Alex, He/Him Mostly interested in very long running series with lots of details and tangents to keep up with. World’s only Double Dare stan. Primarily: Transformers / DC Comics / Star Wars EU / general horror media
Daredevil Epic Collection, Vol. 1: The Man Without Fear
Apparently I don’t have enough to read, because here I am starting another project.
I recently started collecting Daredevil via the Epic Collections (what an unimaginable blunder, truly I will be counted among the deeply stupid), and rather than just let them gather dust I’ve decided to make like friend of the blog @joiningsaturn46 and review them here.
Overall Impressions
I think these early stories are a bit of a mixed bag. Having read a bit of Fantastic Four and the Lee/Ditko ASM, I think this is a bit of a step down from those, but still generally above what DC was putting out at the time. I'm always a bit hesitant going back to the Silver Age. I just find comics published before 1985 to be a bit difficult to get through, and so every Golden/Silver/early-to-mid Bronze Age collection I own I generally have taken forever to read or finish. Luckily, I was able to finish this in about a week and a half. Not ideal, but not terrible either.
The writing is almost all Stan Lee, aside from a fill-in script from Denny O'Neil, and as much as I love Stan's voice for Spider-Man and the FF, it just feels a bit...I hate to say corny but yeah. It is. I love the Marvel sense of humor, very self-deprecating and dry, but there's too much. Daredevil jokes as much as Spider-Man, and it becomes a bit tiresome. I understand Matt doesn't become that more serious hero until Miller, but it just feels like Matt doesn't have a niche within the universe.
This collection takes us from the first issue with Bill Everett, through Wally Wood and John Romita, Sr.’s runs, and to the start of Gene Colan’s roughly 80 issue Silver/Bronze Age run. I think the art is generally very good, with Wally Wood being the highlight. John Romita is great as always, but you can tell he's still learning. His stuff here isn't anywhere near as clean as ASM, though #18 with the Gladiator comes pretty close. I really liked Bill Everett's pencils on the first issue. I think he can get a bit overlooked in terms of Daredevil artists, espeically since there have been so many greats who've worked on the series, but that first issue is very well detailed with a lot of atmosphere. The only art I didn't care for was Joe Orlando. He had a few really cool panels, like in #3 where he has the Owl start cackling as he ruins his attorney's life. That's always stuck with me, but aside from that scene I don't really enjoy the art in those issues.
Characters
Mains
There really aren't a lot of characters in play yet, just our trio plus guests and villains. Going forward I'll probably split this between Matt and Supporting Cast, or Mains with Matt and Nat, but until then I'm counting Matt, Karen, and Foggy as our main characters.
Matt - Matt Murdock hovers between being my second or third favorite character. Ever. In anything. I’d say at the moment he’s third, but it’s always a close thing between him, Tim Drake, and Superman (of course). However, that’s all future stories. Works by Frank Miller, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker, and others. This is the very beginning of this character. And very much not my favorite interpretation of Matt Murdock. No, Mark Waid, I don’t think Stan Lee was an idiot because I prefer what later writers did with this character including yourself, just that there isn’t anything here you couldn’t find in another Marvel title or just better elsewhere.
Foggy - Nelson here is pretty much where he'll be for the rest of time. He's friends with Matt, he's got a crush on Karen, he's trying to run a successful law practice but doesn't want it to be bogged down in superhero antics. I think of all the characters, Foggy feels the most "complete" in regard to his later characterization. He has a lot of dumb moments (all three of these guys do), but he also ends up being the voice of reason most often.
Karen - A woman written by Stan Lee. Do I need to say more? Honestly, I think Karen is one of the worst examples of Lee's writing of a female character. She comes off as being extremely one-note and fixated both on going out with Matt and his blindness, neither of which I find compelling. Which is a shame because I love Karen's more modern characterization! She's one of my favorite DD characters. Here, she's just too focused on period typical bullshit.
Villains
On ongoing problem for DD comics have been his rather weak rogues gallery. Now, I’m a big fan of comic book villains. Love’em. Half the reason I read comic books. I’m even a proponent of rogues galleries that are a bit on the anemic side—Nightwing, Firestorm, Captain America—and I do like many of Daredevil's villains. Unfortunately, this wasn't a great showing for any of these guys.
Electro - Spider-Man villain. I don't think he works well as a mastermind.
The Owl - I really like what they do with the Owl in the 2000s, but here he's just a bit of a goofier proto-Kingpin. I think given a bit of tweaking he could have been Matt's archnemesis, but that's not how it shook out.
The Purple Man - Again, the best stories with the Purple Man are forty years in the future. Here he's definitely creepy, but more in a "oh I don't like the implications of this" way than something more explicit we'd see in Alias.
The Matador - I actually think the Matador is neat. No one else does, but that's okay. He is not, however, a particularly good villain by any means.
Mr. Fear - I think Mr. Fear is the first DD villain who's actually been used well off-rip. Where later writers and artists would find great niches for the Owl and Purple Man, Zoltan Drago is perfect from here. Now...he is just the Scarecrow with a worse name and costume. Not a bad name or costume, mind you, but obviously worse. However, it should be noted that his fear gas predates Johnny's by a few years, even if the good Dr. Crane was created over twenty years before Drago. Mr. Fear is the one villain here who just works and we don't have to put any effort in. I think that's worth something.
Stilt-Man - So Stilt-Man is lame. Don't think I can get around that. But, he still works. He isn't played for laughs (here), but instead is treated like a legitimate threat. His issue is also pretty good, which helps. His design works for me. Also the imagery of this huge guy walking along the streets of NYC is cool. It's just a shame that he isn't.
Organizer - For all the shit people give the Matador or Stilt-Man, I think most of it should be directed at the Organizer. literally the lamest mastermind villain of all time. Lex Luthor, Doctor Doom, the Penguin, Circe, the Kingpin, Blockbuster, these are some of the best and coolest members of their respective rogues galleries. The Organizer is some asshole trying to get elected wearing a potato sack over his head. Didn't even think to remove his class ring. This guy blows.
The Unholy Three - Just goons, but at least they're cool goons. That's all I ask of henchmen bad guys (I'm looking at you, Enforcers).
Plunderer - Is there a good pirate themed villain in comics? If there is, it ain’t the Plunderer. He sucks.
Ox - A Spider-Man, henchman tier villain. God, DD is just getting the fucking dregs.
Masked Marauder - What if the Organizer was more annoying AND we dragged out the reveal longer? Awful.
The Gladiator - Finally, another villain who just works. Admittedly, Melvin is a pure muscle antagonist, not a lot of planning necessary to fight this guy, but DD needed a foe he can brawl. Matador could have been that, but Gladiator does it much better and with a less specific gimmick.
Guest Appearances
What's a Mighty Marvel Masterwork without a few guests? The House of Ideas is nothing if not a haven for wayward heroes.
...fuck I think I've read too much Stan Lee and now I'm writing like a 1960s caption box.
Anyway, as much as I like Daredevil to be mostly disconnected from the broader Marvel U, it is very cool to see him rub shoulders with characters like Captain America or Spider-Man. And since I like to keep track of such things, I'll break off a section to talk about them.
The Fantastic Four - The FF are my favorite Marvel team after UXM, but it's a pretty distant second. I'm an extremely casual fan of Marvel's First Family. That said, while it is always nice to see them, they really don't have more than a cameo here. That's fine, it's a really fun cameo and makes Marvel's New York feel like Marvel's New York, but nothing to write home about. I'm including it here to establish the format, and to mention it if nothing else.
Namor - My favorite crossover of the book. Namor is a huge prick here, as he should be, but he does have some kind of moral code. Also he treats Matt with respect, which I like. I really appreciate how much of a big deal they make this out to be. Everyone is acting like Namor could singlehandedly take down the US military, and that gives his battle with Matt so much more weight. Also they share a co-creator, Bill Everett! Very awesome.
Ka-Zar & Zabu - Confession: I fucking hate Ka-Zar. I know, this character has been around forever and is deeply important to X-Men (my most beloved Marvel franchise), and the Savage Land is wicked cool, but I think he's weak as piss. I can't stand him. Boring fuck. And his crossover is the longest of the four in this volume at three issues. FUCK. This guy SUCKS. I hate caveman speak (minus Grimlock, but even he can annoy the hell out of me), I hate his design (what design?), and I hate how he is completely incongruous with the tone of Daredevil. I wouldn't read those issues again on a bet.
Spider-Man - Little factoid about myself: Spider-Man and Daredevil is my favorite team-up combination ever. I like them better than Batman and Superman, or Blue Beetle and Booster Gold. This isn't their first team-up, that was ASM #16 with DD in his yellow suit, but it's the first time they've duked it out in Matt's book. Unlike Ka-Zar, I loved Spidey's two-parter. I wish they were a bit less hostile to each other, but that's a minor criticism.
Individual Issues
1 - This is one of my favorite classic Marvel origins. Amazing Fantasy #15 will always be the best in my opinion, but this is up there. Leagues better than the following three issues. Bill Everett's art really sings here. His exteriors and backgrounds bring a lot of personality to otherwise standard scenes, and he does very nicely expressive faces. I also think the conceit of a superhero with radar powers is really cool! I mean obviously, but shedding away all the context for this character, I think this is a really solid pitch. Blind + lawyer by day + radar powers. That's a great set-up. I also think we get just enough personality for everyone (minus poor Karen) to be invested.
2 - DD borrows Electro from Spider-Man and works with the Fantastic Four. Hate to say it, but the art? WOOF. Now, the inker is Vince Colletta, so I'm willing to cut Joe Orlando some slack...but still. Woof. This whole issue is just not very good.
3 - Finally, our first original supervillain for Matt to fight. The Owl of Wall Street. Love this guy, but this issue isn't particularly well rendered either. There's a couple of decent panels from Orlando, but most of the art is on-par with #2. The Owl's fortress is kind of neat, but his plan is dumb. As is his escape at the beginning.
4 - Art still bad. Liked Purple Man. Didn't like this issue.
5 - After three issues of Joe Orlando, they brought in Wally Wood for art duties. And WOW did we see a jump in quality immediately. Everything is just rendered more cleanly and clearly, and it makes the issue less of a headache to follow. I'll admit I actually kinda like the Matador, he's a very physical threat and I think the costume looks cool, but he's not a great villain. Matt is still in desperate need of that killer antagonist. The Owl could have become that, but he didn't (at least until like the 2000s). The Matador can't.
6 - Mr. Fear is great, the art is great, first great issue since #1.
7 - My favorite issue of this collection. I'm a sucker for the hero being completely beat, absolutely cannot go any further, and yet they still give one last show of defiance. It's one of my favorite tropes, and seeing that in combination with Namor realizing Daredevil is a worthy adversary is just exquisite. This is the issue that made me like Namor. Also Matt's new costume??? Let's fucking go??? The classic red is the best redesign of any superhero costume of all time. It's not just better than its predecessor, it's one of the best designs in all of Marvel period. Such a simple change, but it makes the suit.
8 - Stilt-Man! I've always had a soft spot for Stilt-Man since I read Frank Miller's DD--the best use of that character. They way they defeat him is fucking stupid, but the issue overall is decent. I like that they go in thinking Wilbur Day is innocent, but he's actually the supervillain. Also my favorite cover of the bunch
9 - Some of Wood's best art and Matt's best quips, but I didn't really vibe with this issue. Klaus Kruger is a bad villain. I'm already sick of how much Karen condescends to Matt about his disability. I liked the moment when the doctor sacrificed himself, and when Kruger fell into the chasm going "NOOOoooooo." That's always fun.
10 - I hate how this issue opens with Stan Lee apologizing in advance if readers didn't like Wally Wood's script! That was uncooth to say the least. Especially because this was the stronger half of the two-parter!
11 - The Organizer is unmasked. Not a great finish, and I mourn the loss of Wally Wood on Daredevil.
12 - I was kinda vibin' with the Plunderer until he said his name was Parnival Plunder, let DD live for no reason, and proceeded to subject us to THREE ISSUES of Savage Land Ka-Zar bullshit. The singular upside is now we have John Romita, Sr., so the art is still good.
13 - More Ka-Zar. Also his name is Kevin Plunder? What?
14 - Phonetically spelled English accents. Also more Ka-Zar. Joy.
15 - Mercifully, we're done with Ka-Zar. Thank Christ. Now we deal with the Ox, one of the members of the Enforcers. Probably my least favorite classic Spidey rogues of all time--they're just guys--but this was kind of a neat plot. A genius switching bodies with Ox, but then they slowly revert to form. Not a good issue, but a step up.
16 - The Spider-Man crossover! Well, part 1 of the crossover. Mostly these two fighting. The art is spectacular, but it's still early for JRSR. His standard setting run on ASM is still some months away.
17 - Second half of the crossover, and I loved how they involved Spider-Man's supporting cast as well. JJJ and Aunt May are always welcome additions. The Masked Marauder is lame.
18 - The Gladiator! My favorite DD villain of this era. Foggy is completely out of his mind for trying to pull this switcheroo bullshit. Honestly, this issue was the first really good Daredevil story since Wood left the book.
19 - Gladiator already getting broken out of jail. Loved how he wouldn't kill Daredevil after Matt spared him. Good issue.
20 - The return of the Owl, and Owl's sick hideout! Also a stupid and convoluted plan. First Gene Colan issue. Overall: eh.
21 - Little bit more eh. Kind of went out on a whimper. I am liking Gene's art.
Final Thoughts
This one was a bit of a slog at times--though not nearly as much as the next volume which was just hell--but it was enjoyable enough as a classic Marvel read. I think I understand why DD was considered the least of the 1960s characters, because this book does not bring much more than a worse Spider-Man to the table. I know that's harsh, but I stand by it. That said, the groundwork is there. I know this character can be literally the best that Marvel has, and I see the bones of that here, but I don't think Stan Lee's direction for the book was ever going to bring him there.
And what if I said that a lot of fandom’s discomfort with Teen Titans 2003 (comic) in the modern era is due to its interaction with and shared vibes with the teen/young adult TV dramas of the era (Smallville, Buffy, Dawson’s Creek, etc) and those being seen as somewhat awkward and outdated now?
In the same way that New Teen Titans is heavily interrelated with the 1980s soap opera?
We’re back with a dark horse (congrats on the union btw) from the first wave, the fastest man alive!
Absolutely loved that first issue, so this was an easy pick-up. Luckily, I already owned the first two volumes from some thrifting back in the day. Now I finally have an excuse to read them, and better yet to tell you fine people what I thought!
So, will the subsequent issues live up to that first? Let’s find out together…
Volume 1: Move Forward
So let’s answer that question off rip: mostly.
The first issue of Flash really impressed me, despite my well documented distaste for Barry Allen. Distaste is perhaps a strong word. Disinterest is probably more accurate. I don’t hate Barry, but I don’t find him all that compelling. It’s fine if it is a story from before Crisis on Infinite Earths, but anything made after 1986 needs Wally. This series has it even worse since this is where DC decided that Wally doesn’t even need to exist. Woof. That all said, this first volume was good! Not my favorite Flash run, but as a fresh start for Barry, this is pretty enjoyable.
Art remains top notch, easily the best part of the book. The experimental panel layouts and colors really give the storytelling in this volume a huge boost, as well as setting it apart from the rest of the line. Barry himself was good! Well, good for Barry. He’s shown to be a concerned friend, and at least aspires to be a good boyfriend (even if he isn’t). Speaking of, I liked Patty Spivot a lot. She’s got an entertaining personality, and seems to care a lot for Barry. Honestly, I think this is one of the innumerable downsides to a reboot, as they really haven’t given me a reason to want Barry with Iris outside of tradition. Patty is present, she’s fun, and she’s not the 125,658,554th version of Lois Lane. Meanwhile, Iris is none of those things here.
The story is just okay. I like seeing Barry so determined to help his friend, but beyond that it’s not giving me much to work with. Part of the issue is I think Mob Rule is a bit of a weak villain. He was a good way to introduce Barry to the audience, but I don’t have any desire to see him again. A shame because I love the multiple man gimmick.
Alternatively, Captain Cold was great. I don’t like him (or any of the Rogues) having powers, but if I’m able to put that aside he was characterized exactly as I’d want him to be. Arguably he should have been the first villain, but I understand wanting to have someone less prominent so as to not steal the spotlight from Barry. That’s very easy given Barry is a bit…boring…and his villains are so awesome. Probably a good instinct, as was packaging these two arcs together.
Volume 2: Rogues Revolution
Another solid volume, even a bit stronger than the first in some ways.
Art remains excellent even if it’s not Francis Manapul doing every issue. They bring in Marcus To and Scott Kolins for some art assists, and it all looks very good. Nothing to complain about in that regard.
The story is mostly better, but I think they may have packed it a bit full. The previous volume had two arcs, one for Mob Rule and one for Captain Cold. Very focused, even if Mob Rule is a pretty lame bad guy. Here, we have three, and I think they end up stepping on each other's toes a tiny bit. That said, we’re at least given some good stories, even if I think we could have spent more time elsewhere.
Gorilla Grodd is arguably Flash’s second greatest nemesis after Reverse-Flash, and yet he only gets one issue to shine. It’s a good issue with that exquisite Francis Manupal art, but I think if they just pushed off Grodd into the third volume and built a full arc around him and Gorilla City, it’d be pretty much perfect pacing.
They build up the Rogues a bit, having Weather Wizard, Heatwave, and Golden Glider all get their own issues before teaming up in the annual. That was pretty good pacing, and felt like a solid choice for the annual. We work in a pretty good overview of the Rogues and their morality, which was nice. They have such a specific niche as endearing punch-clock villains, and they maintain that enough while re-establishing them as legitimate threats to Barry. Plus seeing them throw down in Keystone was a treat.
Keystone City > Central City. Always.
Aside from the annual (which was also great), the standout issue for me was the zeroth issue. Probably the cleanest rendition of the post-Geoff Johns origin I’ve read. I’ve never been particularly thrilled with the Henry Allen plot, and not in some weird “pre-Crisis worshipper” way like I’ve seen on Twitter, but in that I don’t think it’s necessary. That said, they give you some time with Nora, Barry reaffirming his belief in his dad, and all while working in the lightning strike. Not bad. The one thing it’s missing is a connection to Jay Garrick, but this being the New 52 this shouldn’t be surprising. Disappointing, but not surprising.
Conclusion
So this series shook out to be pretty decent! Or at least this portion of the run. I may pick up the omni if they do a reprint, but for now I’m satisfied with this. Besides, we got a lot of comics in the pipeline and I only got so much time on Earth.
I’d say check these out if you want good, modern Barry Allen Flash comics. They about scratch that itch, and look good while doing so.
Just got out of seeing the 1989 Batman movie in theaters, and despite everything I still love this movie dearly. It’s so personally important to not just my fandom for Batman, but also for my love of movies.
It’s heinously inaccurate, of course, but as a six-year-old this was the film that showed me movies could be cool. It was the first “serious” picture I ever watched, and it became a yardstick that I still unconsciously use to this day.
What I’m saying is expect some Batman ‘89 posting, including those tie-in reviews I pondered a while back.
"mtmte's writing is has MCU disease" listen i'll be the first to poke fun at some of the tendencies of mtmte's dialogue and how Of Their Time they are especially certain styles of joke etc. i promise. but if you say this you have your timeline all wrong. it's whedonesque. the avengers wasn't even out yet iirc, lol. you have to go further back. your culprit is the incredibly huge influence Buffy and its antecedents had on All Of Nerd Culture for like a decade and a half my friends
Were you the one with a whole list of everything Babs did in Tom Taylor’s Nightwing because people kept saying she did “nothing” and just “followed Dick around like a dog”???
Hi anon!
Nope, sorry, it wasn't me😅 But still, you did sorta ask to the right person because I happen to know and be friend with the beautiful human being who made it so here ya go:
It was made by @ oraclefiles (babslover) on TikTok! If this is the list you were talking about ^^
I read Cosmic Odyssey by Jim Starlin and Mike Mignola the other day, and I was struck by how well they used Starfire—despite Kory being a pretty minor player in the story.
I find a lot of writers tend to fall into the exact trap Wolfman and Pérez called out in NTT: making her come off as dumb.
Not naive, but genuinely dumb. I don’t even think naive is an acceptable characterization at this point (the woman is pushing 30 and has been on Earth for a decade at minimum), but dumb shouldn’t even be a word in your vocabulary to describe Koriand’r.
She. Isn’t. Dumb.
Starlin by contrast portrayed her as being powerful, competent, but more specifically clever. She used her powers in a more nuanced way than just “hit, power blast, hit, power blast.”
Instead, she used the trail of flame that follows her hair to ignite a being made of a petroleum jelly.
I love that! I also love how Mignola draws her. To be fair, I just love how he draws, but I specifically like how he can make her both powerful and intimidating or friendly and upbeat just using the lighting and her glowing green eyes.
So while it’s a very minor appearance, I think more people should look at this for future solo appearances. Here, Star is a professional among peers. An intelligent and sophisticated fighter. No mention of the other Titans to steal the spotlight away or make this into interpersonal drama.
Starfire is one of the greatest heroes the Earth had ever seen, and CO actually treats her as such. Standing shoulder to shoulder with Superman, Batman, and the others.
