DAREDEVIL #599

What’s the difference between a politician and the following comic book created by Charles Soule and Ron Garney? Well, to give you a bit of a clue, let’s just say that one of them likes to tell lies whereas the other one is made out of paper! It’s March, 2018, and it’s time for another marvelous review.

TO QUOTE The Marquis de Sade: 'Social order at the expense of liberty is hardly a bargain'.

THE REVIEW:

The last time Daredevil faced-off against Muse, the artistic serial-killer, he managed to track him down by focusing his senses towards the nearest void. Problem is, he can’t do the same thing again because the newly appointed Mayor, Wilson Fisk, is polluting the airways by spreading a lot of lies about the heroes who safeguard the city. Or to be more specific about it, Frank Castle, also known as the Punisher, as he’s blaming him for the crimes Muse has previously committed.

So with that in mind, we have to ask ourselves, who can Matt turn to in order to help him out? Blindspot perhaps? After all, he does have some hands-on experience with the aforementioned rogue! And if not him, then maybe the man without fear can make some sort of a bargain with the Mayor without hair? Want to know more? Then please pick up issue 599 of Daredevil today. In the meantime though, here, check this out...

Part One) MAKING A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL: Overall this penultimate chapter of the ‘Mayor Fisk’ saga was a really great read. Not only did it set up scenarios and lay down questions, but on top of that, its general narrative was so, so, captivating, that I couldn’t help but try to figure out what’s going to happen next!

You see, following on from last months episode, Wilson Fisk, the current Mayor of New York City, has decided to capitalize on Muse’s recent killing spree by blaming his crimes on the superhero community. Now for fairly obvious reasons Matt is totally against this, and that is why he's trying to put in place certain people, activities, and events, so they can collectively dethrone the Mayor and capture Muse, all in one foul swoop!

This chapter doesn’t divulge the actual details though, even though it does insinuate two key points: (1) Matt has a plan in motion that involves a group of street-level heroes; and (2) That Matt is using his time as Wilson’s deputy so he can snoop around and figure out what he's really up to, such as, The Sarnos Project.

I also presume he's secretly aware of a legal precedent which will allow him to hinder Wilson’s time in office. Presumably, this will be unveiled next month, in issue 600, saying so because this month he came across as being more confident than he normally is, confident, focused, and somewhat anxious.

Something else about this episode I thoroughly enjoyed was that scene between Blindspot and his sister. Well, it was a very interesting scene! So interesting in fact, that I have to wonder why Sam hasn’t seen his sibling since he returned from China! It’s not like they departed on bad terms, and I can’t see why Matt didn’t inform her about her brother's resurrection either! Come to think of it, maybe it’s what led up to his resurrection that made him stay away? And if that’s the case, then I’m sure he’ll stick around for a lot longer than we might think. Wink-Wink!

Part Two) A CONVERSATION WITH WILSON: Halfway through this adventure Matt went to Wilson’s office so he could make a bargain with him in order to help the heroes capture Muse. My question with this, however, is why? Why would a sane man like Matt want to make a deal with a stubborn man like The Kingpin? It’s not like he can trust him or take anything he says at face value. If anything, a lot of what comes out of his mouth is done to benefit him personally or professionally.

But then again, Matt isn’t a stupid person and he definitely knows what Wilson is all about. Which brings me to thinking: Maybe this whole scenario was put in place as some sort of double bluff? Could Matt be playing Wilson at his own game by instigating a counter attack? After all, last month Matt discovered that Wilson was hiring a number of super villains to take jobs in his office. So with that in mind, it only stands to reason that Matt should do a similar thing with the hope that his plan negates Wilson’s plan.

Also, something else I would like to mention; would have to be the pink elephant in the room, namely, Frank Castle, The Punisher, whose absence in this issue makes me think that there is a distinct possibility he will be turning up during the next one. Well, can you honestly see Frank taking Wilson's abuse lying down? I can’t. I can’t at all. Besides, Frank is the type of vigilante who is known to get his own back on those people who did him wrong. He’s done so in the past so I’m sure he will do it again in the future. In what manner he will get his revenge, though, well, that’s anyone’s guess. Although I do have a sneaking suspicion that when he does make his move it will be at that rally Matt and Wilson said they would both jointly attend. Let’s see if I’m right, eh?

Part Three) IT'S GETTING DARK IN HERE: Noir is a visual style that’s been shepherded onto the comic book page by such artists as Frank Miller, Darwyn Cooke, Alex Maleev, Shawn Martinbrough, and of course, Daredevil’s very own, Ron Garney. Normally it’s a very contrasting style that highlights two distinct tones — usually black and white — although it has been known to favor a third tone that’s used to offset the other two. In this case, however, Matt Milla’s muted color pallet is slightly more expansive, tonally at least, despite still being able to consistently reinforce the noir style this superhero book conforms to.

Take a look at the opening few pages featured in this very issue (see pictures provided), because at first glance they don’t come across as being too noir: They have too much color in them, they don’t have the scope to highlight shadow or depth, plus to top it all off, everything seems well defined and non-obstructive. Basically, they seem like the complete opposite of noir. Or non-noir, if such a word even exists.

Having said that, though, upon closer inspection you can clearly see places where noir is implied and encouraged to encroach onto the scene. On the first page, for example, we see a picture of Matt sitting in a meditative pose while floating in a sea of purple and white haze. It doesn’t seem very noir. In fact, it seems more psychedelic than noir. Or does it? Because If you think about it, the principles of noir use's light and shade just like this picture use's light and shade. Also, if this image was truly psychedelic, why are their only two colors in the background? White and purple, offset by the red in Daredevils uniform!

So you see, dear reader, it isn't always apparent when noir is noir, and thankfully this facet was consistently conveyed throughout the entire issue! An issue, I hasten to add, which was well illustrated and well nice to read.

THE MUSIC:

As soon as I finished reading this adventure I said to myself, ‘What’s going on?’, because I wanted to know what might happen next month. Funnily enough, this expression fits in pretty well with this month's musical match-up: The Marvin Gaye classic, ‘What’s going on?’.

THE COMPARISON:

Politics has always been a funny old game. In fact, politics has been so much of a game, that I feel compelled to compare this adventure to the political video game, Pocket Politics.

THE CONCLUSION:

Two separate events played out at the end of this book which surprised me quite a lot. So, out of the following eight options, let’s see if you can guess what these two events were? Could either of them involve...