In the midst of this massive Batman line-wide event, we also have an inter-company crossover.

Batman/Punisher: Lake of Fire

Written by Dennis O’Neil
Art by Barry Kitson & James Pascoe
Colors by Matt Hollingsworth
Separations by Digital Chameleon
Lettering by Ken Bruzenak

Jean-Paul awakens from a nightmare about Azrael & Hell, still wracked with self-doubt. He throws himself back into the work – hunting for a rocket fuel thief with ties to Tony Brassi.

Elsewherein Gotham, Frank Castle goes into a bar looking for info on Jigsaw’s location. By dumb luck (seemingly) he runs into a guy with info on the rocket fuel, interrogates him, and grabs what appears to be the formula in the process.

However, we learn this is an elaborate plot by Jigsaw to draw The Punisher into a trap, before he sets his real plan in motion – to destroy the Gotham reservoir so he can use a construction business of Tony Bressi’s that he’s taken over to re-build it and rule the city!

Does… Jigsaw not know about the Gotham Rogue’s Gallery? This isn’t that long after the Arkham breakout, with The Joker still in the wind. You’d think he’d know about that – along with murmurings from other Gotham gangsters about the new Batman.

Frank arrives at a church he was pointed to as a lead to Jigsaw, and is immediately dosed with a drug by a fake nun, who then sets the church on fire.

Punisher is saved by certain death by the timely and dramatic arrival of AzBat. The two decide to postpone the normal superhero misunderstanding fight.

Their first stop is the local Russian Mob, during the brawl Frank slips out in the confusion.

AzBat’s next stop is the Kochman building. There he finds Jigsaw and the guy who stole the rocket fuel formula. Jigsaw escapes, but AzBat learns his plan. AzBet commandeers a conveniently available crane equipped with a wrecking ball, and destroys the channel to the reservoir, preventing the fuel from setting the reservoir ablaze.

Frank catches up with Jigsaw – they has fight, resulting in Jigsaw getting yeeted off the roof. He’s saved from death by AzBat – who trusses him up before heading for The Punisher – only for The Joker, with Jigsaw asking Joker to cut him use.

Frank and AzBat finally has fight, with Frank using one of AzBat’s gas grenades to get the upper hand and escape, as the issue ends.

The sequel to this which wraps everything up is after the end of Knightfall, so I won’t be covering that.

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