Panels of Awesome!

While I was browsing the web a week or so ago, I was reading through the various comic sites I check out each day when I came across a review of the, at the time, newest issue of Punisher War Journal. Having read the title back during Civil War and hating it, I didn’t really think much of the review. Well, I read it anyway. Turns out, War Journal’s gotten a little better than when I read it. So much so that I felt, after reading the review, I needed to go out and pick up the issues that made up the Hunter/Hunted arc (issues 13-15) and see what they had to offer.

Matt Fraction’s writing shows off just how much both he and the title have improved since I last read it. With several more issues under his belt, it seems like he’s finally got a strong grasp of Frank Castle’s character and projects this well into his writing. I really liked his classic take to this arc. It almost felt like something that would have been in comics years ago. Overall, these issues have really changed my opinion of both Fraction and War Journal as a whole.

While Ariel Olivetti was doing the pens when I last read this title, they’ve since gone a completely new route and signed on Scott Wegener to take over the duties of artwork. Olivetti’s art almost appeared to be painted and meshed in, what looked to be, real photos with paint overlapping it. His characters looked very out of proportion and completely unrealistic. Wegener on the other hand, uses cartoony, simple figures that almost would have been suited for a Saturday morning cartoon. While this might sound a little out of place in a Punisher comic, Wegener manages to still keep the very mature tones of the comic alive while still using his very friendly artwork. I’m not sure if I’d want to see this style used all the time but it’s a nice change. Especially from Olivetti’s.

Despite what I had read earlier in the title’s run, War Journal has gotten much more coherent and interesting. The character seems familiar but not so much so that he’s boring to read about. It almost seems like he’s gone back to his roots and become the psychotic do-gooder that I liked when I was younger. Here’s a breakdown of the issues that made up this arc and just how they weigh in:

Punisher War Journal #13

8.1/10
It’s exciting, it’s violent and it’s got really fun artwork.

Punisher War Journal #14

7.9/10
A great follow-up to the first issue. Keeps the ball rolling nicely.

Punisher War Journal #15

7.0/10 (How’d you get that?)
Action packed with a slightly disappointing end. Still a solid conclusion.

I really liked this arc overall for it’s refreshingly new yet somehow familiar take on Frank Castle. Not to mention, it’s just so much fun to read about a guy who lugs around guns and chases a guy in a Rhino suit. Despite what your first impressions of the title are, it’s worth a look to check these issues out.