How do you like your Daredevil? Served in a beautiful hardcover, in the form of a convenient take-it-on-the-train trade paperback or as single issues to be treated carefully and then put away for posterity? For many older issues, there isn’t much of a choice, but a great many of Daredevil’s adventures have been collected. This includes all of volume two, which, for the most part, is available in more than one format. The sole exception is the Playing to the Camera arc, written by Bob Gale, which was released as Daredevil #20-25. The question of whether it ever will be collected resurfaces from time to time, but there is currently no indication of any such plans.
About a year ago, I wrote a post called Daredevil Volume 2 for Dummies, which contains a comprehensive list of all volume two collections. It was recently updated too, and provides a good guide to the last ten years of Daredevil publication. Collected editions from volume one don’t cover every writer and era, but there’s still quite a bit of material out there. With this post, I’m going to attempt to list all volume one collections. I can’t promise perfection, but I’ll do my very best. Let me know if there’s something missing from this list and I’ll add it.
Silver Age : Marvel Masterworks Daredevil
The Marvel Masterworks hardcovers collect the early stories of some of Marvel’s most popular characters in full color. So far, there are five volumes, each collecting around ten issues. These volumes collect the entire Stan Lee run on Daredevil since Daredevil #53 was his final issue as writer. Click the images below for more details about each volume at www.marvelmasterworks.com
Read more under the cut –>
Tagged as:
Ann Nocenti,
Character basics,
D. G. Chichester,
Daredevil for beginners,
David Mazzucchelli,
Frank Miller,
Gene Colan,
John Romita Jr,
Lee Weeks,
Scott McDaniel,
Stan Lee
… ’nuff said! From Daredevil #34, by Stan Lee and Gene Colan. The hilarity of this panel speaks for itself. And, as a bonus, doesn’t your own day look a whole lot brighter? Exactly. I thought so. 
Daredevil is in a tight spot in Daredevil #34, by Stan Lee and Gene Colan
Tagged as:
Daredevil vol 1 #1-50,
Gene Colan,
Humor,
Stan Lee,
The Beetle
News
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It was just announced today that Daredevil #501 sold out and will be going back for a second printing! In the current economic climate, and with so many books gradually shedding readers (for various reasons), this is really good news for both Daredevil fans and the new creative team. Read more about this news at Marvel.com.
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Marvel released their solicits for January today, and I must say that Daredevil #504 is looking mighty interesting! As always, there are spoilers, but the fearless can have a look at this and other solicits at Newsarama.com. Daredevil will also be making a guest appearance in Black Widow: Deadly Origins #3.
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Check for more items coming out in 2010 at ManWithoutFear.com. Items of note are a new Nocenti TPB and Essential Daredevil vol 5, featuring issues from Gerry Conway’s and Steve Gerber’s runs (with art by Gene Colan, Bob Brown and others).
Links
My good friends from Monkey on my Back (you meet all kinds of people hanging around Twitter all day…) recently posted a review of Guardian Devil. They are also generally cool people with a cool podcast, so any comics fan would be well-advised to check them out.
That’s it for now! Everyone have a good week!
Tagged as:
Andy Diggle,
Bob Brown,
Daredevil #500-current,
Gene Colan,
Gerry Conway,
Links,
Random information,
Steve Gerber
This post was slated for Thursday, but the time got away from me. That means this is White Cane Day +2 .
I’m going with an educational post today, and there’s a reason for that. October 15 is White Cane Day, and last year I did a post about the history of the modern white cane and its use in the Daredevil comic, complete with plenty of panels from the archives. So, I thought I’d make the educational angle something of a tradition on this particular day.
As I think I’ve mentioned before, I knew little about blindness before becoming a Daredevil fan, or at least not much more than the average person. The same goes for my knowledge of braille, the topic of this post. Sure, I knew the basics, that is that it was a tactile system of reading consisting of raised dots, and that it had been created roughly two hundred years ago by the blind Frenchman Louis Braille. That was about all I knew. Over the last two years, since starting this blog, I’ve had the opportunity to learn much more. Not because it’s in any way vital to what’s happening in the Daredevil comic (where references to braille are few and far in between), but because I’m one of those people who are easily fascinated by anything remotely interesting.
Most people probably have at least a passing familiarity with the story of Louis Braille, the inventor of the writing system that bears his name. What most people probably don’t realize is how long it took for braille to be recognized, or even accepted, and what other methods were used in the instruction of the blind at the time.
Louis Braille Painting
Louis Braille was born in 1809 and became blind gradually at the age of three, following an accident in his father’s workshop. While this accident left him without any sort of superpowers, it is clear from what we know about his life that he had intellectual abilities that would rival those of even the most ingenious of supervillains. After having very successfully attended the local school for sighted children in his home town, something which would have been highly unusual at the time, young Louis was sent to the school for the blind in Paris in 1819, at the age of ten.
Click to learn more about the history of braille –>
Tagged as:
braille,
Random information
Panel from Daredevil #27, by Stan Lee and Gene Colan
Daredevil #27, by Stan Lee and Gene Colan sees Daredevil have one of those awkward blind superhero moments that should probably be more common than is seen in the comic (for two other such moments, see “I’m feeling a headache coming on officer, gotta run!” and “Nice save, Daredevil!“).
This scene takes place very early in Daredevil’s and Spider-Man’s relationship. It’s so early, in fact, that Matt apparently doesn’t know what Spider-Man looks like, despite the long hours the legal eagles have already spent in front of the television watching Spidey’s shenanigans (you’d think Foggy would tell him…).
Here, Daredevil reveals that he doesn’t know that Spider-Man wears a mask, thus coming close to revealing his secret. On the other hand, I think we should be careful about analyzing the situation too carefully, or we might end up asking questions like
- Doesn’t Spider-Man’s mask make his voice sound muffled?
- Where does Daredevil think the alias “webhead” comes from if not from Spidey wearing webs on his head?
- Why does Spider-Man assume that his mask hides a less than cheerful attitude?
- Does Spider-Man now suspect Daredevil has X-ray vision?
Well, the list could go on, but now it’s making my head hurt. Gotta go to bed!
Tagged as:
Daredevil vol 1 #1-50,
Gene Colan,
Humor,
Stan Lee
by Christine on October 11, 2009 in Humor
We know Matt isn’t always Mr. Nice Guy, but the panel below, in which he throws a medicine ball at Natasha with enough force to send her flying across the room, pretty much proves it. On the other hand, this could be him actually making progress in his treatment of women. That is, he’s treating Natasha like she’s a man, and not pulling any punches. Also, they had recently broken up at the time. I don’t want to speculate, but there might have been some unresolved issues between them.
This scene, which sees Matt and Natasha work out together (or go Mr. and Mrs. Smith on each other, depending on how you want to look at it…) is from Daredevil #121, written by Tony Isabella and penciled by Bob Brown. Brown sure does a great job illustrating the considerable amount of violence going on. It does make me chuckle though.
Panel from Daredevil #121, by Tony Isabella and Bob Brown
Tagged as:
Bob Brown,
Daredevil vol 1 #101-150,
Humor,
Tony Isabella
Cover to Daredevil #501
When I first heard Brubaker and Lark were leaving Daredevil, I was sad to see them go since I felt they had done such a great job with the book. Granted, they had turned it into an incredible depressing book, but the stories were well-crafted and beautifully illustrated, and I’m not ashamed to say I’ve been a hardcore fan of their work. However, I always try to approach change with an open mind, and decided to put my faith in Andy Diggle from the start. Daredevil is a great character who often seems to bring out the very best in his creators, and Diggle had the kind of resume that suggested he might be a good fit.
Still, I must admit that I let out a deep sigh of relief after reading Daredevil #501. The Dark Reign: The List – Daredevil one-shot that effectively bridged the gap between the events of Daredevil #500 and the current issue of the monthly series was good, but it didn’t leave me fully convinced. But, as of right now, I’m comfortably seated, buckled in and along for the ride. Daredevil #501 is gorgeous to look at, features characters that sound like themselves, and gets the ball rolling nicely with a final scene that I would best describe as interesting in that things-are-not-what-they-seem sort of way.
More Daredevil #501 under the cut –>
Tagged as:
Andy Diggle,
Daredevil #500-current,
Reviews,
Roberto de la Torre
I’m working on a longish post that I think you might like, but in the mean time, here’s a look at what’s current.
News
Daredevil #501 is out today, the first issue of the Diggle run proper and the first time we get to see de la Torres pencils. The preview looks stunning, and the reviews so far run from ‘fair’ to ‘good’. I hope to have my review up tomorrow, but in the meantime, take a look at the ones that are already up. As usual, they are in the sidebar. And, keep in mind that the second printing of Daredevil #500 will also be out today.
Links
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The Examiner.com takes a look at Daredevil, calling him an underrated hero. I couldn’t agree more, especially after nearly falling asleep while reading the Fantastic Four origin story yesterday. Granted, I only got that Best of Fantastic Four HC because it was dirt cheap, and I am home from work with a severe cold, but still. Daredevil is easily one hundred times cooler than those guys. 
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A very insightful look at Daredevil in general, and Brubaker’s run in particular, was up at Pop Matters last week. I’m still trying to digest it actually. Both this link and the previous one was tweeted by Kuljit of Manwithoutfear.com who continues to impress with his superpower of knowing everything going on in DD land.
That’s it for now!
Christine is a thirty something Daredevil fan from Sweden who spends way too much of her free time writing posts for this blog. Check the
Everybody loves to hate Milla
by Christine on October 4, 2009 in Character Basics, Commentary
On a couple of occasions, I’ve come across people on message boards who have absolutely loved the character of Milla Donovan, the first and only woman to ever get Matt Murdock to tie the knot. One guy even went so far as to say that she was one of the best characters to be introduced in Daredevil in recent memory. However, when you look at past Daredevil reviews in various fora, the majority opinion seems to be quite the opposite, with people’s feelings for the character running from lukewarm to ice cold.
Personally, I would say that I have liked the character just fine. No more, and no less. I’ve never been attached to her in the way I am to Foggy or even Dakota and Becky, but I have a hard time fully understanding where the considerable amount of hatred is coming from. To me, Milla’s main weakness as a character has been that after her strong first appearance, even Bendis, the very man who created her (along with Alex Maleev who based her appearance on that of his wife), didn’t quite seem to know what to do with her. When Milla was (permanently?) retired from the book in Daredevil #500, she was, in my opinion, an under-explored character, despite her many appearances. The same thing goes for her and Matt’s marriage. I still have no idea what made them click as a couple or what they really saw in each other.
More Milla under the cut –>
Tagged as: Alex Maleev, Brian Michael Bendis, Daredevil vol 1 #51-100, Daredevil vol 2 #100-current, Ed Brubaker, Lee Weeks, Michael Lark, Milla Donovan
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