Sorry for the blog-neglect; I've gotten sick again and can't seem to shake it off...

Still, I wanted to post a link to this preview of PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL #4 as the book's release is imminent.

The long story short (ha!) is that the issue features Stilt-Man's wake. The solicitation I wrote, sort of half-serious, sort of half-totally-expecting-Axel-Alonso-to-fire-me, read:

PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL 4
Written by Matt Fraction
Penciled by Mike Deodato

In the ashes of CIVIL WAR comes this modest service for its tallest victim-- that stainless steel sultan of stretch, Stilt-Man! In a sleazy pub not even the Irish would drink in, Frank Castle's first supervictim is laid out on the tables, his life and legacy celebrated by a veritable who's who of Marvel Nobodies. The D-List comes out in force to pay its respects, not just for a fallen friend, but for a lost way of life. Even SPIDER-MAN swings by-- get it?-- to say goodbye. Raise a glass, friends, and join us in this year's MUST SEE funeral, attended by the very dregs of supervillainy! HOT! AWESOME! SAD!

Not really a surprise they didn't go for it, I guess.

It's not a fill-in, per se: We ran in to a unique situation with the delays due to CIVIL WAR where we were chugging along, and Mike Deodato had a gap in his schedule and, since we had so much lead time, I wrote this issue and the next concurrently just so we could have Mike as a guest artist. And, man, when you see it, you'll remember why Mike Deodato is Mike Deodato in the first place.

(Also, please notice: Dr. Doom's little roundy cape things are worn OVER his suit jacket. GENIUS.)

(Also also: Ariel is back with #5, doing his own colors, and is with us for the foreseeable future. This was a guest-artist thing for us and NOT a fill-in thing. Ariel is god's own unstoppable comics machine and if I wrote twice as fast I still couldn't outpace him.)

Anyway. It starts as a kinda goofy, kinda sweet story that takes a bleak turn or ten, and tries to speak to what the whole series is really about. Meaning-- this is what a character like Frank Castle actually means to a place like the Marvel Universe, post-CIVIL WAR. I'm pretty pleased with the way it all came out and came together.

I am ready to not be sick now. The endpapers of CASANOVA #7 keep getting more and more ironic. Thank you. The end.