written by Charles Soule
drawn by Ron Garney
colored by Matt Milla
I have been a fan of Daredevil for over twenty years, and the creative run of writer Mark Waid and Chris Samnee, that ran for over four years, remains one of my very favorites. I initially had intended to drop the title after their run ended late last year, but when the new creative team of Charles Soule and Ron Garney started getting favorable reviews I decided to give at least the first full story arc a shot.
As I had predicted, the new creative run marks a return to a more "noir" storytelling approach, and the color palette Matt Milla uses here is so muted that the comic, save for parts of Daredevil's costume, is actually in black and white.
Matt Murdock has left California for New York, and through a method that has been left unexplained to the reader for now, he has managed to get everyone in the Marvel Universe, save for one person, to forget his secret identity. He's been reinstated to the New York bar, but rather than work his traditional role as a defense attorney, he's taken on a different challenge; he now works at the district attorney's office, where he faces a considerable challenge in attempting to prosecute a mysterious religious leader named Tenfingers. Now that he's a prosecutor Matt fights Tenfingers on two fronts; in the courts and as Daredevil, but from the look of things he may have met his match, especially since Tenfingers has learned a thing or two from the group he used to hang out with, namely the Hand. Fortunately, Daredevil has a bit of help in the form of an apprentice/sidekick, the undocumented immigrant Sam, who moonlights as the crimefighter Blindside to protect Chinatown from the likes of Tenfingers.
I'm actually glad Soule and Garney made a clean break from the past status quo, and that the reason it came undone was apparently something to do with the recently-concluded Secret Wars event. I'm especially glad that it's with regret that Matt realizes what he gave up, as a firm nod to what came before, even as the new team heads in their own direction.
That said, even though this run sets out to do something entirely different, it still doesn't quite grab me the way the last series did.
For one thing, the stories feel a little "slow-burn" for me, like a throwback to Bendis' decompression days. One of the strengths of Waid's storytelling was his ability to craft issues that for the most part, could serve as "done-in-ones" and parts of a larger tapestry. A sterling example of this would be the issues leading into Daredevil's most recent showdown with Bullseye, in which several of the five-issue arc worked on their own and as part of the larger narrative. Soule clearly attempts that here, but most of the issues fall flat, largely because the action scenes seem to just meld into one another. Much has been said about Soule's being an attorney, but thus far, Matt has yet to have any courtroom exploits so it's hard to judge whether or not this will be an actual asset to the storytelling.
Speaking of people supposedly bringing their real-life skills to their storytelling, artist Ron Garney, whose style is actually well-suited to this minimalist, noir-inspired storytelling, is a rather noticeable step down from Samnee, not only as a draftsman but as a storyteller and even as a fight choreographer, which is kind of ironic considering he's supposedly a jiu jitsu practitioner and even instructor. His fight sequences are mostly limited to splash panels and the usual cheat of having Daredevil's foot or fist in someone's face. I guess it really doesn't follow that a martial arts expert would necessarily be the best person to draw a fight scene. I think it's worth pointing out, though, that this specific presentation of the art somewhat flatters his artwork, which would not look anywhere near as good in a more colorful book like, say, All-New Avengers.
Sure, call me biased, but as much as one should judge this story and this team on their own merits, I will inevitably use their predecessors as my yardstick, especially since the book to which they have moved, Black Widow, has just launched an awesome first issue (which I will review shortly).
It's a little early to judge if this run will go down as one of the all-time greats, but the team is off to a decent, if not particularly outstanding, start.
7.5/10
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Monday, January 11, 2016
When Petey Met Wadey: A Review of Spider-Man vs. Deadpool #1
written by Joe Kelly
drawn by Ed McGuinness (p) and Mark Morales (i)
colored by Jason Keith
When Marvel's premier superhero, who also happens to be one of its chattiest, meets up with its renowned, patently amoral Merc-with-a-mouth, sparks, and more importantly, one-liners, can be expected to fly.
Such is the case in Spider-Man and Deadpool, a team-up book of sorts between Marvel's one-time number one hero and its number one antihero, in which Deadpool whisks Spider-Man away from a fight with the villain Hydro-man in order to do battle with the ancient evil demigod Dormammu and his dreaded Mindless Ones. Upon their escape, Deadpool makes arguably the strangest proposition Spider-Man could imagine: he offers him a job. It's not exactly an offer Spidey can't refuse, but if he thought that was shocking, he should see what Deadpool's plans for Peter Parker are...
Kelly's story is a reasonably fun single issue tale that sets the stage for what's to come, and he's got a good feel for Spidey's patented snappy dialogue, as well as his new status quo as CEO of his own company. Of course, Kelly is regarded as a definitive Deadpool writer, so I would imagine his characterization is spot-on, though as a causal Deadpool fan at best, I don't really have that much basis for comparison. Still, the story wasn't all that outstanding. The real draw for me here was Ed McGuinness, whose work I've liked for some time.
The good news here is that, not only does McGuinness live up to his billing as the quintessential Deadpool artist, he proves to be easily the best Spider-Man artist I've seen in quite some time, especially considering that the artists who worked on the title with any sort of regularity lately were limited to Humberto Ramos and Giuseppe Camuncoli, of whose work I am not the biggest fan. I had a hint of what McGuinness could do with the character from various covers he's drawn over the years, but this is the first time I've seen him do a full issue featuring the character, and the only question I find myself asking is why the heck Marvel didn't think of putting McGuinness on a Spider book sooner.
I had actually once imagined McGuinness an ill fit for Spider-Man considering his bulky depiction of Superman, but when I saw glimpses of how he would interpret the webslinger from appearances in other comic books, as well as various covers, I got the impression that he really could capture the sleekness and dynamism of the character. His variant cover for the Amazing Spider-Man relaunch back in April 2014 evoked John Romita Sr.'s work, and more and more I found myself wishing Marvel would give him a regular Spidey book, and almost two years on, my wish has been granted.
As first issues go, this one's pretty low-key, all things considered, but it seems that Kelly and McGuinness have big things in store, and I'm definitely on board for now.
8/10
drawn by Ed McGuinness (p) and Mark Morales (i)
colored by Jason Keith
When Marvel's premier superhero, who also happens to be one of its chattiest, meets up with its renowned, patently amoral Merc-with-a-mouth, sparks, and more importantly, one-liners, can be expected to fly.
Such is the case in Spider-Man and Deadpool, a team-up book of sorts between Marvel's one-time number one hero and its number one antihero, in which Deadpool whisks Spider-Man away from a fight with the villain Hydro-man in order to do battle with the ancient evil demigod Dormammu and his dreaded Mindless Ones. Upon their escape, Deadpool makes arguably the strangest proposition Spider-Man could imagine: he offers him a job. It's not exactly an offer Spidey can't refuse, but if he thought that was shocking, he should see what Deadpool's plans for Peter Parker are...
Kelly's story is a reasonably fun single issue tale that sets the stage for what's to come, and he's got a good feel for Spidey's patented snappy dialogue, as well as his new status quo as CEO of his own company. Of course, Kelly is regarded as a definitive Deadpool writer, so I would imagine his characterization is spot-on, though as a causal Deadpool fan at best, I don't really have that much basis for comparison. Still, the story wasn't all that outstanding. The real draw for me here was Ed McGuinness, whose work I've liked for some time.
The good news here is that, not only does McGuinness live up to his billing as the quintessential Deadpool artist, he proves to be easily the best Spider-Man artist I've seen in quite some time, especially considering that the artists who worked on the title with any sort of regularity lately were limited to Humberto Ramos and Giuseppe Camuncoli, of whose work I am not the biggest fan. I had a hint of what McGuinness could do with the character from various covers he's drawn over the years, but this is the first time I've seen him do a full issue featuring the character, and the only question I find myself asking is why the heck Marvel didn't think of putting McGuinness on a Spider book sooner.
I had actually once imagined McGuinness an ill fit for Spider-Man considering his bulky depiction of Superman, but when I saw glimpses of how he would interpret the webslinger from appearances in other comic books, as well as various covers, I got the impression that he really could capture the sleekness and dynamism of the character. His variant cover for the Amazing Spider-Man relaunch back in April 2014 evoked John Romita Sr.'s work, and more and more I found myself wishing Marvel would give him a regular Spidey book, and almost two years on, my wish has been granted.
As first issues go, this one's pretty low-key, all things considered, but it seems that Kelly and McGuinness have big things in store, and I'm definitely on board for now.
8/10
Monday, January 4, 2016
Time to be More Than Tokens or Cannon Fodder
This post actually started out as a review of the first three collected editions of Marvel Comics' "Ms. Marvel" starring Pakistani-American Kamala Khan, all of which I genuinely enjoyed reading, but as I thought of what to write, I started wondering to myself "why aren't there any Filipino superheroes in the Marvel Universe?"
I then remembered a rather entertaining Iron Man story by Matt Fraction and Salvador Larroca which was published in 2008, the year Iron Man made his successful big screen debut, which featured not just one but a whole team of Filipino superheroes, the Triumph Division, whose sole apparent purpose was to get blown to smithereens by lackeys of the story arc's villain, Ezekiel Stane, son of the film's villain, Obadiah Stane. While I thank Fraction for the gesture, the characters were ill-conceived and utterly expendable. Much more promising, however, was another Filipino superteam, the Diwata, that was given mention in the same series, but nothing more.
It has been seven years since that story, and yet the Triumph Division remains the only Filipino team of superheroes that a casual Google search turns up.
And yet, there are several superheroes from cultural minorities populating the Marvel Universe. They sure aren't the majority, but there have been more than enough superheroes of African, Chinese, Japanese, Latin American, Pakistani and even Vietnamese descent to show that diversity isn't a completely alien concept to editorial, who have, after all been headed by people of Latin American descent like Joe Quesada and Axel Alonso. As I mentioned, Filipinos got a proper shout-out in the pages of a mainstream Marvel book, only to be completely ignored afterwards.
The fact that Ms. Marvel, of Pakistani descent, gets her very own book and membership in the Avengers, was sort of the straw that broke this camel's back. I'm guessing it helps that one of Marvel's editors nowadays is of Pakistani descent.
I suppose that, key to whether or not a particular character gets further attention, reader response plays some kind of role, and so it disappoints me that, for all of the Filipino comic book geeks here and around the world, there simply wasn't enough of a response to Marvel's attempt to introduce a whole new wave of heroes into one of the most cherished fictional universes in pop culture.
I also find it mildly ironic (and I think this is the proper use of the word) that, even though there have been a slew of very talented Filipino creators, mainly artists, working at Marvel Comics since the 1970s, the creators who actually introduced Filipino superheroes into their pages are an American and a Spaniard. I like to believe that any of the several Filipino creators currently working at Marvel could have some ideas for a character or two they'd like to fight alongside Spider-Man and Iron Man, but for whatever reason, none of them seem to be getting any traction.
Don't get me wrong; I'm only too happy to read the adventures of Filipino superheroes and related characters in our own homegrown comics. I am a regular reader of Trese, and I just gave "Sixty-Six" a rather unorthodox superhero book, a glowing review in this very blog. As someone who grew up with Marvel Comics, though, I really would love to see at least one character of Filipino descent running around that universe, someone who eats things like lechon and adobo and who speaks Tagalog and whose parents pray the rosary. I mean, we Filipinos have given Marvel some of our best talent for at least forty of its seventy years of existence, and I hardly think it'd be too big a bone for them to throw us to give some panel time to our own heroes. Matt Fraction, God bless him and his slipshod research into Filipino culture, at least bothered to try. Maybe it's up to us to really champion the creation of at least one.
I realize this isn't the most pressing concern in the world right now, but when I think about the audience that Ms. Marvel has found, something that would have been unheard of even as recently as ten years ago, I find myself thinking of how a Filipino superhero could be similarly well-received, and considering how well-placed Filipino creators are in the comics and animation industry, I think it's at least worth suggesting.
I then remembered a rather entertaining Iron Man story by Matt Fraction and Salvador Larroca which was published in 2008, the year Iron Man made his successful big screen debut, which featured not just one but a whole team of Filipino superheroes, the Triumph Division, whose sole apparent purpose was to get blown to smithereens by lackeys of the story arc's villain, Ezekiel Stane, son of the film's villain, Obadiah Stane. While I thank Fraction for the gesture, the characters were ill-conceived and utterly expendable. Much more promising, however, was another Filipino superteam, the Diwata, that was given mention in the same series, but nothing more.
It has been seven years since that story, and yet the Triumph Division remains the only Filipino team of superheroes that a casual Google search turns up.
And yet, there are several superheroes from cultural minorities populating the Marvel Universe. They sure aren't the majority, but there have been more than enough superheroes of African, Chinese, Japanese, Latin American, Pakistani and even Vietnamese descent to show that diversity isn't a completely alien concept to editorial, who have, after all been headed by people of Latin American descent like Joe Quesada and Axel Alonso. As I mentioned, Filipinos got a proper shout-out in the pages of a mainstream Marvel book, only to be completely ignored afterwards.
The fact that Ms. Marvel, of Pakistani descent, gets her very own book and membership in the Avengers, was sort of the straw that broke this camel's back. I'm guessing it helps that one of Marvel's editors nowadays is of Pakistani descent.
I suppose that, key to whether or not a particular character gets further attention, reader response plays some kind of role, and so it disappoints me that, for all of the Filipino comic book geeks here and around the world, there simply wasn't enough of a response to Marvel's attempt to introduce a whole new wave of heroes into one of the most cherished fictional universes in pop culture.
I also find it mildly ironic (and I think this is the proper use of the word) that, even though there have been a slew of very talented Filipino creators, mainly artists, working at Marvel Comics since the 1970s, the creators who actually introduced Filipino superheroes into their pages are an American and a Spaniard. I like to believe that any of the several Filipino creators currently working at Marvel could have some ideas for a character or two they'd like to fight alongside Spider-Man and Iron Man, but for whatever reason, none of them seem to be getting any traction.
Don't get me wrong; I'm only too happy to read the adventures of Filipino superheroes and related characters in our own homegrown comics. I am a regular reader of Trese, and I just gave "Sixty-Six" a rather unorthodox superhero book, a glowing review in this very blog. As someone who grew up with Marvel Comics, though, I really would love to see at least one character of Filipino descent running around that universe, someone who eats things like lechon and adobo and who speaks Tagalog and whose parents pray the rosary. I mean, we Filipinos have given Marvel some of our best talent for at least forty of its seventy years of existence, and I hardly think it'd be too big a bone for them to throw us to give some panel time to our own heroes. Matt Fraction, God bless him and his slipshod research into Filipino culture, at least bothered to try. Maybe it's up to us to really champion the creation of at least one.
I realize this isn't the most pressing concern in the world right now, but when I think about the audience that Ms. Marvel has found, something that would have been unheard of even as recently as ten years ago, I find myself thinking of how a Filipino superhero could be similarly well-received, and considering how well-placed Filipino creators are in the comics and animation industry, I think it's at least worth suggesting.
Saturday, January 2, 2016
Filipino Superheroics at Their Very Best: A Review of "66"
written by Russell Molina
illustrated by Ian Sta. Maria
Comic books, like movies, have been around for so long that it's quite hard for any creator to come up with an original concept, or at least, a fresh take on something as old as superhero adventures. When creators are able to come up with something that, if not necessarily original, feels new, this is definite cause for celebration.
"Sixty-Six" is one such example; it is the story of elderly store-owner Celestino Cabal, who lives out his days in contentment, taking care of his wife suffering from dementia and enjoying the occasional long-distance phone call with his daughter, who lives in the United States, when on the evening of his sixty-sixth birthday, amid a terrible event that nearly takes the life of his wife, he finds himself endowed with extraordinary strength. Upon discovering he has super powers, in particular super strength, Celestino, having read superhero comic books as a child, does what anyone with both a sense of wonder and social responsibility would do: he fights crime.
It's fun at first, of course, to take down lowlifes like muggers and rapists, but before he knows it Celestino finds himself facing tougher, similarly super-powered threats, and considering that many of them are children being manipulated by a shadowy criminal syndicate, he does not know if he will be able to take the fight to the next level.
I've encountered Ian Sta. Maria's work twice before, in the English-language "ashcan" Ultracops, and in the collected edition of the fantasy-themed "Skyworld." Both works featured extraordinary art, but to my mind, both also fell somewhat short in the story and dialogue department.
In writer Molina, however, Sta. Maria has found a collaborator who not only plays to his strengths as a draftsman but coaxes some remarkable storytelling techniques out of him that weren't in either of his previous works that I've read. This book is an absolute joy not just to read but to absolutely consume from cover to cover.
Celestino Cabal is a truly endearing character, and the true strength of Molina's storytelling is how he takes the time and effort to compassionately establish who his lead is before shoving him into the thick of the action. It's thrilling to see him action against criminals, but the little moments, like the moment Celestino discovers that his powers do not include flight, a lovely bit of slapstick comedy that keeps the tone of the story buoyant, along with the dialogue of the wheelchair-bound, double-amputee of a neighborhood watchman ("barangay tanod") whose story as to how he lost his legs constantly changes. The Tagalog onomatopoeia sprinkled throughout the book is a real treat as well, and I was actually able to learn at least one new word from it. When the story does hit some serious notes, I really appreciated how much Molina and Sta. Maria had invested in the characters. When Celestino's enemies hit back at him where it hurts late in the story, the tragedy is palpable.
As someone who has been reading and enjoying superhero comic books for over three decades, I can say without exaggeration that this is one of the stronger efforts I've seen from any pair of creators of any nationality in several years, and I am thoroughly looking forward to the next installment, which should not take too long considering that this collected edition of Sixty-Six is actually a compilation of stories that ran from 2013 to 2014.
I've seen many copies of this in bookstores and comic book stores all around Manila, and having enjoyed this book so much I feel it behooves me to encourage others: if you're looking for something really fresh in the superheroics department, this is a great book to try.
8.9/10
illustrated by Ian Sta. Maria
Comic books, like movies, have been around for so long that it's quite hard for any creator to come up with an original concept, or at least, a fresh take on something as old as superhero adventures. When creators are able to come up with something that, if not necessarily original, feels new, this is definite cause for celebration.
"Sixty-Six" is one such example; it is the story of elderly store-owner Celestino Cabal, who lives out his days in contentment, taking care of his wife suffering from dementia and enjoying the occasional long-distance phone call with his daughter, who lives in the United States, when on the evening of his sixty-sixth birthday, amid a terrible event that nearly takes the life of his wife, he finds himself endowed with extraordinary strength. Upon discovering he has super powers, in particular super strength, Celestino, having read superhero comic books as a child, does what anyone with both a sense of wonder and social responsibility would do: he fights crime.
It's fun at first, of course, to take down lowlifes like muggers and rapists, but before he knows it Celestino finds himself facing tougher, similarly super-powered threats, and considering that many of them are children being manipulated by a shadowy criminal syndicate, he does not know if he will be able to take the fight to the next level.
I've encountered Ian Sta. Maria's work twice before, in the English-language "ashcan" Ultracops, and in the collected edition of the fantasy-themed "Skyworld." Both works featured extraordinary art, but to my mind, both also fell somewhat short in the story and dialogue department.
In writer Molina, however, Sta. Maria has found a collaborator who not only plays to his strengths as a draftsman but coaxes some remarkable storytelling techniques out of him that weren't in either of his previous works that I've read. This book is an absolute joy not just to read but to absolutely consume from cover to cover.
Celestino Cabal is a truly endearing character, and the true strength of Molina's storytelling is how he takes the time and effort to compassionately establish who his lead is before shoving him into the thick of the action. It's thrilling to see him action against criminals, but the little moments, like the moment Celestino discovers that his powers do not include flight, a lovely bit of slapstick comedy that keeps the tone of the story buoyant, along with the dialogue of the wheelchair-bound, double-amputee of a neighborhood watchman ("barangay tanod") whose story as to how he lost his legs constantly changes. The Tagalog onomatopoeia sprinkled throughout the book is a real treat as well, and I was actually able to learn at least one new word from it. When the story does hit some serious notes, I really appreciated how much Molina and Sta. Maria had invested in the characters. When Celestino's enemies hit back at him where it hurts late in the story, the tragedy is palpable.
As someone who has been reading and enjoying superhero comic books for over three decades, I can say without exaggeration that this is one of the stronger efforts I've seen from any pair of creators of any nationality in several years, and I am thoroughly looking forward to the next installment, which should not take too long considering that this collected edition of Sixty-Six is actually a compilation of stories that ran from 2013 to 2014.
I've seen many copies of this in bookstores and comic book stores all around Manila, and having enjoyed this book so much I feel it behooves me to encourage others: if you're looking for something really fresh in the superheroics department, this is a great book to try.
8.9/10
Sunday, September 6, 2015
Ten Things I Truly Enjoyed About Mark Waid's and Chris Samnee's Run on Daredevil
I'll readily admit it seems a bit prosaic to write something like this, considering I'm hardly the first person ever to come with a "top ten" list, but so thoroughly have I enjoyed the work of writer Mark Waid and artist Chris Samnee on Marvel Comics' Daredevil title that I cannot simply let them go without doing a little more than just eking out reviews of their last few issues. No, these guys fully deserve a proper paean to their creative glory, and as inadequate as this effort may be, it's worth taking just the same:
1. Kirsten MacDuffie - Strictly speaking, MacDuffie is a creation of Waid's and Paolo Rivera's. However, Samnee has really put his own stamp on easily one the most interesting non-superhero characters, male or female, appearing in a superhero book that I have seen in a long, long time. I have to say I am fairly disappointed that she hooked up with Matt, as I think the playful sexual tension could have played out a while longer, but considering that Waid held off on it for years I guess he waited long enough. The beauty of her character is that, even if they break up, there's still a way to keep her in his life (as she is, like him, a lawyer, after all) and the playful banter could go on and on. Kirsten is hardly a sidekick, and it is so gratifying that Waid has introduced such a powerful (and empowered) female into Matt's world. Kirsten is like an intellectual Elektra, really.
2. Classic characters and Some Interesting New Ones - Stilt-Man? Check. Leap-frog? Check. Jester? Check. Bullseye? Check. Elektra? Check. The Owl? Purple Man? Check. Kingpin? Double check! The duo's thirty-odd issue run reads like a virtual who's who of Daredevil's rogues gallery and his supporting characters. Samnee admitted in an interview that he and Mark really wanted a crack at all of the classic characters,and the nice thing was how organic all of these appearances were to the stories they were telling. I was particularly impressed by how Waid was able to handle Bullseye, a character who was apparently dead at the end of the last creative team's run on the book, and while I'm obviously spoiling things a bit by revealing that he wasn't dead, it's still worth checking out what Waid and Samnee did with him. The introduction of a new character, Ikari was pretty cool, too.
3. Smiling Matt - It was stated at the very outset that Waid's run would mark a return to a more lighthearted approach to the character, but the fact that Daredevil spent so much of the arc with a smile on his face was a welcome change for a character who had spent so much of his life enduring one ordeal after another. I have two of Frank Miller's seminal stories, Born Again (with David Mazzucchelli) and Man Without Fear (with John Romita, Jr.), and most of Brian Michael Bendis' run with Alex Maleev, and I'm pretty sure I could count on one hand the times Matt has smiled in ALL of those stories. The thing is, Daredevil has endured a lot in his life, but he's got a lot to be grateful for, and quite honestly, happy about, and it's nice to read a creative run that finally reflects that.
4. Hello San Francisco - I have never been to the United States, so one American city is the same to me as another, but the vast majority of Marvel comics I have in my collection has stories that take place in New York City, so it really did make for a refreshing change of pace when Waid and Samnee relocated Matt and his supporting cast with the relaunch of the title last year.
5. Ready...Fight! - When I read Man without Fear I had an inkling of how incredible a fighter DD was, but as much as I enjoyed his work, I felt a little let down by Romita,Jr.'s depiction of this fighting skill, which either didn't look very dynamic or resorted to the cheat of having close up panels of his foot or fist in someone's face. It didn't look terribly graceful. Some years later, Alex Maleev attempted to depict DD's fighting skills and they did look impressive sometimes, but they also looked extremely static. Fast forward to Samnee's run, and lo and behold, not only did he show Daredevil showing some serious martial arts skill, but also made it look quite dynamic, possibly the best-looking choreography seen in the book since Miller's days.
6. No More Questions, Your Honor - I have said this before, but one thing I really enjoyed about this book was the impression I got that Waid went to some effort to show that Matt is as comfortable in a court room as he is leaping across the New York City skyline. I may not be licensed to practice law in the United States but I certainly recognized citations of international law and rules of evidence, and appreciated both Waid's dialogue and Samnee's depiction of the inside of a courtroom. Also, this facet of Matt's character shows that he isn't all about recklessness and gambles; Waid emphasizes that at the end of the day, Matt is one smart cookie.
7. A Little Help from My Friends - although Daredevil has never been a completely isolated character from the rest of the Marvel Universe, he has been a bit of a loner. Even though he joined the Avengers for a spell a few years ago he didn't suddenly turn into a team player. It was nice, then, to see Matt getting a regular helping hand from a more "mainstream" Avenger in Henry Pym. The story introducing the cooperation was well-written, too: Dr. Doom had introduced nanobots that negated Matt's hyper-senses. Even after that story, Pym stuck around until Matt packed up and left for SF, and was even crucial to a story in which Matt had to fake Foggy's death. Also, there were quite a few Avengers who helped Matt out in his extended battle with Bullseye.
8. Waid's Crusades - I don't usually get or expect social commentary from my comic books, and the little I get often feels a tad heavy-handed, like Mark Millar's full-on diatribe against the Patriot Act in Civil War, but Waid's preaching is a little easier to digest. He has had things to say on racially-charged killings, gay marriage and even processed food, with this last one being a running commentary given Foggy's diet. In fact, having Foggy battle cancer, which was a new twist on the Foggy-in-peril trope that many writers have leaned on over the years, was a subtle way to rail against the evils of having so many chemicals pumped into today's foodstuffs.
9. Records will Show - One aspect of this story that I also liked was how, no matter how buoyant the tone of storytelling was, there was always an acknowledgement of where the character had come from and what he had been through, which made the storytelling on the whole that much more effective by adding that element of tension. The running question throughout the run was: how long can this last? How long will it be before Matt's life spirals out of control and he hits the skids again? Waid and Samnee didn't just let these questions linger; they answered them, and I was happy to see that they were kinder to Matt than most creators since the character's creation have been. They also demonstrated for their entire tenure that to tell great stories does not always mean having to be unbelievably cruel to the lead character. Sure, Matt's adventures under Waid and Samnee certainly involved a fair share of tribulations, but nothing on the level of having his girlfriend murdered in front of him or having his apartment blown to pieces.
10. Look Ma, No Gimmicks! - For better or worse, 2013's extended Spider-Man story arc called "Superior Spider-Man," in which Doctor Octopus took over Peter Parker's body, had readers hooked; sales were better than they had ever been. I can admit that I am one of the people who was sucked in; I have every single issue of that series. The thing was, the main hook for me was finding out how and when Peter Parker would come back so one could say that, with all due to respect to Dan Slott and his rotating roster of artists, my devotion was, in part, due to a long-running gimmick. This was not the case with Waid and Samnee. Apart from DD's moving to another city, there was no radical shift of status quo to keep me coming back, so my being hooked was just a case of two creators turning in their best work, month after month (though Samnee took occasional breaks) to give the best stories of the character that I had ever read.
I am happy to note that Waid and Samnee are already at work on their next project together, but it's entirely possible that this is the last time readers will see them together on Daredevil, and if that is indeed the case I would like to give them a heartfelt thanks for making Daredevil a book I just had to pick up every month for three years!
1. Kirsten MacDuffie - Strictly speaking, MacDuffie is a creation of Waid's and Paolo Rivera's. However, Samnee has really put his own stamp on easily one the most interesting non-superhero characters, male or female, appearing in a superhero book that I have seen in a long, long time. I have to say I am fairly disappointed that she hooked up with Matt, as I think the playful sexual tension could have played out a while longer, but considering that Waid held off on it for years I guess he waited long enough. The beauty of her character is that, even if they break up, there's still a way to keep her in his life (as she is, like him, a lawyer, after all) and the playful banter could go on and on. Kirsten is hardly a sidekick, and it is so gratifying that Waid has introduced such a powerful (and empowered) female into Matt's world. Kirsten is like an intellectual Elektra, really.
2. Classic characters and Some Interesting New Ones - Stilt-Man? Check. Leap-frog? Check. Jester? Check. Bullseye? Check. Elektra? Check. The Owl? Purple Man? Check. Kingpin? Double check! The duo's thirty-odd issue run reads like a virtual who's who of Daredevil's rogues gallery and his supporting characters. Samnee admitted in an interview that he and Mark really wanted a crack at all of the classic characters,and the nice thing was how organic all of these appearances were to the stories they were telling. I was particularly impressed by how Waid was able to handle Bullseye, a character who was apparently dead at the end of the last creative team's run on the book, and while I'm obviously spoiling things a bit by revealing that he wasn't dead, it's still worth checking out what Waid and Samnee did with him. The introduction of a new character, Ikari was pretty cool, too.
3. Smiling Matt - It was stated at the very outset that Waid's run would mark a return to a more lighthearted approach to the character, but the fact that Daredevil spent so much of the arc with a smile on his face was a welcome change for a character who had spent so much of his life enduring one ordeal after another. I have two of Frank Miller's seminal stories, Born Again (with David Mazzucchelli) and Man Without Fear (with John Romita, Jr.), and most of Brian Michael Bendis' run with Alex Maleev, and I'm pretty sure I could count on one hand the times Matt has smiled in ALL of those stories. The thing is, Daredevil has endured a lot in his life, but he's got a lot to be grateful for, and quite honestly, happy about, and it's nice to read a creative run that finally reflects that.
4. Hello San Francisco - I have never been to the United States, so one American city is the same to me as another, but the vast majority of Marvel comics I have in my collection has stories that take place in New York City, so it really did make for a refreshing change of pace when Waid and Samnee relocated Matt and his supporting cast with the relaunch of the title last year.
5. Ready...Fight! - When I read Man without Fear I had an inkling of how incredible a fighter DD was, but as much as I enjoyed his work, I felt a little let down by Romita,Jr.'s depiction of this fighting skill, which either didn't look very dynamic or resorted to the cheat of having close up panels of his foot or fist in someone's face. It didn't look terribly graceful. Some years later, Alex Maleev attempted to depict DD's fighting skills and they did look impressive sometimes, but they also looked extremely static. Fast forward to Samnee's run, and lo and behold, not only did he show Daredevil showing some serious martial arts skill, but also made it look quite dynamic, possibly the best-looking choreography seen in the book since Miller's days.
6. No More Questions, Your Honor - I have said this before, but one thing I really enjoyed about this book was the impression I got that Waid went to some effort to show that Matt is as comfortable in a court room as he is leaping across the New York City skyline. I may not be licensed to practice law in the United States but I certainly recognized citations of international law and rules of evidence, and appreciated both Waid's dialogue and Samnee's depiction of the inside of a courtroom. Also, this facet of Matt's character shows that he isn't all about recklessness and gambles; Waid emphasizes that at the end of the day, Matt is one smart cookie.
7. A Little Help from My Friends - although Daredevil has never been a completely isolated character from the rest of the Marvel Universe, he has been a bit of a loner. Even though he joined the Avengers for a spell a few years ago he didn't suddenly turn into a team player. It was nice, then, to see Matt getting a regular helping hand from a more "mainstream" Avenger in Henry Pym. The story introducing the cooperation was well-written, too: Dr. Doom had introduced nanobots that negated Matt's hyper-senses. Even after that story, Pym stuck around until Matt packed up and left for SF, and was even crucial to a story in which Matt had to fake Foggy's death. Also, there were quite a few Avengers who helped Matt out in his extended battle with Bullseye.
8. Waid's Crusades - I don't usually get or expect social commentary from my comic books, and the little I get often feels a tad heavy-handed, like Mark Millar's full-on diatribe against the Patriot Act in Civil War, but Waid's preaching is a little easier to digest. He has had things to say on racially-charged killings, gay marriage and even processed food, with this last one being a running commentary given Foggy's diet. In fact, having Foggy battle cancer, which was a new twist on the Foggy-in-peril trope that many writers have leaned on over the years, was a subtle way to rail against the evils of having so many chemicals pumped into today's foodstuffs.
9. Records will Show - One aspect of this story that I also liked was how, no matter how buoyant the tone of storytelling was, there was always an acknowledgement of where the character had come from and what he had been through, which made the storytelling on the whole that much more effective by adding that element of tension. The running question throughout the run was: how long can this last? How long will it be before Matt's life spirals out of control and he hits the skids again? Waid and Samnee didn't just let these questions linger; they answered them, and I was happy to see that they were kinder to Matt than most creators since the character's creation have been. They also demonstrated for their entire tenure that to tell great stories does not always mean having to be unbelievably cruel to the lead character. Sure, Matt's adventures under Waid and Samnee certainly involved a fair share of tribulations, but nothing on the level of having his girlfriend murdered in front of him or having his apartment blown to pieces.
10. Look Ma, No Gimmicks! - For better or worse, 2013's extended Spider-Man story arc called "Superior Spider-Man," in which Doctor Octopus took over Peter Parker's body, had readers hooked; sales were better than they had ever been. I can admit that I am one of the people who was sucked in; I have every single issue of that series. The thing was, the main hook for me was finding out how and when Peter Parker would come back so one could say that, with all due to respect to Dan Slott and his rotating roster of artists, my devotion was, in part, due to a long-running gimmick. This was not the case with Waid and Samnee. Apart from DD's moving to another city, there was no radical shift of status quo to keep me coming back, so my being hooked was just a case of two creators turning in their best work, month after month (though Samnee took occasional breaks) to give the best stories of the character that I had ever read.
I am happy to note that Waid and Samnee are already at work on their next project together, but it's entirely possible that this is the last time readers will see them together on Daredevil, and if that is indeed the case I would like to give them a heartfelt thanks for making Daredevil a book I just had to pick up every month for three years!
Friday, September 4, 2015
Every Party Ends: A Review of Daredevil #18
written by Mark Waid
illustrated by Chris Samnee
colored by Matt Wilson
lettered by Joe Caramagna
edited by Sana Amanat
Matt Murdock finds himself having to summon every ounce of skill and guile at his disposal to get his two friends, Foggy Nelson and Kirsten MacDuffie, out from under the clutches of Wilson Fisk, the deadliest foe he has ever known. Ironically enough, the key to his victory and even his very survival may be the man whose reckless actions put him at the mercy of the Kingpin in the first place, Max Coleridge, the Shroud, who has taken control over the digitally-enslaved Leland Owlsley. Coleridge has an interest in seeing Daredevil prevail as Fisk is also holding his estranged girlfriend, Julia Carpenter, hostage. The question is: will it be enough to save the day?
While it is quite sad to see the end of the tenure of this creative team on one of my very favorite comic book characters, considering how much I have savored their run, it truly gratifies me to see them end their stint in such fine style. Without giving away too much I think it's fair to say that Waid and Samnee really end this series on a high note, which is not the most common thing for this character, for whom tragedy seems to be a rather inescapable reality. Well, at the risk of sounding a little "spoilery" I think it's fair to say that Mark and Chris cut Matt some slack this time around.
I feel I must commend Waid for his pretty sneaky misdirection all throughout this rather large storyarc, which dates all the way back to the first issue of this new volume. He clearly had something big in mind for the Owl when he basically plugged him into every single digital device in the world, but it played out quite differently from the way I had thought it would. Likewise, it seemed as though Waid was setting up a status quo in which Matt would be beholden to Fisk, but again, Waid subverted expectations, but all in service of some really fantastic storytelling. Waid may have a lot of years and books under his belt, but to my mind this is his very best work, and that's really saying something considering that this is someone whose work includes the likes of Kingdom Come, and a rather definitive run on Fantastic Four a few years back with the late Mike Wieringo. I was quite happy to learn that Waid was as happy about his work on this title as fans like me were.
This issue wasn't quite the high point of his run (and truth be told I'd be hard pressed to name a single issue I like more than any of the others) but it was a great way to close out a run that will undoubtedly go down as one of the best remembered in the history of this title, even if it did feel like a few loose ends were tied a little too neatly. But one thing that Waid really seems to get about this character, arguably more than any other author since Frank Miller, is that as a man without fear, Matt can be quite reckless (after all, we're talking about someone who, in a fit of uncontrollable rage, once attacked the Kingpin only to get flattened and dumped in a river strapped into a rusted taxicab).
It's not that Matt never has a plan, because the truth is, he usually does, even in this situation when his back is against the wall, but for these plans to work there's always some element of risk that he accepts. He isn't Batman; he doesn't have all the angles figured out before everything happens, but he does read the situation remarkably well, plan for it, and adapt if things don't quite go as planned. As I observed when reviewing the first issue, Matt's strength is how he can think on the fly, and while on at least one occasion Waid has depicted Matt as a little too reckless, on the whole his characterization has really been spot on. Bendis had more than a few moments of brilliance when he handled this book over ten years ago, but Waid wrote his stories on a whole other level, though to be fair, the character Waid had to work with had a considerably richer history thanks to Bendis' stories. Mark, you will definitely be missed.
For me, though, the real find of this entire run was Chris Samnee, whose work I actually already enjoyed coming on board. The irony for me, as I may have said in a past review was that I actually thought he was a poor fit for this particular title given his forties-style artwork that clicked so well with the "period" books he worked on like The Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom and Captain America and Bucky. Not only has Samnee proven to be supremely versatile, his work has put a lot of other artists, including a few who have even worked on this book, in the shade. His fight choreography, for example, only highlights how static the fight scenes drawn by Alex Maleev (during Brian Bendis' tenure) used to look. His skill as a visual storyteller is easily on par with John Romita Jr., whose Man Without Fear limited series written by Miller remains one of my favorite stories about this character, and while he isn't the flashiest of artists in the mold of a Jim Lee or David Finch, he is, to me anyway, far more effective at making the pictures on the page jump out at me. He and the likes of David Aja, Jamie McKelvie, Sara Pichelli and David Marquez represent a new generation of artists who are just fantastically talented but whose sensibilities are finally emancipated from many of the visual tropes that have crystallized over the years, especially after the comics book boom (and crash) of the 1990s. Great comic book art is about so much more than cross-hatching and pin-up poses, and thanks to Samnee and those like him, this generation of fans can see it as clear as day.
It thrills me to know that the Waid/Samnee tandem are off to their next big Marvel book. The fact that it has yet to be announced fills me with hope that this is going to be something big. I can hardly wait!
8.5/10
illustrated by Chris Samnee
colored by Matt Wilson
lettered by Joe Caramagna
edited by Sana Amanat
Matt Murdock finds himself having to summon every ounce of skill and guile at his disposal to get his two friends, Foggy Nelson and Kirsten MacDuffie, out from under the clutches of Wilson Fisk, the deadliest foe he has ever known. Ironically enough, the key to his victory and even his very survival may be the man whose reckless actions put him at the mercy of the Kingpin in the first place, Max Coleridge, the Shroud, who has taken control over the digitally-enslaved Leland Owlsley. Coleridge has an interest in seeing Daredevil prevail as Fisk is also holding his estranged girlfriend, Julia Carpenter, hostage. The question is: will it be enough to save the day?
While it is quite sad to see the end of the tenure of this creative team on one of my very favorite comic book characters, considering how much I have savored their run, it truly gratifies me to see them end their stint in such fine style. Without giving away too much I think it's fair to say that Waid and Samnee really end this series on a high note, which is not the most common thing for this character, for whom tragedy seems to be a rather inescapable reality. Well, at the risk of sounding a little "spoilery" I think it's fair to say that Mark and Chris cut Matt some slack this time around.
I feel I must commend Waid for his pretty sneaky misdirection all throughout this rather large storyarc, which dates all the way back to the first issue of this new volume. He clearly had something big in mind for the Owl when he basically plugged him into every single digital device in the world, but it played out quite differently from the way I had thought it would. Likewise, it seemed as though Waid was setting up a status quo in which Matt would be beholden to Fisk, but again, Waid subverted expectations, but all in service of some really fantastic storytelling. Waid may have a lot of years and books under his belt, but to my mind this is his very best work, and that's really saying something considering that this is someone whose work includes the likes of Kingdom Come, and a rather definitive run on Fantastic Four a few years back with the late Mike Wieringo. I was quite happy to learn that Waid was as happy about his work on this title as fans like me were.
This issue wasn't quite the high point of his run (and truth be told I'd be hard pressed to name a single issue I like more than any of the others) but it was a great way to close out a run that will undoubtedly go down as one of the best remembered in the history of this title, even if it did feel like a few loose ends were tied a little too neatly. But one thing that Waid really seems to get about this character, arguably more than any other author since Frank Miller, is that as a man without fear, Matt can be quite reckless (after all, we're talking about someone who, in a fit of uncontrollable rage, once attacked the Kingpin only to get flattened and dumped in a river strapped into a rusted taxicab).
It's not that Matt never has a plan, because the truth is, he usually does, even in this situation when his back is against the wall, but for these plans to work there's always some element of risk that he accepts. He isn't Batman; he doesn't have all the angles figured out before everything happens, but he does read the situation remarkably well, plan for it, and adapt if things don't quite go as planned. As I observed when reviewing the first issue, Matt's strength is how he can think on the fly, and while on at least one occasion Waid has depicted Matt as a little too reckless, on the whole his characterization has really been spot on. Bendis had more than a few moments of brilliance when he handled this book over ten years ago, but Waid wrote his stories on a whole other level, though to be fair, the character Waid had to work with had a considerably richer history thanks to Bendis' stories. Mark, you will definitely be missed.
For me, though, the real find of this entire run was Chris Samnee, whose work I actually already enjoyed coming on board. The irony for me, as I may have said in a past review was that I actually thought he was a poor fit for this particular title given his forties-style artwork that clicked so well with the "period" books he worked on like The Rocketeer: Cargo of Doom and Captain America and Bucky. Not only has Samnee proven to be supremely versatile, his work has put a lot of other artists, including a few who have even worked on this book, in the shade. His fight choreography, for example, only highlights how static the fight scenes drawn by Alex Maleev (during Brian Bendis' tenure) used to look. His skill as a visual storyteller is easily on par with John Romita Jr., whose Man Without Fear limited series written by Miller remains one of my favorite stories about this character, and while he isn't the flashiest of artists in the mold of a Jim Lee or David Finch, he is, to me anyway, far more effective at making the pictures on the page jump out at me. He and the likes of David Aja, Jamie McKelvie, Sara Pichelli and David Marquez represent a new generation of artists who are just fantastically talented but whose sensibilities are finally emancipated from many of the visual tropes that have crystallized over the years, especially after the comics book boom (and crash) of the 1990s. Great comic book art is about so much more than cross-hatching and pin-up poses, and thanks to Samnee and those like him, this generation of fans can see it as clear as day.
It thrills me to know that the Waid/Samnee tandem are off to their next big Marvel book. The fact that it has yet to be announced fills me with hope that this is going to be something big. I can hardly wait!
8.5/10
The Penultimate Chapter: A Review of Daredevil #17
(w) Mark Waid
(a) Chris Samnee
(c) Matthew Wilson
The stakes have never been higher for Matt Murdock as he learns that Wilson Fisk, also known as the Kingpin of Crime, has no interest in cutting a deal to help Matt out of the mess that the actions of Max Coleridge, a.k.a. the Shroud, have made of his life; rather, Fisk simply wants to end Matt's life, and he has a capable ally in Ikari, the similarly enhanced Ninja who almost killed Matt the last time they fought. The lives of Foggy Nelson and Kirsten MacDuffie hang in the balance. Matt fights for his life and those of his friend, but there may yet be a wild card that could shift the balance. Whether for better or worse remains to be seen...
I will say this right now, and with utter conviction: there will come a time, if it has not already, when this creative team is mentioned in the same breath as the likes of Frank Miller, David Mazzucchelli, John Romita, Jr., Bill Everett, Joe Quesada and Brian Bendis, and other creators who left an indelible mark on this character. In short, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that these guys will go down in history as all-time greats. It's hard to find new superlatives for a book that I consistently lavish with praise in almost every review I write, but with one issue to go in what is certainly destined to be remembered as a "fabled" run, Waid and Samnee truly are pulling out all the stops. As DD bad guys go, they went for the biggest one of all in their last arc with the Kingpin.
What really impresses me about this issue, as it did last issue, is how Waid and Samnee managed to turn Fisk into a truly credible menace to Matt again, both through circumstance and through their masterful depiction, through dialogue and imagery, of this truly formidable character. After all, this was not the Kingpin who made Matt's life a living hell back in the days of Frank Miller. He's been broken and stripped of power, and is basically a shadow of his former self. Waid quite cannily recognizes, however, that this can actually make him even more dangerous.
The highlight of this issue is the DD-Ikari rematch, and just when one thinks that we'll be subjected to the sight of Matt fighting a climactic battle in his three-piece suit, which he's been sporting since issue #15, he does quite the bit of prestidigitation and changes costume with a simple tear-away motion, even managing to put on his mask in the same gesture.
As egregiously late as this review is, given that I've already read issue #18, which I will naturally review next, I couldn't close out my love of this run without acknowledging this issue.
These two guys really will be a hard act to follow, so for my part, I have decided to follow them to wherever it is they're going (and Samnee has already intimated that he, Mark, colorist Matt Wilson and even letterer Joe Carmagna will all work together again very soon on a top secret Marvel book)!
9/10
(a) Chris Samnee
(c) Matthew Wilson
The stakes have never been higher for Matt Murdock as he learns that Wilson Fisk, also known as the Kingpin of Crime, has no interest in cutting a deal to help Matt out of the mess that the actions of Max Coleridge, a.k.a. the Shroud, have made of his life; rather, Fisk simply wants to end Matt's life, and he has a capable ally in Ikari, the similarly enhanced Ninja who almost killed Matt the last time they fought. The lives of Foggy Nelson and Kirsten MacDuffie hang in the balance. Matt fights for his life and those of his friend, but there may yet be a wild card that could shift the balance. Whether for better or worse remains to be seen...
I will say this right now, and with utter conviction: there will come a time, if it has not already, when this creative team is mentioned in the same breath as the likes of Frank Miller, David Mazzucchelli, John Romita, Jr., Bill Everett, Joe Quesada and Brian Bendis, and other creators who left an indelible mark on this character. In short, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that these guys will go down in history as all-time greats. It's hard to find new superlatives for a book that I consistently lavish with praise in almost every review I write, but with one issue to go in what is certainly destined to be remembered as a "fabled" run, Waid and Samnee truly are pulling out all the stops. As DD bad guys go, they went for the biggest one of all in their last arc with the Kingpin.
What really impresses me about this issue, as it did last issue, is how Waid and Samnee managed to turn Fisk into a truly credible menace to Matt again, both through circumstance and through their masterful depiction, through dialogue and imagery, of this truly formidable character. After all, this was not the Kingpin who made Matt's life a living hell back in the days of Frank Miller. He's been broken and stripped of power, and is basically a shadow of his former self. Waid quite cannily recognizes, however, that this can actually make him even more dangerous.
The highlight of this issue is the DD-Ikari rematch, and just when one thinks that we'll be subjected to the sight of Matt fighting a climactic battle in his three-piece suit, which he's been sporting since issue #15, he does quite the bit of prestidigitation and changes costume with a simple tear-away motion, even managing to put on his mask in the same gesture.
As egregiously late as this review is, given that I've already read issue #18, which I will naturally review next, I couldn't close out my love of this run without acknowledging this issue.
These two guys really will be a hard act to follow, so for my part, I have decided to follow them to wherever it is they're going (and Samnee has already intimated that he, Mark, colorist Matt Wilson and even letterer Joe Carmagna will all work together again very soon on a top secret Marvel book)!
9/10
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