MEMES, Pt. 6: Call me... The Punisher
Endless Thread28 Loka 2021

MEMES, Pt. 6: Call me... The Punisher

The Punisher has always been a complicated Marvel antihero: a man whose creator imagined him as a reaction to the failures of government at home and in the Vietnam War. So why is the Punisher’s trademark dripping skull insignia — a menacing image used throughout history to denote imminent death — being painted on police vehicles, adopted by members of the military, and donned by white supremacists?

We tell the story of The Punisher’s symbol as a meme, look at how well we understand its origins, its use today, and whether its creator — or Marvel — can take it back.

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Episodes we love: Welcome to the Jam

Episodes we love: Welcome to the Jam

Everybody get up, it's time to slam now... again! Yes, we're revisiting our episode about the website for the 1996 movie "Space Jam," which is still up and functioning nearly 30 years later. Amory an...

4 Marras 202533min

Endless Dread: Haunted Hayride

Endless Dread: Haunted Hayride

In keeping with Endless Thread tradition, Ben and Amory are celebrating spooky season with another installment of "Endless Dread." This time, we're bringing you along on both an actual haunted hayride...

31 Loka 202538min

Episodes we love: Artist Known

Episodes we love: Artist Known

New to Endless Thread? Wooooo! We're revisiting some favorites from our archives to welcome you. First up: The cover art for the 1976 paperback edition of Madeleine L'Engle's classic, spooky sci-fi/f...

28 Loka 202546min

Hidden Levels Ep. 6: Segagaga

Hidden Levels Ep. 6: Segagaga

The final episode of Hidden Levels explores the story of SEGA developer Tez Okano and the bizarre, meta-game he created: Segagaga. Okano joined SEGA in 1992, witnessing firsthand the company's tumult...

24 Loka 202540min

Hidden Levels Ep. 5: Press B to Touch Grass

Hidden Levels Ep. 5: Press B to Touch Grass

Video games are arguably the antithesis of nature; highly constructed worlds, synthetic, inorganic. If you grew up gaming, you may recall grown-ups telling you to shut down the console, go outside, an...

22 Loka 202541min

Hidden Levels: Surgical Precision (Side Quest)

Hidden Levels: Surgical Precision (Side Quest)

Dr. James "Butch" Rosser was a pioneer in minimally invasive surgery in the 1990s. When he credited his surgical skills to video games, people dismissed him. The prevailing narrative was that kids who...

21 Loka 202524min

Hidden Levels Ep. 4: Machinima

Hidden Levels Ep. 4: Machinima

Machinima — a portmanteau of “machine” and “cinema” — refers to movies filmed inside video games. The art form had a renaissance in the 1990s, and many thought it had a future in Hollywood. Among the ...

18 Loka 202545min

Hidden Levels: Choose Your Player (Side Quest)

Hidden Levels: Choose Your Player (Side Quest)

Today, Stef Sanjati is a creator on YouTube with over half a million subscribers. Her content mostly focuses on her two greatest loves — makeup and gaming — often combining the two with her otherworld...

17 Loka 202531min