By Garth Ennis (writer) Dougie Braithwaite (pencils) Robin Riggs Sean Hardy Don Hudson Michael Halblieb Martin Griffith, John Livesay (inks) Bill Oakley (Letters) Shannon Blanchard Tom Smith (colors)

This is wonderful and ridiculous for the same reason: The Punisher kills every hero and villain in the Marvel Universe. Even as weird and unrealistic as all of this sounds, it remains a totally entertaining and satisfying read.

Punisher’s origin remains similar, with a minor change – it’s heroes who kill his family – not the mob. From there, he kills Cyclops and Jubilee only to be sprung from jail by a wealthy group of investors who were disfigured in similar hero battles. These guys want to finance The Punisher’s quest for revenge to reach their goal of a hero-less society. Since Frank Castle’s not a super powered being, Garth Ennis makes sure to note that he’s outsmarting these guys not outfighting them. Doom, Kingpin, and Wolverine all give Castle a beating before he’s able to sneak out a win. Throughout the book Daredevil tries to bring The Punisher back  to reality, before it’s too late. The flashback of young Frank saving Matt Murdock from getting beat up really adds to the poignancy of the book’s final moments.

Dougie Braithwaite’s art compliments Ennis’ writing very well. It’s a nice trip down memory lane to see the mid-1990s art again. I like the implication of Castle’s murders rather than showing brains everywhere. Nothing against brains, but sometimes the imagination is worse than anything you can be shown. It’s a technique used to great effect here. A number of the heroes have similar faces which gets distracting. Aside from a wrinkle or scar Castle, Wolverine, Cap and others look the same. That said, everything else shows a lot of good detail especially the interior backgrounds. My biggest complaint is on a few different pages. While killing, Castle sometimes gets this panicked, war-cry look on his face. It implies that he’s out of control, or uncomfortable with what he’s doing. It just seems out of place for the character.

Punisher Kills The Marvel Universe holds up pretty well. It’s so over the top it’s almost funny at times, but the core of the book is the story which remains satisfying. There are better stories out there, and it’s harder to fully appreciate since it’s just an alternate time line story, but it’s a complete story and one no true Punisher fan should miss. (Grade: B)

-Ben Berger

Are the internet gods trying to mess with me today? No, serious.  Scroll down for update.

WILMER, Texas – A registered sex offender running for mayor of his small town said he hopes voters can overlook his 2004 arrest in which he was caught in a police sting trying to arrange sex with a 15-year-old girl on the Internet.

Brian Sliter said late Friday he accepts responsibility for his arrest and has received counseling that has helped “turn my life around.”

“I don’t expect anybody in the public to condone what I did and I don’t expect anybody to forgive what I did,” said Sliter, 42. “What I do hope is people look at my current character … . People can rehabilitate and make themselves a better person.”

Sliter was arrested after arranging a meeting with whom he thought was a teenager, according to state records. He was charged with attempting to commit sexual assault of a child and placed on 10 years probation, records show.

Sliter is eligible to run for office in Wilmer, a town of about 3,400 just south of Dallas, because he was never convicted. He received deferred adjudication, which means he will not be convicted if he successfully completes probation.

“Someone told me, ‘Make something positive come from this,’” Sliter said. “I feel really bad about it, really embarrassed about it, really awful about it. I am really glad there is no direct victim. I thank God for that every day.”

Sliter, an accountant, has been open about his arrest, even mentioning it in a campaign flyer.

I would love to see what this flier looks like. “Vote for Brian Sliter, Sex Offender!”

His opponent, incumbent Mayor Don Hudson, has said having a registered sex offender as mayor would embarrass the city.

The election is scheduled for May 10. [source]

How is this guy eligible to run for anything? Sure, he was caught in a sting and not with an actual girl. But that’s what he was caught doing. Who knows if whether or not he has actually done something, before that. I do not think he just got on the computer one day and said, “Gee, I think I will see if I can find an underage girl.” There was something that motivated him to look for an underage girl. If he hadn’t been caught in the sting, he would have found an actual girl. If he hadn’t been caught, he would have continued doing this. This isn’t about whether or not he was convicted. It’s about what’s in his mind. Look, mayors go to parades and other town events where children will be. I hope no one is stupid to vote for him.

After I posted this I found this article about a mayor, in Collins, Missouri who is also a pastor was charged with soliciting underage sex online.  This article doesn’t say if he has any past charges or not.  Just because someone is charged or arrested one time doesn’t always mean it is their first time.  Read the article here.