The beginning...

Garth Ennis's run on the Punisher (2001-2009) has been one of my favorite books in recent memory. It was published on Marvel's imprints (Marvel Knights and Marvel MAX) as an attempt to try and make edgier more adult comics, and a large part of the success of The Punisher in this new publishing run can be attributed to the freedom Ennis had to explore the truly dark parts of the Punisher mythos. For years, the comic battled with its identity. Even the most dark and brooding of vigilante heroes were still morally bound to rise above the depths of their criminal counterparts. This meant that heroes could do anything to prevent crime, but never at the cost of human life. If we think about Spiderman, Daredevil, and some of Marvel's other "street heroes," they were always able to avert dangerous plots and do so without anyone dying, including the villains. But this was never the case for the Punisher, who specifically set out to kill criminals, and only gave regard to preventing the loss of innocent life.

The inherent problem of the series became one of marketing and publication. The Punisher is one of the most violent mainstream characters in comics, but you can't sell violent comics to adolescents and teenagers without some blowback. So, in order to blunt the edge, a significant amount of his violence was toned down or averted through a series of plot devices. Now, the character is entirely more marketable to a target audience, but all of the compelling character development is lost. 

I think that a large part of the problem with the Punisher's character stemmed from his origin story and America's inability to deal with the reality of its failure to help veterans after the Vietnam War.  The Punisher wasn't imbued with powers as a result of some cosmic/radioactive/genetic deus ex machina. Instead, Frank Castle becomes the Punisher after watching his family get killed in the crossfire of a mob hit. His training and service as a Marine in the Vietnam war provide him with the necessary "powers" to fight crime and become a vigilante. And unlike Spiderman or Daredevil, who gain power and see this as an obligation to serve and protect society, the Punisher's response is only to murder those who would do evil.

When Garth Ennis took over the Punisher, the Vietnam War permeated the books, and it became apparent that it wasn't just the death of Castle's family that motivated him but the trauma of war was also part of it. By including the war and its impact on Castle, Ennis was able to transform the Punisher from a one dimensional character into a highly problematic and guilt-inducing part of the American consciousness.

All of this leads me to ask how it compares with other interpretations of American veterans returning home after the war.