The following contains spoilers for The Punisher #10, now on sale from Marvel Comics.
The Punisher has one of the largest body counts of any character in the Marvel Universe. With years of experience under his belt even before he became a vigilante, the Punisher’s total kills have found new heights recently as Frank Castle embraces his place within the Hand. As a result, the rest of the hero community is now forced to deal with it. But even after getting a demonic power boost, there are still some people the Punisher won’t kill.
As revealed in The Punisher #10 (by Jason Aaron, Jesus Saiz, Paul Azaceta, Matt Hollingsworth, and VC’s Cory Petit), a demonically-enhanced Punisher has enough morality to spare a gun-toting child. Given his recent actions, it’s a major surprise and hints that his transformation into the avatar of the Beast isn’t yet complete — and that there are still some moral lines Frank Castle refuses to cross.
Marvel’s Punisher is Not Completely Heartless
The Punisher has gone through a lot of changes recently, all thanks to the powers he was granted by his association with the Hand and their demonic lord, the Beast. Since accepting his apparent role as their chosen one, he has gained horrifying new abilities, become functionally invincible, and rallied the Hand to follow his command. Along with the freedom to carry out his murderous impulses, he even defeated Ares. The Punisher is essentially unstoppable by all conventional means — which the criminals and killers of the world discover the hard way when Castle embarks on a global purge.
This rampage eventually takes the Punisher to Kansas, at the heart of a White Supremacist encampment that had yet to reveal itself to the world. Using the Eyes of the Beast to see the dark intentions of his victims, he slays almost every person in the building. The High Priestess of the Hand implied that killing people for the crimes they hadn’t committed, would complete his transformation. But through the carnage, Castle finds himself face-to-face with a terrified young boy. Gun in hand and tears on his face, it’s clear the child was being indoctrinated by the White Supremacists. His hatred is just a thought, not a belief — and upon hearing this, Castle decides to spare his life. This proves that the Punisher still has a little humanity within him.
The Hand Does Not Fully Control the Punisher
Given the Punisher’s lack of limits, anyone escaping him is worth mentioning. Even his soldiers seem surprised by the fleeing boy. But on a lot of levels, this makes sense. A major aspect of the Punisher’s mission has always been to carry out brutal acts for a just cause, giving a purpose to his murderous impulses. Everyone he’s killed has been a killer. He still seems to recognize innocence – his battle with Daredevil being a prime example, as he was spared the assault the Punisher levied against Ares. The genuine lack of hate in the child gives Punisher a reason to spare him, staying true to his moral code over his new status as the King of Killers.
Perhaps more notably though, the Punisher’s decision to spare a child speaks to his current emotional state. The Hand enticed Frank to their side with promises of resurrecting his long-dead wife, Maria, and their children, Frank. Jr and Lisa. But while Maria was restored, the children were far harder to properly resurrect. Raising his blade to strike down yet another foe, the Punisher’s expression upon seeing a child was one of the only times he’s appeared horrified by his actions. It was the deaths of two children that spurred Castle to become the Punisher in the first place, and it seems that he can’t take the life of a child even in his current demonically-empowered state. If anything, this revelation hints that the Punisher, even at his worst, has moral lines he won’t cross, suggesting that the man Castle was, still remains within him, despite the influence of the Beast.
