WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Punisher #1, available in stores now.

He may target evildoers, but ex-marine turned vigilante the Punisher (Frank Castle) is still one of the Marvel Universe's most prolific murderers. It's no surprise that he would be a figure of interest to the Hand, a cult of ninja assassins that worship an infernal entity known as the Beast. What would happen though if Castle and the Hand were to join forces? How would the Hand get him to agree to be a member? And what events in the Punisher's past put him on the path to such a murderous alliance? The new 12 issue Punisher mini-series, by writer Jason Aaron and artists Jesus Saiz and Paul Azaceta, addresses these questions. In the first issue, readers saw Castle's alliance with the Hand in action, met the Hand high priestess who helped forge it, and saw one of the shocking reasons why the Punisher agreed to it in the first place.

CBR spoke with Aaron about the reveal of that first issue. He also dove into writing The Punisher against the backdrop of the Marvel Universe, where his story is headed next, and whether the Marvel Universe's heroes will become aware of the Punisher's currently clandestine alliance with the Hand. Also included is a sneak peek at some of Saiz's art for Punisher #2.

RELATED: Todd McFarlane Discusses Designing The Batman Toys & New DC Multiverse Figures

Punisher 2 Interior Page 1

CBR: What made you want to tackle the Marvel Universe incarnation of the Punisher and tie him to the Hand?

Jason Aaron: I never really tackled the Marvel Universe Punisher in a big way before. I had a run on Punisher MAX years ago with the late great Steve Dillon, which I'm really proud of. I got to follow Garth Ennis' run, which, in my opinion, is still the definitive run on Punisher. I loved his Punisher MAX stuff. I loved playing with Frank in that world and doing a different kind of Punisher story, but I don't think I had ever written him in a big way in the Marvel Universe until I did War of the Realms. I included Frank in that. I think that's what got the ball rolling for me.

I decided to tackle a Frank immersed in the Marvel Universe, which I think has been a challenge. I think it's a challenge in the wake of what Garth did to capture that grittiness and power and do it in a world that's got Hulk and Spider-Man running around. We've seen a lot of different runs on Punisher in the Marvel Universe over the years since Garth, like Matt Fraction, Greg Rucka, and Matt Rosenberg. They all did really cool stuff, but I had never tried it. So I wanted to dive into that in a big way. Out of that, I came up [with] three ideas for stories. This is the one that I and Marvel liked the most. I'm really excited for it to be finally coming out.

RELATED: Hive Mind: Plaid Klaus Unveils His Gripping, Gritty Sci-Fi Noir Comic

I've always been a fan of Frank in the Marvel Universe because you get the weird, creative fun of the fantastic and the gritty. Plus, I like how the superhuman world forces Frank to improvise and be more cunning.

Right out of the gate in Issue #1 we show how Frank is Frank. There's a huge fight scene of him taking on a room full of ninjas that Jesus [Saiz] drew the hell out of. I agree with what you're saying, too. It's fun to see Frank go after villains outside of his weight class. How does he handle that? What sort of weapons does he bring to the table?

This series introduces some changes to Frank's gear and iconography. What was it like designing the Punisher's new look and symbol with your artists?

It was really easy. Jesus worked on a lot of that. It really grew out of what the story was, what we're doing with Frank. There was nothing arbitrary or random about it. It was very much what works for the story we're telling. As you start to see in Issue #1, this is a Frank who's still the Punisher. His mission and his war [are] still the same. He's just fighting it in a different way.

Again, by immersing him in the Marvel Universe, one of the first big toys we're playing with is the Hand. They're Marvel's preeminent assassins and ninjas. Frank is now a part of that group. He's all about using whatever weapon you need for the fight you're about to face, whether it's a knife, a gun, or a rocket launcher. In this case, for Frank, the Hand is another weapon to fight his war. It's also bigger than that as we start to get into his relationship with this high priestess of the Hand and her philosophy. We'll also see flashbacks throughout the series to different points in Frank's life. So, everything has led Frank to this moment. As a part of all of that he looks a bit different. He's walking the same path but in a slightly different way.

RELATED: America Chavez Creator Joe Casey Shares His Hopes for the Superhero's MCU Debut

Punisher 2 Interior Page 2

What's it like for Frank to be part of an organization again? He was a Marine, but since then he hasn't been much of a joiner.

I don't think Frank is a good joiner. [laughs] That's generally not one of his strengths. He's always worked best as a guy who walks alone because the road he walks is a really dark and rigorous one that not everybody can travel. So coming into this issue, that's a great question. Why would Frank ever hook up with the Hand? Why would the Hand ever want to hook up with Frank? You start to get some answers by the end of this first issue.

Let's talk about the big answer there, what looks to be the resurrection or return of Frank's late wife, Maria Castle. Readers haven't really gotten a chance to know Maria as a character because when we first met Frank, she had passed away. So what's your sense of Maria? What can you tell us about her role in this story?

That's a great question. Maria is kind of a blank slate even though she's a character who's been around almost as long as Frank has. She's been around as a story point. We knew she existed, but we don't really know anything about her. She's so rarely had a voice in any of his stories. She's always just this woman who died years ago, and that's part of what set Frank on his journey.

For the first time, she's very much a part of this in the present day. We will hear her thoughts and perspective on things. She's not back as a mindless zombie. This is a different kind of story that we're telling. As for what her story is? That's a big part of these 12 issues. I don't want to say in exactly what way, and there are more twists and surprises to come over the course of this. It's important to me, though, that she does have a voice in this story.

RELATED: Rick & Morty: Rick's New Hat Creative Team Knows Rick's No Hero

The Punisher is frequently written with an inner monologue, but I noticed we're not in Frank's head in Issue #1. Was that deliberate?

I love writing narration and monologues. I knew I'd want to write one for this situation in some sense, and I realized I didn't want to write it in Frank's head. I wrote it from the P.O.V. of the priestess, which gives us the perspective and philosophy of the Hand and why all this is happening -- sort of the world that Frank is now immersed in by working with them. I also liked the distance it gives us from the inside of Frank's head. So much of this story will be about peering into his head and watching moments and scenes with him that we've never seen before. To me, that works best with a little distance.

I've written Frank Castle first-person narration before. With this story, I wanted to step away and get someone else's perspective on Frank. Also, because so much of Frank Castle is that he's like a raging human storm that these other people revolve around, I think distance helps get that across while also giving you some insight into him.

RELATED: Shadow War: Joshua Williamson Maps Out a Family Feud in DC's Latest Crossover

Punisher 2 Interior Page 3

I also think a lack of internal monologue makes Frank scarier.

Yes! The Punisher is always scary. If I was going to make a list of Marvel characters I wanted to have a beer with, Frank Castle wouldn't make the cut. I think, in our story, we have a somewhat more human Frank Castle, but also a darker and scarier Frank than we've seen in a bit.

Your artists, Jesus Saiz and Paul Azaceta, have great styles that complement each other. It looks like in this issue and going forward one will bring to life present-day sequences and the other will tackle scenes set in the past. Is that correct?

Yes. Jesus is handling all the present-day stuff involving Frank with the Hand. Then Paul is doing all the flashbacks. We get a little taste of that in Issue #1. He flashes back to that fateful day in Central Park. Those flashbacks will change issue to issue. This first issue is 35 pages because I realized that [the] huge fight scene that I was writing in Frank's basement needed to be even longer. Going forward every issue will be at least 30 pages because there's so much meat on these bones story-wise. I also wanted room for both artists to do big, crazy visuals while also having room for quiet emotional moments.

So, it will change issue to issue. Sometimes the flashbacks will take up half the issue, maybe a little more. Sometimes it's less. The balance between the two artists changes [from] issue to issue, and I think they're both doing incredible work. Jesus is absolutely killing all the big, crazy Hand stuff and all the powerful, human Frank moments he gets to draw. Paul is not getting to draw any big, bombastic Punisher stuff right away because initially, we start with flashbacks to Frank as a kid. Paul is doing a gritty 1970s crime film set in New York, though. He's getting to draw some really powerful Frank stuff. Things in those flashbacks get weirder and weirder as the story moves forward. So I couldn't be happier with both our artists and how they work together.

RELATED: Joshua Williamson Sets DC's Robin & Deathstroke on a Bloody Collision Course

The sense I get from reading Issue #1 and what you've been telling me is that Punisher will be an action-packed, tragic, and often horrific book, but it will also have bits of creative fun like the Apostles of War.

The idea is it could be all of those things at once. The balance will be a little different [from] issue to issue. There are a couple [of] issues that are more wall-to-wall action and fighting, but still have room for those quiet moments. There are several moments in Issue #1 that I'm really happy with.

Like I said, the inspiration for this was wanting to do a story that summed up who Frank is, his journey, and the next step in his evolution. The other big part of it is to immerse him in the Marvel Universe. The Apostles of War are a big part of that. They're this new group of black-market weapons dealers who trade in outrageous Marvel Universe weapons -- things like a gamma-powered machine gun or a gravity gun that shoots cars. We're dealing with wholesale destruction on a massive, Marvel Universe level. You'll understand exactly what Frank is facing next issue where we reveal the identity of the leader of the Apostles of War.

Finally, this story is first and foremost a Punisher tale, but since it also involves the Hand that raises the question of do you have plans for characters with ties to both Frank and the Hand, like Daredevil or Elektra?

[laughs] That's a good question, Dave. I'm not sure I can answer it. I think it is safe to say, though, that Frank Castle working with the Hand would probably not escape notice forever within the Marvel Universe.

I'm really excited at how this story came together. This is an epic 12-part story of jumbo-sized issues with incredible art by both artists, and colors by the legendary Dave Stewart. It's a pretty primo package. I'm as proud of how this has come together as I am of anything I've done at Marvel.

Punisher #1 from Jason Aaron, Jesus Saiz, and Paul Azaceta is on sale now.

KEEP READING: Batman: Beyond the White Knight's Sean Murphy Previews the New DC Series