Punisher

The Punisher is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Gerry Conway and artists John Romita Sr. and Ross Andru, the character first appeared in The Amazing Spider-Man#129 (cover dated February 1974) as an adversary of the superhero Spider-Man. In the Marvel Universe, the Punisher is the vigilante identity of Francis G. "Frank" Castle, a Sicilian American veteran of the United States Marine Corps who wages a one-man war on organized crime in New York City. His origin story features his wife and two children being killed by the mob after witnessing a murder in Central Park; when the police failed to prosecute the killers, Castle took justice into his own hands, a vendetta that has continued ever since. He has no superhuman abilities, instead relying on his military training in marksmanship, hand-to-hand combat, and guerrilla warfare; he is recognized by the white skull painted on his chest and has been described as obsessed with vengeance. Conway and other creators accompanied the Punisher with supporting characters, including the weapons engineer Microchip and the former marine Rachel Cole-Alves; his archenemy, the severely scarred mercenary Jigsaw; as well as Spider-Man and Daredevil, whose more restrained approaches to crimefighting are frequently contrasted with Castle's. Conway conceived the character while writing The Amazing Spider-Man, drawing on Don Pendleton's The Executioner book series and the pulp character The Shadow for inspiration, and designed the Punisher's costume together with Romita. Introduced as a minor antagonist meant to make Spider-Man's life difficult, the character proved unexpectedly popular and began making regular appearances throughout the 1970s, including team-ups with Captain America and other heroes, and by the early 1990s he was popular enough to support four concurrent monthly series. His popularity declined through the mid-1990s, and writer Garth Ennis later revived...