written by Chip Zdarsky
drawn by Marco Checchetto
colored by Sunny Gho
When I read that Charles Soule's run on Daredevil was coming to an end, I had hoped that Marvel would use the occasion of a reboot to bring to the book talent whose work I hoped to see, like Christopher Priest or Russell Dauterman. I was slightly underwhelmed by the choice of Chip Zdarsky and even more so the choice of Marco Checchetto, but I chose to remain optimistic, especially after previews for the new issue #1 came out not long before the issue's release.
Several months following the truck accident that nearly ended his life, Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil, having fought his way back to health, no longer preoccupies himself with trying to unseat Wilson Fisk, aka the Kingpin, from the mayoralty of New York City. He's basically just trying to get himself back into the superhero game, living somewhat recklessly, picking up a random girl at a bar, and later, picking fights with thugs even though his body is not quite up to the task just yet. All the while, he grapples with the dissonance between his Catholic faith and his addiction to beating up criminals. Things could get even more complicated as new detective moves to New York from Chicago one who is not at all fond of superheroes and would be only too happy to take Matt down.
While Zdarsky won me over with his highly entertaining take on half of the Fantastic Four over in the pages of Marvel Two-In-One last year, I still wasn't entirely sold on what he could bring to the adventures of my favorite lawyer/superhero. I was even less enthused about Checchetto coming onboard, considering that I had last seen his work in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man several years ago and wasn't particularly impressed.
Well, fortunately, the pairing works, as Zdarsky, picking up story threads from Soule, kicks off an engaging new arc that keeps the noir-ish atmosphere that Soule reinstated following Mark Waid's "swashbuckling" approach to the story. While Checchetto's is a step up from most of the artists Soule worked with, the one weak point of his art is how he draws old Hornhead himself; there's something gangly and awkward about his take on Daredevil. While this look kind of suits the narrative that Matt is still finding his feet again after months recovering from his injuries, it's not really something that suits the character overall and isn't likely to grow on me. This is a shame because I quite like almost everything else about the art here. Checchetto drew a decent, Spider-Man reminiscent of Joe Quesada's style back in the day, so I find it curious that he can't use the same approach on the character that launched Joey Q into super-stardom.
The issue is a decent read, and a four-page short story written and drawn by Zdarsky was a nice touch at the end, even if it was a bit of filler, and I remain cautiously optimistic for what this team has to offer, for now.
EDIT: It's frustrating to see Checchetto's Daredevil looking so awkward as I've only just discovered that he's drawn the character before, during the Mark Waid era of the book, in a crossover featuring DD, Spider-Man and the Punisher, and I have to say, his take on the character back then was significantly cleaner and much more athletic-looking. Basically Checchetto can draw a decent DD. I only hope he rediscovers his old form as his tenure on this series goes on.
8/10
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Saturday, February 9, 2019
Conquering Fear...but not Boredom: A Review of the "Man Without Fear" Miniseries
written by Jed MacKay
illustrated by Danilo Beyruth (issues #1 and #5), Stefano Landini (issue #2), Iban Coello (issue #3) Paolo Villanelli (issue #4)
colored by Andreas Mossa
Following the gag outgoing Daredevil writer Charles Soule pulled on readers by having Daredevil vanquish the Kingpin, only to reveal that the whole thing it was a dream he was having while in a coma he fell into after being hit by a truck, writer Jed MacKay and a gaggle of different artists essentially have Matt Murdock fight not only his paralysis but his own inner demons as he struggles with whether or not to be Daredevil after the truck accident has revealed the ravages to his body that his life as Daredevil has wrought. For the first time in years, Matt feels the cold grip of fear, and this time even his iron will may not be enough to overcome it.
I wasn't particularly keen on picking this up as I didn't know much about the creative team, but I figured it would serve as important connective tissue between the end of Soule's run and the beginning of incoming writer Chip Zdarsky's, so I ended up giving it a shot, but only after all five issues had come out. My suspicions were right about the story basically having some significance to Daredevil, but so were my fears about its quality. It's really nothing great to write home about, whether from a story or art perspective. In not so many words, it takes MackKay and his quartet of artists five issues to tell readers what we already know: that Matt Murdock was always going to return to being Daredevil.
This didn't have to be as weak as it was; this could have been the opportunity for an A-list creative team, or at least an A-list writer or artist, people who wouldn't normally work on a title like this, to try their hand at the character, and even with an ending as predictable as this one inevitably was it could have been a fun read. As it was, however, with a bunch of also-ran creators, especially Beyruth, whose art bookends the series, this miniseries just serves as distinctly superfluous filler while readers wait for Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto to relaunch the main series. The thing is, given that I didn't even follow the series as it came out, it feels distinctly superfluous, and with the exception of Landini and Coello, the art was somewhat forgettable too.
Well, at least DD's main series is back, and as I shall reveal in my next reveal, it was certainly worth the wait.
6/10
illustrated by Danilo Beyruth (issues #1 and #5), Stefano Landini (issue #2), Iban Coello (issue #3) Paolo Villanelli (issue #4)
colored by Andreas Mossa
Following the gag outgoing Daredevil writer Charles Soule pulled on readers by having Daredevil vanquish the Kingpin, only to reveal that the whole thing it was a dream he was having while in a coma he fell into after being hit by a truck, writer Jed MacKay and a gaggle of different artists essentially have Matt Murdock fight not only his paralysis but his own inner demons as he struggles with whether or not to be Daredevil after the truck accident has revealed the ravages to his body that his life as Daredevil has wrought. For the first time in years, Matt feels the cold grip of fear, and this time even his iron will may not be enough to overcome it.
I wasn't particularly keen on picking this up as I didn't know much about the creative team, but I figured it would serve as important connective tissue between the end of Soule's run and the beginning of incoming writer Chip Zdarsky's, so I ended up giving it a shot, but only after all five issues had come out. My suspicions were right about the story basically having some significance to Daredevil, but so were my fears about its quality. It's really nothing great to write home about, whether from a story or art perspective. In not so many words, it takes MackKay and his quartet of artists five issues to tell readers what we already know: that Matt Murdock was always going to return to being Daredevil.
This didn't have to be as weak as it was; this could have been the opportunity for an A-list creative team, or at least an A-list writer or artist, people who wouldn't normally work on a title like this, to try their hand at the character, and even with an ending as predictable as this one inevitably was it could have been a fun read. As it was, however, with a bunch of also-ran creators, especially Beyruth, whose art bookends the series, this miniseries just serves as distinctly superfluous filler while readers wait for Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto to relaunch the main series. The thing is, given that I didn't even follow the series as it came out, it feels distinctly superfluous, and with the exception of Landini and Coello, the art was somewhat forgettable too.
Well, at least DD's main series is back, and as I shall reveal in my next reveal, it was certainly worth the wait.
6/10
Deconstructing the Minds of Teenage Athletes: A Review of Fence Vol. 2
written by C.S. Pacat
drawn by Johanna the Mad
colored by Joana LaFuente
It's been a long wait, but the saga of Fence, C.S. Pacat and Johanna the Mad's absorbing look into the lives of a prep school fencing team and their aspiring members finally continues with volume 2, which collects issues #5 to #8. Unlike the previous volume, which ended on a somewhat infuriating cliffhanger, this story wraps up quite a few loose ends even as it keeps the saga of Nicholas Cox and his rivals chugging along.
In this volume, with the exposition and character introduction out of the way, quite a bit happens as the fencing team tryouts continue in earnest. Highlights of the compilation including a stunning match involving high school fencing wunderkind Seiji Katayama, and series lead Nicholas Cox getting a much-needed confidence booster. Tension builds as the roster of hopefuls for the team narrows, and the final candidates begin to emerge. Wills and skills are tested and many of the aspirants come to learn the hard way that it will take a lot more than just determination to get onto this squad. What's clear, though, is that the real challenges are still ahead.
When I read the first volume after having consumed an almost-exclusive diet of superhero comic books, I was struck by how different in storytelling it was. It wasn't the R-rated fare that usually doesn't make it into the pages of a mainstream comic book and yet it wasn't the larger-than-life adventures of men and women in tights (though it did feature plenty of teens in tight outfits). It was a series focused mainly on teenage insecurity, framed against a backdrop of a hyper-competitive sports setting. The first volume introduced us to Nicolas Cox and the various characters in his school, and I would have rated it much more highly had it not ended on a complete anticlimax.
This story isn't just better because it actually finishes what it started, but because it really goes into the heads of its characters. Team captain Harvard Lee, for example, who previously seemed vaguely modeled after Takenori Akagi from Slam Dunk, managed to get his own proper arc, showing his own insecurity and fears, and surprisingly, even Aiden, the established bad boy from last issue, gets character moments that don't dwell on his "villainy" or weaponized sexuality. Seiji's biggest fan, Bobby is still, well, Bobby, and hasn't much moved forward from the last arc. As for Seiji, the sort-of-archnemesis of the hero Nicholas Cox, writer Pacat teases us ever-so-slightly with a look into his "secret origin" but doesn't go any further than that. The coach, the series' only strong female character, remains Pacat's number one tool for exposition, though to us non-fencing experts it is somewhat welcome.
Of course, this is still Nicolas Cox's story, and his moments of redemption are somewhat satisfying, even though they kind of get to his head, as they would with most teens. It was gratifying, though, to see other characters in the series get some page time.
Johanna the Mad continues to impress, though as before, I wasn't really thrilled with her "super deformed" characters, because they distracted from her slick linework and storytelling prowess. This series is definitely strong enough to break free from the manga that inspired it. Also, unlike many manga/anime artists, Johanna knows how to draw black people.
This series has about four issues to go before they switch format to graphic novels instead of floppy issues, and, judging by how this story has gone so far, there's a LOT of story left to tell, but it's gratifying to know that Pacat (or whoever is editing this series for collected edition format) was considerate enough to give us a story that satisfied, rather than leaving just about everything unresolved, even as she has us looking forward to the next installment.
8/10
drawn by Johanna the Mad
colored by Joana LaFuente
It's been a long wait, but the saga of Fence, C.S. Pacat and Johanna the Mad's absorbing look into the lives of a prep school fencing team and their aspiring members finally continues with volume 2, which collects issues #5 to #8. Unlike the previous volume, which ended on a somewhat infuriating cliffhanger, this story wraps up quite a few loose ends even as it keeps the saga of Nicholas Cox and his rivals chugging along.
In this volume, with the exposition and character introduction out of the way, quite a bit happens as the fencing team tryouts continue in earnest. Highlights of the compilation including a stunning match involving high school fencing wunderkind Seiji Katayama, and series lead Nicholas Cox getting a much-needed confidence booster. Tension builds as the roster of hopefuls for the team narrows, and the final candidates begin to emerge. Wills and skills are tested and many of the aspirants come to learn the hard way that it will take a lot more than just determination to get onto this squad. What's clear, though, is that the real challenges are still ahead.
When I read the first volume after having consumed an almost-exclusive diet of superhero comic books, I was struck by how different in storytelling it was. It wasn't the R-rated fare that usually doesn't make it into the pages of a mainstream comic book and yet it wasn't the larger-than-life adventures of men and women in tights (though it did feature plenty of teens in tight outfits). It was a series focused mainly on teenage insecurity, framed against a backdrop of a hyper-competitive sports setting. The first volume introduced us to Nicolas Cox and the various characters in his school, and I would have rated it much more highly had it not ended on a complete anticlimax.
This story isn't just better because it actually finishes what it started, but because it really goes into the heads of its characters. Team captain Harvard Lee, for example, who previously seemed vaguely modeled after Takenori Akagi from Slam Dunk, managed to get his own proper arc, showing his own insecurity and fears, and surprisingly, even Aiden, the established bad boy from last issue, gets character moments that don't dwell on his "villainy" or weaponized sexuality. Seiji's biggest fan, Bobby is still, well, Bobby, and hasn't much moved forward from the last arc. As for Seiji, the sort-of-archnemesis of the hero Nicholas Cox, writer Pacat teases us ever-so-slightly with a look into his "secret origin" but doesn't go any further than that. The coach, the series' only strong female character, remains Pacat's number one tool for exposition, though to us non-fencing experts it is somewhat welcome.
Of course, this is still Nicolas Cox's story, and his moments of redemption are somewhat satisfying, even though they kind of get to his head, as they would with most teens. It was gratifying, though, to see other characters in the series get some page time.
Johanna the Mad continues to impress, though as before, I wasn't really thrilled with her "super deformed" characters, because they distracted from her slick linework and storytelling prowess. This series is definitely strong enough to break free from the manga that inspired it. Also, unlike many manga/anime artists, Johanna knows how to draw black people.
This series has about four issues to go before they switch format to graphic novels instead of floppy issues, and, judging by how this story has gone so far, there's a LOT of story left to tell, but it's gratifying to know that Pacat (or whoever is editing this series for collected edition format) was considerate enough to give us a story that satisfied, rather than leaving just about everything unresolved, even as she has us looking forward to the next installment.
8/10
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