DAREDEVIL #10 – An Exercise In Intensity

This week Marvel unleashes DAREDEVIL #10 on the world. Chip Zdarsky’s run on the book keeps getting better and better–this one might make you sweat a little.

***SPOILERS LIE AHEAD***

Matt Murdock finds himself in the right/wrong place at the right/wrong time. While visiting the brother of the man Daredevil murdered, as his probation officer, Murdock finds himself in the middle of a police shootout inside the police station.

Detective Cole North has a hit put on him by the Owl while inside a police station filled with crooked cops. His “guardian devil” happens to be there to bail him out and even provide a cover for him–blaming the entire mess inside the police station on Daredevil.

Everything that Chip Zdarsky has introduced to Daredevil is paying off already in just ten issues. Between Matt quitting his other life, sleeping with the mob wife/librarian, Cole North’s conflicted being, and Matt’s questioning of morality and religion–there’s already so much to grab onto that was birthed in this series. There’s a lot of merit in that, not carrying over a lot of baggage from the previous creators.

The theme of Matt Murdock struggling with his religion and not being able to “shake the devil’s influence” is enthralling. The conflicted character of Cole North has been developed and unfolded at the perfect pace. Even Matt shedding his Daredevil skin, something we’ve seen in superhero comics hundreds of times, has felt fresh and exciting.

Daredevil fans have been blessed in recent years. The Charles Soule Daredevil run was no easy act to follow, but Zdarsky is doing it. What’s most impressive is how effective this series is without feeling anything like the Soule run. It’s potentially two all-time great runs back-to-back with completely different visions.

Zdarsky isn’t the only creator making this an experience to remember either. Artist Jorge Fornés and colorist Jordie Bellaire elevate this series to the it’s current standing–which is among the best comics Marvel is putting out at a time that they are on fire across the board.

Daredevil #10 is a perfectly crafted build of suspense and anxiety. The way the drama unfolds will bring readers to the edge of their seats. Fornés slowly raises the intensity throughout and when the bullets start flying and Matt steps out of the shadows, it’s extremely satisfying.

This issue’s paced and executed like an intense, panic-inducing episode of a great television show. It specifically reminded me of the heart palpitations I had watching that episode of True Detective when Rust Cole goes undercover in the trailer park to pull that biker guy out in the middle of a raid. It’s not often that comic book art can do that to a reader.

Not to mention how absurdly cool Matt looked once he emerged in his makeshift Daredevil mask wielding police nightsticks. That’s another element we’ve seen a lot of recently but feels fresh and exciting with these creators behind it.

Jordie Bellaire’s specific use of red as an immediate sign of danger in these panels is striking. She provides a contrast in these panels that gives it an iconic and memorable appeal that will insure that readers will keep this imagery in their heads long after closing the book.