Issue(s): Punisher #44
Cover Date: Jan 91
Title: "Flag burner"
Credits:
Mike Baron - Writer
Neil Hansen - Penciler
Neil Hansen - Inker
Don Daley - Editor

Review/plot:
This is a Very Special issue about flag burning.

It also seems to be a prototype appearance by Street Poet Ray.

The Punisher doesn't approve of flag burning, but he doesn't approve of people getting beat up either, so he rescues Mr. Street Poet.

And then they hang out together and argue about music.

It's pretty intolerable. And the flag burning topic is left behind pretty much immediately as things morph pretty quickly into your standard Punisher plot. The guys that are upset about the flag burning go to a local (out of power) politician who is secretly running an amphetamine factory and taking advantage of a recent plant closing and the subsequent racial unrest in the town.

Punisher shoots or blows up all the appropriate people, and then rides off into the sunset with his new friend.

Quality Rating: D+

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A

References: N/A

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A

heh
I always referred to this as "Tonight, on a very special episode of Punisher"

This was the point when Baron was running out of ideas.

I laughed when the Street Poet guy called the Punisher an "ignorant cracker" :)

Street Poet Ray? Heh...must be an updated version of Bernard the Poet.

This issue gets a lot of grief online for Punisher's dialogue, which comes off as just a bit "Get off my lawn, you kids!" when it comes to rap.

This story was written shortly after the SCOTUS reaffirmed flag burning as protected speech, and rightwing talking heads were painting a picture of an impending wave of out-of-control flag burners on every street corner. Our local TV station ran crazy political ads from some group on the subject 24/7 around this time.

No, Street Poet Ray would have responded with "rap haiku", such as:

Punisher? Racist.
Shoot the Black Man just for weed.
I really hate you.