10 More Most Inappropriate Marvel Comics Storylines Ever

1. The Punisher Changes Race

The Punisher Black
Marvel Comics

It was hugely insensitive when DC Comics made Lois Lane black for one day back in 1970 - the Daily Planet reporter wanting to experience the life of a black woman - and it was just as baffling when Marvel Comics decided to follow suit a whole 21 years later with the Punisher.

For Frank Castle, this change of race came during 1991's The Final Days arc.

Finding himself holed up in prison, Frank is brutally attacked by Jigsaw and his goons, to the point that Castle's face is a complete mess. The Punisher being the Punisher, he manages to escape his confines and make a break for freedom, but the hunt is on - from both the police and from criminals - to find the vigilante.

In order to hide himself from those after him, Frank turns to a junkie doctor who agrees to do facial surgery on him. Once the Punisher awakens, the doc has somehow managed to change Castle's skin colour, his bone structure, his features, his physique, and even given him a haircut "to go with the look".

Realising what a downright awful idea this all was, Marvel would reverse all of this just seven issues later, with the plastic surgery 'wearing off' mid-fight as Frank's longer hair miraculously grew back immediately.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.