Issue(s): Punisher War Zone #17, Punisher War Zone #18, Punisher War Zone #19
Cover Date: Jul-Sep 93
Title: " The Jericho Syndrome"
Credits:
Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning - Writer
Hugh Haynes - Penciler
Rodney Ramos - Inker
Tim Tuohy - Assistant Editor
Don Daley - Editor

Review/plot:
The Punisher teams with up a guy named Jack Oonuk...

...who is an industrial troubleshooter working for a company called Pan-Allied, which is being targeted with ransom demands by a criminal called the Architect. The Punisher and Oonuk meet while failing to stop the Architect...

...from blowing up a dam where Pan-Allied were building a hydro-electric plant. The resulting explosion causes a huge flood, resulting in many deaths (including Oonuk's partner Marty). This causes some friction between Punisher and Micro, but it doesn't seem to go anywhere longterm.

Punisher and Oonuk then foil an attempt by the Architect to blow up a bridge. This causes the Architect to decide to get personal with Oonuk. Oonuk is an Inuit, so the Architect chooses to target an oil refinery in northern Canada. The Punisher and Micro go with him to help stop the Architect. They get into trouble, thanks especially to a particularly big goon.

But luckily Wolverine shows up. It turns out that he's a friend of Oonuk's.

Wolverine helps prevent the oil rig from getting blown up.

Wolverine's sudden appearance halfway through issue #19 is so arbitrary that it almost feels tacked on. But Jack Oonuk mentions in issue #17 that he did work for the Canadian government in the past, so his association with Wolverine doesn't quite come out of nowhere.

It's pretty clear from the random shuffling of the creative teams - i.e. Abnett & Lanning being on this book - that Marvel didn't have any specific plans for this title after the John Romita Jr. storyline. It's just become a third Punisher title with more of the same sort of stories that we might have seen in any of his series. This isn't even one of Abnett & Lanning's better efforts. The Architect and Jack Oonuk are clearly being built up as recurring characters (and they will appear again, basically once more), but they aren't very interesting or developed much. And the time spent setting them up takes away from the normal grit of the Punisher. And of course there's the gratuitous Wolverine appearance. So it's not terrible, but it's not on the level of, say, Eurohit, and it's definitely not justifying the continued existence of a third Punisher book.

Quality Rating: C-

Historical Significance Rating: 1

Chronological Placement Considerations: Wolverine's metal claws place this before Fatal Attractions (or at least the conclusion of it). Wolvie's healing factor is also an integral part of the conclusion.

References: N/A

Crossover: N/A

Continuity Insert? N

My Reprint: N/A