Question about The Punisher's logo change...why? 4 4

[october]

On 3/10/2022 at 12:11 PM, Lord Gemini said:

Sometimes it's best to just not argue with whiny Star Wars fans who throw tantrums when characters and stories don't go their way. Lesson learned.

[FrontStands]

On 3/10/2022 at 1:07 PM, Lord Gemini said:

Not inconsistent at all unless you're counting a bunch of EU books that are no longer canon.

[Lord Gemini]

On 3/10/2022 at 12:14 PM, FrontStands said:

Not sure what's so funny, but you do you, chuckles.

[eastriver400]

On 3/9/2022 at 9:30 PM, Beastfeast said:

No idea about the in-story justification or whether or not Disney mandated it but it absolutely makes sense if you're wanting to distance yourself from the people/groups that appropriated the logo.  

But I gotta say - I hate it.  I don't know if it's because I'm so used to the original logo or what, but man...it looks like a bad Magic the Gathering expansion symbol.  

 

What kills me is that for years I thought there was HUGE amount of Punisher fans.  Man i feel dumb.

[Transplant]

On 3/10/2022 at 12:18 PM, eastriver31400 said:

 

What kills me is that for years I thought there was HUGE amount of Punisher fans.  Man i feel dumb.

There are, but they only like certain aspects of the Punisher. Hint, it isn't good stuff. 

[seanfingh]

This is why we can't have nice things.  Marvel should have protected its mark in the first place and forced the infringers to make sufficient corrections to maintain a similar look without completely infringing upon Marvel's mark.  Then they would have a goofy looking quasi-punisher logo, instead of Marvel trademarking that horned abomination

[october]

On 3/10/2022 at 12:31 PM, seanfingh said:

This is why we can't have nice things.  Marvel should have protected its mark in the first place and forced the infringers to make sufficient corrections to maintain a similar look without completely infringing upon Marvel's mark.  Then they would have a goofy looking quasi-punisher logo, instead of Marvel trademarking that horned abomination

Interesting. I always thought the use of the Punisher skull was similar to the bootleg Calvin and Hobbes window stickers and spring break t-shirts you used to see everywhere. Technically infringement, but extremely hard to enforce against a bunch of mom and pop fly by night producers selling out of flea markets and beach t-shirt shacks. 

[theCapraAegagrus]

The new Punisher logo looks like something a fan of Surtur or Black Metal would wear, rather than a vigilante.

[ashsaytr]

love the punisher... this is just 

[seanfingh]

On 3/10/2022 at 1:41 PM, october said:

Interesting. I always thought the use of the Punisher skull was similar to the bootleg Calvin and Hobbes window stickers and spring break t-shirts you used to see everywhere. Technically infringement, but extremely hard to enforce against a bunch of mom and pop fly by night producers selling out of flea markets and beach t-shirt shacks. 

It is - it is just like that. And even though that attracted itself to a certain overlapping demographic, it failed to have the amount of negative connotation that the Punisher logo did.  Another problem for marvel would have been the tacit approval of various military organizations using it over the years.  My post was more of a sad musing than an actual legal analysis. I'm sure they assessed it and figured the juice wasn't worth the squeeze.

[troydivision1]

On 3/10/2022 at 2:53 PM, seanfingh said:

It is - it is just like that. And even though that attracted itself to a certain overlapping demographic, it failed to have the amount of negative connotation that the Punisher logo did.  Another problem for marvel would have been the tacit approval of various military organizations using it over the years.  My post was more of a sad musing than an actual legal analysis. I'm sure they assessed it and figured the juice wasn't worth the squeeze.

Yep.
Disclaimer: the following is opinion / conjecture on my part
They chose to 'Let It Go' (pun intended) UNTIL it got too hot to handle.
Then they benched The Punisher until they figured out (by corporate committee) a way to have him come back...
"I got it! Let's give him a dragon skull logo! People loved Game of Thrones!"

SPOON...they may have done this new logo just to get a rise out of comic fans for the eventual All-New Punisher #1 where the skull comes back with a new design that is trademarked properly.

[october]

On 3/10/2022 at 1:53 PM, seanfingh said:

It is - it is just like that. And even though that attracted itself to a certain overlapping demographic, it failed to have the amount of negative connotation that the Punisher logo did.  Another problem for marvel would have been the tacit approval of various military organizations using it over the years.  My post was more of a sad musing than an actual legal analysis. I'm sure they assessed it and figured the juice wasn't worth the squeeze.

Yeah. Its use by various police and military organizations probably complicated Disney's response. 

I know the C&H thing really bothered Bill Watterson. Especially aggravating given the pains he took to resist the Garfield route, with that character licensed for everything under the sun...as long as the money kept flowing. 

[troydivision1]

On 3/10/2022 at 1:18 PM, eastriver31400 said:

What kills me is that for years I thought there was HUGE amount of Punisher fans.  Man i feel dumb.

This is sarcasm but was an impetus to my topic.
On Monday, whilst walking the dog, a new person was moving into my complex.
They were unloading their pick-up truck and had a Punisher decal.
Then a decal of two guns crossing each other underneath the Punisher decal.
(yes, this is the South)
Preface, I am a mess talker but only to friends and family.
I turned to my partner and lamented quietly that I do not have the appearance or stature to ask a random person - "Whoa? You collect comics? I love the Punisher too. Which is your favorite cover?"

[darkstar]

On 3/10/2022 at 11:53 AM, Lord Gemini said:

 This kind of fan baggage and presumptions as to what a character should be, particularly one that has been around for awhile, is exactly the kind of thing that turns me off discussing Star Wars with the fandom. Just negative all the time.

Star Wars fans have presumptions about those characters because you know they've been following them for decades. Who those characters are has kind of, just a little bit, already been established. With a little common sense it is real easy to understand why fans get so irritated about this when say Luke Skywalker shows up in the new movies and he is totally unrecognizable, and I'm not talking about his appearance, to the character the fanbase knew from before. Regarding Boba Fett, Disney shot themselves in the foot by bringing back the 60 year old Morrison instead of recasting the character and using someone whose age is inline with how old the character is in the Star Wars universe, which is decades younger than the actor. Boba Fett is arguably the most profitable character in the history of pop culture compared to how little said character was used in the original IP. The idea that Disney could somehow release a television show starring Fett that at best earned mixed reviews would at one time be considered incomprehensible, but when looking at how poorly Disney handled original trilogy characters in their movies, it is all too understandable. Fans wanted to see Boba Fett the ruthless bounty hunter, something that would still be possible despite the passage of time in universe and the character's motivations changing, but what they got was a boomer cosplayer using his iconic helmet like a candy bucket on Halloween.  

[Mercury Man]

Appropriation stinks, and we all get penalized for it. 

It happens with certain sports teams logos/colors, clothing types, even hand gestures seemed to have changed meaning over time.   Originality is lost on the unwashed masses. 

[Cornelius The First]

I’ve always understood the military affiliation with the punisher, for obvious backstory reasons and the fact that there is a lot of disgruntled veteran to him. I never understood the police use of the symbol considering he is truly a vigilante by nature (which stands in stark opposition to established law and order). The symbol change is atrocious, I don’t think personally I would’ve liked any change at all, but being that the punisher is my favorite marvel character, that’s inevitable. Everything is becoming overtly sensitive, it’s a skull, half the bozos that use it are just trying to look cool. Trust me, most of the individuals that do the work you think of when you think of ‘operating’ aren’t the ones with stickers plastered all over their lifted trucks, and grunt style t-shirts, and punisher symbols with colored stripes. If anything it will be on their kit, which you won’t see, unless your choice of vacation destinations are third world countries in political and geographical strife. As far as certain political supporters using the symbols, they also wore flags as capes and dressed like Vikings with face paint, not exactly the cream of the crop. Leave the symbol on the chest of Ol Frank, understand who he is, good, bad, and indifferent. We just want to cancel everything that may offend any minority of crybabies regardless of sample size. 

Edited March 11, 2022 by Cornelius The First

[Gary Strange]

If certain groups started using the spider man logo wonder what they’d do. 

[Beastfeast]

On 3/10/2022 at 8:35 PM, Gary Strange said:

If certain groups started using the spider man logo wonder what they’d do. 

Marvel would change the logo and a bunch of people who haven't bought a new comic off the stands in 15 years will tell everyone they're never buying a new comic off the stands again.  

[Gary Strange]

On 3/10/2022 at 7:39 PM, Beastfeast said:

Marvel would change the logo and a bunch of people who haven't bought a new comic off the stands in 15 years will tell everyone they're never buying a new comic off the stands again.  

Well I’m not buying any of this new punisher stuff. He’s not a samurai. I’m also not a fan of all this pandering. 

[Mmanick]

On 3/10/2022 at 5:22 PM, Cornelius The First said:

I’ve always understood the military affiliation with the punisher, for obvious backstory reasons and the fact that there is a lot of disgruntled veteran to him. I never understood the police use of the symbol considering he is truly a vigilante by nature (which stands in stark opposition to established law and order). The symbol change is atrocious, I don’t think personally I would’ve liked any change at all, but being that the punisher is my favorite marvel character, that’s inevitable. Everything is becoming overtly sensitive, it’s a skull, half the bozos that use it are just trying to look cool. Trust me, most of the individuals that do the work you think of when you think of ‘operating’ aren’t the ones with stickers plastered all over their lifted trucks, and grunt style t-shirts, and punisher symbols with colored stripes. If anything it will be on their kit, which you won’t see, unless your choice of vacation destinations are third world countries in political and geographical strife. As far as certain political supporters using the symbols, they also wore flags as capes and dressed like Vikings with face paint, not exactly the cream of the crop. Leave the symbol on the chest of Ol Frank, understand who he is, good, bad, and indifferent. We just want to cancel everything that may offend any minority of crybabies regardless of sample size. 

Well said brother