Daredevil

[Newtype]

Miller made us want to read daredevil,but bendis made us care about Matt murdock.

[Ganny McVagflaps]

Matt has told everyone his secret identity - it's not as if there were really that many people who didn't already know.

 

 

Just came across this....

 

9  Dr. Van Eyck, famous eye surgeon, figured out Matt's secret. Van Eyck had examined Matt Murdock and later saw DD in action. Van Eyck died disabling an atomic pile.

 

24  Spider-Man sends MM a letter stating that he (Spidey) knows DD's identity but won't tell anybody. Foggy and Karen read the letter 'cuz Matt has disappeared and they're worried. Leads to the creation of the Mike Murdock identity (issues 25-41). DD and Spidey tell each other their secret identities in the Sin-Eater storyline in Spectacular Spider-Man later on.

 

27  Matt "tells" the Masked Marauder that Mike Murdock really is Daredevil (part of a gambit to defeat the villain, naturally). The Masked Marauder appears to die in this story but comes back a few years later in Iron Man and still later in Spectacular Spider-Man (in a story that features the very first time Frank Miller drew DD). In neither appearance, does he ever make any reference of this "knowledge." If he hadn't been killed, you'd think he would have sought revenge on Nelson & Murdock.

 

51  Starr Saxon, a villain, discovers Matt is DD.

 

52  The Black Panther discovers Matt is DD.

 

54  MM fakes his own death to avoid blackmail by Starr Saxon. Spidey concludes he was silly to have written that letter back in issue 24.

 

57  DD tells Karen Page he is DD.

 

84  The Black Widow discovers Matt is DD.

 

85  Ivan, Natasha's sidekick knows Matt is DD, presumably having been told between issues.

 

85?  Matt and 'Tasha were on a flight which was skyjacked by the Gladiator. During the course of the ensuing melee, a passenger on the plane, Nathanial Taggart, discovers that Matt is DD. His help allows DD to save the people on-board and he pledges to keep Matt's secret.

 

92  His identity is blown by a San Francisco TV station. TV reports go out saying that Matt is Daredevil. Matt solves the problem by having the Black Panther dress up as Daredevil and fight a battle while Matt looks on for the TV cameras. Matt explains that the original Daredevil was Mike Murdock and the new Daredevil is someone else. This issue ties up most of the unresolved identity stories from the issues before it.

 

149/50?  Matt tells Heather Glenn his secret.

 

154/55?  The Purple Man discovers Matt is DD.

 

158  The Death Stalker knows. He's toast by the end of the issue, though.

 

164  Ben Urich figured things out.

 

168  Elektra knows Matt is DD.

 

195  A drunken Heather Glenn spilled the beans on Matt's ID to Tarkington Brown. Brown had died of cancer by issue #200.

 

209  Johnny Squarejohn, a man who grew up with Matt, makes the connection, but dies at the end of the issue when one of Mrs. Sterling's robots explodes. Mrs. Sterling of course was Death-Stalker's mother. So, she may have known Matt was DD, or she just programmed the robots using data Death-Stalker collected about where DD usually was etc. and what he looked like.

 

210  Micah Synn uses his sense of smell to determine that a scarf worn by Matt Murdock has the same scent as a piece of Daredevil's costume.

 

223  The Beyonder tries to understand Matt's motivation to be DD.

 

227  Kingpin finds out through Karen Page.

 

254  Typhoid Mary is told by the Kingpin.

 

298  S.H.I.E.L.D. lets Matt know they know he's DD.

 

319-325  Matt's identity is revealed in a tabloid, but he manages to convince reporters he's not DD. However, several people in the "Fall From Grace" arc know for sure... Eddie Passim probes DD's mind and realizes DD is blind. Erynys, Snakeroot, and John Garrett all know, by way of Elektra's 'essence'.

 

348  Foggy Nelson finds Matt in his costume.

 

352  Mastermind tricks Matt in order to save Foggy.

 

371  X-Man Cecelia Reyes sees Matt without his mask on.

 

Vol. 2 #1-8  We learn that Gwyneth, the girl who gives Matt the child, knows he is DD. She's killed in later issues though. We also learn that Mysterio knows, as does Mr. Gabriel and the rest of Mysterio's henchman. But all the henchman are killed by Mysterio too, and Mysterio takes his own life while fighting DD.

 

Vol. 2 #15  Echo (Maya) finally realizes Matt and Daredevil are the same person when she notices DD's blood on his cheek forms a question mark, like Matt had in earlier issues.

 

Vol. 2 #30  Richard Fisk and Kingpin's men tell Silke that they've known that Matt and DD are one and the same for a long time. All are killed in later issues.

 

Vol. 2 #32  FBI finds out, but are ordered to keep it under wraps. Yet, the info is leaked by one of the agents and the Daily Globe prints that Matt Murdock is Daredevil. Matt holds a press conference in later issues denying he is Daredevil, but many people still believe the rumours. Subsequently, Vanessa Fisk lets Matt know who sold out his identity.

 

Vol. 2 #38  Luke Cage and Iron Fist confirm their suspicions while trying to convince Matt to defend the White Tiger in a trial.

 

Vol. 2 #41  Milla Donovan knows that Matt and DD's voice are from the same person... and her friend Lori clues in as well.

Vol. 2 #50  Patrons at Josie's Bar get an earful from an unmasked Daredevil as he proclaims he's now the 'Kingpin' of Hell's Kitchen. Wilson Fisk lays unconscious on the floor, after DD drove him through the window after their battle earlier.

 

Who else?

 

Ben Reilly, Peter Parker's clone.

 

Nyla, from Matt's 'amnesia' days probably does know but she knew Matt as 'Jack Murdock'.

 

Reed Richards definitely knows, as was shown in DD II#56

 

Wolverine probably knows by his sense of smell, but it's never been shown.

 

Bullseye has made the connection, dismissed it, and now definitely knows (see Vol.2 #49)

 

Captain America has seen Matt (during Born Again) out of costume, and now he knows for sure (issue #65)

 

Dr. Strange also knows, having probed Matt's mind in one of the Annuals.

 

Sister Maggie obviously knows.

 

Stick and the rest of The Chaste know, as does The Hand.

 

Mr. Fear (III) (Larry Cranston) discovered Matt's identity while working as a law partner of Murdock's in S.F..

 

Underground Dwellers from the Humanity's Fathom storyline all know.

 

Falcon, Tork and Black Cat, during the Gang War story in Amazing Spider-Man, all saw Matt without his mask on.

 

Captain Marvel (I) knew as well.

 

Crossbones unmasked DD during the Streets of Poison storyline in Captain America.

 

Moondragon knows from issue 105.

 

Mandrill and Nekra both know from issue 110.

 

Mephisto most certainly knows from DD's adventure into Hell.

 

Timmy, Leap-Frog's son sees DD without his mask on, from the 'Wake Up' storyline by Bendis/Mack.

 

Batman knows from the crossover one-shot.

 

The Watcher obviously knows.

 

Doctors from the Inferno storyline have seen Matt without his mask on, after they help him heal from his beating at the hands of Bullet, Bushwacker, etc.

 

Mary Jane Parker has probably made the connection, but it's never been shown.

 

Voodoo Priest Mambo from 243-244 knew as well. Her knowledge is confirmed when she has the Nameless One leave Matt's glove, dripping with blood, hanging in Matt and Karen's apartment. It's unclear if the Nameless One knew, or was just following orders.

 

Jessica Jones reveals to the reader that she knows Matt is DD (in _Alias_), and is upset that Matt never told her while she was his bodyguard.

 

Yakuza try their best to take over Hell's Kitchen, convinced that Matt Murdock is DD.

 

What I need to know, does Speedball know yet? He'd be devistated, he HATES redheads.

[The NZA]

Damn, id hate to see Peter Parker's list...

 

still, i dont see how that takes from the public outing that Bendis gave him, its still a huge event to have your name on the frontpage, without having the Watcher undo it or some shit.

I forget when he told Foggy, too, but anyway, a tabliod outing on that scale was unheard of before, wasnt it? Cmon, it won a Wizard award (for what thats worth), if im not mistaken, because it was an awesome arc.

[Silent Bob]

Heh, even Batman knows and he's not even in the same universe!

[The NZA]

 

this week, Bendis' 5-year-arc concludes. I cant fucking wait to see how it goes down, but its already being said not everyone makes it out alive.

Any concernes i had about a follow-up writer were quelled when i realized it was Brubaker (Gotham Central, Captain America) was next in line.

 

I think its fairly safe to say this has, consistently, been Bendis' best Marvel work. Ultimate Spidey had some very slow points (this one only felt slow around Black Widow, for me), and people can complian on his team books, but this entire arc coming together puts Bendis up with Miller's work on the title, in my book.

[The NZA]

please say someone else read this finale....Daredevil # 81 went out with a bang, and i ddint see it coming.

 

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I dont normally go with Silver Bullet reviews, but this one wasnt far off...

 

“The Murdock Papers: Part 6”

 

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis

Artists: Alex Maleev, Dave Stewart (colours)

 

This issue marks the end of Bendis and Maleev’s epic run on Daredevil, and whilst I wish I could say it goes out on an all-time high, it at least offers up something of a resolution to the story of Matt’s out-ing in the press which has plagued him for the majority of the team’s four-year mega-arc. Bendis has been in danger of losing direction ever since he had Matt declare himself Kingpin of Hell’s Kitchen, as – whilst this twist offered up some interesting story possibilities which were explored directly afterwards – subsequent arcs have had the feeling of treading water without as strong a sense of story as you’d expect from such a revered writer. Thankfully, “The Murdock Papers” has seen Bendis return to the kind of dense plotting and complex webs of character relationships which characterised his earlier work on the title, and it provides a fitting end to his Daredevil oeuvre, even if it isn’t as conclusive or defining as I might have expected.

 

Our hero was left in a pretty dire situation last month, exposed as Daredevil once and for all, and awaiting trial after being captured by the FBI. Yet for all the undeniable good that Matt has done as a superhero, Bendis is careful not to paint him as a sympathetic victim of circumstance. A central thread of the writer’s approach to Matt’s outing has been the character’s continuous – and morally ambiguous - denial of his dual identity, and as the stakes have grown higher and higher, we’ve seen the potential consequences of Matt’s inevitable downfall grow more and more serious. I’m reminded of the line from Withnail & I: “If you were hanging on to a rising balloon, you're presented with a difficult decision... let go before it's too late? Or hang on and keep getting higher? Posing the question, how long can you keep a grip on the rope?” Here, Marvel shows commendable conviction in allowing Bendis to follow this idea through to its logical conclusion, and although I was slightly disappointed that this issue didn’t tie off as many of the writer’s loose ends as it could have done, or provide an iconic finale to the team’s run, it’s the most organic and natural way to allow their story to end. I’ll be interested to see if the powers-that-be choose to link this story up to Marvel’s big Civil War summer event, because - taken as a whole - it’s one of the most realistic treatments of the problems that can be caused by a hero’s dual identity that I’ve ever read, but I’ll be even more interested to see what kind of approach the new creative team which starts on the book next month choose to bring to the new status quo.

 

Bendis devotes a fairly substantial chunk of this issue to a fantasy sequence which presents Matt fleeing the courtroom and, with the aid of his superhero buddies, leaving America to build a new life complete with a false identity and an erased past. On a first reading, the revelation that this “ending” is entirely in Matt’s head seems like a cheap trick and a waste of valuable space in Bendis’ final issue, but once you see its context in the finished issue, it actually makes far more sense as a storytelling tool. Matt’s daydream is symbolic of his reaction to his out-ing ever since the press got hold of his story, but it also gives Bendis the chance to explore the alternative possibilities which were open to him in ending his run. Although it’s an exciting and in many ways more fitting solution to Matt’s predicament, it’s also far more predictable and cliché (even to the point of having Bullseye show up to kill yet another of Matt’s girlfriends, and having Matt seek solace in Elektra yet again). As such, Bendis makes a strong case for his actual ending as an original and somewhat daring step in a new direction, which doesn’t offer up the kind of simple status-quo-resetting solution you’d find in the character’s Silver Age adventures but instead pushes the hero in a radical new direction.

 

Alex Maleev serves up a great finish to his artistic run on the book with this issue, proving again that he’s one of the most relentlessly self-improving artists working in mainstream comics today. Comparing his work here with his Daredevil debut in issue #26 shows just how far he has come, with subtleties now evident in his work which were simply not there a few years ago, and with a much-honed grasp of character nuances, facial expressions and action sequences. He’s managed to get out of the trap of stiff body language and repetitive facial expressions that his techniques provided in the run’s early years, and he proves a solid collaborator to hit all the right emotional notes that Bendis is aiming for in this final issue. His illustrations during the fantasy sequence are suitably optimistic and bright, before descending into the dark, shadowy urban sections of the issue which mark the metaphorical fall back down to earth for Matt. The issue’s closing sections drip with atmosphere and foreboding, setting up a real shift in tone for the next creative team, and I’ll be very interested to see how he parlays his skills into the new Bendis-penned Spider-Woman ongoing series. It would also be remiss not to note the hugely significant contribution of colourist Dave Stewart here, who enriches every page with his well-judged tones. I was particularly pleased to see Bendis pick out Stewart and previous colourist Matt Hollingsworth for particular praise in his essay which closes the issue, as they have both been integral to the success of the title’s art.

 

Despite some of my reservations about this relatively inconclusive and low-key ending for such an epic run, I’ll admit to being fairly intrigued by the situation Matt is left in at the issue’s end. It leaves Daredevil in an environment which holds a lot of storytelling promise, and would have come as a fairly groundbreaking and surprising move if it hadn’t been spoiled by advance Marvel solicitations. I’d like to say that it’s a ballsy move, but we’ll only really see if it’s a worthy idea when Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark take over to title in a month’s time. It could be seen as canny marketing on Marvel’s part, as it makes any readers who have got into Daredevil through Bendis’ run more likely to stick around and see how Brubaker follows him. But that said, I’m willing to give the publisher the benefit of the doubt on their decision to interlink the two teams’ stints on the book so integrally, as it’s nice to see a transition between two writers which is as smoothly-planned as this one seems to have been. Recent arcs might have seen the bloom come off the rose of Bendis’ Daredevil run, but it can’t be denied that he and Alex Maleev have made the character their own over the past few years. In doing so, they may have ignored some key elements (Matt the lawyer has only rarely been seen in action, and the character’s enhanced senses are only intermittently referenced) but they have played up the pulp-ish, noir-ish sensibilities that make the character stand out above the four-colour Marvel pack. I hope Brubaker and Lark can do the same.

[Newtype]

It was a sweet ending to DD. Thanks to Brian Michael Bendis for giving us a DD worth reading about and Alex Maleev for the great art.

[Silent Bob]

Haven't read it yet. I've been anxiously waiting for the trade so I can actually read it all together. It's so hard to wait...

[Newtype]

Daredevil# 82 Dear lord this book KICKED SO MUCH ASS. Brubaker & Lark are perfect for this book. Here I was thinking Matts live could,t get any worst then it already is. I was wrong. BUY THIS BOOK FORGET TRADE BUY IT. You'll be happy you did.

 

Great site if your a DD fan. Daredevil

[Silent Bob]

I've got a piece of fanart on that site.

[The NZA]

indeed, he does. Nice one, too.

 

 

im off to find # 82, seeing as how newtype's the one that got me back into this book to begin with...

[Ganny McVagflaps]

DD, Y and Max Punisher are the books I read in trades. I'm dying to see how Bendis wraps his run up (though it's not as if there hasn't been fucking spoilers online everywhere.... )

[Newtype]

im off to find # 82, seeing as how newtype's the one that got me back into this book to begin with...

 

Do you love me for it cause I got you hooked on a great book or hate me for it cause I got you hooked and you had to buy the trades when you had no money to spare.

[The NZA]

oh, i only have to donate about 3 pints of sperm for each hardcover. I figure there's about 2 left for me to get to have the whole run, so congrats, youre part of the reason there's like dozens of nicks running around soon.

[Newtype]

so congrats, youre part of the reason there's like dozens of nicks running around soon

[The NZA]

Daredevil# 82 Dear lord this book KICKED SO MUCH ASS. Brubaker & Lark are perfect for this book. Here I was thinking Matts live could,t get any worst then it already is. I was wrong. BUY THIS BOOK FORGET TRADE BUY IT. You'll be happy you did.

 

Fuck, you werent kiddin....that man hit the ground running! Here i was thinkin itd lose steam post-bendis....that's what he does for an opener?!

Seriously, experiences DD's going through last issue & this one really seperates him from the rest of the Marvel U for me: his shit's so unique, somehow written so real at certain points, somehow....ive got a coulpe dozen books to catch up on, but this one always tops the list.

Props to Lark for keeping Maleev's style gong in his own way, too.

[The NZA]

holy christ.

 

ok, bendis & maleev's run was amazing. After Hardcore, i was all into "the king of hell's kitchen", then the black widow arc slowed things down. Next was Golden Age, which was a fun look at the pre-Kingpin and early DD history, followed by The Decalogue which was a great idea but kinda played out more like a Mammet production than a DD story, i thought.

Murdock Papers tied off the whole thing in an explosive finale, and

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the dream sequence in the final issue was just awsesome, really believable for me

.

 

But a few issues into Bru & Lark's run, and im raelizing this book is marvel's finest title right now, and its still on taht "fuck i cant wait till the trade's out" list of mine. Seriously, # 83 just came out....

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Skeet, you readin this? Matt's in fuxking Oz!

theyre taking this book in a direction ive never seen a mainstream comic go, and i seriously cant wait each month to see the next one.

[Ganny McVagflaps]

Is there a record for quickest trade released ever 'cause "The Murdock Papers" may have won. I'd say it was well worth the wait, but it was only a month. Great way to end it. IC, you called the dream sequence and you're completly right. I was well impressed at how it was done. Coulda been contrived and bad-bendis! but was done great.

 

Thanks to BMB for giving away that

 

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Foggy Nelson gets killed

 

in his afterword, dirty fucker. Oh well, I'm sure I woulda found out sooner or later. I'm still gonna keep on reading DD in trade (fuck Zculting that shit) so I hope Bru + Lark live up to all I've heard.

 

In the end, Daredevil has always been my favorite superhero. He's to me what Wolvie is to IC (well, maybe not that much, but fuck...what can I say - the man's a trooper) and I can honestly say the Bendis/Maleev run is the best ever. Even better than Miller's shit (yeah, I said it). Hate to see 'em go. I hope Spider-Woman is good. These guys need another Eisner.

[Silent Bob]

To 2Track:

 

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If Bendis hadn't given it away, this cover just might have.

 

 

Jerks.

[The NZA]

seriously, there's no surprise to these things these days, and this isnt the kinda book that needs shock affect and hype to sell it. I knew it before Bendis called it, cause i saw advance covers, there was all kidnsa talk, etc - imagine the impact if you didnt know.

 

The trades of this series cannot come out fast enough for me. Thing is, i get this one in deluxe hardcover cause i love seeing Maleev's art all blown up & glossy, but im debating skipping one of them....ive got up to # 3, ends at issue 50, with

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Matt taking over hell's kitchen

and i want "King of hell's kitchen", the next arc with the yakuza, but the black widow one that followed bored me a bit.

The new HC has "Golden Age', which was fun, and "Decalogue", which started out interesting and went down a weird road, and im not sure if i really need that book to be honest. Murdock Papers & this current arc, however, i cant wait on.

[Newtype]

seriously, there's no surprise to these things these days, and this isnt the kinda book that needs shock affect and hype to sell it. I knew it before Bendis called it, cause i saw advance covers, there was all kidnsa talk, etc - imagine the impact if you didnt know.

 

Just wait till you read this weeks issue. Not only was it great but there'a a nice little surprise at the end.

[Newtype]

Don't read unless you want to be surprised

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Ironfist is the other DD and the big one is that Foggy is still alive.

[Mr. Exclusive]

Cop-out! That's all I gotta say!

[The NZA]

Was still a good issue, a cool closing to the arc (especially dug Frank's role in it), answerd who was behind the mask, and fixes the continuity of what's going on in civil war, if anybody's payin attention to that.

 

Dyin for the trade of this arc.

 

ps

Cop-out! That's all I gotta say!

 

mebbe, i can see that. but i wanna see where they take it first.

[The NZA]

 

So, issue # 100 is coming up, Newsarama's got an interview with Brubaker on what's to come...i gotta say, this team's been about every bit as solid as Bendis & Maleev, cant wait to see where they go with it when "And the devil hsi due" ends. Also, anyone seen the trade for "Devil in cell block D"? I gotta get that one.