Writer Becky Cloonan serves up twenty plus pages of pure action packed power in issue The Punisher #11. There’s minimal dialogue here, but from the challenge gauntlet thrown down by Condor on the first page to the Street Fighter friendly FINISH HIM style final word bubble, this issue lays down the fire. There’s so much tension built up and so much 80s action film realism that it’s hard not to enjoy this intriguing romp through The Punisher’s escape and Battle Royal with the Condor team. The only thing missing from this issue is the agent gone rogue side story that has been running parallel to the current arc and, while it was noticed it wasn’t really needed to push this issue along. In fact, having that part missing from the story gives us some sense of hope for our ultra violent anti-hero that he might get saved by the female agent. The ending leaves possibilities for a strong ending to the arc wide open and even with bare bones dialogue, the story moves along beautifully, full of signature clever quips, snarky and sometimes scared villains and nemeses.

Matt Horak‘s lines make for the perfect template for Frank Martin‘s brilliant color scheme. The artwork is simple yet poignant. There’s a sense of darkness, perfect splatters of blood, well-defined punches and bruises in every panel. The Punisher #11 is drawn like the perfect storyboard for the action movie of your dreams.

The latest issue of The Punisher is one of the most effective placeholder/fill-in issues that I’ve read in a long time. There’s not a wasted panel or word contained in all of this issues 28 pages. While it doesn’t provide any new information, we all know that Condor is crazy AF and pretty much a grown up militia style ,bad boy, Lord of the Flies crew, this issue does give us an in-depth look at Frank Castle and how strong he is, mentally and physically. It also shows how hard he will fight to stay alive and make the bad guys suffer. There are moments in his fights with various Condor members that he uses excessive force, even when it isn’t necessary to get away from his captors. This issue is a case study in Frank Castle and, it’s everything you could ever want from a look inside his head, making it a good read from cover to cover.

Story: Becky Cloonan Art: Matt Horak and Frank Martin
Story: 8.9 Art: 8.8 Overall: 8.8 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review