Reviews

I am very much into the story Zdarsky is telling with this run. I wish he were able to dive deeper into the ideas he's playing with, but I still admire what he's able to pull off, and it's remarkably refreshing to see a major comic book like this wrestle with heavier subject matter like this.

The issues I have are the same issues I had with the preceding volumes, though. For all of the thoughtful thematics, the series still can't get into the nitty-gritty, which limits its ability to drive its big moments home as strongly as it wants to. For example, I love how Zdarsky shows the police force as almost inherently corrupt and inept, but then he backs down from it by focusing on Detective North, the "one good cop" who redeems the whole bunch. I get that this is a Marvel series, so it's unfair to want it to lean into those subtle ACAB sentiments. Still, it's disappointing to see as talented a writer as Zdarsky touch o topics like that and not be able to explore it as honestly as I know he's capable of. I feel similarly about Daredevil's story, as Matt spends a lot of these two volumes talking about how he needs to stop being Daredevil but still does all of the usual Daredevil stuff he's always done, just with more guilt and less punching.

But that said, I'm still quite enamored with the series. My (admittedly serious) critiques result from encountering a superhero title that reckons with heavy consequences and threats, which is unusual in the medium, especially from Marvel (in my experience, anyway). All of Matt's introspection is so compelling, and even if the execution of it leaves me wanting, Zdarsky's sharp writing makes it hit the emotional beats it needs to. And at the very least, the overarching gang war storyline is a knockout. The political maneuvering of the various crime families, the way Kingpin is forced to grapple with his place in a landscape that seems to have outgrown him, and the brutal betrayals provide additional (and excellent) dimensions to the overall story.

A big part of that is due to the outstanding artwork. Checchetto is still at the top of his game here, especially in the climactic issues of the "End Of Hell" storyline, where he effectively shows off for almost 50 pages straight. His ability to draw vivid spectacle and dynamic movement is a treat, and some sequences are downright breathtaking to look at on the page. Oddly enough, some of the hand-to-hand fights are a little hard to follow, but the grander scale of the finale does not have that problem at all, thankfully. Jorge Fornes' work is also great, and I like how the series transition between the two artists' styles. Coloring is also top-tier, with Mattia Iacono and Nolan Woodard bringing striking contrasts and clarity to each page. The colors used in those actions scenes are also a massive part of what makes them work so well, as they help the reader focus on the areas and figures that matter with intelligent, sharp shading and colorwork.

I'm still not as high on this Daredevil run as I want to be, but I'm in for the long haul. The series gets so much right that it's easier to nitpick and then forgive its execution of crucial story beats.

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