PUNISHER: WAR ZONE (2008):

PUNISHER: WAR ZONE (2008):

“Frank Castle, known as the Punisher, ruthlessly demolishes organized crime, but it starts an even bigger war.”

Punisher goes against Jigsaw after he kills his don. Jigsaw was Billy The Beaut, and after Punisher shot up the place, his face ended up in a glass grinder and he becomes Jigsaw. He recruits his old criminal buddies, including “Loony Bin Jim” to take down Punisher. Meanwhile, Frank Castle himself expands his weaponry, finds more friends (Micro and Carlos.), and finds a family to protect.

I dunno. The gunfights were pretty good. Especially in the beginning. It won an award for best stunts in 2010! It's just that in terms of comic book movies, almost anything Batman pre-Dark Knight trilogy looks prehistoric. The whole plot point of Jigsaw being granted immunity because he has information on a terrorist attack seemed a little dated. It is nice though, to see lower stakes in a comic book movie after years of interconnected plots and cosmic enemies.

I will say for as gritty as this was, it wasn't without a sense of humor. Jigsaw in particular looks like he's having a blast. He sort of reminds me of Jack Nicholson Joker. A little more loud and goofy than modern villains. He'll get right up in your face and laugh at the good guys. Although, Punisher being the character he is, he's just sort of unmoved, and just stoically shoots, especially when he blows up the parkour gang boss with a rocket launcher...he's not impressed.

Overall, I'd say the movie was ok, but it reminds me of just a basic mob movie. If you removed the Marvel Comics element, it'd be indistinguishable from any action movie of the decade. Iron Man was just getting into gear though, so you can't really blame it at this time. Things like parkour and Homeland Security immunity unfortunately date it instantly. I'd say skip it, unless you're already a Punisher fan.

Avengers Confidential: Black Widow & Punisher (2014):

Avengers Confidential: Black Widow & Punisher (2014):

Black Widow: Don’t kill them, Frank!

Punisher: I have no choice!

    This movie could’ve been so cool, if it were an actual Punisher anime! Instead, it’s an excuse for Black Widow to have a romantic fling with the villain. It starts off kind of cool, where Punisher shoots up a whole room of weapons dealers. But, then, he’s reduced to a tagalong. I’m not kidding. That’s what Nick Fury basically says. You see, because the villain has mind control powers, he needed to have two agents around. And who ends up mind-controlled? Yeah…Punisher.

    To the film’s credit, it does show that Black Widow can go toe-to-toe with Punisher. (Frank Castle). Their fights last about a minute each time…the second time he’s mind-controlled. You see, Punisher is on the heels of a weapons dealer named Kane. Who turns out to be the pawn of a lovesick SHIELD (Elias) Agent who steals SHIELD supersoldier tech to impress Black Widow. He is also the pawn of a Russian terrorist organization. Because that would impress her….invade New York.

     Eventually, the Russians use Elias’s mind control to invade New York with supersoldiers. Much of the movie consists of Black Widow being lovesick with Elias. She can take down Punisher, yes, but is apparently weak in the knees over a random SHIELD scientist who she should’ve just taken down. At least Amadeus Cho is there, a child genius SHIELD Agent who creates a mind shield after Black Widow promises to kiss him. She’s  Punisher with flirting abilities. Win-win!

   And now that Russian supersoldiers are invading New York while Black Widow is being romantic and angsty, The Avengers show up to defend the city! This is one instance in the movie where I did like it better than the movies. Because it’s animation, they have the budget to have all the Avengers show up and do their jobs. Hulk, Iron Man, even Captain Marvel. After all, it is Avengers: Confidential. Gotta have Avengers show up.
   
   In sum, I liked the movie. I liked that they were able to show that Black Widow can kick butt after she was kinda sidelined in The Avengers movie. Unfortunately, this leaves very little time to build up Punisher’s kick butt credibility. I mean, normally he has weapons that fire nukes! But, here he’s regulated to a Hawkeye-type role (I‘m calling it being “Hawkeyed”, from now on!) providing connections to the Russian terrorists, and then being mind controlled. It’s always mind control.

    Mind control aside, I do think It’s a good action film, and they build up Punisher nicely in the beginning. I just wish more superhero movies actually used all their superheroes. Punisher really could’ve been anyone. Anyway, nice to see all The Avengers together in anime form. But, who the heck is Elias? Oh, well. At least Punisher gets some revenge in the end! Go see it! 3/5 stars from me! Worth a watch.

IRON MAN: RISE OF TECHNOVORE (2013)

IRON MAN: RISE OF TECHNOVORE (2013)

“Next time Stark asks for help…I’ll put a bullet in him.”

- The Punisher

Iron Man: Rise of Technovore is a Marvel anime that begins with Tony Stark developing a satellite named Howard (After his dad.) from which S.H.I.E.L.D can watch the world. Are we meant to think of cyber threats and whistleblowers? I sure thought so! Anyway, after unveiling his satellite, things go wrong. Without giving spoilers, Technovore arrives in full force. He has these orbs full of “technovores” that can eat through technology as well as human biology. He doesn’t zap people, he just utterly dissolves them!

When Tony Stark gets too close to uncovering who Technovore is, Nick Fury sends Hawkeye and Black Widow after him in Pakistan for acting without his authority. But, in Pakistan, Iron Man finds an unlikely ally in Frank Castle a.k.a. The Punisher! Here, he looks a little too pretty for my taste though. At least his dark humor and Iron Man’s wit are in tact. Iron Man warns everyone not to make the man in the skull shirt angry…and…when the chase begins, Punisher scoffs at Hawkeye: “Arrows? Really?”

As usual with Marvel animes, the villain kind of twists and turns, and I’m trying real hard not to give spoilers. In my view, the big treat here is seeing all these superheroes in action in anime form. I will say though, the females (Black Widow and Pepper Pots) range from “Girl with light red hair” to “Girl with dark red hair”. There’s not much development of either, except Black Widow stuck in for fan service.

The film takes us from New York to Pakistan to Beijing in search of this biotechnological terrorist Technovore. He is not at all who he seems to be, and the climax seems to take cues from Akira…but in the Marvel universe! Some old adversaries come back, some new allies are made, some heroes are wiped out! It’s good if you want more Iron Man and you want to fill in plot gaps!

Also, while Tony and S.H.I.E.L.D are fighting across the globe, Technovore takes control of Howard, so it definitely raises the stakes! If you liked the other Marvel animes, this one is a welcome addition. And definitely opens up some new possibilities. Will we be seeing a Punisher anime soon? I sure hope so! Stay tuned!