Why The Punisher Is Hunting Baron Zemo So Unrelentingly

The Punisher's war on organized crime meant that for years the heroes and villains the vigilante crossed paths were the one that operated at street level. Recently, though, two things happened that has forced every hero and villain in the Marvel Universe to pay attention to Frank Castle.

The first thing was him becoming a prominent enforcer in the Hydra faction led by Steve Rogers' evil doppelganger, who took over the USA in last year's Secret Empire event. The second came in the previous volume of The Punisher where he acquired the War Machine armor and used it to overthrow a violent nuclear armed Eastern European regime. He then set his sights on the remnants of Hydra to atone for his actions as a member of the group.

The latter event lead to Frank attracting the attention of some very angry Marvel heroes, who forced him to relinquish the armor. But being War Machine, however briefly, gave him a taste of what it's like to wage war against some of Marvel's most dangerous terrorists and villains. Now, in this week's Punisher #1, writer Matthew Rosenberg and artist Szymon Kudranski kick of the new volume with their title character hunting higher profile targets, like the Hydra leader Baron Zemo.

CBR: Some of my favorite runs on the Punisher, like the Greg Rucka and Rick Remender ones, have focused on the character's resourcefulness and how, with the right tools, he's as dangerous as someone like, say, Batman, if not more lethal. You clearly showed that in your work on the previous volume of the series. Can you talk about just how resourceful you think Frank is? In your mind is he one of the Marvel Universe's most brilliant tacticians?

Matthew Rosenberg: Well I don't know who "Batman" is, but yeah. Unlike most of the characters we follow in the Marvel Universe, the Punisher doesn't have superpowers or crazy tech to fall back on. He has his wits and his determination. And I think that's why so many of us find him so fascinating. He is a real powerful force in the universe through his sheer force of will. He's definitely one of the best tactical minds, and that is something we're going to explore in a big way in our upcoming run. But it gets even more complicated because he'll do a lot of things the other heroes won't. So he is effective and respected, but also a real source of frustration for everyone. All that potential, all that skill, it's not the kind of thing the heroes (or the villains) want to just let loose. And trying to figure out how to hone him, how to use him, or how to stop him, will be a constant storyline. Frank is a hurricane and everyone is going to have to deal with him one way or another.

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One of the things that drove Frank in the final issues of the previous volume was atoning for his role in Hydra during Secret Empire. The Punisher was almost a superhumanly focused character before that. So what's it like as a writer for him to have that weighing on his conscience?

Well, it's complicated. I don't think his conscience is what it's about. Well, not exactly. Frank Castle isn't a man who processes his own guilt beyond the death of his family. In some ways the day they died stopped his emotional life. So I don't think he feels guilt for his role in following the orders of Supreme Leader Rogers. But he he does see that a mistake was made, he worked with people who he believed were something they were not. So he wants to set that right. But again, it's not out of a sense of guilt. It's a sense of right and wrong. He wants to punish those who who did him wrong. Deep down, there is the old Frank Castle in there somewhere maybe. The father, the husband, the war hero, but that part of his brain hasn't been steering the ship for a long time. So the balance of telling a story about The Punisher making right for past mistakes but not making it about his own guilt, it's tricky. But that's also the fun of it. He's fascinating in his simplicity.

EXCLUSIVE: Art from The Punisher #2 by Szymon Kudranski

In the final issues of your run Frank chose to focus his crusade against Hydra on its surviving leaders, Baron Zemo and Steve Rogers' evil doppelganger. You clearly enjoyed bouncing Zemo off of Frank and he escaped custody in the final issue. So will Zemo continue to play a role in this new volume of Punisher? And if so, which elements of the character do you feel make him such a fun antagonist for Frank?

The Punisher #1 is bringing back Zemo for sure. He's such a fun foil because they have so many similarities that it emphasizes they places they differ. Both men are so sure of their mission despite so much opposition. They are both ruthless and driven, thinking they are making the world a better place. But while Zemo likes to have others do his bidding, Frank is a one man army. And while Frank always keeps his cool, Zemo can really lose it. And that is some of the most fun moments, watching Frank slowly chip away at Zemo's facade. But it isn't just Hydra. Zemo is getting desperate and he's calling on all the darkest corners of the Marvel Universe to step in and finally deal with "the Punisher problem." Zemo's got the reach, the influence, the motivation, and the near limitless resources. But The Punisher is The Punisher, so Zemo should be nervous.

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The Punisher is not without allies in his war against Hydra. The final pages of the last volume saw the Winter Soldier and Black Widow breaking him out of federal custody. Will we see them again in this new volume? What can you tell us about the supporting cast of this series?

I can't say too much, but we are definitely following the story that came before. So we are going to have a Punisher story with its feet firmly planted in the Marvel Universe and that means that just about anyone might pop up.

In terms of tone I'd describe your last run as a political and military thriller set against the fantastic backdrop of the Marvel Universe, and the solicits of issue #1 describe Frank as having acquired the taste for big game. So that leads me to believe this new volume will have a similar feel, correct? What's it like writing Frank as a player on an almost global stage? Seems to me that would afford you some fascinating new ways and perspectives to explore the character.

In the War Machine story, Frank went to war with an army, killed a world leader and overthrew a government, then fought the Avengers to a standstill. That kind of power and influence isn't something he's just willing to walk away from. So we are definitely going for a similar feel with the political intrigue and military thriller angle, but it's much more grounded. If anything, we took the tone and scope of the War Machine run but brought it back down to the street level. This is Frank Castle hunting on the streets again. I love classic Punisher stories, the man lurking in the shadows of New York City, but instead of the drug dealers, gangsters, and gang members, he's hunting the people who run the underbelly of the Marvel universe. So it's a mix of the classic and the new.

Helping you chronicle this new stage of Frank's war on terror and crime is artist Szymon Kudranski who is no stranger to the character having drawn him in the digital first series Daredevil/Punisher: Seventh Circle. The preview art I've seen for issue #1 suggests that both you and he are having a blast. What's it like working with Szymon on this book?

Szymon is amazing. He has such a cinematic sense of storytelling. He makes every page its own story in the best possible way. And the level of detail increases everything to a staggering degree. The action, the violence, the whole world feels so real and lived in. And when Frank emerges it's truly terrifying in the best possible way. Again, going for this balance of epic and grounded puts us in this really unique spot. It has to feel fantastical and totally believable and Szymon just nails that. I make no promises for myself, but I would not be surprised if Szymon becomes a Punisher artist whose name is mentioned in the same sentences as folks like Mike Zeck, Jim Lee, Steve Dillon, or Klaus Janson. He's going to be a lot of people's favorite.

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Szymon will also get a chance to draw Daredevil again because the Man Without Fear shows up in October's Punisher #3. Matt Murdock and Frank have a long tumultuous history together. So what's your sense of their dynamic? What's it like bouncing them off of each other?

Yeah, Daredevil is going to swing by for a bit. I don't want to say he tolerated Frank, but for a long time I think Daredevil just felt like he had bigger problems. But the Punisher has made himself a man who can't be ignored. He's more dangerous than ever and he's back on the streets of New York, and Daredevil can't have that. He's done looking the other way or pulling his punches. They are going to face each other whether Frank wants to or not.

Finally, can you leave us with some further hints and teases about the action and fantastic elements we'll see in the initial issues of this new volume of Punisher? Are Zemo and Hydra the only villains that appear? Or will other significant and nefarious Marvel figures be drawn into Frank's web as well?

I wasn't going to talk about it but everyone will know soon enough. We're adding another wildcard to the fight- The Mandarin! It's not just Hydra this time. I'm really excited to bring The Mandarin into this. He is such a fascinating character. I feel like he's often portrayed as a little absurd or fantastical, but at his core he's a pretty terrifying character. He's a ruthless man with a ton of power and influence. Our goal in issue one is to show that he's someone even Zemo is a little nervous around. I think folks are going to be real shocked when they see where we take his fight with Frank.

I really hope folks give the book a chance. We're trying some big things that will have big ramifications in the Marvel Universe, but at the heart we are trying to make Punisher stories worthy of the legacy of Conway, Ennis, Dillon, Lee, Grant, Rucka, Zeck, and all the other legends who have touched the character. It's going to be violent and crazy, fierce and fearless.