The Punisher He never liked companions and always wanted his family back. A writer decided to combine these two facts, bringing back Frank Castle’s son in the darkest way possible. While The Punisher is usually a solo act, this wild storyline finds Frank Castle massacring alien criminals in space alongside his robotic son.
One of the most bizarre scenarios Frank Castle has ever found himself in takes place in the pages of Space: Punisher by Frank Tieri and Mark Texeira. In this miniseries, Frank gives a cosmic speech against space criminals, and he is accompanied by his faithful companion Chip. Together, Chip and the Punisher slaughter their way through space, fighting the Brood and other versions of iconic villains such as Red Skull, Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus.
The pair get some brutal kills together, which is made all the more alarming by how Chip is clearly based on a child – but not just any child. It is revealed that Chip’s name comes from the term “chip off the old block” and he was specifically made to look like Frank Castle’s dead son..
The Punisher’s Dark Sidekick “Chip” Has His Dead Son’s Face
Space: Punisher by Frank Tieri, Mark Texeira and Clayton Cowles
Each character has an origin story, and the moment that created the Punisher was the brutal death of his family. On a random day at the park, during a family picnic, a gang war breaks out and the Castle family is caught in a hail of gunfire. While Frank Castle survived, the rest of his family died: His wife, daughter and son are gone, brutally. It makes sense that Frank would want to murder every criminal he could find after this experience, but the fact that he has a robotic version of his son join him in his rampage against crime is a direction no one expected.
It’s a bizarre and twisted way to bring back Frank Castle’s family, and even more worrying is the fact that it apparently worked, at least for a while.
Eventually, it is revealed that Chip looking like Frank Castle’s son is no coincidence. In an attempt to pacify and control Frank Castle, the Watchers decided to give Frank Castle a life with his family and a robotic son, resulting in a universe where Frank goes on over-the-top missions in outer space to kill evil criminals, all accompanied by his robotic son who helps him in his mission. It’s a bizarre and twisted way to bring back Frank Castle’s familyand even more worrying is that it apparently worked, at least for a while.
The Punisher was (almost) pacified by his family’s return before
Other forces have tried the same idea in the past
On the run of Jason Aaron The PunisherFrank Castle became the leader of the Hand. This leadership was gained the Hand reviving Frank Castle’s wife, Maria and erasing the memory of his death and the death of his children. Reunited with his wife, Frank was more than happy to use the Hand’s enormous resources to slaughter every criminal he encountered. Even after falling out with the Hand, his desire to keep his wife alive still kept him working with the organization. The Hood also resurrected the Punisher’s old partner known as Microchip, all in an attempt to take down the Punisher.
The Punisher lost everything. With the death of his family, there was literally nothing left for him to live on. Instead, he dedicated his entire life to hunting down criminals and eradicating them. It seems natural that the only way to balance coming close to controlling the Punisher would be giving him something to lose. The Watchers tried to pacify Frank by giving him back his son and his family, and the Hand did the same thing, as they managed to control Frank – at least for a while – by bringing his wife back to life.
Giving the Punisher something to care for is the only way to control him
Frank Castle has a soft spot for his dead family
It is extremely difficult to negotiate or reason with the Punisher. If someone is a criminal, the Punisher will kill them, even if it is not in their best interest. The only way to control or pacify Frank Castle seems to be to give him his family back. By giving him something to lose, Frank will do everything he can to keep him again. The Hand is a brutal death cult responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of people. Yet the Punisher he was still willing to work with them, as they finally gave him something to truly live for.
Space: Punisher is now available from Marvel Comics!