(HITMAN) PUNISHER

Real Name: James "Jimmy" Pierce

Identity/Class: Human; conventional weaponry user

Occupation: Currently unknown;
former vigilante;
former boxer

Group Membership None

Affiliations: Formerly coerced into working with the Cullens;
formerly the Punisher (Frank Castle)

Enemies: Blackwell (VIGIL), the Cullens crime family, Lori Pierce, Punisher (Yuppunisher)

Known Relatives: Jack Pierce (father, deceased), Midge (mother), Lori Pierce/Cullen (sister);
Peach Cullen (uncle), other Cullens (cousins, etc.)

Aliases: "Hitman," Punisher

Base of Operations: Currently unknown;
formerly New York City;
formerly Chicago, Illinois

First Appearance: Punisher II#86 (January, 1994)

Powers/Abilities: No superhuman powers. Jimmy used a variety of firearms and wore kevlar body armor. Unlike other Punishers, however, he made every effort not to use lethal force.
He is strong, fast, and agile.

Height: 6'1" Weight: 220 lbs.

History:
(Punisher War Journal#70/2 (fb) - BTS) - Jimmy is the son of Jack Pierce and Midge Cullen. His father resisted Old Man (Tommy/"Peach") Cullens' efforts to pull him into the Cullens crime family. Eventually, Jack left to serve in the army.

(Punisher War Journal#71/2 (fb) - BTS) - After the war, Jack Pierce had found a new woman. Midge and Peach Cullen ambushed him and killed him.

BTS - All his life Jimmy kept himself distanced from his Cullens relatives. He served in the Special Forces and was also a former Golden Gloves boxing champion.

(Punisher II#86) - After the Punisher was believed to have been killed, Peach Cullen tried to force Jimmy to become the new Punisher, under his control. Jimmy fought the idea (and the Cullens!).

BTS - Peach forced Jimmy's cooperation by telling him they had his mother, Midge, hostage. Jimmy adopted the Punisher costume, complete with mask.

(Punisher II#87) - Cullen sent Jimmy/"The Punisher" to take down some rival operations. Peach figured that once word got out that the Punisher was working for the Cullens, they would own New York. Jimmy then busted up a crack house operation, oblivious to the fact that Dean Swaybrick (the Yuppunisher) had targeted the same operation, and that Jimmy had foiled his publicity stunt.

(Punisher War Journal#63) - Jimmy was sent to Laastekist, PA, to investigate reports of Castle turning up there.

(Punisher II#88) - In Laastekist, Jimmy was disgusted when the other Cullens shot--and seemingly killed--Payback and Lynn Michaels. His pseudo-allies were then killed by Dean Swaybrick, who then walked up and put a gun to his head. When Swaybrick's own agents fled from his bloodthirsty behavior, Jimmy took advantage of the distraction to drop to the ground, roll, grab a gun, and shoot at Swaybrick. Jimmy was mortified when he realized that he had killed Swaybrick. As he kneeled over Swaybrick's corpse, he was shot in the back by VIGIL's Blackwell, and left for dead.

(Punisher War Journal#67/2) - Jimmy ambushed Dave and Duke Cullen, forcing them to tell him where Peach Cullen was hiding out. He then went to the apartment of his sister, Lori Pierce, whom he'd not seen in years.

(Punisher War Journal#68/2) - A medical school friend of Lori's stitched him up from his wound at Blackwell's hands. Dave and Duke tracked Jimmy there and attacked him. After defeating them, Jimmy took Dave with him and left Duke tied up with Lori. Lori killed Duke right after he left.

(Punisher War Journal#69/2) - Jimmy sneaked into the Cullens meeting place, think he was rescuing his mother, but she smashed a coffee pot over his head, and he was soon at the rest of the Cullens' mercy.

(Punisher War Journal#70/2) - As Jimmy heard the story of his father, Lori arrived and broke him out, and the two escaped/

(Punisher War Journal#71/2) - Lori brought Jimmy to their mother's old chest, and told him about how the Cullens had killed their father. She thought he would want vengeance, but he told her he refused to kill, and he left her, hoping to never see her again. Hitching a ride, Jimmy was picked up by Frank Castle.
Afterwards, the Cullens located Lori and captured her.

(Punisher War Journal#72) - Castle and Pierce were ambushed by some of the Cullens, but they managed to temporarily get away from them. The rest of the Cullens tracked them to an abandoned truck stop, where Castle picked them off--though some of the less bright members managed to take themselves or their own cousins out. Jimmy confronted the last of the Cullens, Peach and Midge, holding them at gunpoint, and coercing Peach into agreeing to end their war. However, Lori, unwilling to let them get away with all they'd done to her, shot both Peach and Midge. In addition, she cried out that Jimmy had been the one to shoot them, which was heard by the Punisher. Jimmy fled into the night.
Meanwhile, the young Cullens girls confronted Lori, but the dying Peach told them that Lori was a true Cullen, and she could lead them. Taking up the name Lori Cullen, she became the leader of the Cullens girls.

Comments: Created by Steven Grant and Hugh Haynes

Not once in the context of the story was Jimmy referred to as the Hitman or the Hitman Punisher. He adopted the guise of the Punisher and used that name only. The name Hitman Punisher comes from publicity stories about the Suicide Run, to distinguish him from any of the other would-be replacements.

The Special Forces info is from the Punisher Anniversary Magazine. It doesn't really fit with Jimmy being so mortified by the act of killing one of his attackers.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:

other Punisher characters:

Appearances:
Punisher II#86 (January, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Hugh Haynes (pencils), Mark McKenna, Mick Gray, Jon Holdredge & Frank Percy (inks), Don Daley (editor)
Punisher II#87 (February, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Hugh Haynes (pencils), Mark McKenna & Mick Gray (inks), Don Daley (editor)
Punisher War Journal I#63 (February, 1994) - Chuck Dixon (writer), Gary Kwapisz (artist), Don Daley (editor)
Punisher II#88 (March, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Hugh Haynes (pencils), Mark McKenna & Mick Gray (inks), Don Daley (editor)
Punisher War Journal I#67/2-69/2 (June-August, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Elman Brown (pencils), Scott Koblish (inks), Don Daley (editor)
Punisher War Journal I#70/2 (September, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Kevin Kobasic & Elman Brown (pencils), Frank Percy (inks), Don Daley (editor)
Punisher War Journal I#71/2 (October, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Elman Brown (pencils), Frank Percy (inks), Don Daley (editor)
Punisher War Journal#72 (November, 1994) - Steven Grant (writer), Melvin Rubi (pencils), Scott Koblish & Frank Percy (inks), Don Daley (editor)

Last updated: 05/03/04

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

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