PC POST #401: -REVIEWS- THE PUNISHER: PLATOON #5 & #6

It's been awhile since I've reviewed a Punisher book but here I am to wrap up this fantastic 6 part story featuring Frank Castle in his first tour.

REVIEW: THE PUNISHER PLATOON #5

The premise of this issue is how Frank Castle's platoon handled the biggest ambush they ever faced in the series and how Ly took his personal vendetta to a new lenghts and at a highly cost to take out the platoon.

Garth Ennis is a fantastic war storyteller. This isn't Punisher MAX: Born, it's deeper than that. It's the very root of Frank Castle, first war experiences. 

Ly sees a chance to kill Frank's platoon and decides to attack them when they were in disadvantage in terrain and manpower.
Frank leads his platoon with a high performance, he makes them give their best for themselves and for the platoon.

Garth Ennis is pulling zero punches while writing this story, don't expect to see Frank Castle dealing with tons of vietcongs. It's more than that, it's the story of the man told by the last surviving members of his platoon.

Goran Parlov gave such a great dynamic in every panel, especially during the ambush. The expressions being terror, fury or surprised are very well portrayed in every panel. The action scenes are over the top and Jordie Bellaire gave her contribute to make it even better with a great coloring during the splash scenes. Fantastic creative team that was put together during this miniseries.

OVERALL RATE: 8 / 10 

REVIEW: THE PUNISHER PLATOON #6

 

Platoon #6 wraps up this fantastic series very well delivered by Ennis, Parlov and Bellaire. On the other side this is the most emotional issue of the series. A good thing to see is all the remaining survivors of the platoon praised Frank Castle action as their lieutenant. They praised the man. At the end of this issue and we see that at the end of the day he was just an exceptional "guy" who saved their lives.

By far the best issue of this series in my opinion. Where Garth Ennis explores Frank Castle's before he turned into the Punisher. This matter is even discussed by his former platoon.
The Platoon miniseries was never about death and killing. It was about the people who were there fighting side by side with Frank. Of course there are fighting and some deaths but that wasn't the premise of this series.

Garth Ennis was made for Frank Castle and vice-versa. There's no argue in this matter.

The success of this series couldn't be without the artwork of Parlov and with the colors of Jordie Bellaire. There isn't much things to be said in here. If Ennis was made for Frank Castle, Parlov art was made for the Frank too.

OVERALL RATE: 9 / 10

by Ivo Santos (@ivomgs)

PC POST #395: -REVIEW- PUNISHER: The Platoon #4

Garth Ennis is building a great story exploring Frank's past. To be more precise his first tour in Vietnam.

So far, we have seen how brilliant Frank Castle is in the art of war and leadership of his Platoon. Frank Castle is responsible for making his men thrive and being alive in all the obstacles and dangers they had to face.

This issue #4 explores a bit of the psyche of the two main characters from each side of the war. Frank Castle and Ly.

This issue doesn't have kick-ass action panels but Ennis took a time to explore a bit of these compelling characters.

Once again Ennis show how devoted Frank Castle was to his wife and to the war. We get to see some sort of "need" for action when Frank talked with Dryden.

Ly unveiled a tragic past that shows us her motivations on getting rid of American soldiers and the obsession with killing them.

Interesting panels when we see Giap taking information from a captive American soldier about the motivation of the American troops and how the people in the US see this war. Giap is a man of war, a man who takes everything into consideration to make the best results as possible.

Another interesting panel was the eventual confrontation with some green berets who were willing to mess with Frank's Platoon until he arrives and with an amazing stare and posture commands the green berets to go to rest and they leave without any word.

Goran Parlov art is amazing. I risk saying that his art in this book is the best we have seen from him. The way he draws the characters and how they express their emotions through their faces is unbelievably realistic.

Once again, during the eye contact between Frank and the green beret, that calm look and those eyes you know and felt it that Frank Castle is a man you don't want to **** with. It's not the first time he uses this, the last issue Goran did the same when Frank went to negotiate weapons for his Platoon. It's that calm look and confidence that makes his Platoon follow him through hell if they need to.

Jordie Bellaire is responsible for the colors that give huge depth to Parlov's art. The color tone of this series is adequate and of course, she was a huge support to Parlov's art.

OVERALL RATE: 9 /10 

Review by Ivo Santos

PC POST #385: -REVIEW- PUNISHER: THE PLATOON #2

Platoon #2 was a blast and Garth Ennis once again just delivered an amazing story and show a Frank Castle in action for the first time with zero experience.

If Garth Ennis had a seal of quality this story would be branded by it. Again. 

Ennis tell us a war story that only a very few can deliver with such intense and detailed description.

Ennis presents us the two points of view from both sides of the war, the American and the Vietnamese. Not for you to take a side but to think about both sides.

The leadership skills of Frank Castle continues to be tested by his Platoon but this time under attack by tons of Vietnamese troops, this will mark the very first time Frank Castle is in action and the first kill.

This comic has a huge amount of violence and gore like a good story delivered by Ennis, he shows us how dirty and savage war can be and we will see Frank's Platoon fighting for their lives with everything they have just to survive.

Most of the credit goes to Goran Parlov who delivered a really good artwork and amazing panels with great colors.

The splash scenes are simply amazing with the usual quality from Parlov books that we are used to.

Explosions, shootouts, violence and the expressions of the characters is another detail that Parlov nailed it, he almost didn't need that Ennis could write any dialogue into the script, their expressions said it all.

The cover is amazing with a strong stare and that look we as Punisher fans have seen somewhere. And for the epic posture, Frank is on the cover.

Parlov needs to share his success with Jordie Bellaire as colorist not only for the cover but to the interiors of the comic. She really gave more depth to the tone of this series.

You can't go wrong with this series. If you are Ennis fan or The Punisher's classic MAX stories you will love it. It's Ennis and I don't remember him writing a bad Punisher story.

Overall Rate: 8.5 /10

PC POST #383: PUNISHER Solicitations for January 2018

Finally, it was revealed the solicitations of the next Punisher issues in January of 2018...

Punisher: The Platoon #5 ( out of 6)

Garth Ennis ( W ) & Goran Parlov (A & CA)
 

"The Platoon goes on a devastating mission that goes bad to worse. Viet Cong soldier Li Quang has been after Frank and his men for months. Her chance to get them has arrived."

The Punisher #220

(W) Matthew Rosenberg / (A) Guiu Villanova / (CA) Clayton Cray

"Frank’s torn through General Petrov’s soldiers and tanks, but an even deadlier force has Frank in their sights. A trap is set, with innocent lives on the line. Can Frank save the endangered civilians? Can he even save himself?"

I really can't wait for these issues to come out in January. About the Punisher with the War Machine suit, it looks he's going to travel around the globe and clearly be more hero-ish than the past run.
Since the Punisher (2014) that the Punisher has been a little tweaked in his own mindset and sometimes, I get the feeling he's been a little "tone down" regarding, for example, the Marvel Knights Punisher by Ennis set in the Marvel Universe.
But I'm really curious to see how Matthew Rosenberg will make this book and how he will develop the character.

PC POST #380: -REVIEW- PUNISHER: THE PLATOON #1

After four years on hold, this project came to life. Welcome to the Platoon! The first tour of Frank Castle that excelled the expectations.

Before starting this review I want to share how I miss Garth Ennis writing. Over the years we have been presented with some mediocre writers that don't get the character at all. 

But Ennis was born for the Punisher and despite one or two mistakes he did for the character ( in my opinion), he is by far the best Punisher writer of this new century.

Here is a good issue that reminds us that before all the retcon Marvel did in 2012 to the war origins of Frank Castle, he was a Vietnam veteran. This story guide us to his first tour when he has zero combat experience.

I was expecting to see a rookie Frank Castle but Ennis avoided that kind of cliché. Frank Castle has indeed zero experience but he's a genius in the battlefield being two or three steps forward from the rest of the Platoon.

If you liked "Valley Forge, Valley Forge", this book is for you. Ennis did show us some POV views about Frank and sent us directly to the past. We basically travel through time from present to the past. Frank's story is being told by someone who knows him well.

The success of this first issue had the hands of Goran Parlov and Jordie Bellaire. I would even risk saying that this is his best work in a Punisher book.

Great visuals, not too fancy but great. He has the ability to makes the readers focus on what matters. I really liked how he portrayed Frank Castle. Frank has a huge built and his body stands out the rest of the Platoon.

His expression was well caught. Despite the apparent lack of experience, his eyes reveal a huge self-confidence and an unbreakable will. 

This issue is a set up for all the upcoming issues, don't expect action in it but the storytelling did all the work that I didn't feel the need for action and expect some comeback characters from Punisher MAX and Fury Max!

Overall Rate: 8.5 / 10

Posted by Ivo Santos 

PC POST #361: THE PUNISHER solicitations for October 2017!

Finally, it was released the Punisher solicitations for October by Newsarama and we are presented with a new and probably the most awaited series from a few years back!

Seat back.

The Punisher MAX: Platoon: #1 & #2

Garth Ennis (W) & Goran Parlov (A&C)

The Punisher was born in Vietnam, Frank Castle had already become a dark legend of the battlefield. Stories about him were told in whispers, if at all. Now the legendary Punisher team of Garth Ennis and Goran Parlov (PUNISHER MAX, FURY MAX) brings the first of those stories to light: the tale of Frank Castle’s first command and his first kill. Don’t miss this epic new series!

32 PGS. (EACH)/MAX/Parental Advisory …$3.99 (EACH)

The Punisher #17

Becky Cloonan (W), Matt Horak (A) Declan Shalvey (Cover)

STARING DEATH IN THE FACE!

• FACE was a live wire in the wilderness. In New York City, he’s an armed bomb…

• And THE PUNISHER is all that stands between him and 8 million souls…but he’ll have to blend in with high society to do it.

• A confrontation we’ve been building to since issue #1, and Frank Castle in a TUX! You ALREADY KNOW you CAN’T miss this!

32 PGS./Parental Advisory …$3.99

It's curious that there is nothing about The Punisher#218: Frank Castle War Machine when most of the Legacy titles will start in October. Which leads me to believe that we will have that story later this year.
The Punisher: End of Days miniseries is not seen in this solicitations. We will probably get it next year. 

-Posted by Ivo Santos (FB/twitter)

PC POST #360: Punisher MAX: The Platoon teased by the Editor-in-Chief!

The long awaited miniseries was teased in the past few days by Axel Alonso on Twitter. There isn't not much about the comic itself, just a couple of panels with dialogues. But it was pretty cool just to read and tease all the fans about it.

Finally, we will get Garth Ennis back in the game with the help of Goran Parlov in the artwork.

It's been years since they talked about this project and you can learn about what happened and more details here.

We will see an earlier version of Frank Castle. It's the prequel of Punisher MAX: BORN, and we will see a "rookie" Frank Castle in his first tour in Vietnam.

There is no information about the release date of this miniseries, but I strongly believe that it will be released this year.

Article by Ivo Santos (FB/Twitter)

PC POST #353: Goran Parlov talks about The Punisher "Platoon" miniseries and more!

For those who missed this interview by Les Commis Des Comics, Goran Parlov talked a bit about the upcoming Punisher miniseries "The Platoon", Barracuda and the many styles of Frank Castle he worked on these years. 

Goran Parlov started to explain why this project took three years to be finished. 

"I had this opportunity to work with Mark Millar and we created Starlight and i just politely asked if i could have time for myself to do my own creator project..." He continued. "The Platoon was postponed, and i took my time to write Starlight and i returned to do the Platoon."

The interviewer asked if the Platoon is the Punisher's origin story, Goran replied:

"Yes, you will see Frank Castle as innocent guy who never killed anybody before, just a guy who arrived in Vietnam... okay, he's never been innocent but you know, we will see the youngest Frank Castle ever."

Goran was asked about the creation of Barracuda, what did he add to the character or it was Ennis script.

" I add the visuals, but i remember the first episodes, i didn't know he will become an important character so, i didn't pay so much attention to Barracuda. As matter of fact when i see the first panels of Barracuda, i'm not happy with it, he wasn't characterized well enough... it's my frustration. Later i realized it could be a very funny character and very important.character at least for me... "

Goran continued... "A few episodes later, he became what i really wanted him to be, his face and his exaggerated figure.

Goran talked about his favorite fight in Punisher MAX, the final battle of Punisher vs Barracuda..

"...They kept mutilating each other and at some point i really didn't know how human body looks like without all those parts... The nose, the ears, the eyes, the fingers, the arms, the legs, the axe in the chest.. and you know... what's left of the human body?" 

He continued "...Barracuda is all about exaggeration... We exaggerated as much as possible and in the end Frank put 30 bullets from an AK... and i hope he's dead."

Goran was asked about his favorite Punisher style, Punisher MAX, Punisher vs Marvel Universe or the Platoon version.

"The Punisher MAX version. I feel connected with that kind of character. Although the Punisher vs Marvel Universe was completely another universe that doesn't have anything to do with the MAX character, so i wanted to destinguish the two Punishers and that was the reason... I thought the ponytail was a cool thing to add, even because i hoped that later i could remove the ponytail and make him look like the Conan. At the end of the book he looks very much like the Conan the Barbarian."

At the end of the interview he talks again about the Platoon...

"I'm really proud of the Platoon. I can't wait to see it published and i hope you enjoy it."

Editor's note: Personally i can't wait to see you and Ennis together in this miniseries, it's been too long and you should work more together! 

Posted by Ivo Santos (@ivomgs)

Check out the full interview here!

PC POST #332: "Back to 'Nam", Ennis and Parlov are back with a sketch of the "Platoon".

Yes!! The project is still alive. The long promised miniseries featuring Frank Castle in his first tour in 'Nam is in production.

Goran Parlov shared this morning a sketch of this long awaited series.

For those who don't know Parlov and Ennis will join forces again to take on the character, a great creative team to give us once again the Frank Castle we love, the original, the Vietnam bad ass.

Click on the link to see the news back in 2013.

Three long years of waiting and it's finally happening. Can't wait!

Ivo Santos | @ivomgs

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.