In recent news, Marvel Comics is revamping the Punisher and they picked the best writer to make it work. For this new era of comics, Marvel has chosen writer Jason Aaron, best known for his work on Avengers, Thor, and Wolverine. The revamp will see its first issue release of March of this year.
Frank Castle’s origin has shifted over the years as time necessitates it to be updated. Early versions of the character had him as a Vietnam War veteran, but as time moves further away from that conflict, Frank's history has changed to being a Gulf War veteran and even a veteran of the war in Afghanistan instead. Regardless of that fact, the overall essence of the character has remained the same. Frank's family was killed as the results of a mob violence and he became the Punisher, a murderous vigilante hellbent on removing criminals from the Earth.
One such reimagining of Frank’s origins is Jason Aaron’s 2014 series, PunisherMAX, which was illustrated by Steve Dillon. This out-of-continuity series retold the early days of Frank's journey as he took on the Kingpin and Bullseye for the first time. The story is also considered a “complete” tale of Frank’s time as the Punisher from beginning to end. This series is poignant, compelling, and one of the best versions of the Punisher in recent memory. So as the Punisher is reinvented for a new era, Jason Aaron is the perfect choice to execute that task.
Another writer that has become synonymous with the Punisher is the hard-boiled Garth Ennis. While Garth Ennis has his own landmark run on a totally separate Punisher MAX series (that ran a considerably longer time than Aaron’s), the tone of that book excels at being violent and over the top. Ennis has even mastered this style with his acclaimed Vertigo series, Preacher, which was also illustrated by Dillon. Not that a new Punisher book needs to be toned down, but perhaps Ennis's grittiness is not the right fit for this moment.
Many have discussed retiring the Punisher entirely in the wake of his logo being used as a symbol for many far-right militia groups. Some also argue that the Punisher’s murderous style is out of date and in poor taste. It's been speculated that the Punisher even has a new logo in this series to separate the character from the controversy. Regardless if that's true or not, Jason Aaron's past history with the character has at least earned him the right to give it a shot.