Punisher Logo

Punisher is one of the gloomier characters made up by Marvel. They are usually into superheroes, but Punisher is one of the more beloved dark vigilantes. His whole premise is that he kills or mutilates the bad guys – unlike the heroes that just beat them up a bit and send them to jail/asylum.

Meaning and History

Punisher first appeared in a 1974 Spiderman comic where he acted as an antihero. He actively tried to kill him, mistaking him for a crime boss. The character itself is pretty tragic, and most of his life he devoted to killing and hurting criminals, avenging the death of his family. This new approach to fighting crime was well liked by the fans.

1974 – today

Unlike the other superhero symbols, Punisher’s has been scarcely changed over the years. Since 1974 and onto 2017, when the latest show about him aired, he wore a black T-shirt with a white skull on it.

It’s not like a pirate skull. The eyes are slightly narrowed to resemble an angry frown, and the cheekbones are exaggerated for added brutality. The teeth are also not very anatomically correct. It’s just several very long lines that end in slightly sharpened tips. The nostril holes are vertical and slightly resemble bullets.

Emblem and Symbol

The skull is the only symbol ever associated with the character, and it was pictured more or less this way for the entirety of his existence. There were slight deviations – for instance, sometimes they made it more anatomically correct (like in the initial appearance) or even add more frowning to it, as if skulls can frown.