ToyBiz’s Series 4 Punisher is still one of the best Punishers made. Everything about this figure is just about perfect and it will be a hard figure to follow up. Certainly ToyBiz has tried to improve their Punisher; in the Face Off 2-packs they released a classic look with a really small head, and Hasbro has yet to achieve a Punisher that stands up to this figure. This is just a great modern Punisher.
Punisher is one of those great Marvel characters. His first appearance in Spider-Man cemented his place in the “urban legends” corner of the Marvel Comic Universe. His appearance in Daredevil was fantastic as well, and in the ’80s he finally got his crack at a stand-alone comic (well, a mini-series). Mike Zeck and Steven Grant put together an amazing 4-issue mini-series that catapulted the character into stardom. Shortly after, the character got his own title, and, well, a few more titles in the ’90s followed. Grant and Zeck were able to tap into the dark vigilante theme of the mid to late ’80s that was popular in comics, giving Marvel a relatively untapped character with a cool look that could wreak havoc in the Marvel Universe. In the early 2000s, Punisher saw a revival in the Garth Ennis Steve Dillon MAX series, and he’s been trucking pretty steadily since then. The recent Punisher series started in 2014 and is a good read. His appearance in the Red Hulk-led Thunderbolts was fun, especially his relationship with Elektra.
The action figure channels that John Romita Jr. look from Punisher War Journal. It’s a great sculpt and one of the few that really does look like a comic character jumping from 2D to 3D. The figure is sculpted with army pants, heavy boots, and a tight shirt. The build on the figure is average, nothing special or complicated in it. The chest skull is etched, and, as was the case with Spider-Man, there seems to be some collectors who like the etching and others who don’t. In this case it seems to work and doesn’t feel overly forced. There’s a ton of wrinkles in the clothes that really make the figure pop. It’s that attention to detail that makes this figure stand out.
The figure sports most of the standard Marvel Legends articulation. The figure sports hip hinges instead of ball hips, and there is no ab joint. It’s too bad that there isn’t an ab joint of some kind, but it’s understandable as it would be a challenge to put an ab joint and not break up the sculpt of the raised teeth on the skull. The hip hinges work very well and integrate well with the sculpt, and they have a full range of motion. Here’s the breakdown:
Hinged Toes
Rocker ankles
Hinged ankles
Swivel calves
Double hinged knees
Thigh swivels
Hinged thighs
Swivel Hips
Swivel waist
Rocker shoulders
Ball shoulders
Swivel biceps
Double hinged elbows
Swivel forearms
Hinged wrists
Hinged fingers
Swivel neck
Hinged neck
The included base is an excellent piece. It’s wall mountable and is another great diorama piece. Tons of guns on the ground, empty casings, grit and broken railing — just like you expect to see in New York City on every street corner. Punisher does come with two guns: a rifle and a handgun. Both of them fit well in Frank’s hands and are pretty decent pieces.
This is another great figure for the Marvel Legends collection and it still holds up. I’ve lost mine, and after writing this review I realized that I need to buy another one, unless Hasbro plans on making a decent update this year.
I’d like to make a quick shout out to Benty for taking pics of his Punisher and letting me slap some words on them. He’s helped me finish Series 4 and put another ToyBiz series to bed.
You can still pick up Punisher at:
