Broken Frontier

A stunning new chapter in the life of Matt Murdock begins with a stint in Rhyker’s, and a new creative team debuts to shut the slammer door on DD!

The wait is now over and the next biggest chapter in good ol’ horn head’s life begins with a vengeance. Crusading attorney Matt Murdock finds himself in an ugly place in worse shape than ever before, and he has new writer Ed Brubaker to thank for that nasty disposition. Ed’s been given the daunting task of picking up where previous writer Brian Michael Bendis left off, and all I can say is that he manages to take a further strip off from the devil himself.

So let’s start at the beginning. In the previous issue Matt was arrested by the FBI and taken to Rhyker’s for holding until a trial date could be determined. The double shocker to that story also resulted with the Kingpin being arrested as well and taken to Rhykers to join his longtime nemesis. With all that now established, this issue opened with Matt dealing with prison life and trying to adapt to his dire situation. To make matters worse, there is someone running around NY City masquerading as DD, and this certainly puts a strain on Foggy’s defense of Matt.

While Matt continues to deal with prison life, his partner Foggy Nelson deals with an even uglier side to his friend’s spiraling situation. He has to deal with Bugle reporter Ben Urich’s annoying presence, plus push back the Feds’ demands to have Matt released into general population. Of course, putting him into a compromising situation like that is not an option for Foggy, so he goes out and hires private investigator Dakota North to assist him. The pair head out to Rhyker’s to see Matt, but clearly they are nothing more than pawns in a series of diabolical events that quickly unfold, building to an explosive finale that you will probably never forget.

This issue was a double length potboiler that echoed several moments of intrigue comparable to T.V. shows like 24 and Prison Break. I really liked the way the story unfolded, and writer Ed Brubaker held court here with as much control that any writer could have with a character like Daredevil. He comes to this title with an already impressive reputation for writing gritty crime stories, and his style of writing totally suits a book like Daredevil. I really enjoy his storytelling on Captain America and he’s managed to make Cap cool again, so I expect him to make DD even cooler than it already is.

The art on this issue totally complimented the story, and I believe artist Michael Lark’s illustrations made a great story here even greater. He has a style of art of that’s reminiscent of past greats like Dave Mazzucchelli and also echoing the previous work done by Alex Maleev. I think Michael’s work falls somewhere in the middle of those two, and hemanages to maintain a certain grittiness that doesn’t become overbearing as the story progresses. I really think he’s going to make a fine addition to this book, and I am looking forward to future issues here.

So overall, I think Marvel has pulled out all the stops maintaining the highest levels possible on Daredevil. This book continues to show without a doubt why it is the best crime comic out on the stands today, and I know Brubaker and Lark will play a major role with continuing on in place of Bendis and Maleev. I suggest going on out and buying this issue ‘cause I am sure it will have you salivating for more. I know it did for me.