Description

Punisher: Book One                                                     Hardcover
Marvel Comics Ltd. 1987 UK hardcover featuring The Punisher: Circle of Blood.  Awesome!!
Writer: Steven Grant
Artist: Mike Zeck
Inker: John Beatty
Colorist: Mike Zeck
Letterer: Ken Bruzenak
Editor: Carl Potts
Cover by: Mike Zeck & Phil Zimelman

Having first appeared in Amazing Spider-Man #129, Frank Castle, a.k.a. the Punisher, got his own title at last with the premiere of this five-part limited series. Following up on this title’s popularity, Marvel later introduced several other titles featuring the death-dealing vigilante, including Punisher, Punisher: War Zone, and Punisher War Journal.

The limited series begins when Castle is sentenced to serve out a long term in the Rykers Island maximum security facility. As can be expected, he makes no friends among his fellow inmates, and the resulting violence threatens to tear the prison apart. When Castle stops a mass-jailbreak, the warden recruits him into a secret organization which promises to free the Punisher to do what he does best—fight crime with deadly finality. Marvel’s vicious veteran vigilante finds out who to kill and who to trust in this rare 1987 UK hardcover edition featuring the first two issues of The Punisher comic book mini-series from 1986.

Story/Spoilers
In part #1, The Punisher arrives at the prison on Ryker’s Island. He is watched by every prisoner, and also by the warden Gerty and his aid, who both talk about the possibility to use the Punisher in their plans (which we do not know still).

After smashing down his cell’s partner, the Mule, the Punisher starts investigating who might have poisoned him in his past time in prison. He correctly deduces that the cook is the only one who would have been able to manage to get poison into his body. He tips off the cook that he knows it was him which spooks the cook, causing him to run to the guy who gave the order to poison the Punisher: Jigsaw.

They fight and the Punisher crashes a bottle in Jigsaw’s hand, but then Don Cervello enters and stops the fight. Cervello is the boss among the prisoners and he also has some guards in his pocket. The Punisher figures out there is an escape in progress and makes Cervello include him in the pack of escaping prisoners.

But the following days the Punisher sees that Cervello has other plans for him and suspects Cervello is planning his death. The night of the escape arrives and Cervello sends Gregario, one of his men, to kill the Punisher. But the latter simulates his death and follows them.

The Punisher could escape alone, but decides to stay and stop all the prisoners escaping before they get out of the prison and endanger innocent people in NY. So he assaults a security tower, shoots down Gregario and avoids the escape.

Only Jigsaw and Cervello keep running, kill a guard, and arrive at the warden’s office.

The Punisher gets to the warden’s office, too. Jigsaw threatens to kill the warden and his aide unless the Punisher surrenders his weapon. The Punisher puts a bullet that is too big for the gun in the chamber and throws it to Jigsaw, who fires it, exploding the gun and injuring himself. Cervello threatens the warden, but the Punisher does not care about the warden’s life, so Cervello surrenders and is caught by the arriving police officers.

Then the warden tells the officers to leave the Punisher with him, and tells the Punisher about the Trust, a secret organization of industrialists, financiers, ex-military, movie stars, journalists and more, who want to fight criminals with methods beyond the law, like the Punisher himself. The Punisher agrees to work for the Trust to get his equipment back and get out of prison.

In the end, the gangster boss Charlie Siciliano meets his nephew Tony Massera, the son of a gangster killed by the Punisher some months ago and hands him a gun to kill the Punisher himself.

Finally in part #2, The Punisher assaults the Kingpin’s tower to kill the man, but he finds a dead, Polynesian decoy of him there instead. This was a trap to kill The Punisher, as everyone knows he recently escaped from prison. He leaps out the window and manages to reach the ground alive but in serious condition.

Injured, he is collected from the floor by a mysterious woman.

The Punisher awakes in her room and she tells him her name is Angela and is there to give him everything he needs. They make love.

The Kingpin wants everyone to think he is dead. This causes a street war as every major and minor crime boss vies to eliminate the competition and become the new kingpin. The Punisher makes a phone call to Ben Urich to tell him he murdered the Kingpin. He then calls Alaric, his contact in the Trust, to supply him with some extra weaponry so he can capitalize on finding all the crime bosses.

After that, the Punisher leaves and is followed by Tony Massera. Having told the press that the Kingpin is dead, he starts the war among the gangsters that he wanted in the first place. Several bosses die, but the war gets out of control and innocent people pay the price with their lives.

The Punisher decides that he needs help and calls Alaric again. He cannot know it, but Angela works for Alaric.

Hardcover reprints/collects: The Punisher (1986) Issues #1-2.  Marvel Comics

First Printing
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Publication Date: 1987
Format: FC, 64 pages, HC, 11.25″ x 8.5″
ISBN-10: 0948936207
ISBN-13: 9780948936203

Collectible Entertainment note: Hardcover is in Very Good condition.  Nice!  Please See Scans!!  A must have for any serious Punisher collector and/or enthusiast.  A fun & entertaining read.  Very Highly Recommended.

Please read return policy.