PC POST #183: *REVIEWS*: THUNDERBOLTS #19 & ANNUAL #01

posted by @Ivo

THUNDERBOLTS #19

Road Trip! This issue is Leader centric like Soule did with the Punisher (#12) and Mercy (#13). After the events of the Infinity arc the team goes on a road trip in the Punisher's Battle Van ( please Mr Soule, don't call it War Wagon, War Wagon is what the Executioner used on his missions).

I liked this issue, because this issue is more darker and serious than we are used to. Plot wise it's very well done. This issue is based on Leader plans to eliminate the team inside the Battle Van while they are traveling. As the most smarter member his arrogance takes the best of him and in my opinion he take out the team too easily but like he said in the end there are many variables that can change his plans. And the probability to him to fail are huge since Ross and specially Frank don't trust him at all.

About the artwork, Walta did in my opinion better job than Palo's giving the same cartoonish taste without making too weird.

Overal Rating: 3 out of 5

THUNDERBOLTS ANNUAL #01

For this annual the creative team changed as the writers are Acker and Blacker and in the pencils Lolli Matteo and guess what they did a really good job in portraying all the characters in this book.
I was a little ceptic at first and i asked myself how this team will handle with magical stuff... Well the old motto "fight fire with fire" is applied perfectly in this issue.

So, Dr. Strange went rogue and the only way to stop him his using this team of antiheroes, with no magic powers...
Acker and Blacker did an amazing job in this issue, it's action packed and they seem to find some good balance between street level characters vs magic characters. This still got good humour and some crazy lines.
The final battle was kind of surprise to me in way, but Frank has showed in past to resist magic tricks like the Ghost Rider's "Penance Stare" so it was cool to see Frank endure magic attacks of "Dr. Strange".

The artwork is just amazing by Matteo Lolli, it's best artist i've seen in this book! I wish he can do more issues in the future for this title.

Overal rating: 3.5 out of 5

PC POST #182: Variant covers and preview for the new Punisher!

@ivomgs

For todays last post here goes some variant covers and two pages of preview for the new Punisher ongoing coming in February! I can't wait!

PC POST #181: New Punisher fan film on the way!

posted by @ivomgs

There is a new Punisher fan film on the way and the new Punisher will be Kevin Porter!

Kevin Porter has taken the role of Batman in various projects.

There isn't many details about this upcoming fan film for now we know that is nothing to do with Bat in the Sun productions or Super Power Beat Down as i initially thought...

Ignore the facial hair.

For the brief talk i had with Kevin, this is his own interpretation of the character and the costume Kevin picked the "classic" because of Punisher earlier appearences designed by John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru. We will stay alert for any developments regarding this fan film.

You can join his facebook page at : https://www.facebook.com/Kevinporterbatman

Batman: City of Scars

PC POST #180: -PUNISHER- How to... make a solid and long run.

posted by @Ivo

Hi everyone, i'm doing this article because i felt the need to share some thoughts that i think it's important for the character and his comicbooks.

I'm no guru of comics, i'm just a long time fan of the Punisher for 15 years and i've follow his comic books for a long time

To elaborate these points i got help from a long time fan of the character Blackstone ( which make almost every point) and he's got his take on the character. He's written a dozen fanfics of the Punisher, feel free to read them.

These points are what we think that will make a solid and long Punisher run:

• A writer and artist and editors who respect/know/understand the character;

• Three dimensional portrayal of the character;

• Straight forward, action packed, high body count stories;

• Despicable villains:  They have to be really mean and bad to give an "extra" meaning to the Punisher methods; 

• He needs to be an active part of the Marvel U and interact with it sometimes with  Hydra, Aim, guys like that...or do an occasional job for SHIELD see Mack Bolan. Crossovers with some of the espionage/crime themed titles. Not Daredevil, Spidey or Wolverine, try other characters. And those crossovers bring numbers up. Sad but true;

•  He needs to be able to kill someone significant, something that will have some repercussion in the Marvel U (No-one big: Owl, Tombstone, etc.) or at least mess up someone's organisation like a Wilson Fisk or someone like that and THAT becomes canon;

• Interesting supporting cast: They don't need to be permanent in the book, but Frank must have someone who can give him intel, weapons and most important some "depth" to the comic book to catch the most comic book fans as possible, not only Punisher fans;

• Make him travel: From time to time, he can do some missions outside LA. it could be in U.S or outside the country, for example Africa, middle east, Europe, etc. There are tons of stuff he can do in many countries all over the world;

•  Details on the Punisher's methods (how he collects info);

• Solid rogue's gallery: It's very hard to keep a rogue's gallery in a Punisher book since he kills them, but it's possible to make the most extraordinary villains survive for at least 2 arcs.

• BIGGER PICTURE: There should be a family of titles within Marvel. Street level/crime/espionage characters. DD, Moon Knight, Heroes For Hire, Widow, Elektra, Shang Chi...And Castle should interact with those characters. Which means Frank should appear in those titles as well. He needs exposure. Tighten up continuity between these titles. Make it the shadow world of Marvel.

• BIGGER PICTURE(2): Take Frank outside of his box. Maybe once or twice, he faces vampires or werewolves and works with Blade or someone like that.

• Big arcs, but conclusions. Like Punisher MAX was. Six issues and move one but all of it is connected;

• EDITORS: Give. The creators. A CHANCE TO FINISH THEIR STORIES!

 

PC POST #179: -REVIEW- THUNDERBOLTS #18

posted by @Ivo

REVIEW

THUNDERBOLTS #18

This is the best arc so far, Charles Soule gives us a really nice plot when we can find anything: action, comedy and even a sexy moment.

Punisher, Elektra and Venom are in the bunker wasting criminals and looking for the Paguros. When the Nobili's family was exposed by inhuman gas and transformed into real Inhumans. The two sons (Carmen and Joseph) both died the first one killed himself and the other got shot in the head by the Paguros criminals, the only inhuman remnant is the dad Gordon Nobili who probably will be after Punisher to avenge his sons deaths.

In this issue we discover how powerful Mercy is, while she pretty much handles most of Thanos forces by herself, finally we get some Mercy action and see what she is capable of. On the other side Ross can't control her which definetely she will become a threat in the future.

Deadpool is in the restaurant and he finally discovers why he was so obssessed by it, meanwhile the Paguros arrived to the restaurant and Deadpool kills them.

In the end Frank and Elektra goes to the battle van to "celebrate" together the successful mission.

OPINION

Charles Soule is doing a great job "recovering" this book after Daniel Way passed the mantle to him. He is portraying pretty well the characters in general and built a decent plot. Although i think the Thunderbolts just overpowered the Paguros, they didn't really pose a threat to the team in my view.

I was expecting some showdown between the task force and the inhumans but sadly that not happen but i'm looking forward to see more from Gordon "Inhuman" Nobili in the future.

Another that i found it kind of odd was Frank and Elektra "celebrate" together, i thought at the end of issue #12 the "relationship" of these two had vanished when Frank found out that she let Orestez escape.

I liked the touch of the name of the pizza restaurant P' Pizza with some note in latim " Nobis Est Domi" that means Us At Home, Us at home P'(aguros) Pizza. Really cool!

It's really a shame that the artwork didn't keep up the same quality as the writing, i have seen some works of Jefte Palo, he even was the artist in one-shot Punisher MAX: Little Black Book, and i loved his work in that story. Don't know why he pick this kind of art for this book, maybe it's because the humour... i don't know.

Tedesco (Covers) and GURU eFX have been really constant in terms of quality in this book.

OVERAL SCORE: 3.5 / 5

ARC SCORE: 3.5 / 5

 

PC POST #178: -PREVIEW- Thunderbolts #18

posted by @Ivo

Here goes another preview of Thunderbolts. This will be the conclusion of this "Infinity" arc we will see how the Task force ( Punisher, Elektra and Venom) will stop the Nobili's and how Red Hulk will stop Mercy's mayhem!

Don't forget to pick it up next Wednesday 20th.

-PREVIEW-

THUNDERBOLTS #18

PC POST #177: Thoughts and the new Punisher covers for February 2014!

posted by @Ivo

Gladly we can expect for February a double shipping for this new Punisher book by Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerads!

There is huge expectations around this new run, after Rucka's Punisher got cancelled by Marvel, i really hope that this new creative team can give us a long and solid run.

Most of the success in this book depends on the fans too, and i hope that everyone buy this book for the sake of the character.

Art by Mitch Gerads

Art by Larocca

Art by Mitch Gerads

THE PUNISHER #1 & 2
 

NATHAN EDMONDSON (W)
MITCHELL THOMAS GERADS (A/C)

For years, The Punisher has waged a war on crime in New York City with an array of very large guns, but a lead on a major source of drugs, weapons, and more has set his many sights due west. NOW! Frank Castle’s in the City of Angels, looking to give the devil his due. Things aren’t all they appear, though, with a highly trained military hit squad hot on Frank’s tail. Caught between a posse of Punisher predators and targets of his own one-man-war, Frank’s manifest destiny may be a shallow grave!


One final note to Marvel if anyone is reading this, let Nathan Edmondson and Mike Gerads tell the story until the end, please don't repeat the same mistake like you did with Greg Rucka. And thank you once again to put the character in the spotlight once again.

PC POST #176: -DOUBLE REVIEW- Punisher: The Trial #02

PUNISHER: THE TRIAL OF THE PUNISHER #02

-REVIEW-

(W) Marc Guggenheim (A) Mico Suayan (C) Sunny Gho

Review #1 @ivomgs

OPINION: Sadly the Punisher's trial is over! In the end of the last issue Frank showed some "formula" to his lawyer Santos and finally in this issue we will see what Frank was cooking, what were his real objectives in this trial...

Marc Guggenheim gives us a Frank that is a real mastermind, he played with every character in this book... yes, everyone. Frank isn't about just shooting mobsters and Guggenheim just prove it. He caught the character's psych brilliantly at least like i imagine. And i thought for sometime that writers forgot how to handle Frank without portraying him like nutcase.

This book gives us some good action panels behind testimonials like a Punisher book must have, even on this one that is based in a courtroom.

The pages with Punisher and Daredevil fighting are really cool.

Sadly i hoped to see more 5 pages, the conclusion was great but i hoped that lasted a few more, you probably know why when you read it.

About the art, Mico Suayan is in the same level as Leinil Yu, both are great artists and they did a great job on this miniseries, in fact i haven't seen this type of quality since Checchetto's leave the Punisher from Rucka's. I really want to see more of these guys in a Punisher book.

To be honest this wasn't my type of story at first, but Marc really conquered my attention and in the end i really like it, i haven't seen this kind of storytelling since Rucka's and it's really good to have The Punisher i care back in business. 

I really wanted to see more Punisher from Guggenheim. A huge thanks to all the staff that make this book possible and for giving us this wonderful ride on the most dangerous antihero of the Marvel universe.

PLOT: 4.5 / 5

ART: 4 / 5
COVER: 4.5 / 5

OVERALL EVALUATION: 4.5 / 5

Review #2 by @neil4LOST

The Trial of the Punisher mini-series was bittersweet. It had a little bit of everything for comic fans. Great art, awesome characters, an intriguing story-line and a twist. This definitely wasn't the typical Punisher story and it is interesting to see that this book didn't hit the shelves much earlier than it did. Guggenheim crafts an intelligent Frank Castle that is tactical and procedural in how he executes (no pun-intended) his plans.

I personally felt that the second issue fell just short of the earlier issue. The characters and storyline that was introduced in the first part of this two issue series was full of fast-paced mystery. This issue however felt more drawn out and ultimately was building up to the last two pages of the story. There were some interesting moments like Matt Murdoch going to the witness stand to testify and the reveal as to why Frank Castle would ever consider turning himself into the authorities.

I have to say that the one let-down for me was that the major clue to the twist revealed at the end could have been given in the first issue and I would have personally felt that it would have fit more appropriately. Instead the clue is given at the beginning of this issue and it seemed a little obvious to me when the twist was revealed. I did however feel that the twist was a good one and it made sense in the Punisher universe. 

Overall this was a solid entry by Marc Guggenheim. If he was willing to revisit the character in the future I think it would be worth it for Marvel to consider some type of procedural Punisher title for him to head up. Right now there isn't enough Frank Castle on comic book store shelves and there could be a lot more done with the character.

Overall Rating: 3.9 out of 5

PC POST #175: -PREVIEW- Trial of the Punisher #02

posted by @Ivo

PREVIEW

PUNISHER: TRIAL OF THE PUNISHER #2

 Can't wait for this final issue of this fantastic miniseries, i wish this could be continue for much longer than this, but i'm glad this book finally saw the light of the day after many years in stand-by. The art looks amazing like Leinil Yu, Mico Suayan is doing a great job.

Buy this jewel next wednesday 30th of October!

PC POST #174: Punisher MAX miniseries by Ennis

posted by @Ivo

Punisher MAX miniseries by Garth Ennis!

Finally some news about this miniseries in 2014, what we will know in the clip below is that this miniseries will be a 6 part story called "The Platoon" and it will be placed pre-BORN with a Frank Castle with 0 combat experience since this is, his first tour in '68.

The artist is Goran Parlov.

Check the clip on mark 3:35

I'm really looking forward for this Pre-BORN series, i just found it odd why Marvel don't say nothing about this.

PC POST #173: -REVIEW- THUNDERBOLTS #17

posted by @Ivo

REVIEW

THUNDERBOLTS #17

(W) Charles Soule/ (A) Jefte Palo/ (C) Julian Tedesco

Another issue of Thunderbolts is out and you know what? It was incredibly fun!

After last issue that in general was really decent and the only inconsistencies i found were about the Punisher characterization, this one was really a good comic to read with all the action we have for the first page to the end.

We got in this issue three "events"... Punisher, Venom and Elektra finally attacking the Paguros headquarters, Red Hulk and Sterns finding a way to stop Mercy's mayhem and finally Deadpool's quest for his slices of pizza as we see in the cover.

I will begin with Deadpool's quest, he is a comedian, with all hell went loose on the streets and this guy is searching for some slices of pizza not to mention the way he traveled (with style) to the restaurant. I think this book sometimes got an excessive humour but i can't enough of Deadpool's jokes or his way of thinking. Charles Soule really nailed the character.

Punisher is leading the attack on Paguros HQ and Soule's give us really nice panels filled with action like this books deserves. And at the end of this issue we got a twist that involved Nobili's family.

I really liked how Soule did his role in this issue, personally i think the dosage of humour was well measured and fit perfectly in every situation. I'm looking forward on how Ross will stop Mercy and to see how our "Task Force" (Punisher, Venom and Elektra) will handle the Nobili's. They will definetely have something to say to our "Task Force". 

About the art, i'm getting used to but still not for me, Jefte Palo's got talent but the way choose to do the art in this book it's not adequate, in my opinion. Color FX like i have said before, give some extra boost to the quality of the art, in a good way.

The covers from Tedesco keeps the same quality as always.

PLOT: 4 / 5

ART: 3 / 5

COVER: 4 / 5

OVERALL RATING: 4 / 5

 

 

PC POST #172: -PREVIEW- THUNDERBOLTS #17

posted by @Ivo

This seems that next issue will be action packed with Punisher, Venom and Elektra attacking the Paguros on their headquarters. Don't forget, next week, on 23rd of October !

PS: Astonishing cover by Tedesco!

-PREVIEW-

THUNDERBOLTS #17

PC POST #171: NEW Punisher ongoing in February 2014!

posted by @Ivo

Our bad boy is back! Finally it was revealed in NYCC that the teaser "Hunted" written by Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerads belongs to the Punisher!

This series will be debuting in February 2014 and we will see Frank moving to L.A. There wasn't any details revealed but this seems quite promising by looking at this cover. Mitch seemed to capture really well what a Punisher art should be.

Now all the Punisher fans should rest after this, after a long wait for a solo series, this seemed like the balanced of comic book industry has been restored. Thank you Marvel.

We wish the best for Nathan Edmondson and Mitch Gerads, their success means a great book for all of us. 

Mitch Gerads shared on twitter this cool image of Frank!

PC POST #170: -REVIEW- THUNDERBOLTS #16

posted by @Ivo

-REVIEW-

THUNDERBOLTS #16

(W) Charles Soule (A) Jefte Palo (C) Julian Tedesco

Thunderbolts #16 comes out and this one is action packed! We got Red Hulk crackin' some aliens heads, Deadpool is hack n' slashing some aliens and looking for a slice of pizza, Punisher, Elektra and Venom finally arrive in the Paguros headquarters after beating a dozen of punks while the earth is being invaded and Supernova ( one of the lieutenants of Thanos) is trying to steal the Leader's secrets, and were blasted by Mercy, finally she has done something for the team ( or for herself?).

This issue has a whole is decent but i got a few concerns about the Punisher in this issue... First of all we finally know what were inside the box that the Punisher transported in the van... its a bomb. A really big one. The Paguros as soon as they find out about the invasion they hide themselfs in a bunker. Since Red Hulk were occupied, Frank tried to smoke them out of their hiding using the bomb, when he set the timer something went wrong and instead of marking ten minutes it were ten seconds.  Thanks to Venom he saved the team, sent the bomb to a ship, destroying it and opening a hole in the bunker of the Paguros.

This isn't Frank. To me he wouldn't mess with a bomb without some proper knowledge on how to use it. He put the team in danger and first of all the mission.

Frank in the last issues is behaving like some "junkie" that only cares about killing criminals no matter what. I know that his mission of life is killing them, but i rather prefer a cold Punisher than a Punisher almost drooling to kill. He is more than this, in my opinion.

The art improved a bit to and the action scenes are decent too, the colors of this issue are great thanks to GURU eFX. Besides the same problems i have with the bodies of the characters, there is one panel before when Supergiant is breaking the sub, the Leaders head are exaggeratedly tall.

Tedesco cover is fine, but he has done better in the past issues. It lacks a bit of color and detail.

OVERALL SCORE: 3/5

PC POST #169: Punisher: No Mercy fan film + REVIEW

posted by @Ivo

REVIEW

Finally the long wait is over! And you know what... I like it very much!

This movie is basically a classic Punisher story, Frank is after some mobsters and wants to destroy their nest. 

It is a very simple plot and a huge Garth Ennis feel through the entire film and at the end we know this was made by fans for the fans, this team put a lot of love through all this fan film and i thank them for all this effort with minimum resources. This film just show to the Big Studios that it's possible to make a great Punisher movie.

Let's talk about the Punisher, Shawn Baichoo did a good work personifying the character, despite all of the critics i have seen in this blog, he captured flawlessly the psych of the character. I don't care if he is baldy or skinny. To me the Punisher is more than a simple man, it doesn't matter if he is skinny or fat, long hair or baldy. It's someone that sacrificed a pieceful life for a mission, waging a war for those who deserve it. This is a fan film and i don't care about the physical differences if the actor portrayed the psych of the character flawlessly. The shooting scene was really good, plenty of action and very well choreographed.

I liked how Amber Goldfarb portrayed Elektra, she did it great! She is really beautiful and her hand-to-hand combat pleased me, she behaved liked a real assassin.

During the combat with Amber, Shawn Baichoo did a great job by showing some simple and effective movements, remembering me that Frank was once great fighter and not only a marksmanship. For moments i was afraid for seeing some fancy movements for the "show" but he did not fall for this error. Gladly. Although he could use more the surroundings to give more "pain" to Elektra... Maybe next time.

Many thanks for J. Ambrus, Baichoo, Goldfarb, Malloch, Caltabiano ( Excelent Vinny Rizzo) and all the staff in this fan film, i really hope to see a sequel in the future.

OVERALL SCORE : 4 out of 5

PC POST #168: -REVIEW- PUNISHER: THE TRIAL #1

Review #1 by @Ivo

Forget all the Punisher stories you have read, this particularly story is a different take than the usual we are used to. This is a crime story, don't expect any high body counts or a killing spree Frank Castle.

I'm going to be frank, i had to read this 2 times, at first i found the story boring, i'm not used to this kind of stories and all the "mechanics" that happens in the courtroom it's not on my favorite things to read.
But i've read it a second time and my initial thought changed a bit.

Frank turned himself in for killing the missing district attorney Alex Shapiro, anyone that knows Frank, this isn't the regular "modus operandi", but he is definetely cooking something. 

We got some action scenes when the cops arrested Frank in the precinct, when some cell mates visit Frank and in the flashbacks during this issue when he is at the court. That's all the action we have for this issue.

Guggenheim introduced us a new character Lisa Santos, she is a public defender. I really like her, strong personality and she isn't afraid of Frank. But she knows this kind of attitude of Frank isn't normal, she suspects that he is thinking of commiting a crime in the court.

Storywise we see that Guggenheim has some real knowledge of how the courtroom works and he is building an interesting Punisher. Like i said before this isn't the regular shoot em up issue, this is a mastermind Frank. He is fighting with his mind instead of the bullets and i really like this. I really want to see how this will wrap up, specially when Frank showed Lisa some kind of "formula" of his how to do list.

The art is just amazing Leinil Yu is one of my favorite artists, to me he could be the official Punisher artist with Marco Checcheto. I haven't see this kind of art since Checcheto leave the Punisher. Great work for Sunny Gho in the colors too.

PLOT: 3/5
ART: 4.5/5
COVER: 4.5/5

ENTERTAINING LEVEL: 3/5


Review #2 by @neil4LOST

Trial of the Punisher #1 is an instant classic. It is in the same vein of Rucka's storytelling style in that it is both gritty and incredibly smart. It is a story of a man that is not only smarter than everyone else but he has more conviction than ever.

From the very first scene to the very last panel the reader is treated to a courtroom style drama in which Castle is calculating his every move...and the moves of everyone else. It is clear that Punisher has a very clear method to his madness in the way he walks straight into the closest police station to turn himself in.

The story moves quick without sacrificing the story and this two-part story is shaping up to arrive at a thrilling conclusion. With this good of a premise, the way the story is being told and the intelligence in how it is being told it is too bad that this story arc couldn't last for several more issues.

Lastly, the art is spot on and is somewhat comparable to the amazing Checchetto. Yu draws each character with lots of life and a large amount of intrigue.

Overall score: 4.5 out of 5

 

PC POST #167: -PREVIEW- PUNISHER: TRIAL OF THE PUNISHER #1

posted by @Ivo

-PREVIEW- 

PUNISHER: TRIAL OF THE PUNISHER #1

 

I'm really looking forward to read this story!

PC POST #166:-REVIEW- THUNDERBOLTS #15

posted by @Ivo

-REVIEW-

THUNDERBOLTS #15

PLOT (SPOILERS): This issue begins with Punisher, Elektra, Deadpool and Venom stuck in the traffic while they transport some misterious box that Frank had in his possession. Deadpool's is tired of being in the traffic and leaves the van and hang himself in the city to find some food. He tells the team that he will help them kill the Paguros when they find them.

In the sub Sterns( The leader) hides from Ross that the team is in danger while the city is being invaded by unidentified objects.

Back into the team they are trying to gathering intel on the Paguros without success, they find some thugs on the street, Elektra lures them into the van while Flash web them up in the back of the van for interrogation.

They got nothing on the thugs they caught and when they leave Frank leaves them a little "present" for them without Flash noticing it.

They found the Nobili family (the guys that were beat by the Paguros in the first issue) they lure them into the van and without any special effort they spill it out the werebouts of the Paguros. The team notices some explosion, Deadpool's too, suddendly the subway stops and we see a panel with the team and Deadpool looking in the sky with dozens of ships invading the city.

In the sub we see Mercy doing some sort of "meditation" and suddendly she felt millions of people thinking about death while Sterns is carefully watching her.

Ross discovers that the city is being invaded and confront Sterns he pretends to be surprised and without Ross authorization he surfaces the sub right in the middle of the alien ships.

-OPINION-

WRITING: Charles Soule keeps giving us some of his quality writing and a great dynamic between the team. The dialogues between the characters are great and his Deadpool like i said in the last review is very funny. There is great moments like the discussion in the van with Frank breaking up some nonsense talk between Deadpool and Venom. Elektra's lurings the thugs and The Punisher giving some "goodies" to the thugs. Did i mention that Deadpool dialogues in this issue are great? Every appearece he gets in this issue are great!

ART: Nothing new to add, i'm still not used to this art, it looks decent when Palo's is closing up the characters but in distance their design is odd it seems really sketchy.

COVER: Like always Tedesco covers are top notch, great colors and a dark tone like this book should be. His Red Hulk is great, the best i have seen in this comic like the other characters. Well done Mr. Tedesco.

ENTERTAINING LEVEL: I have talk about pretty much of the entertaining level in the "writing" section. This book don't have the action that the previous issue had but the pace of the story is great. The team has to deal with two things the Paguros and the invasion. I'm quite curious too see what this will lead. Is there some consequences to The Leader's actions? Either way good issue.

FINAL EVALUATION: 3.5 OUT OF 5.

PC POST #165: -PREVIEW- THUNDERBOLTS #15

posted by @Ivo

Hello everyone here goes the preview of Thunderbolts #15 on sales in 18th of September.

Deadpool's quotes are very funny.. Charles Soule is doing great!

PC POST #164: Punisher Solicitations for December 2013

posted by @Ivo

Hi everyone, it's been awhile since we posted but unfortunately there wasn't too much news Punisher-related.

This month will change though, we will have Trial of Punisher #1 miniseries and Thunderbolts #15.

For now i will announce some Punisher/Thunderbolts solicitations for December 2013.

 

THUNDERBOLTS #19
CHARLES SOULE (W)
GABRIEL HERNANDEZ WALTA (A)
Cover by JULIAN TOTINO TEDESCO
• The Thunderbolts hit the road in the Punisher’s War Wagon!
• A team that gets along this well will be a dream on a road trip, right?
• RIIIIIIIIGHT…

THUNDERBOLTS ANNUAL #1
BEN ACKER & BEN BLACKER (W)
Matteo Lolli (A)
Cover by CARLO BARBERI
• The Thunderbolts’ new mission? KILL DOCTOR STRANGE.
• Of course, they’re gonna need a pretty special arsenal for that.
• “Thrilling Adventure Hour” creators Ben Acker & Ben Blacker take the Tbolts on a whirlwind tour of the Marvel Magicverse!

PC POST #163: -REVIEW- THUNDERBOLTS #14

posted by @Ivo

THUNDERBOLTS #14

-REVIEW-

(W)Charles Soule / (A) Jefte Palo / (C) Julian Tedesco

This arc begins with Red Hulk, Venom, Deadpool, Elektra, Punisher and the Leader, hunting some cow exposed to gamma radiation but don't get me wrong this "cow" is as dangerous as it seems harmless. 

After beating up this monster they reunite at their HQ (the submarine) and Ross explains to the team that it's time for each one of them pick a mission (like he did for himself in the previous arcs) and the team will do it for anyone that is chosen, no questions asked. 

Luckily for Punisher he was the chosen one in the draw, he pick some very powerful mob family the "Paguros". They seem to control most of the crime in NYC, always in the shadows of the gangs, they let the gangs do their dirty work. Frank never managed to kill them. 

Frank choose the field team: Venom, Elektra and Deadpool and the tactical support Ross and the Leader.

In the end of this issue we see planet Earth with many spaceships approaching... "Infinity" is coming...

-OPINION-

PLOT: Glad that Soule is on board and he arrived at the right time to put this team at the spotlight for this "Infinity" event. I like how he written all this story even the battle with the huge gamma cow that seems like a pokémon monster was a very entertaining to read.

This issue has a good sense of humour with Deadpool and his crazy talks and more important than humour, Soule seems to catch everyone's personality flawlessly.

Another important thing, the interaction between all the team is great in my opinion, couldn't expect more from him. Besides this being a mission designed for the Punisher, everyone gets their own space to shine, once again thumbs up for Mr. Soule.

ART: Until now this is the only letdown for me, the characters seems to be drawn for morning cartoons, huge chins and some with no waist. This art seems more like sketchy than the final work. It's weird because there are times when the panel closes in for a specific character we see some good details.

Good work for GURU eFX with coloring of all the issue, nothing to add.

COVER: Like always Tedesco has accostumed us with good covers and this one is no exception, i would like to see him doing the interiors in the near future. From what i have seen, he deserves it.

ENTERTAINING LEVEL: I liked this issue a LOT, my favorites until now were T-Bolts #12 and now #14, good dynamics between the team, ACTION, humour and enough plot to keep us hoping (desperately) for the next issue. Let's hope Soule continues to give us this quality and i believe he will.

FINAL EVALUATION OF THIS ISSUE: 4 out of 5.

PC POST #162: -INTERVIEW- Thunderbolts in Infinity and Beyond

posted by @Ivo

Once again Charles Soule given us some details of what we can expect for the upcoming arc of Thunderbolts and beyond.

Newsarama: This month’s Thunderbolts puts this black ops team in the middle of the Infinity event series while still putting them square in New York City. Can you tell us about this arc, and how it works within the Infinity event? 

Charles Soule: In Thunderbolts #14, we see them embark upon a new mission, whose direction is steered by the Punisher. He, somewhat unsurprisingly, wants to use the team to destroy a NYC-based mob family, and they're off to the races. Completing that mission becomes massively more difficult when the events of Infinity come into play. However, Frank Castle is not the sort of guy who gives up when the going gets tough. It's a really fun arc with great moments for everyone in the cast, and it lays out some neat ideas for stories going forward. Five issues, 14-18, and I am very happy with how it's turned out.

Nrama: This mob family the team is going after is called the Paguros, and is a group that have been a thorn in Frank’s side for some time. What makes them such a threat that Punisher would need a team of super-heroes – and a Hulk – to take them down?

Thunderbolts #15

Soule: This is something I lay out in the issue - basically, the Paguros were once a powerful mob family in New York, but in the wake of RICO, the Punisher's crusade and various other elements that have made it significantly less profitable (and healthy) to operate on the front lines of criminal activity, the family has gone behind-the-scenes. They've become a one-stop-shopping criminal support organization - they help fledgling enterprises get running, and they're the reason new gangs pop up as soon as Frank takes them down. Castle didn't even realize they existed for a while - he just knew that new scum was taking the place of the old scum a little faster than it should. There's more to the Paguros, but you'll find out in the story. Basically, I wanted to come up with a good, old-fashioned mob family nemesis (with a twist) for Frank, and I think I did that with the Paguros. They're pretty fun.

Nrama: The solicitations for September’s Thunderbolts #15 give away some spoilers that Thanos’ army is going to come up right in the middle of this street-level mission for the team. What can you say about that?

Thunderbolts #15

Soule: Well, New York City has always been a center of superhero activity in the Marvel U. So, from Thanos' perspective, if you're going to send troops to subdue Earth, NYC is probably where you want to start. I'm treating the alien/cosmic aspects of the story almost like the weather. You can't plan for a freak rainstorm - sometimes they just happen. Frank Castle finds it extremely frustrating that his one shot at getting the Paguros - targets he's been after for years - might get thrown off track by an alien invasion, but as I mentioned, he's a roll with the punches sort of guy. He might even figure out a way to turn the situation to his advantage.

Nrama: Speaking of team dynamics, Thunderbolts has introduced one of the most surprising and striking power couples in comics – the Punisher and Elektra. How’s that work?

Soule: This comes up a LOT when I talk to fans about the series. To make it clear, I don't see Punisher and Elektra as a romantic couple. I see them as a pairing of convenience. They aren't declaring eternal love to each other. However, Elektra is stunningly gorgeous, Frank probably has a sort of scarred, grizzled appeal, and why shouldn't they grab a little quality time when it makes sense? As we saw back in Thunderbolts #12, Frank's a bit conflicted about some of the things Elektra's done, even going so far as to declare her worthy of Punisher-style punishment. That's not going to go away - but neither is the "relationship" (I hesitate to even call it that.) Men and women get together for all sorts of reasons, and they stay together for all sorts of reasons, even when it's not perfect. Things will evolve with these two, and I think readers will dig how it plays out.

Thunderbolts #15

Nrama: You took over this series back in issue #12, and already you’re making strides to make it your own. Is there any other potential recruits to the team you’d love to have the opportunity to add at some point?

Soule: You know it. There will be a membership shuffle in Issues 20-23 (that's the current plan, at any rate). We'll get at least one new member for the team, and at least one will leave - but that's all I'll say about it. I've already written an issue featuring a new face, and let's just say that they fit in perfectly. I can't wait to see the red and black design for this one. (Yes, I'm being incredibly pronoun non-specific there - all you really know is that the character has a face. And no, before you start thinking it's M.O.D.O.K. (because he's basically all face), it's not M.O.D.O.K. Although, hmm...)

Thunderbolts #15

You can check the full interview by clicking in the following link Newsarama.

-OPINION-

After reading the interview i was very excited to see how Soule planned out the future of the team.

+ I really want to know more about Paguros and their role in this arc and i got the feeling that they're not the regular mobsters that Frank is used to fight;

+ It seems that Marvel planned out 20+ issues for this book which is a good thing if they keep the good quality we have seen in the last two. But as always, it depends on the sales that i believe it will increase with this "Infinity" event;

+ Good to have some hints for the upcoming new members to this team;

- I have to get used to Palo's art but in the images of issue #15 it seems that they are a little better or is just my eyes deceiving me.

I definetely will follow this book and expect a review for issue #14. This book is released tomorrow, so don't forget to buy it.