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Daredevil #10 (1965)
Wally Wood’s stint with Daredevil was short, but he turned out some amazing work including the now iconic redesign of the character’s costume. Wood pulls double duty on issue 10 as both the artist and writer, and he pretty much perfects the Silver Age version of Daredevil with this one story.
It’s a daring caper wrapped in mystery and political intrigue featuring a masked figure known as The Organizer. He wants to discredit the city’s government and take control of the entire administration, which is a story that lends itself to utilizing both Matt Murdock and his Daredevil alter ego.
The Organizer is easily the most realistic and conniving of Daredevil’s rouges gallery so far. Yes, we’ve had stories in which the main villain hires goons to do their dirty work, such The Owl and Mr. Fear respectively. Wood’s story has some silly moments as well – for example, The Organizer can take control of a specific single television, or his henchman Bird Man can fly off (using a flight suit, albeit a very basic opne) with a hostage despite not being able to fly when Daredevil jumps on his back. However, it’s much less silly than when The Owl captured Daredevil and Karen Page and held them in human sized bird cages or how the Owl has the power to glide using air currents. Apparently, the Owl’s powers are obtain via a serum but that won’t be reveal until later in the series.
A small but refreshing change Wood makes is not using the alliteration naming convention for these new characters (except Henry Hawk aka Bird Man). Is it on the nose that all the members of this organization have physical features that resemble their animal code names? Sure. But Wood’s story strikes a balance that highlights Daredevil’s superpowers against a group of well-armed thugs, which is when Daredevil is at his best.
It’ll be interesting to see how Lee ends Wood’s two-part mystery, and whether issue 11 will end up taking itself too seriously. As far as I’m concerned, this issue of Daredevil is the epitome of Silver Age comics.
Rating: 5/5.
Daredevil #659
Chip Zdarsky puts Matt Murdock up against the wall with issue 10 (Legacy issue 658). The story picks up where the last issue left off, with the Daredevils face to face with the Avengers. Elektra goes on the offensive to give Matt a head start to secure the Book of the Fist, and Spider-Man is tasked with getting Matt to surrender before anyone else gets hurt.
Simple stories are always great because they have the potential to explore more interesting and creative ideas to advance the narrative. Here, Daredevil’s mission is to get the book and survive. This issue is filled with such tension, not just panel-to-panel but page-to-page. Zdarsky’s writing and pacing in this issue is spectacular and thank God Marco Checchetto is back as the artist!
Watching Elektra go up against Captain America and Black Panther was fantastic, and we’re reminded just how dangerous Elektra is, which is something that’s really been absent in this run. The fight is bright and colorful and the dialogue is sharp, giving us a glimpse of Elektra’s beliefs versus the Avenger’s ideologies. Just as good (if not better) is the showdown between Daredevil and Spidey. They duke it out on the remote parts of the island. The use of shadows and dark colors is a great contrast for these characters which really mute the brighter colors of their costumes. Gone is the “friendly neighborhood” Spider-Man in this issue. He looks menacing and much less carefree. On top of that, Zdarsky builds up Spider-Man as being able to best Daredevil. Matt mentions that the First magic has made him faster and stronger, yet that might not be enough against Spidey. Daredevil does win the fight, but he does so by getting Spider-Man to lower his guard.
This is where the book slows down as Matt finds himself at a crossroads when he meets up with Robert “Goldy” Goldman atop a mountain. Again, Checchetto’s art is so vibrant. There’s a kinetic energy to it and here it’s quite and contemplative. You can almost hear the silence as the gentle snow falls all around. Matt breaks the silence coming to terms with what he should do next. Realizing he has nothing left to lose, Daredevil teams up with Goldy, and Goldy sets an avalanche into motion causing the Avengers to evacuate the island. The two are seen falling into the landslide. Meanwhile Peter from the wing of the plane screams out looking for any sign of life from Matt. All they see is Daredevil’s cowl in the snow. Obviously, they’re not dead, but the narration boxes in the last panels are a gut punch as Matt narrates the life he wants with Elektra, which is a peaceful and seemingly regular life.
A desperate Daredevil is dangerous, and I can’t wait to see what happens next. There’s an epic quality to this issue and like Dante’s Inferno, every rung of hell gets worse. If Zdarksy keeps this caliber of writing up until the end of his run, then this run will be something special even if he did take his sweet time getting there.
Rating: 5/5.
The writer of this piece is: Laurence Almalvez
Laurence tweets from @IL1511
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