List of The Punisher characters

This article is about characters in the comic book series The Punisher.

Allies

Andy Lorimer

A Lance Corporal in the British Army who tags along with Yorkie Mitchell to New York City to track down a group of former IRA members responsible for detonating a bomb in a Manhattan restaurant. They link up with Castle and agree to fight alongside him against the Irish-American gangs of New York. Yorkie brought him along as a favor because one of the IRA members, Peter Cooley, killed Lorimer's father during the closing days of the Troubles. Lorimer's father saved Yorkie's life in the past, and so he sees it as a way of repaying his fallen friend by allowing his son a chance to avenge his death. While a perfectly competent soldier, Lorimer begins to have doubts on the validity of their mission given how much killing is involved. Once their mission is complete and all of the IRA members and their associates have been killed, Lorimer is given the opportunity to execute Cooley. He does so, but upon returning to Yorkie, he tells him that his death didn't bring him any sense of closure or satisfaction. The two return home to England.

George Howe

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #55.

An Afro-American, George Howe served as a young man in the Vietnam war. In the summer of 1969, his Helicopter crashed near the border with Laos, the Viet Cong soon arrived to take the survivors to their own base, where one by one they were killed, their hands and feet chopped off and tossed into Howe's bamboo cage. When it seemed that his time had come, a Marine Force Recon group led by Captain Castle attacked the ville and rescued Howe. Admiring the special forces personnel for their proficiency, Howe joined the Green Berets for the remainder of the war and was among the first to join Delta Force. Howe is then tasked by a cabal of military generals to arrest Castle, but then learns of the actual truth behind Castle's covert operation in Russia. Howe gives Castle the means of killing the generals by giving him a loaded handgun, and destroys the incriminating evidence out of the belief that if exposed, the U.S. military would lose all sense of credibility.

Henry Russo

Henry Russo first appeared in The Punisher vol. 7 #1 (March 2009), and has gone on to become a recurring character in that series, as well as appearing alongside the Punisher in other series, such as Anti-Venom and Deadpool: Suicide Kings. Russo is the child of Jigsaw, and as a child, Russo's father would neglect and abuse him. In a pivotal incident, Jigsaw beat Russo for letting a cat inside their house. He then pulled a gun on Russo's mother and told him that if he did not drown the cat he (Jigsaw) would shoot her. Russo did, and was left traumatised by this incident. Russo possesses no superhuman powers or abilities, although he is extremely skilled at using and hacking computers.

Jen Cooke

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 5) #24.

A liberal activist and social worker. She was kidnapped by a cult of tunnel dwelling homeless cannibals and was rescued by Castle, but condemned his brutal methods, pointing out that the men who kidnapped her were homeless, desperate and some with severe mental problems. While he initially shrugged off her tirade, she got to him and he gave the cultists a chance to escape while he went after their leader. Years later, she was investigating the East European sex slavery trade, and begrudgingly helped Castle go after a Romanian gang that was running a series of brothels.

Jenny Cesare

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #43.

After being sold to a mafia hitman and escaping her execution, Jenny returned to aid Castle in his war against her inlaws. She tends to him after he is wounded, but commits suicide after killing the last members of her family.

Joan

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 4) #1.

A tenant in the apartment building where Castle lived for a time under the name of John Smith. An extremely shy, frightened and timid character, Joan was terrified of living in the city and wished to move to the countryside, but did not have the money to do so. She had a bit of a crush on Castle, baking him pies and cookies and claiming she'd merely made too many. Along with her friends, Bumpo and Spacker Dave, she receives a portion of Gnucci's money which she used to buy a cottage in the countryside as she wanted. Years later, Castle was wounded in a fight with the Russian mob and stumbled upon her abode. She tended to him, and, despite his request that she run for her life and leave him to fend for himself, insisted on helping him instead.

She was portrayed in 2004's The Punisher by Rebecca Romijn.

Kathryn O'Brien

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #1.

O'Brien first appeared as a CIA agent and part of a task force to apprehend him and recruit him into the hunt for Osama bin Laden, when she expressed sexual attraction to Castle and a desire to sleep with him. The mission ultimately failed, and O'Brien's superior had her sent to prison. Once there, she was routinely harassed by a gang of in-mates, who were never able to beat her in a fight, so they framed her for the murder of a guard instead. O'Brien fled the prison and went to a fellow former CIA Agent for help, once there she learned of the events surrounding Nicky Cavella's desecration of the Castle family graves, and that Bill Rawlins, her ex-husband was in town. Deciding to kill her husband before she could make good her escape, she caught him as he was about to shoot Castle with a sniper rifle, as he and Cavella were in league. O'Brien assists Castle interrogating her ex-husband's role for the covert operation in Russia. She then disappears to Afghanistan to kill ex-Taliban officers under American and British protection for having a role in raping her. O'Brien is killed when stepping on a land mine, being cared for by Castle during her last moments of her life. Prior to her disappearance, O'Brien gave birth to a daughter named Sarah, who is in protective custody of her sister.

She revealed to Castle that the CIA recruited her in her senior year at Princeton University.

Martin Soap

Main article: Martin Soap

Mickey Fondozzi

Main article: Mickey Fondozzi

Molly Von Richtofen

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 4) #4.

NYPD Lieutenant Molly Von Richtofen is a talented investigator who, as punishment for refusing to sleep with the NYPD Commissioner, was assigned to take down the Gnucci crime family, which was as much a farce as Detective Martin Soap's Punisher Task Force. It was her idea to team up with Soap, knowing that either Ma Gnucci or the Punisher would kill the other, and then they could move in and arrest whoever was left. During their investigation, Soap fell in love with Molly, who rebuffed Soap, since Molly is a lesbian. When Soap later became Commissioner, Molly left on a vacation in the tropics with a stripper and was preparing for her mayoral campaign.

A few years later, Von Richtofen returned to New York and rejoined the NYPD. However, she was still disfavored by her male superiors & was assigned to the Punisher Task Force, since Molly previously served in that job. Ironically, Molly was later forced to fight alongside Castle against Elite's henchmen; during the ensuing battle, Molly's clothes caught fire and she was forced to strip to her underwear. Unfortunately for Molly, the gunfight was recorded by the local news media and she was publicly exposed as a Punisher sympathizer. Molly was subsequently suspended, pending a formal investigation.

Staci Strobl and Nickie D. Phillips examined the character in their book Comic Book Crime: Truth, Justice, and the American Way, noting her "lesbian as psychopath" motif Punisher War Zone Vol. 2, and writing, "Molly's violence may be interpreted as rage against the patriarchal constraints under which she operates both at work and at home, and is always infused, at least implicitly, with her sexuality. While Molly is certainly a competent law enforcement officer, her honor and integrity are belied by her abuse of power. Violence is used as one means of negotiating her sexual orientation, which is never far removed from her objectification as a female. In her confrontation with the Mafia, she partners with Punisher and in the process undergoes numerous humiliations culminating in a "bra and panty" showdown captured by the media. There is space for the lesbian crime fighter, but only firmly in its place within masculine hegemony. As The New York Globe headlines reported the showdown, "Lethal Weapons! Sexy Lesbian Lieutenant in Punisher Team-Up Carnage!"

Nathaniel Bumpo

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 4) #1.

A tenant in the apartment building where Castle lived for a time under the name of John Smith. Grossly overweight and requiring Castle's help to get through the door of his apartment, Mr. Bumpo once suffered a heart attack and the paramedics had to destroy part of the building's wall and use a crane to take him to the hospital. Shortly after he was released, the Russian attacked Castle at his home. After a vicious fight, Castle used Bumpo to smother him, doing so for thirty minutes. Castle later left him a share of Gnucci's money, and was said by Joan to be living in a clinic in Albany after "something important fell out of his bottom."

He was portrayed in 2004's The Punisher by John Pinette.

Rachel Cole-Alves

Main article: Rachel Cole-Alves

Shotgun

Main article: Shotgun (comics)

Spacker Dave

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 4) #1.

A young tenant in the apartment building where Castle lived for a time under the alias of John Smith. Heavily pierced. He did little but hang about on the building's doorstep, but recognized "Smith" as the Punisher, something which he inadvertently divulged to mobsters who came looking for him. Despite being tortured by having his piercings pulled out and carving his name into his forehead, he did not betray Castle. He received a portion of Ma Gnucci's money after leaving the hospital, and later inspired an underground movement called the "Spackers" who had bandaged faces similar to his. He reappeared years later, now no longer wearing any piercings or bandages, and had taken up the hobby of superhero spotting, much to Castle's chagrin. Dave was ecstatic when he met Daredevil, Spider-Man and Wolverine in the flesh. He was trampled by the Hulk, rendering him quadriplegic, which does not hamper his fascination with superheroes.

He was portrayed in 2004's The Punisher by Ben Foster.

Steve Goodwin

First appeared in The Punisher: Born #1.

A young Marine serving under then-Captain Frank Castle at Firebase Valley Forge near the Cambodian border toward the end of Castle's third tour in Vietnam. He was one of the better natured Marines at the base, keeping away from drugs and taking the time to ease the springs in the magazines of his rifle. His tour of Vietnam was coming to an end, and he clung to Castle in a desperate attempt to stay alive, believing that Castle's prowess as a combatant would guarantee his safety. The events of The Punisher: Born are told largely from his perspective and narrated by him. On the night he was thirty-seven days from being discharged, the garrison was attacked by combined forces of NVA and Viet Cong. Of the Marines, Castle and Goodwin held out the longest, and Goodwin got to see air support arrive, only to be bayoneted seconds later. In his dying moments, he hallucinates of the bayonet missing him, being whisked away onto a passenger jet where he is tended to by attractive stewardesses as he previously wished.

Nearly forty years later, his younger brother, Michael Goodwin, writes a book titled Valley Forge, Valley Forge: The Slaughter of a U.S. Marine Garrison and the Birth of the Punisher about the events surrounding those final hours.

Yorkie Mitchell

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 5) #18.

An operative of MI6 and SAS. Yorkie met Castle in Vietnam when they were both taking part in a cross-training exercise with the Australian SAS. On one occasion, Yorkie saved Castle from being burned alive by the Viet Cong. He once helped Castle by supplying information about a heroin shipment that had made its way into Ireland, and later teamed up with him to take down Finn Cooley, a former IRA terrorist and current Irish gangster. He then was assigned to Afghanistan, where he provided security to ex-Taliban who had turned into informants for the coalition. As a favor to Castle, he was able to secure the release of Kathryn O'Brien after he was supposed to execute her, an act that cost him his job. He did not mind it, however, expressing that he wanted to retire anyway. He and his wife were later murdered by Barracuda, who was looking for leverage against Castle.

Enemies

Barracuda

Main article: Barracuda (comics)

Cristu Bulat

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #25.

A Romanian criminal specializing in brothels where East European abductees are forced into prostitution. Son of notorious Yugoslav Wars freedom fighter & crime boss Tiberiu Bulat. He was eviscerated alive by Castle for information.

He was portrayed in 2008's Punisher: War Zone by David Vadim.

Elite

The original Elite first appeared in The Punisher (vol. 4) #5. His son, the second Elite, first appeared in Punisher: War Zone #1 (2009).

The first Elite was a fascist and racist vigilante who killed gang members, drug dealers and other criminals who "lower the tone" in his upper-class neighborhood. He even shot a lady's dog that urinated on the sidewalk and ran off a hot dog vendor who had set up shop in Elite's neighborhood by tossing a live grenade in the vendor's cart. Nevertheless, Elite was well-spoken: he was actually polite to his victims. Elite was the manager of an art gallery and had a wife, a son and a daughter. Elite later joined up with Mr. Payback and the Holy to form the Vigilante Squad, planning to exterminate all of New York City's criminals.

When the Punisher confronted the Vigilante Squad, he called Elite "a Nazi". Elite was gunned down by the Punisher seconds later.

Six years later, Elite's son took up his father's alter ego and vowed to avenge his father's death. Elite set up an elaborate scheme that at first, made Castle believe his old nemesis, Ma Gnucci, was still alive, but in the end, Castle eliminated Elite and all of his henchmen.

Finn Cooley

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #7.

A hideously disfigured Irish criminal, an Irish Mob boss and a bombs expert, formerly heavily involved with the Irish Republican Army. Cooley must wear a facial mask as half his face was blown off in an explosives accident. He is also an expert in hand-to-hand combat. Cooley was ironically killed by a bomb left behind by Pops Nesbitt, who thought Cooley and his rivals were unworthy of inheriting his fortune.

Finn Cooley appears as a playable character in Playstation Network's Punisher: No Mercy.

Hitman

Main article: Hitman (Marvel Comics)

Holy

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 4) #2.

Father Hector Redondo, who called himself "The Holy", was an insane Catholic priest in Spanish Harlem who used an ax to kill criminals who confessed their sins to him. He believed killing "evil" people is God's will, and was later inspired by the Punisher to form the Vigilante Squad, consisting of the Holy, Elite and Mr. Payback (the trio hoped that the Punisher would join and lead them). The media called him the unknown "Ax Murderer of Spanish Harlem". Father Redondo realized that he was a killer and showed remorse after killing his victims, praying for absolution and forgiveness for his sins.

The Punisher used Detective Soap's notes to find Father Redondo, whose church was the place where all of the victims came to confess their sins. Not only did Castle find The Holy, but also Elite and Mr. Payback. By listening to their conversation, the Punisher found out Redondo was indeed the Axe Murderer. The Punisher barged into The Holy's office to confront the Vigilante Squad, who attempted to recruit the Punisher as their leader, but Castle was unmoved by their pleas, accusing Redondo of being "a lunatic". Just after Redondo made the trio's final plea with the Punisher to reconsider, Castle gunned down all three members of the Vigilante Squad.

Ink

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #2.

Ink was one of Nicky Cavella's bodyguards/enforcers, and was always paired with Pittsy. Ink received his nickname when he killed his first man by stabbing a pen through the man's eye and into his brain. Ink was slightly cross-eyed and always wore glasses. Like his partner Pittsy, Ink was just as callous and ruthless; however, Ink rarely spoke, but when he did, Cavella referred to Ink as a real "ballbuster". Ink was a skilled cook: he murdered, then butchered and cooked up the son of mob boss David Kai, who enjoyed his "sweet & sour pork" until Cavella told him what it really was. Ink's favorite word was "Huh", which he used whenever he agreed with something; it was also his last word when he was killed during a battle between Cavella's mobsters & CIA agents who were negotiating with Frank Castle; Cavella & Pittsy barely escaped with their lives, but were forced to leave Ink's body behind.

In 2008's Punisher: War Zone, Ink was portrayed by Keram Malicki-Sánchez. He was the son of Pittsy, and served alongside his father as an enforcer working for Jigsaw. This version of Ink was a young man who regularly snorted cocaine.

Jigsaw

Main article: Jigsaw (Marvel Comics)

Maginty

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #8.

An Afro-Irish crime lord in Hell's Kitchen, he was one of the four gang lords who would receive a share of Pops Nesbitt's fortune, which turned out to be a bomb, killing Maginty and the other gang leaders.

He was portrayed in 2008's Punisher: War Zone by T.J. Storm.

Ma Gnucci

Main article: Ma Gnucci

Mr. Payback

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 4) #5.

A vigilante who despised corporations and the corrupt, especially those who disregard the safety and well-being of the working-class. He gunned down the entire Board of Directors of the World-Wide Investment Corporation and a wealthy banker who criticized Payback during a live TV news interview. Payback was highly intelligent: he made several highly articulate speeches about the exploitation of corporate laborers; shortly thereafter, Payback deduced the location of Elite's neighborhood and found Elite gunning down a marijuana dealer. Payback convinced Elite to join him, and the duo stumbled across The Holy, forming the Vigilante Squad.

Just as the Vigilante Squad decided that they needed the Punisher to lead them, the topic of discussion himself stormed into the room. An awed Mr. Payback told the Punisher that he was their inspiration. After insulting The Holy and Elite, the Punisher informed Payback that he had killed six innocent people during his quest for justice, to which Payback responded that there have to be sacrifices in war. After Payback gave the wrong answer, the Punisher pulled out his trademark Uzi and prepared to gun down the trio, who pleaded with the Punisher to reconsider their offer. Mr. Payback, along with the rest of the Vigilante Squad, died seconds later.

Nicky Cavella

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #2.

Nicolas "Nicky" Cavella was a psychotic captain in the Cesare crime family. At the age of eight, he killed his father, mother and sister, then framed his uncle for the murders at the suggestion of his aunt in order for her to become captain of the Cavella family; when Nicky turned 18, she took him as a lover and protege until he one day smothered her to death, thus becoming capo of his family. He held the distinction of being one of the few criminals to have survived an encounter with the Punisher. However, when he desecrated the Castle family's graves to lure out the Punisher so he can kill him once and for all, he was kidnapped by the Punisher, marched into the woods by Castle and shot in the belly, leaving him there to languish for days, dying slowly of blood poisoning. Cavella portrayed himself as a charismatic, suave killer but is really an emotionally unstable coward.

Pittsy

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #2.

Carmine "Pittsy" Gazzera was one of Nicky Cavella's bodyguards/enforcers, always paired with Ink. Pittsy once worked as an enforcer for "Ray the Rat", then began serving Cavella when the latter became a soldier and scion of his family. Pittsy was extremely rude, profane and merciless, but was completely loyal to Cavella. He had an extremely high pain threshold & endurance, on a level comparable to the Punisher himself, and was a very capable hand-to-hand combatant. During a three-way firefight between the Punisher, the CIA and Cavella's men, the Punisher threw Pittsy through a warehouse window and impaled him upon a spiked fence. To Castle's disbelief, Pittsy staggered towards Castle with a section of the fence still imbedded in him; Castle finished off Pittsy with a point-blank shotgun blast to the face.

Shortly after Pittsy's death, his younger sister Teresa "Tessie" replaced her brother as Cavella's bodyguard. Tessie had the same rude & cold-blooded personality as her brother, but became enamored of Cavella and tried to seduce him; Cavella rebuffed Tessie's advances. Shortly thereafter, Tessie tracked down Frank Castle, who was in bed with Kathryn O'Brien, and attacked them both, managing to stab Castle in the shoulder while screaming that Castle had killed her brother. O'Brien managed to pick up a pistol and repeatedly shot Tessie in the face, killing her.

In 2008's Punisher: War Zone, Pittsy was portrayed by Mark Camacho. He was the father of Ink, and served as Jigsaw's right-hand man.

Robert Hellsgaard

First appeared in Punisher (vol. 7) #11.

Robert Hellsgaard was a brilliant engineer in 1898 who came home to discover that his family was killed by werewolves. Ever since that day, he formed the Hunter of Monster Special Forces to exterminate monster and has since resided in the armor he made. After exterminating Monster Isle, he and forces arrived in Monster Metropolis where he ran afoul of Punisher's Frankencastle form and the Legion of Monsters.

The Russian

Main article: Russian (comics)

Tiberiu Bulat

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #26.

Cristu Bulat's father, with whom he fought in the Yugoslav Wars with the Serbs. They eventually went to the West, where they set up a series of brothels where East European abductees are forced into prostitution. He was burned alive by Castle, who had the murder recorded & sent to Bulat's associates in Moldova as a warning not to mess with the Punisher.

He was portrayed in 2008's Punisher: War Zone by Aubert Pallascio.

Tony Pizzo

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #19.

A young and inexperienced gangster who becomes a Mafia captain due to the Punisher killing most of New York City's veteran mafiosi. Pizzo first appears at a sit-down with Nicky Cavella and a few other captains; he and the other captains agree to make Cavella their boss so he can help them kill the Punisher and rebuild the Mafia. After an attempt to kill the Punisher fails miserably due to interference by CIA agent Kathryn O'Brien, Pizzo and the rest of the surviving Mafiosi turn on Cavella and leave him on his own for the Punisher to kill him. Pizzo appears several issues later in the "Widowmaker" story arc when one of the widows seduces him in order to find out about a Mafia convoy escorting a replacement boss into New York City; the Punisher finds out about this as well and attacks the convoy, killing everyone including Pizzo and the replacement boss.

William Rawlins

First appeared in The Punisher (vol. 6) #14.

A CIA agent who set up a terrorist cell in Riyadh on the orders of a rogue group of US Army & US Air Force generals, later used as a distraction while Castle and a Delta Force operator infiltrated a Russian missile silo to retrieve a virus sample. He is also one of Kathryn O'Brien's ex-husbands, and on their honeymoon pushed her out of a helicopter into the hands of the Taliban to protect a shipment of heroin. He is later assigned by the generals to organize the death of Castle with Nicky Cavella, who he had an intimate relationship with. He is later kidnapped by O'Brien and Castle, where he is tortured by Castle to find out information about the rogue generals, which is taped. During the torture session he lost an eye. He later escapes and sells his information of the terrorist attack on Russia to the Russian military, since he has become persona non grata to the CIA and needed protection. He later betrays the Russians for his own ulterior gains. Before he is finally able to escape and disappear, he is murdered by Castle in the men's restroom of Kabul International Airport.