Yes!
Now this is one hell of an idea. According to the new batch of covers Marvel just released for Marvel Legacy, The Punisher #218 is titled “The Punisher: War Machine".
Turning the Punisher into a living weapon almost seems unfair. Think about some of the match-ups War Machine has been in (and won) and then think about the 6 million or so people The Punisher has killed in the past. Yeah. Put those two together, and see what happens.
Now, before I get too fanboy on all of this, I have to say that it all depends on how it's handled. Punisher has seen some upgrades in the past, some of which worked well, some of which fell pretty flat.
You know what? It's Friday, Netflix just announced the release date of the new Punisher show, I got the new Punisher comic coming in the mail and I just turned a friend onto Ennis' legendary Punisher run.
Let's do a Punisher list.
Angel-Punisher- Punisher as an Avenging Angel:
In Punisher: Purgatory, demons basically force Frank Castle to commit suicide, but then an angel resurrects him, bringing him back to "life" with glowing red eyes, some kind of religious symbol on his forehead and angelic guns. It was a pretty terrible story, to be honest, and ended even more implausibly.
Frankencastle- Punisher as a Monster:
After Wolverine's asshole son, Daken, sliced Punisher to pieces and kicked his body into a gutter, the monsters that live in the sewers, led by Morbius the living vampire, gathered him up and got him running again, with the help of a "Blood-stone", which is basically some kind of powerful voodoo resurrection talisman. This story was actually a great idea, but even though my main man, Rick Remender wrote it, it was a pretty big miss overall.
Sorcerer Extreme- Punisher As A Wizard
Then there was the time that marvel did a mash up between Dr. Strange and The Punisher called Magic Bullets. They basically merge the two characters, with The Punisher quickly realizing that with the all mighty power of the Sorcerer Supreme, he could..well, summon a bunch of guns and blow everyone away. What do you expect? The Punisher is a pragmatic man.
Venom Punisher- Punisher as the Lethal Protector
Now, I'm not talking about the What If? story line where The Punisher bonds with Venom and starts using symbiote wings and venom-blasts and whatnot. I'm talking about the time during Secret Invasion that he got hooked up with what is basically "Symbiote-Tech", a suit that mimics the Venom symbiote that we all know and love. This mash-up actually worked pretty well, and Punisher did a boat-load of damage before the suit was destroyed.
Book Smart Punisher- Punisher as a Book-Worm:
This is kind of more like an honorable mention. The Punisher was punishing it up in a library when he ran out of luck. Never down and out, The Punisher taped a bunch of books to his chest and used them as makeshift armor to soak up gunfire. Go with what works, I guess.
