Wednesday, June 29, 2011

[New post] Daredevil greatest hits: Golden Age (issues 66-70)

Daredevil greatest hits: Golden Age (issues 66-70)

dailypop | June 29, 2011 at 7:03 pm | Tags: daredevil bendis maleev marvel | Categories: Daredevil | URL: http://wp.me/p4kUt-2My

Daredevil - 'Golden Age'

By Brain Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev

After Frank Miller and Klaus Janson's legendary run and the return engagement of Miller and David Mazzucherlli, it seemed that no one would ever make a similar impact on the character. However, when the little known writer/artist Brian Michael Bendis took over in 2001, all of that changed. Bendis had made a name for himself in the independent market for his work in the crime dramas Goldfish, Jinx and Torso before moving on to make Sam and Twitch a must read monthly title from Image Comics.

Some fans may say that it was Ultimate Spider-Man that put Bendis on the map, but I'd argue that it was his unique blend of cinematic plotting and David Mamet-inspired dialog that made Daredevil a career-defining project. It wasn't just the writing that made the comic such a success for five years, however. Artist Alex Maleev's singular style impressed readers who saw in his work a mixture of photo-realism and dynamic action that had not been seen since the days of Jim Steranko on his Nick Fury work from the 1960's.

I had praised the Bendis/Maleev run on Daredevil at the time (and even wrote in one of my few fan letters at the beginning), but recently found myself revisiting the issues as I am gearing up for the new series next month. I was surprised to find that the run stands up extraordinarily well and remains a defining moment for both the creative team and the character. Bendis and Maleev have gone on to collaborate on the under-rated Spider-Woman series and more recently on Scarlet, but Daredevil is where the pair cut their teeth.

By the time 'The Golden Age' came around, Bendis and Maleev had hit their stride. They had already exposes Daredevil's secret identity and produced such monumental adventures focused on Kingpin and Bullseye while Matt Murdock seemed to lose his already slim grip on sanity. The previous issues pushed the envelope in what a street-level superhero comic book could accomplish, but it was The Golden Age that brought the project full circle as it paid homage to the tradition of Marvel Comics and the pulp influences that Bendis and Maleev played up in their vision of Daredevil.

The story of Golden Age involves an old gangster, the aged Alexander Bont who had preceded the modern Kingpin of Crime in bringing the various families together under one leader. The story is expertly told as Bendis connects the real world of mobsters of the 1940's to the Marvel Universe version involving men in tights lunging through windows to battle gun-toting wise guys. A pragmatist, Bont guns down the first costumed vigilante who stands in his way and instantly becomes a legend. When a young Daredevil confronts Bont decades later in the swinging 1960's, he is perceived as a joke (Bont guffaws at DD's ludicrous outfit, 'So you're a devil who wears yellow sleeves? What's up with that?' But of course the joke is on Bont when he attempts to hire DD in his lawyer guise of Matt Murdock... who happens to already be engaged in a legal case against Bont. When the mobster is put away, Murdock feels that he has won yet another victory, but he has actually made a lifelong enemy.

Seething in prison, Bont watches as Murdock's life as a lawyer and crime fighter spirals out of control in the press. Before finishing his term, Bont purchases some MGH (Mutant Growth Hormone) that promises to grant him inhuman abilities, making him into a powerhouse with one goal only, to destroy the man who ruined him, Matt Murdock, AKA Daredevil. The MGH is of course bound to drive him mad and perhaps even kill him, but Bont has nothing to live for any longer aside from revenge.

The story is split between three time periods, the 40's, 60's and 00's and Maleev gives each period a unique look. The scratchy black and white world of post-WWII New York feels just as real as the pop art style of the 60's throughout the five issue arc. In another creative team's hands, this would have come off as heavy handed and certainly at the time it was a bit jarring, but it has aged so well. Bont's rage becomes more evident as he paves his way through to an old associate, Melvin Potter, formerly the villain known as the Gladiator. Roping Melvin into his scheme, Bont is determined to not just kill Murdock but ruin him in the eyes of everyone.

The story of Bont's rise and fall is so operatic and dynamic, especially compared to the controlled emotional rage that Murdock exhibits all the way through the story. Even when he is battered, beaten and betrayed, Murdock remains perfectly sedate.

There are so many great Daredevil stories, and I plan to visit many more, but The Golden Age is a real gem that rarely gets the attention it deserves.
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