Daredevil Against The Horde In Daredevil #611
by Josh Davison
[*Mild Spoilers Ahead!]
After the death of James Wesley, Daredevil has disbanded his investigation team for fear of Kingpin’s retaliation. He knows that Fisk will send killers after him soon, and that suspicion is proven right by the arrival multiple Stilt-Men. Matt evades them as long as possible and seeks shelter in an sports stadium. Inside, he finds Typhoid Mary, Electro, the Klaw, Tenfingers, the Gladiator, and Ikari waiting for him.
Daredevil #611 faces a gauntlet of his regular antagonists in this issue. This continues the trend of “Death of Daredevil” practically exhausting him to death. As I was reading this issue, it dawned on me that “Death of Daredevil” seems to be taking some inspiration from the Batman: Knightfall in its bid to bring the hero down by a series of catastrophes as opposed to any one thing.
Also, I thought Ikari and Tenfingers were dead, and that the Klaw was more-or-less destroyed again by Black Panther. Yes, I know this is comic books, and death is rarely the end for any character. It’s also pretty weird seeing the Klaw back in a henchman role after his position as mastermind during Black Panther’s “Avengers of the New World” story.
Regardless, this was a pretty damn awesome issue, and it is great watching Daredevil outwit this ad hoc Sinister Six. It hearkens back to the old days of comics where the hero can’t take the villains in a straight on fight, so they must find a more clever way of stopping the rogues.
Phil Noto once again rocks this issue with his uniquely wonderful artwork. The figure and texture work never ceases to impress, and the big blowout action sequence looks great. There is one instance of weirdness with the visual continuity when Ikari falls and is suddenly in the stands, and it’s almost funny watching the comic bend over backwards to keep Typhoid Mary covered in her shirtless costume.
The color work looks damn good too, giving the world of Matt Murdock a strange and atmospheric color palette to keep things visually interesting.
Daredevil #611 is another intense issue as we near the alleged death of the Man Without Fear. We get to see Ol’ Hornhead take on a lot of his classic foes and overcome them in a manner that feels distinctly Daredevil. This one comes recommended. Check it out.
Daredevil #611 comes to us from writer Charles Soule, artist and cover artist Phil Noto, and letterer VC’s Clayton Cowles.
