DAREDEVIL #11 & #12

There once was a cop called Cole, who hated living in a ginormous hellhole. But then, one night, to his, delight, a demon swiftly swallowed his soul. Want to know more? Then please ignore the following adventure created by Chip Zdarsky, Marco Checchetto, and published by Marvel Comics in October, 2019.

TO QUOTE Lewis Grizzard: ‘The game of life is a lot like football. You have to tackle your problems, block your fears, and score your points when you get the opportunity’.

THE STORY:
Problems-Problems-Problems. Everywhere I look, somebody seems to be having some sort of problem. Wilson Fisk, for instance, has a problem with The Owl because he refuses to stop his attacks on The Libris Crime Family. Whereas Detective Cole North, on the other hand, has a problem with the web-headed wonder himself, Spider-Man, on account of his continued heroics. And as for Matt Murdock? Well, in his case, he has no problems whatsoever! Apart from being accosted by Elektra, being plagued by his past transgressions, as well as…

AAAAAGGGHHHH!

Wait a minute! Did you hear that? As it sounded like someone wearing a Daredevil costume being beaten up by a gang of corrupt cops! Who’s going to help him though? Who’s crazy enough to jump into action and save the day? Matt? Foggy? Or somebody else? Either way, to find out the answer, please pick up issue 11 and 12 of Daredevil today. In the meantime though, here, check this out…

THE REVIEW:

On the whole, I’d say these two episodes of Daredevil were a right delight to read, because Marco Checchetto’s artwork was bold, well-paced, and very atmospheric on occasion, whereas Chip Zdarsky’s story was very engrossing, despite being moderately fractured (particularly in issue 11). Although, when I say fractured, what I actually mean by this is that the overall narrative was fairly fragmented in places, largely due to the plot constantly shifting focus between Matt’s story, Wilson’s story, and occasionally, Cole’s story, at a pretty rapid rate. After a while, though, I got used to this continuous shift and became really captivated with what was going on! So much so, in fact, that the only real way I can review this adventure is by doing it, question and answer style...

1) Is Matt his own worst enemy? Yes, yes he is, and the main reason why I say this is because he can’t seem to control his own emotions! I mean, just take a look at the way he’s handling his affair with Mindy, for instance, as it looks like the logical side of his brain is telling him one thing, ‘Stay away, stupid! She’s a married woman who’s connected to the mob’, whereas his more emotional side is saying something else, ‘Go for it, pal! Shaft her before her old man shafts you’! Similarly, Matt doesn’t seem to be handling his predicament with Joey any better! Although, in this case, his emotions don’t derive from a sexual need, but rather, a redemptive need, because he accidentally killed Joe’s brother in issue 1. So, in a roundabout way, I suppose what I’m trying to say, is that he needs to keep his emotions in check, or else, he’s just going to experience more panic attacks and get himself into more trouble. Perhaps, some counseling might be in order? Or better yet...

2) Should Matt accept Elektra’s help to train him? Yes, yes he should; otherwise, he’s going to end up killing himself due to his lack of self-control and lack of physical prowess! Well, let’s face it; at the moment, Matt doesn’t seem to be firing on all cylinders because he’s suffering from anxiety and hasn’t kept in shape. In issue 12, for instance, we see him teaming up with Foggy Nelson so they can both try to save someone who’s been kidnapped by a gang of corrupt cops. In doing so, however, it’s eventually revealed that Matt isn’t fast enough, strong enough, or clever enough to accomplish this task, despite starting off their quest in a very innovative fashion (by getting Foggy to knock on their front door and then attempt to dupe them via legal means). So, as far as I’m concerned, Matt has to acknowledge that he needs some help, both physical and mental help, and then try to find someone who can advise him accordingly! Someone like Elektra Natchios (physical help), Sister Elizabeth (spiritual help), Foggy Nelson (emotional help), or a certain wall-crawling vigilante that popped up in issue 11 (heroic help).

3) What? Did you just say Spidey showed up! So what did he do? Basically, he had a conversation with Detective Cole North about ‘superhero privilege’. According to him, he thinks that every hero has the right to use their abilities in the name of justice, while Cole, conversely thinks that they should either be imprisoned or regulated by the government. To me, though, well? I’m neither here nor there, really, because I can easily see both sides of the argument! On the one hand, heroes should be allowed to defend the innocent and protect those in need. While, on the other, some sort of supervisory regulation should be put in place just to make sure no one is breaking the law! After all, how can the police, the emergency services, or the general public tell if a hero is truly a hero? Unless some sort of governing body has been appointed to preserve everyone's safety! Admittedly, dilemmas such as this one have been played out before in storylines like ‘Civil War’! But if truth be told, it’s always nice to see a different take on this argument. A different take that at the very least tries its best to be non-biased and evenly matched!

4) So what did Wilson do in this adventure? Is he still a changed man or has he gone back to a life of crime? Well, without giving too much away, let me just say that Wilson is trying his best to stay on the path of justice by setting-up certain regulations that revolve around drugs, firearms, and that sort of thing. But unfortunately for him, he’s also surrounding himself with people that don’t seem to be doing him any favors. This includes The Owl, AKA Leland Owlsley, who went against Wilson’s wishes when he was asked to stop attacking The Libris Crime Family; as well as those rich f#ckers he had dinner with (in issue 12), who constantly spoke down to him by commenting on his weight, criticizing his past, and treating him as if he were a second-class citizen. In fact, they lambasted him so much and so often, that I genuinely felt sorry for Wilson and partly cheered him on when he, coff-coff, did whatever he eventually did, wink-wink! Partly, being the operative word in this case, as I don’t want to condone his actions and I don’t want to spoil this issue either. What I can say, though, is that Wilson is having a tough time of it at the moment, and in many ways, his plight seems to be mirroring Matt’s plight, emotionally, if not physically.

Anyway, that’s enough of that for this month, folks, as all I have left to say is that, yes, I did enjoy reading these two issues (written by Chip Zdarsky), yes, I am enjoying the down to earth artwork (drawn by Marco Checchetto), and yes, I can’t wait to see what happens next.

THE MUSIC:

For this month’s musical match-up, I’m going to align this adventure with the Al Green song, ‘My Problem Is You’, simply because both of these books are about people having problems with someone else.

THE COMPARISON:

As I’ve said before, everyone who stars in this story has some sort of problem to deal with, and so that is why I’m going to compare it to someone who might be able to resolve problems. Namely, a counselor, or someone else who works within the problem-solving field!

THE CONCLUSION:

At the end of issue 12, Wilson Fisk does something so, so shocking, that I think it would be a good idea for you to guess what he does out of the following eight options! I mean, does he…?