Marvel's iconic gun-toting antihero, The Punisher, has been active since his first appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man #129 in 1974, but one similarly unstoppable marksman predates him. Originally published in October 1968 via Shogakukan's Big Comic magazine, Golgo 13 still runs today as the longest-running and best-selling seinen manga ever.
Golgo 13 is famous among manga circles for its strictly formulaic approach that keeps the series from straying from its late creator, Takao Saito's vision. It is centered on a man whose true name is never revealed, as he is merely known as Duke Togo or his eponymous alias, Golgo 13.
A professional hitman with a knack for military-grade hardware, Golgo 13 could easily be mistaken for a Japanese Punisher-type character despite predating him by more than five years. Golgo 13's mature premise is technically more formulaic than the most generic Marvel Cinematic Universe flick, but surprisingly stays fresh, thanks to several noteworthy traits: symbolism, consistency, and cultural relevance.
Marvel's Punisher and Golgo 13 Share a Common Skeletal Symbol
Mutual Memento Mori?
Whether you're able to get hold of the once-lost media like 1971's anime, 1983's Golgo 13: The Professional, or 2008's infuriatingly unavailable anime from The Answer Studio, they commonly share the logo's skeletal figure. Meant to evoke Golgotha, or the hill of Jesus Christ's crucifixion, this skeleton wears Christ's crown of thorns, a grimly profane message of mortality and misfortune.
On the other hand, the first and primary Punisher, Frank Castle, uses his iconic skull imagery both to signal what's coming for his opponents, and to draw fire to the most armored portions of his Kevlar vest. Its origins have changed alongside Castle due to his continuity changing over the years, with Netflix's 2017 series calling it his "memento mori".
In this way, both are agents of death, but to different ends. Golgo 13 doesn't carry this emblem, as he has no agenda beyond carrying out the wishes of his paying client. Castle, though, uses the emblem as a death's head to signify that any criminals he attacks won't get back up, a dark symbol of his war on crime.
Golgo 13 Stays Consistent for One Reason
Money Talks, and Togo Answers
Golgo 13 is now an astonishing 57-year-old manga, the longest-running serial comic in terms of publication years and volumes printed (219). Unlike long-running manga like One Piece, though, Golgo 13 achieves this without encountering fatigue by taking a strictly episodic approach. Duke Togo aka Golgo 13 takes on a contract, kills his mark, collects his fee, occasionally bedding a woman.
This remains true either in the 50-episode 2008 series, or indeed in its other formats. While some stories feature more outlandish opponents throwing him around, Golgo 13 always wins. Bulletproof glass? Pinpoint-accurate M16 shots focused on the same point until it breaks. Got an airplane hijacker? He'll pay to modify a sniper rifle barrel to hit targets two kilometers away.
This consistency and heavily formulaic approach have a clear benefit. 300 million copies sold places Golgo 13 head and shoulders above serialized stories like Dragon Ball, Naruto, and Demon Slayer. Changing its episodic nature now, after what's approaching six decades, would disrupt a formula that's been officially passed on from its deceased creator to his successors at Saito Production.
However, this consistency has led to sillier aspects of the story. Its levels of seinen-oriented wish-fulfillment, complete with women overtly undressing him with their eyes, present a pulpy, quasi-James Bond image. Its low points include 2008's anime, episode #4, in which Linda, his client, free from mafia control, declares she will become a real-life Pretty Woman, referencing the 1990 film.
Golgo 13 and The Punisher Evolve to Stay Culturally Relevant
More Than One Way to Paint a Skeleton
Given their mutually-shared mid-20th century origins, The Punisher and Golgo 13 have had to continuously evolve to stay as popular as they are. Frank Castle is no longer a Vietnam veteran, at times being depicted as a former Force Recon Marine or an FBI agent, with his comics taking him to unexplored territory, including a stint in The Hand.
Golgo 13, meanwhile, sees its titular character change with the times, mostly embracing its technology and fashion conventions. But with Duke Togo never fundamentally changing as a person, the real updates happen with the circumstances for which he is hired, and his clientele. This is particularly noteworthy with 2008's clearly post-9/11 premiere involving an attempted plane hijacking.
Occasionally hired by emotionally unstable or desperate clients out of self-preservation, Golgo 13 is a detached Grim Reaper-type compared to the Punisher's berserker-like fury. These traits don't disappear, but instead, his clientele's behaviors change with the times, like the CIA and FBI cooperatively contracting him, or intercepting a contract killing of an elderly CEO targeted by his junior successor.
This brings the iconic anime protagonist to exotic locations around the world, having him tackle the mafia, terrorists, and anyone he is paid to assassinate. This allows Golgo 13 to stay fresh without taking some of the sillier 2000s-era Punisher moments, best-encapsulated by a real comic where he teams up with Eminem.
Getting Into Golgo 13 Is Trickier Than Expected
Not Everybody Has Briefcases Loaded with Cash
Yet, Golgo 13 is not as popular in the West as it could be, and part of that is its anime availability. While it's got a small spread of content archived or available to stream on FAST options like Pluto TV, the 2008 anime has since vanished from HIDIVE streaming, with its out-of-print physical release demanding outrageous prices.
Combined with a lack of available copies of its enormous manga library, Golgo 13 is tricky to officially add to anybody's collection. While a certain fellow anime character bearing a skull on his flag would suggest one clear answer, it's best not to say the quiet part out loud, even for unavailable, in-demand media.
But for Punisher fans, Golgo 13 is not innately the same franchise, but something similarly mature, violent, and digestible. It doesn't face with the problems Frank Castle is encountering, like law enforcement's adoption of his symbol being painfully ironic, given their varying levels of negligence (or even complicity) toward his origins. Instead, its main controversy is not being available enough.
