every character finds him or herself in a significantly new position, but cliffhanger’s also abound.   Red Crow has never been more of a badass, or more of a hero for that matter, while Dash has never been uglier.  It’s a subtle shift that Scalped readers will really appreciate.  Just a fantastic conclusion to a really, really good arc.  Trade-waiters are going to have a great one on their hands when this gets collected.

Most Anticipated: Unwritten #10 – While #9 was a surprisingly nasty issue, it also left this series in a very interesting place.  Carey pulled back the veil just a little bit and injected just a little more magic, and the result seems to be limitless potential.  I can’t wait to see where this series goes after the major events of last month.

Other Picks: Punishermax #4, DMZ #50, Batman & Robin #8, Secret Six #18, Amazing Spider-Man #620

DS’s Top Picks

Pick of the Week: Blackest Night: Wonder Woman #3 -Amid a relatively average field, Blackest Night: Wonder Woman #3 took the title. Johns’ opus is showing us not only the nature of the power rings in the DCU, but the nature of the characters who wield them, including our favorite Amazon!

Most Anticipated: Batgirl #7 – Batgirl and Robin (explosive mix!) race into the devil’s Square to rescue Batman! Miller, Garbett and Scott continue to deliver a consistently strong DC series. Batman and Robin #8, guest-starring Batwoman is a close second!

Other Picks: Titans #22, Secret Six #18, Uncanny X-Men: First Class #8