The most brutal hero in the Marvel Universe might be on track to become the next vessel for one of its darkest death gods.
WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Punisher #1, available now from Marvel.
Frank Castle’s life has always been one of violence, but things have gotten more brutal than ever in the pages of his latest solo series. As shocking as it might be, the Punisher himself is the new leader of The Hand, the ancient death cult that has long plagued the lives of heroes such as Daredevil. Frank hasn’t stepped up to rein in the homicidal ninja of the Hand, however, but to lead them into a glorious new era. Unfortunately, it may be them who are leading Frank into damnation, not just for himself, but for the entire world.
Frank Castle has quickly taken to coordinating the lethal assets of The Hand, unleashing them upon only the direst and deserving of targets. Although it is no surprise that the Punisher is back to cutting down human traffickers and arms dealers with a cold, calculated blade, the fact that he is doing so as the head of one of the most prominent forces for evil in the Marvel Universe is almost unimaginable. As seen in Punisher #1 (by Jason Aaron, Jesus Saiz, Paul Azaceta, Dave Stewart, and VC’s Cory Petit), the former leadership of The Hand has spared no expense in bringing Frank into their gruesome fold. In fact, they have even resurrected his long-dead wife Maria Castle, all in the hopes that Frank would continue carrying out his own brutal work in The Hand’s name. Of course, it makes sense that The Hand would be so desperate for Frank to join their ranks, especially when there is no better vessel for their true leadership.
The Hand has been terrorizing the Marvel Universe since their first appearance back in 1981’s Daredevil #174 (by Frank Miller, Klaus Janson, Glynis Wein, and Joe Rosen) and they have spent hundreds of years toiling away in the name of The Beast. This ancient demon was once worshipped by the deadly Snakeroot clan and its primordial acolytes known as the Sickly Ones, all of whom infiltrated The Hand before twisting its formerly nationalistic endeavors towards something far darker. Over the years The Hand has come into conflict with dozens of Marvel heroes during the course of just as many failed conspiracies, yet they have only ever truly wanted to see their dark god reborn on Earth. Though The Hand has succeeded in bringing about The Beast’s return on rare occasions, those attempts always ultimately ended in defeat.
Now that The Hand has Frank Castle leading them, The Beast’s reign on Earth could finally be genuinely attainable. The Hand’s worship of violence and exaltation of murder as something divine is derived from their worship of The Beast, and there is no better human example of those ideals than the Punisher. For nearly fifty years, Frank has been the Marvel Universe’s preeminent anti-hero, dishing out death and destruction with ease. More than anything else, Frank’s crusade has always embraced finality as the ultimate form of justice. This has both warped Frank’s personal sense of heroism as well as his reputation, both of which The Hand has taken as indicators of just how close to their god he already is.
If Frank is on the road towards becoming The Beast’s next vessel, the only hope left might be that he realizes what the stakes are in time to walk away from The Hand. Then again, after everything they have given him, Frank may not even mind that he is heading towards something worse than damnation.
Considering Frank’s own sense of justice, not to mention the near-endless pain that he has spent decades wallowing in, he could very well embrace what The Hand has planned for him. Alternatively, these assumptions are predicated on Frank already knowing what The Hand is steering him towards. Should that not be the case, and should Frank discover the truth behind his recruitment, The Hand will likely be unleashing something worse than The Beast upon themselves without ever seeing it coming.
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