Obsessively putting our comics in chronological order since 1985.
| 1993-09-01 03:03:30 |
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Punisher #82-84
Issue(s): Punisher #82, Punisher #83, Punisher #84
Cover Date: Sep-Nov 93
Title: "Firefight"
Credits:
Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning - Writer
Hugh Haynes - Penciler
Mick Gray & Mark McKenna - Inker
Don Daley - Editor
Review/plot:
A pyromaniac is let out of a psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane thanks to the efforts of his nephew.
The uncle was being held for causing a fire that killed his brother's wife, and after her death, the brother sank into depression, allowing his real estate empire to crumble. Now the nephew wants his uncle to burn down all the buildings that his father used to own so that he can buy back the properties for cheap.
The Punisher is tracking a group of weapons and explosives dealers when he gets caught in the blast from the first fire caused by the pyromaniac uncle. So Punisher drops what he's doing to rescue people from the fire.
This ingratiates him to the fire fighters, who cover for him when VIGIL shows up to arrest him.
With help from Micro, Punisher manages to guess the pyromaniac's final location. On the way there he runs into the explosive runners again. He kills them and takes their van, and later uses the explosives as a fire break.
One thing i was worried about was that the Punisher was just going to blow away the pyromaniac or treat him like every other criminal he kills, even though he's clearly legally insane and is working under duress from his nephew, and at one point it's even said that he seems to be leaving clues to help people catch him. But the Punisher actually just knocks the guy out when he first sees him, and the guy later kills himself while setting the final fire. Doesn't sound like much, but that is restraint for the Punisher. Could just be a coincidence though.
The nephew is arrested but that isn't good enough for the Punisher...
...so he goes and kills him too (by driving a fire engine into him).
There isn't a lot to say about this story, but it's well written. Straightforward but with some fun twists, and i like the use of VIGIL as ongoing antagonists. It's weird to me how Abnett & Lanning are doing good work here while pumping out horrible Marvel UK books.
Quality Rating: B-
Historical Significance Rating: 1
Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A
References:
- The Punisher put VIGIL's leader, Mike Nails, in the infirmary in Punisher #75.
Crossover: N/A
Continuity Insert? N
My Reprint: N/A
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Comments
"so he goes and kills him too (by driving a fire engine into him)"
fnord, how can you not show us that?!?
Ah, because it's depicted poorly over some awkward splash panels. More and more i find myself not including scans of scenes because they're like stretched out over two pages in some weirdly laid out splashes.
