Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8 — Frank Castle Is Hunting the Wrong Guy
September 1, 2026
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8 is on shelves, and it is the issue where my life gets meaningfully worse. Not in the fun way. In the "Frank Castle has my picture on a corkboard" way.
This is part one of "Big Guns," the four-part crossover Marvel announced back in June. I covered the announcement then. Now there's an actual issue to read, so let's talk about what's inside it — because the reason Frank comes after me is genuinely not what I expected.
Short version: I didn't do it. Longer version: I sort of did, technically, if you squint, and I'm going to need you to hear me out.
Read the preview: Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8
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What is Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8?
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8 hits shelves September 2, 2026 from Marvel Comics, written by Benjamin Percy with art by Geoff Shaw. It opens a four-part arc called "Big Guns," and it's a direct crossover with Punisher #8 — which Percy is also writing, because the man apparently wants to script both halves of my beating personally. All of that was reported by Collider, who got a look at the preview pages first.
Two books. One writer. One very angry man in a skull shirt. You can see the shape of this already.
Why the Punisher is hunting Deadpool
So. The Badpool clones. If you've been off this book for a few issues: there are copies of me running around, they are not licensed, and they are doing an absolutely catastrophic job of being me. Wrecking things. Hurting people. Wearing the red so nobody can tell the difference — which, and I cannot stress this enough, is the entire point of wearing red.
One of these clones gets scooped up by the Punisher's operation and put in front of Micro for questioning. Micro does what Micro does, gets the story out of it, and hands Frank a list of what this thing has actually done.
Frank executes the clone. Then Frank looks at the list, looks at the red suit, and draws the obvious conclusion — the one every single person draws, every single time, forever.
Which is how I end up at the top of the Punisher's board for crimes committed by a knockoff of me. There's a word for this. The word is "defamation," and I would love to pursue it legally, except my lawyer is also a clone now, probably.
The "Big Guns" crossover runs through two books
Here's the wrinkle that makes this more than a slugfest: somebody is steering it. The arc sets up a mysterious force deliberately pushing me and Frank at each other, and the prize both of us are being aimed at is an "ultimate weapon."
Which means the fight is the distraction. Somebody wants the two loudest, most heavily armed, least reasonable men in the Marvel universe pointed directly at one another so that nobody's watching the actual objective. It's a good plan. I'm annoyed by how good the plan is.
Percy writing both Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8 and Punisher #8 is the tell. When one writer holds both halves of a crossover, the two issues usually aren't the same scene twice — they're the same event from two guys who each think they're the reasonable one. Frank thinks he's cleaning up a mess. I think I'm being framed. We're both right, which is the worst possible version of this.
Deadpool and the Punisher have done this dance before
Look, Frank and I have history. We are Marvel's most reliable "put these two in a room and sell a comic" pairing, because we're the same guy sorted differently — two men with guns, no powers worth mentioning between us, and a body count. He's the version where the trauma made him quiet. I'm the version where it made me talk constantly. Forever.
The difference, and it's the only one that matters here: Frank does not miss, does not stop, and does not accept "it wasn't me" as an answer. I heal. That's not a defense so much as a very long, very painful delay tactic.
Should you pick up Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8?
If you have been reading the Badpool storyline, this is the issue where it stops being a me-problem and becomes a getting-hunted-by-the-Punisher problem. That's a real escalation and it's the payoff the clones have been building toward.
If you haven't been reading it, this is a genuinely good jumping-on point. "Big Guns" is a fresh four-part arc with a premise you can pick up in one sentence — the Punisher thinks Deadpool did it, Deadpool didn't do it, someone else wants them both busy. You do not need six years of continuity to enjoy Frank Castle being extremely certain and slightly wrong.
Grab Punisher #8 alongside it. Same writer, same week, other half of the story. Reading one without the other is like watching a fight from behind a pillar.
And if reading about me isn't enough — I do this in person. You can book The Dallas Deadpool for birthdays, conventions, and corporate events across DFW, or hit the 3D print shop for keychains, Pokéballs and dragons printed in my garage. No clones involved. I checked.
Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8 FAQ
When does Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8 come out?
September 2, 2026, from Marvel Comics. It launches the four-part "Big Guns" arc.
Who is writing the Deadpool and Punisher crossover?
Benjamin Percy writes it, with art by Geoff Shaw on Wade Wilson: Deadpool. Percy is also writing Punisher #8, the other half of the crossover.
Why is the Punisher after Deadpool?
Because of the Badpool clones. One of the clones is captured and interrogated by Micro; when Frank Castle learns what it has done, he kills it and marks Deadpool as his main target — blaming Wade for destruction the clones caused.
Do I need to read Punisher #8 too?
It's a direct crossover from the same writer, so the two issues are built to be read together. You can follow Wade Wilson: Deadpool #8 on its own, but you'll get the full picture with both.
What is Badpool?
Badpool refers to the clones of Deadpool running loose in the current run. They cause destruction while wearing Wade's look, which wrecks his reputation and is what drags the Punisher into the story.
Is this connected to the Deadpool movies?
No. This is Marvel Comics continuity, separate from the MCU films. There's been no announcement tying the Big Guns arc to Deadpool 4 or any upcoming movie.
Anyway. If you need me, I'll be the one in red explaining to a man with a machine gun that there are several of me and he's mad at the wrong one. Wish me luck. Bring snacks.
The Dallas Deadpool is an independent cosplayer and entertainer. This post is fan commentary on publicly reported comic news and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Marvel or Disney. Deadpool, the Punisher, and all related characters are trademarks of their respective owners.