Guardian Devil Part 6: The Devil Divested by Kevin Smith & Joe Quesada
One Sentence Overview: Daredevil is left reeling by the death of Karen but is also compelled to try and track down who hired her murderer, Bullseye
So last issue ended with the tragic demise of Karen Page at the hands of Bullseye, making that assassin a particularly fearsome presence when it comes to the loves of Matt's lives. The end, though, I think was well written, Karen sacrificing herself to save Matt's life from Bullseye's deadly accuracy - indicating that whilst her life was often tragic, at root her heart was good and true.
Here then Kevin presents a eulogy, with Matt unsurprisingly revisiting scenes from his romance with Karen that show warm and intimate moments. Indeed, the first of these, where Karen persuades Matt not to don his Daredevil suit one night and instead spend some time with his girlfriend, highlights what elsewhere would be regarded as a highly unusual choice on Matt's behalf that it's no doubt our hero recalls it so fondly. Another scene shows that Matt was thinking of having a child with Karen, a revelation that tugs on the heart strings just a little bit more and tells Karen he would have given up everything to ensure the child was kept safe. To his surprise, in this scenario, Karen tells him to continue - she'll look after the baby and Matt can ensure that there's some degree of sanity for the child to grow up in. These are touching scenes, beautifully realised by Joe Q - illustrated in black and white, one intriguing detail is to break from the monotone by painting Matt's pupils red.
These early scenes seem to recall some of Daredevil's best moments. Matt putting a bullet into one chamber of a gun and threatening to blow his own head off seems an explicit homage to 'Roulette' (DD191) whilst his exit from despair and into anger, whereby he tears up the room, echoes 'Crisis' (DD151).
I even enjoyed reading a report of Karen's demise as written by Ben Urich. For once, the writer sticks to recording the facts, as if written in a real newspaper article instead of the ugly purple prose some other writers have been guilty of when trying to record Ben's award winning voice.
This great start cannot, however, sustain the whole issue and, once Matt gets back on his feet and starts searching for who was responsible for employing Bullseye to extricate the baby (remember her?), it's a slightly less compelling read. Whilst it's nice to see Turk Barrett return (even though Joe appears to be lifting his model of the thug from the rather white looking figure from DD351 rather than classic Turk), it's only so that he can reprise his role as DD's stooge.
I can't believe Turk could have survived in the underworld so long if he was so consistently willing to spill his guts to Daredevil time after time. Those gangsters must be pretty sloppy.
This leads to some by the numbers DD foe battling, though at least the confrontations with underlings allow for our hero to gradually work out who exactly is behind what's going on - as well as some freaky moments where he thinks he encounters Karen in Hell and the recent incarnation of Baal's insistence that he's DD's guardian angel. And we'll come on to the man behind everything next time...
I notice from Tim Roll-Pickering's comment on my last review that there was a considerable gap between this issue and its predecessor. Indeed, issue five is dated March 1999 and this is June 1999, which I guess must have been highly frustrating to DD fans, and especially those biting their nails and wondering if Karen was truly dead. No doubt it whetted the appetite somewhat so I hope the early recollections made up for the wait, whilst the issue's conclusion, thrilling as it is, might have set pulses racing as well as heart's sinking at any further possible delays...
Cast
Daredevil/Matt Murdock
Karen Page
Kingpin/Wilson Fisk
Turk Barrett
Nicholas Macabes/Mysterio/Quentin Beck
Baal 2
Mr Gabriel
Mr Califore
Rating: 7 out of 10
Guardian Devil Part 5: Devil's Despair by Kevin Smith & Joe Quesada
One Sentence Overview: Daredevil consults Dr Strange as to the mystical origins of the baby whilst Karen makes a fateful decision
Cute cover!
If one were in any doubt of Matt's wavering faith that comes and goes like the tide, his visit to Dr Strange in order to divine if there is any mystical element in a cross given to him by Nicholas Macabes confirms that he is willing to resort to means rather frowned upon by the Catholic church should he be so inclined. Even here, Matt hesitates - murmuring in his confused state that he "should've known better than to trust a practitioner of the black arts".
At first, though, it appears he needn't have bothered Stephen - the problem isn't a mystical one, rather Strange detects a finely concealed hallucinogen that has sent Daredevil - and Karen - into overdrive. Which explains Matt's rather peculiar and very cruel behaviour in recent issues . Unsurprisingly, Nicholas Macabes or whoever he is -, a discarded newspaper elsewhere notes that his visage is identical to that of a recently murdered actor in Hollywood - has been leading Daredevil on a merry dance.
Strange, with a quick spell, brings Daredevil to his senses (in a side bar, Matt notes that he must apologise to Natasha - I should think so too).
Having popped in on the Master of Mystical Arts, though, it would be a shame if Daredevil didn't allow Dr Strange to summon his old pal, Mephisto, for a chat and maybe a slice of cake.
Mephisto passes on the cake but his reappearance does allow Kevin some space to tackle yet more theology. The creature from the underworld, indeed, is much surprised by Daredevil's angst over whether Gwyneth's baby (Remember her? The unintentional cause of all this grief in the first place?) is the resurrected Jesus. Mephisto, ironically noting that he appears to have been brought forth "to instruct as a Sunday School teacher", points out that the Book of Revelation(s) states that it's much more likely that Jesus would return in adult form rather than resort to infantilization. It's somewhat peculiar to see Mephisto admonishing Matt for not reading his Bible.
Before he leaves, however, he does inform Matt that something terrible is about to befall him, hinting that it might impact upon his mother. This leads Matt dashing to Sister Maggie's church, wherein he finds nearly a dozen dead at the hands of that old charmer, Bullseye. If ever one were to feel somehow sympathetic to that particular villain, the pictures of dead parishioners and Maggie's sickening recollection of "the things he did... to Sister Anne" should serve as a reminder that this is a man containing very little humanity. Never mind what happens next.
That involves Karen, who has turned up at the church at the worst possible time. Her return is precipitated by an excellent passage, reminiscent of the opening two pages of the first chapter of the saga, where we have a brief insight into the thoughts and feelings of Ms Page. Sitting in Central Park, we find Karen reflecting on her life, how she has performed many roles, more than a few of which have defined her as a victim rather than someone in control of her own destiny. But that's probably not what is most heartbreaking. She reflects on her yo-yo-ing relationship with Matt - how she has both sought him out and abandoned from time to time, also realizing that she too has been betrayed by him.
I once read somewhere that drama thrives on conflict. That means that when heroes that are part of ongoing long running dramas, whether that be through comic books, serials or soap operas, can never truly be afforded much happiness. If nature abhors a vacuum, then the comic book landscape abhors any sense of its characters being content. As such, one could argue that Karen and Matt's dysfunctional, often tragic relationship is compelled by meta-themes that are outside their control. In terms of the characters themselves, it reflects rather badly upon them. They both yearn for each other, seek each other out, despite the fact that inevitably they will hurt each other in some way. And frankly, for all Karen's lifestyle choices that Matt babbled about so bitterly in the previous issue, it seems to me that the failings in their relationship fall more squarely in Mr Murdock's court than Miss Page's.
There is a real tragedy then in Karen's final decision - to return to her lover, not, as she has done previously, to "collapse into your arms, hoping you'll fix it all" but as equals, sentimentally believing the notion: "Two broken souls that together can be whole". Finally, and probably truthfully, she concludes, "I need you now, yes... more than ever. But you need me... just as much." When she gets to the church and actually has the bottle to hold a gun to Bullseye's head and pull the trigger, the weight of those brave words ring true. Alas, the barrel is empty but what follows, for one final time, demonstrates how much Karen is willing to sacrifice for her ex-employer.
Just a word, before we finish, on Joe Quesada's great work thus far. Joe's backgrounds and borders of the pages in this storyline have often been excellent and, here, I love the Celtic knots that accompany the early scenes with Strange.
All in all, then, a terrific, gut wrenching issue - an epochal moment that is, thankfully, delivered with heartbreaking precision.
Cast
Daredevil/Matt Murdock
Karen Page
Sister Maggie
Bullseye
Dr Stephen Strange
Mephisto
Wong
Gwyneth's baby
Rating: 10 out of 10
Guardian Devil Part 4: The Devil's Distaff by Kevin Smith & Joe Quesada
One Sentence Overview: Matt wrestles the mystical baby from the grip of the Black Widow and shares some home truths with both Sister Maggie and Karen
We all know that Matt Murdock is far from perfect. In addition, we know he can be a little tetchy from time to time or sink into the morass of despair. However, one aspect of Matt's character that Kevin seems keen to highlight in neon lights is his ability to blow a gasket. I can't think of a time before this run where Matt's anger bubbled over so dramatically, though I can recall that Bendis does allow his hero sudden outbursts of fury (hopefully not just because he's descended from the Irish and has red hair).
What makes Matt's rage more unpalatable in this issue is to whom he directs it. Basically this episode consists of Matt having three conversations with three women and losing it on each occasion. At times this makes for uncomfortable reading but it's also rather revelatory. (Indeed, the title of story, 'The Devil's Distaff' is an old English phrase which would refer to the female members of the family - so this is very much the deliberate intent of the issue).
First up is the Black Widow who is, naturally, in Matt's bad books because she's strapped the baby anti-Christ to her back. Natasha's just saved Matt from being run over by a truck (an explicit allusion to another quite similar event in the DD mythology - I'm sure you can guess which one) but no matter. That baby's going to destroy the world so Matt has to take action. What follows is pretty disturbing as DD, menacingly drawn by Joe Q, circles Natasha before finally grabbing her by the throat and twisting (and possibly breaking) her ankle. Okay, Natasha's opening rejoinder, "Didn't your mother ever tell you not to play in traffic?" lacked sensitivity but Matt's reaction is a bit extreme. Was Hank Pym this vicious towards the Wasp?
Matt's only saving grace is that one could say that he's brainwashed in some way by Macabes following that villain's assertions about the baby but it sure does bring to mind the uncomfortable rationalising of those individuals who commit domestic violence. As such, Kevin comes perilously close to alienating long-term fans of the book. After nearly succeeding in killing the poor baby, Matt comes to his senses - thanks, of all things, to a cross atop a nearby church spire. This leads him to his second encounter with, who else, Sister Maggie.
JM DeMatteis once said in an interview with Kuljit Mithra on the Man Without Fear website that Marvel bosses told him he wasn't to directly address the issue that Maggie may be Matt's mother. Well, perhaps it's because we're working in a new regime or perhaps it's because Kevin was given a free hand by the Marvel Knights team but it's pretty much made explicitly clear here that Maggie is indeed Matt's mother and, for the first time, we really see the two enter into a dialogue about this.
Whilst I do think Matt treated Natasha shamefully, I'm less aggrieved about his anger towards Maggie. I've commented before that I think he's let her off lightly, seemingly in awe of the nun's good works to the extent that he dare not admit any resentment that she up and abandoned him as a baby. Here, though, he gives her (figuratively,thankfully) both barrels. As the conversation edges towards the important elements, Matt finally utters, "Can't we dispense with this charade... just this once?" and allows the floodgates to open. Soon he's chastising her for choosing God over her family, leading him to yell, "He let you off the hook pretty easily, didn't he?" which actually leads to a brief chink in Maggie's serene facade - she responds by slapping him across the face.
The dialogue leads on to deeper issues that one might expect from an author examining his own Catholic roots. Matt demands to know why Maggie believes when so many suffer and the Kingpin prospers. Maggie does not answer the question directly but instead tells a tales advocating a life dedicating to good deeds as being beneficial both for others and for one's own relationship with God, should He exist. A cynic might find it glib but it appears, briefly, to becalm Matthew.
I say briefly because the third woman to feel the lash of the Murdock tongue has just entered the church. Karen has come looking for Matt (fearing she may have infected him with the HIV virus) and we actually see her praying before talking to her boyfriend. Unfortunately the topic of conversation that she decides upon makes Matt 'see' red. She suggests they give the baby to Macabes. Well, five minutes ago, Matt was all for flinging the little infant from the rooftops but now he's enraged by how Karen has been taken in the manipulator. When she goes so far to suggest that the baby has caused her condition, Matt responds callously, "You have AIDS, because you were a junkie, Karen! A junkie who was with God only knows who and how many people! Your carelessness destroyed your life, Karen."
Ouch. As I say, not a comfortable read at all. One could put this issue down as one of Matt's least finest hours. Comparable in some ways to his former seduction by Typhoid Mary, it's difficult to know how much of this is Matt and how much he's being manipulated. However, the clear conclusion is that he has to surely shoulder the blame for some of the blatantly bad behaviour on display here.
Having said all that, the interactions do make for compelling reading and the fact that Matt finally confronts Maggie makes this a key issue for any DD fan.
Cast
Daredevil/Matt Murdock
Karen Page
Black Widow/Natasaha Romanoff
Sister Maggie
Bullseye
Nicholas Macabes/Mysterio
Gwyneth's baby
Mr Gabriel
Rating: 8 out of 10
Guardian Devil Part 3: Dystopia by Kevin Smith and Joe Quesada
One Sentence Overview: Whilst Matt announces his intentions to defend Foggy against a murder charge, Karen's perception of her physical well-being is altered by a mysterious visitor
Okay, part two ended with the very disturbing revelation that Karen, who had returned to Matt, has AIDS (Karen's words, not mine - Matt, who is more sanguine, states here she is HIV positive). This dramatic invasion of real life into Daredevil may feel uncomfortable but hasn't that often occurred when DD is at its best? Given Karen's former activities following her initial leaving Murdock & Nelson to pursue an acting career, it's certainly true that her lifestyle choices were leaving her at greater risk of contracting that particular disease. What is more unusual - and significant here - is the timing. As Karen herself expresses, she had submitted herself to regular testing following her recovery from heroin addiction, but that strange chap, Nicholas Macabes, has another theory as to why she's suddenly HIV positive - the baby.
I guess a lot of how you view Guardian Devil relies on how much you believe in the ability of this Macabes fellow to pull the wool over the eyes of our favourite characters. After all, they've been round the block, they're experience and Nicholas' reasoning isn't really terribly rational. But I guess part of the overall story is about extraordinary beliefs - and also misdirection. Whatever you think of the tale, though, I do enjoy Joey Q's art. I like Karen's downtime outfit of (presumably) Matt's boxing shorts - oh, and the socks. Boy, Joe Quesada's good at drawing socks.
Well, before you accuse me of being perverse, let's see what else is going on here. Last issue, Foggy was about to get frisky with one Lydia McKenzie. Here, we learn that once Mr Nelson and his seductress made it as far as the bedroom, Lydia's disrobing was revealing in a rather unexpected way.
Lydia then hurls herself out the window to her death, leaving Foggy suddenly arrested and accused of murder. This allows Matt, naturally, to stand in the gap, as he so often does and agree to defend his old buddy no matter what. His mother, perhaps unsurprisingly, given what we know about her to date, does not appear to be just as willing to throw the company resources to defend her son. When she informs Matt as such (and Matt blows a gasket in response), what strangely doesn't ring true is not so much her dispassion but the appearance of tears when she tells Murdock that she's agonised over how she could possibly clear him. I say this because, firstly, she's never really been actively involved in Foggy's life and, secondly, she makes is clear to Matt early on that she's taken on Foggy in order to obtain the services of Mr Murdock (on the final page of DD353). Nevertheless, Rosalind's latter day acquisition of a heart isn't enough to save Matt from uttering that immortal phrase...
Free from the shackles of Ms Sharpe, Daredevil takes out his frustrations on a thug (which makes one wonder, how often DD actually uses his superheroic duties as a kind of stress relief). This turns out to be a trap and leaves Daredevil facing a behemoth type calling himself Baal in a strange sensory deprivation environment clearly developed to mess with DD's powers (implying that whoever set it up has an awareness of who our hero actually is). That's not as interesting as the fact that this is the second time Daredevil has fought a villain called Baal - the first time being DD84, where the being in question was some freaky weirdo from 12,000 years in the future. This clearly isn't the same guy and his naming is presumably down to the idol that frequently appeared in the Bible, given the theme of this whole tale.
The ongoing storyline of Guardian Devil, and indeed how comics now conduct themselves more commonly as episodes that perhaps are more satisfying when read in a collected edition, mean that some episodes aren't quite as satisfying as others. I like the story but this particular chapter is perhaps more about unwrapping some exposition before the shocking impact of some of the later events. But it's still well written and the art is lovely.
Cast
Daredevil/Matt Murdock
Foggy Nelson
Karen Page
Rosalind Sharpe
Nicholas Macabes/Mysterio
Lydia McKenzie
Baal 2
Reggie
Rating: 6 out of 10
Guardian Devil Part 2: The Unexamined Life by Kevin Smith & Joe Quesada
One Sentence Overview: Intrigued by the baby that Gwyneth has left with him, Matt's opinion of the child is drastically altered by a visit from the mysterious Nicholas Macabees
Oh, here's Kevin getting all heavy again with a philosophical quote as a title. It's not, as one may think given the territory this tale covers, Biblical but Socratic in origin. The quotation in full is 'The unexamined life is not worth living' (see here for more details) and is also keen in Catholic theology as it asks the individual not to take things at face value but evaluate them and consider their worth.
For Matt, the question he's currently wrestling with is who is this baby he's been left with? Last issue ended with the mysterious and (allegedly) virginal Gwyneth dumping her baby with the lawyer because she has been instructed by angels to do so. She's also informed Matt that the baby is some kind of redeemer. This has caused Matt more than a little angst and his uncertainty about what's going on is increased when a nice old man called Nicholas Macabes turns up at his office to tell him that the child is the Anti-Christ.
Wow, Nick. That's not nice. Identifying Matt as a "somewhat religious man" (which probably is as accurate as we can muster with Matt), he seems to send our hero into panic with talk of his representing a mysterious organisation Sheol (which is the Hebrew word for 'grave') that has operated behind the scenes at every superhuman origin in an effort to protect the world from harm. It's not too difficult to see the issues that Kevin's wrestling with here - tossing out the religious view that incidents are not accidental or coincidental but have some kind of divine plan behind them. However, if that offends your intellect, he also has Nicholas make a very provocative statement when, reflecting upon the incident last issue that remarked upon the deaths of babies in the city's maternity wards, he asks why a child designated as a saviour would "allow so many infants to die in its name".
By so doing, Nicholas invokes the Biblical story of Jesus' escape from Herod's soldiers, whilst all other babies were slaughtered. As such, the statement perhaps reflects the ongoing concern of why a loving God would allow suffering.
It may therefore not be surprising that Matt's head is spinning following this conversation and he takes out his agitation on a poor guy who tries to mug him. It's only when he realises some kids are watching him work the guy over that he realises he's out of control. This sudden burst of violence reflects Matt's sometime loss of temper and, unlike on Dan Chichester's run, it's something he regrets.
It doesn't allow him to really process all the negativity from Macabees' visit, though. When he returns to retrieve the baby that he has left in the care of the Black Widow (who reminds DD that, in terms of babysitting, her "price range is a little out of your league"), following a short discussion as to whether he or Natasha would kill an infant Hitler given the chance, he decides to throw the baby off a top of a building.
It's clear that Matt's not thinking rationally at all in these moments. Lucky that Natasha's there to save the child (and reveal, interestingly, that it's a girl, not a boy, as stated by Gwyneth last issue).
Natasha's very presence is interesting and amusing, allowing Kevin to riff on how Matt often retreats to the Russian hero on the rebound from Karen. "Your girlfriend left you and you started feeling... nostalgic.. about us?" she enquires in answer to his call. One might expect Natasha to head for the hills, but next thing you know she's beginning to unzip her top and asking if he's up for the couch or the roof.
On this occasion, it's neither. It's babysitting he's after, as noted above. Though it ends up as more than that as Natasha finds herself having to relieve Matt of any childminding responsibilities, following his shocking convictions regarding the child. Perhaps a little more examination next time, Matt.
Elsewhere, Foggy seems to be getting very friendly with a client, Lydia McKenzie, who has come to him for help with a divorce case. Who'd have thought Foggy capable of doing the dirty behind Liz Osborne's back. That's definitely an unexamined outcome. And Karen's back. With bad news. But we'll come on to that next time.
Cast
Daredevil/Matt Murdock
Foggy Nelson
Karen Page
Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff
Spider-man/Peter Parker
Hulk/Bruce Banner
Gwyneth
Gwyneth's baby
Nicholas Macabes/Mysterio
Lydia McKenzie
Mr Gabriel
Rating: 7 out of 10
Guardian Devil Part 1: ...And a Child Shall Lead Them All by Kevin Smith & Joe Quesada
One Sentence Overview: When Karen leaves him, Matt falls back on his Catholic faith and rescues a young girl and her baby from dark forces chases her
Volume Two! At last!
It's been a while since we finished volume one and, as such, it can be easy to forget that this densely written and often quite funny tale immediately followed 'Flying Blind'. However, Daredevil's re-boot was at least partially due to Marvel comics being at their lowest ebb and close to bankruptcy. At the time, Joe Quesada was invited to take on a range of books under the moniker, 'Marvel Knights', with the remit to create earthier stories for characters like the Punisher and the Black Panther and, in so doing, introducing impressive new creative talents and rebooting Marvel's fortunes. In some ways, perhaps, the biggest coup was being able to reinvest Daredevil with the credibility the hero had had up to issue 300 of the first volume.
And that fondly remembered credibility, particularly the stories of Frank Miller, enabled Joe to engage a well-known film director, who, like his good buddy, Ben Affleck, (who writes the introduction to the trade paperback, Guardian Devil), was a huge Daredevil fan. I'm not sure how much convincing Kevin Smith had to take on the scripting duties but I suspect he was thrilled.
Guardian Devil was published after Chasing Amy hit cinema screens in 1997 and before Dogma in 1999. Despite the former film having comic book creators at its heart, it's that latter film that has a clear bearing on the overall story here. For, famously, Kevin Smith is a Catholic, though perhaps one could say not an arch traditionalist. If Dogma makes clear that he's very capable about being both thoughtful and profane about his own faith, then it shouldn't be surprising that he decides to highlight on an aspect of Matt's personality that's been hinted at in the past but not really explored in any great detail.
Writers such as Denny O'Neill (with Matt quoting Biblical texts at a zealot in DD194) and DG Chichester (whose Daredevil reflects on prayers and lighting candles at the beginning of his run) have identified Matt's Catholic upbringing. Most famously, Frank Miller invoked explicit religious imagery in 'Born Again' - and there was always the nicely ironic juxtaposition of a man of (some) faith calling himself a devil. At the same time, Ann Nocenti, having sent Daredevil to Hell, brings him back to earth convinced he must have been hallucinating because he doesn't believe in such a place (DD284).
These details lead me to believe that Matt is a nominal Catholic. He is not particularly religious but there's something there, something perhaps instilled by Sister Maggie amongst others. As to why this is not made explicit in the earliest issues of Daredevil is because I don't think comics in the early 60s were overly concerned about such details as religious faith - being such a polemical issue it could have driven readers away - and only much later did comics becomes interested in exploring these issues and, more often than not, portraying such faith in a negative light. Kevin Smith obviously brings his own 'baggage' to the story and was perhaps interested in using Matt's own Catholic background to examine some of what he was interested in.
It's also very clear here that Matt struggles with this aspect of his life. When he intervenes in some thuggish behaviour in an alleyway, he waxes philosophically about how God must be disappointed in humanity "if you even exist".
And early on, he attends confession, telling his priest that it's been "far too long" since he last attended.
So it's not exactly as if he's so inspired, he's thinking of studying for the priesthood. In fact, this urge to confess appears to be provoked by the fact that Karen has left him to return to the West Coast for a radio job. This is revealed in a terrific piece of text, told over the first two pages of the comic, where Karen says she's gone because she believes (weirdly considering all the shenanigans over Typhoid Mary and his continual yo-yo-ing between her and Natasha) that he's too good for her. And it's down to that old Catholicism. Not only has Matt (jokingly, the text assures us) been asking Karen to accompany him to Mass but she reveals, "I know you've always been able to forgive, Matt - it's one of the aspects of your faith that I've long admired. But forgetting... well, that's never been your strongest suit." Later Matt remarks that he resents the implication that he would have judged her.
Matt's dormant faith is but one aspect of a story that seems imbued in Christology. The plot being introduced here focuses on a teenage girl, running away with a baby she is convinced is a redeemer, whilst simultaneously ensuring Matt that she's a virgin. Hmmm. I'm sure I've heard that story somewhere else...
A word on Joe Q's art, which is pretty sumptuous. He draws Matt with deliberately dead eyes, moreso than any other artist to date, though his Foggy looks more of a parody of our favourite Mr Nelson.
I do like the way some of the pages have seemingly antiquated quasi religious borders. Early on, one sequence highlighting trouble in a maternity ward is accompanied by what I think is an old painting that depicts Herod's slaughter of the innocent.
That's very highbrow.
Cast
Daredevil/Matt Murdock
Foggy Nelson
Rosalind Sharpe
Nicolas Macabes/Mysterio
Gwyneth
Gwyneth's baby
Lydia MacKenzie
Mr Gabriel
Kim
Hell's Kitchen Priest
Rating: 8 out of 10
The Man Without Fear Part 5 by Frank Miller and John Romita Jr.
One Sentence Overview: Matt chases after the Kingpin's right hand man, Larks, who has kidnapped Mickey
One of The Man Without Fear's legacies is the whole unfortunate 'dead' prostitute/Typhoid Mary set up. The most controversial aspect of this is not that the poor woman falling to her doom is actually one of DD's latter day enemies/girlfriends but that Matt kills the young lady. This makes Matt a 'killer'. However, later retconning revealing her to have survived means that he's not. Hurrah!
Er, wait a second. Episode Five may take issue with that as we open with Matt and two thugs sinking in a bay and, oh dear, one of them has a knife. A struggle ensues. The text tells us "A knife... No choice.. Give it back to him".
Hmmm. And actually he's not the only one who's killed as a direct result of interaction with Daredevil this issue. Indeed, in terms of scoring - and not counting Typhoid Mary - the Man Without Fear saga still ends with a score of two in the 'Bye Bye Sweet Life' stakes against Mr Murdock. Frank Castle would have wept with pride over this issue.
As one expects with the final episode of a saga, the issue is dominated by an action set piece involving Matt and the villain of the piece. As in the best Daredevil, the bad guy's not exactly Galactus, rather he's the Kingpin's premiere hitman, Larks - a prototype Bullseye, if you will. Not surprisingly, this action oriented conclusion zips along at break neck speed - remember, this was originally to be the conclusion of a graphic novel, so it's not surprising that the creators didn't pause for breath and leave too much space for talking heads. However, it's also the predominant style of comic book writing these days, with the apparent assumption of wandering attention spans.
Anyway, it's still pretty good. Long time readers of this blog will know that action scenes aren't always what enthralls me but when it's done well, it can be really effective and Daredevil's eventual confrontation with Larks is both thrilling and chilling.
I also enjoyed how Mickey, who is presented as living in a pre-superhero New York, assumes Matt has 'magic powers' rather than superpowers when he comes to rescue him. A throwaway line that seems well thought through.
However, the best moment occurs in the story's coda and, perversely, involves my least favourite ongoing DD character. Matt's shenanigans in New York when he should have been back in Boston have led to him being fired - so who else is he going to get together with than his old buddy, Mr Nelson. Here, one essential Daredevil detail is finally revealed in rather winning fashion - how they decided upon 'Nelson & Murdock'. I've always loved the fact that Matt works for 'Nelson & Murdock' and not 'Murdock & Nelson' - it tells you something about Matt's character as well as reminding the reader of Foggy's legal worth too. However, it turns out that it wasn't so much Matt's being humble as the naming being established by a coin toss. Strangely, the coin goes astray and ends up in Stick's fist (who just happens to be drinking in the same bar as the boys). Stick returns the coin to Matt, informing him he's lost the toss and now he has to "come in second... so don't you get cocky."
A great line. And, yes, the fact that Matt's accepts the result does still say something about his character.
Cast
Daredevil/Matt Murdock
Foggy Nelson
Kingpin/Wilson Fisk
Stick
Mickey/Dominique Moram
Larks
Mick
Rating: 8 out of 10
Apologies, folks, for the lack of posting over the last few months. I guess partly I needed the break and I've been doing other writing too. However, now TMWF is finished, we can start on volume two and I'll try and step things up a gear so that we're a good way through this by the end of the year. Hopefully. As always, thanks for reading.
