Been awhile since I reviewed The Punisher. I've been reading, but my general opinions, "good but it feels like the creative team is coasting," didn't make for the most scintillating reviews. I still feel like Ennis and Dillon are coasting to some extent, but this issue stands out as more emotionally genuine and interesting than most of the issues have been. Ennis dials down the humor a little for this issue and instead tells a story of Joan, the timid woman with a crush on Frank, delivering a surprisingly gentle and even touching story in amongst the violence and dark humor. And Dillon captures the subtle emotions that both Frank and Joan are capable of in a way that makes the story work without turning it into melodrama.
Ennis has written Frank Castle as an emotionless killing machine, the sort of guy that Dirty Harry might have told to "lighten up." As a result, a story which highlights one of the few compassionate relationships he has is one of the few that connects on a level other than entertaining violence. Joan the Mouse, as Punisher calls her, is as timid and pacifistic as Frank is taciturn and violent, and her crush on Frank has been obvious throughout her appearances. What's remarkable, however, is that Dillon and Ennis have also conveyed that Frank, while not returning her feelings, holds a sort of affection for Joan as well.
Which of course makes for good story material when Frank, battered and almost non-functional, leads a bunch of angry mobsters right to Joan's new country cottage. Leaving aside the comedy of Frank trying to fight with what Joan keeps in her country cottage (the Swiss army knife was particularly good), it showcases that while Joan has taken Frank's advice and changed, Frank can't take his own advice. Some of my favorite moments this issue came not from the combat or the humor, but from Joan quietly asking Frank to stay with her, which showed an enormous amount of courage for the timid Joan.
Of course, that's not to say that the violence and comedy is gone entirely. Dillon conveys Joan's feelings through subtle facial tics like biting her lip or smiling, but he also gets across the brutality of the Punisher's actions and the humor of the stunned mobsters as they approach an unassuming house and find themselves suddenly being gunned down or blown up. There's also a terrific confrontation between Joan's unassuming, quietly intense dog Frankie and the vicious and evil dog Stalin that is predictable but no less entertaining for that, and Dillon's panel arrangements to show their relative size really sells that confrontation.
With the previous issue focusing on the terrorist problem in Ireland and this issue, Ennis has given the Punisher a slight turn away from its comedic style and into more serious territory. The results, although still not as gripping as Ennis's stronger results, are some interesting Punisher stories, fun for fans of the writer and some fans of the character, although I have to admit that I still don't think this is a character who should have an ongoing series. Of course, I feel that way about Elektra too, and I'm enjoying that book as well thanks to the talent onboard.
