When Daredevil and Cap (Somehow Didn’t) Do Battle!
It’s July 4th, AKA Steve Rogers’ birthday-- and as usual, I’m celebrating by blogging about PUNCHING! That’s right, ol’ Hornhead and Winghead are at it again, once more ready to exchange blows in service of the sacred superhero tradition of Seeing Who Would Win in a Fight.
...Or are they?
Our story takes place during D.G. Chichester’s run on Daredevil, in the midst of his 90s computer hacker-fest, “Tree of Knowledge” (issues #326-332). A group of tech-savvy terrorists is creating chaos in the city, and the new-and-improved Gritty Armored Daredevil (still Matt, but X-Treme now, having recently faked his death again) is on the case. In a story choked with cameos by a variety of unexpected faces, it’s not surprising that Cap, Matt’s favorite sparring partner, shows up too. Matt’s investigations, in costume as Armored DD and out-of-costume as con artist “social engineer” Jack Batlin, lead him to the apartment of teenage computer hacker Sinclair Spectrum. However, she already has a visitor...
[ID: An excerpt from Chichester’s Daredevil run. Captain America has his hand on the shoulder of a young woman with short blond hair. Daredevil perceives this with his radar sense, depicted in black with faint white outlines.]
Caption: “Daredevil’s traced Spectrum, hoping her ties to Cobol Charlie might provide a link to the terrorists.”
Steve: “Calm down, miss! I’m not here to strong-arm--”
Spectrum: “Get your hand off of me!”
Matt: “Enough of that!”
[ID: Daredevil’s billy club/grapple line wraps around Cap’s wrist.]
Caption: “The blind man doesn’t know why 240 pounds of muscle are clamping down on 95 pounds of teenager... but he knows he’s going to put a stop to it.”
Daredevil vol. 1 #327 by D.G. Chichester, Scott McDaniel, and Christie Scheele
Matt knows it’s Cap. And he’s known Cap for years. They’ve actually (despite any impressions provided by this blog) had interactions that weren’t fights. Matt trusts Cap enough to team up with him on occasion, and presumably enough to also know that he usually acts with good intentions. But none of that matters here, and Matt goes in fists-- well, billy clubs-- swinging. He's acting the part of a new Daredevil-- tougher, gruffer, with bigger shoulder pads-- and that means attacking former friends with little provocation.
[ID: Captain America, still holding the billy clubs, throws his shield Daredevil, who is shown in silhouette.]
Steve: “I’m not used to taking orders!”
Matt: “I’ve noticed that about you Avenger-types! Fast reflexes!”
[ID: Daredevil catches the shield, backflips with it, and lands in a crouch.]
Matt: “Not fast enough. This frisbee’s-- heavier-- than it looks! Next time try when I don’t see it coming!”
Steve: “This isn’t your concern, Daredevil-- or whoever you are! I suggest you leave... before I’m forced to escort you out!”
It wouldn’t be a real fight without Matt and Steve switching weapons, am I right?
To make matters even more combative, Steve doesn’t know who this guy is. Matt’s efforts at pretending to be a new, different Daredevil have so far been successful-- and many among the superhero community don’t trust this violent stranger using their dead friend’s moniker. Steve is fully willing to fight him. It’s all there: the perfect excuses necessary for a good old-fashioned knock-down, drag-out brawl.
[ID: Captain America is holding the billy clubs in front of him. Daredevil is larger-than-life in the background, holding the shield. They are both grimacing and have way too many teeth. It’s great.]
Matt: “You want to dance with me, soldier-boy? LET’S GO...”
Look at those grimaces! The dramatic lighting! The questionable anatomy! The fightin’ words! Grab some popcorn-- they’re gonna do it!
...And then they don’t.
The next issue begins with Matt, at a later point, reflecting on the confrontation, but there’s not a punch in sight-- not even from Spectrum, who seems like she’s in the mood to fight both of them.
[ID: A page showing Daredevil (in his armored costume) leaping across rooftops, interspersed with flashback panels showing him facing off with Captain America, and the two of them talking with Sinclair Spectrum in her apartment.]
Matt: “Captain America. Who’d have thought I’d find him trying to coerce information out of the same person I was? If he hadn’t been there I would have found out her connection with the late Phreak and Knowbot. The layers of complexity just keep piling up. Sinclair Spectrum...”
Spectrum: “I ain’t telling either of you squat. You wanna look around-- get a search warrant! I got rights!”
Steve: “Perhaps you’d like to speak to a lawyer?”
Daredevil vol. 1 #328 by Gregory Wright, Sergio Cariello, Ovi Hondru, et al.
And then the story moves on, with Matt and Steve eventually teaming up to handle the hackers. It’s one of the most impressive fight fake-outs I’ve ever seen, and honestly, as much as I live for the punching, I can respect that.
