Product Description: Five women, linked by tragedy... and obsession. The Punisher killed their husbands - put them down like dogs - and shattered their lives. Now, they want payback, and they've hatched the perfect plan to get it. To bring the wolf to their door, all they need is bait. Collects Punisher MAX #43-49.
Weakest of the MAX, Still Good This is definitely the weakest volume of the MAX line, but its still pretty good. Frank is absent through a lot of it and it focuses mostly on the wives of his victim and their plotting and a cop. It tries to make a point and generally falls a touch flat.
It was worth a read and there are a few cool pages, but like I said its the weakest of the lot. A must for the completest or collector, but nothing that will win over non-readers.
not too much frank compared to the previous volumes, this one is def. weaker. Overall not bad, but it pales in comparison to the others. Also, a little stereotypical in the way the black woman was written. O_o;
Not enough focus on Frank, but rather other chars. Still enjoyable if you liked the other MAX Punisher.
Whoooosh... That's the sound of my breath escaping as I finished this volume. I've loved every story Ennis has done in this series. Some of the arcs are more fun while others have more weight, seriousness. This one begins as a fun one but end with deadly seriousness. And it is all the better for this tactic.
A different reviewer decried the use of stereotypes and how the villains lost credibility. I would counter that the villains are presented as realistically as could be (I've seen that Gotti reality show and this is it whether they represent the norm or not). And the fact that Frank is mostly unnecessary to the plot of this one shows the kind of range that Ennis employs. I've read that the opening issue of the next arc completely flips this series on it's head and I can't wait until it is collected. Unfortunately I also read that it will be Mr. Ennis' last arc. So love it while you can.
The Worst of the Punisher MAX This storyline would appear to have an awful lot of potential, and it did, which is why I bought it. However, I didn't find a single thing that it failed to disappoint on. While the premise of vengeful widows is interesting, had it been done right, it isn't. The characters of the five widows who team up to get the Punisher are shallow and unsympathetic in the extreme. While one would imagine that wives of mafiosos might be somewhat normal and capable of human emotion, these ones certainly aren't. They conform to the stalest bimbo, slut, and trophy wife stereotypes (as well as a horrible racial stereotype that many readers might find insulting), which make them a pain to read on the page. Also, they're so incompetent that they never even seem to pose a threat to the Punisher. The Punisher, incedentally, barely makes an appearance in this book, except to be shot and laid out of commission while a vengeful mastectomy patient takes up his role. For those who are fans of Ennis, it will seem like he was either on auto-pilot or perhaps not even writing this arc, as it lacks the punch and wit of his black humor. It might just be best to leave this volume out of your Punisher collection.
Pure brutality and pure Ennis equal pure Punisher Widowmaker, the eighth collected volume of Garth Ennis' monolithic run on the Punisher, finds the tabled turned on Frank Castle. Over the years, Frank has racked up an incredible body count of mob low lifes and gangsters, and five vengeful mafia widows are looking to even the score. While Frank may not see this coming, an unlikely ally is waiting in the wings to exact some revenge of her own; with the end result being one of the most violent and just plain brutal tale of revenge to ever be seen in a Marvel comic. Ennis is once again in spectacular form as he delivers an incredibly compelling story that concludes with Frank on the shelf and witness to seeing what happens when someone attempts to follow in his foot steps. Lan Medina's artwork is exquisite and lush; drawing one of the best modern renditions ever seen of Frank Castle that's been seen since Steve Dillon and Lewis Larosa collaborated with Ennis on the title. All in all, Widowmaker is another spectacular chapter in Ennis' mature re-imagining of the Punisher, and here's hoping he's still got more to come.
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