by Christine on November 29, 2009 in Oh Karen!
Well over a year ago, I started a series called Oh Karen! that was intended to chronicle the life and times of Karen Page, from the first issue until her death many decades later. This was all going nicely until I realized recently that I hadn’t added any new chapters to Karen’s story in well over a year. For shame! If you’re new to this site, and are curious about what happened to Karen before issue #30, have a look at the first three posts in this series.
When we last saw Karen, she had just been introduced to Matt’s fictional twin Mike Murdock, whom Matt invented on the fly in Daredevil #25. Here, we see the Mike Murdock madness continue. So, with no further ado, I bring you Karen’s meeting with Matt pretending to be Mike being Daredevil pretending to be Thor (and, if this story seems familiar, it’s probably because I recently blogged about it in “Because I can’t just kill him” – part 6). From Daredevil #30:
Daredevil enters through the window, dressed as Thor, Daredevil #30
More Karen and Mike under the cut –>
Tagged as:
Daredevil vol 1 #1-50,
Foggy Nelson,
Gene Colan,
Humor,
Karen Page,
Stan Lee
This episode of Oh Karen! looks at the early issues of the Mike Murdock era through Karen’s eyes. I don’t think I’ll ever do a separate post about the madness that was this strange plot development, so what I do have to say about “brother Mike” will have to be said here. I’m sure he’ll pop up again when I discuss an issue he was in, and quite possibly in Oh Karen! #4, but that’s about it. If you want to read more about Mike, I direct you again to the links in this post, and this post.
Completely unrelated, but apparently there’s also a televangelist named Mike Murdock. The annoyingly colorful design of his website, found at www.mikemurdock.com, is only paralleled but the look of his fictitious namesake’s clothes. I personally consider his hideous wardrobe choices as Mike to be solid proof that Matt doesn’t really “do” colors…
So, what does all this have to do with Karen? Well early Karen was quite promiscuous with her affections, and Mike Murdock managed to take her breath away. While she was still in love with Matt, Karen was quite taken with his other personality’s “bad boy” appeal. Below, we have the panel from issue #25 that started the whole thing. Spider-man has sent a letter addressed to Matt in which he confronts him with the fact that he knows that Matt is really Daredevil.
Karen reads a letter from Spider-Man, Daredevil #25
Click to read more about Karen and Mike –>
Tagged as:
Daredevil vol 1 #1-50,
Foggy Nelson,
Gene Colan,
Karen Page,
Stan Lee
Okay, so let’s check in with Karen again, shall we? Or rather, Karen, Matt and Foggy, since everything Karen does for the next fifteen issues is tied up in what I jokingly dubbed the Love Triangle of Doom a few posts ago. While Dr. Doom was in no way involved, the love triangle itself was indeed doomed. Karen would end up choosing Matt over Foggy, despite Foggy’s every effort. Foggy actively pursued Karen – to the point of pretending to be Daredevil (but there’s enough goofiness in that storyline to warrant its own post somewhere down the line) – whereas Matt pined for her from a distance. Karen, meanwhile, had her eyes set on Matt. Well, except for slight jealousy she felt toward Debbie Harris when she was seeing Foggy. Apparently, Stan Lee didn’t picture women as the kind of bunch who would easily make up their minds about something. Matt, on the other hand, is convinced that all Karen feels for him is pity for a “sightless” man. Yes, Stan’s complete infatuation with the word “sightless” is becoming more and more apparent as it begins to pop up about three or four times every issue in all its corny glory.
Let’s look at the soap opera that was early Daredevil through the lens of some twenty panels from issues #6 through #17. After that, a new chapter begins in issue #25 as the triangle turns into a square – or perhaps even a pentagon, depending on how you look at it – as Matt is forced to make up a fictional twin brother when his secret identity is compromised for the first time. The Mike Murdock subplot would go on for an amazing sixteen issues, and we’ll look at Karen’s part in all of it in “Oh Karen! #3.” Now on to the task at hand!
First, we have three panels from Daredevil #6:
Karen in a panel from Daredevil #6, by Stan Lee and Wally Wood
Description: Karen is watching Matt from afar in the office. Foggy is also in the scene. Caption: “And now, back again to our intrepid legal eagles…” Matt is thinking to himself: “It was nice of Foggy to get me this push-button tape recorder, so I could dictate without seeing! But, I wonder what he’d say if he knew I can use the most delicate electronic equipment more capably than a sighted man? From the sound of Karen’s breathing, I know Karen is looking at me! She’s pitying blind Matt Murdock, I suppose!” Foggy on the phone: “Don’t worry Collins! I’ll have that brief prepared for you by Tuesday morning!” Karen thinking:”Oh Matt, I love you so! If only you’d give me some encouragment! Just a word… or a gesture! But I can see that you simply don’t care!” Matt thinking: “It’s hard to think when she’s so near me! If only Foggy didn’t love her, I’d make a pitch myself… Even though it would be hopeless! But she must never know how I feel about her!”
Karen’s adventures continue under the cut –>
Tagged as:
Daredevil vol 1 #1-50,
Foggy Nelson,
John Romita,
Karen Page,
Stan Lee,
Wally Wood
I wonder if Stan Lee, when he created the “gorgeous Karen Page” for Daredevil #1, had any idea that his innocent piece of eye candy would turn into a heroin addict and prostitute. Karen eventually broke free of her addiction and returned to normal life before she died of a billy club to the chest at the hands of Bullseye. Or Kevin Smith, depending on how you want to look at it. Either way, it’s a terrible way to go. Oh, and I hope I’m not spoiling anything for anyone here, but this happened ten years ago (real time), so… Well, tough luck!
While people who have only read Volume 2 may not be all that familiar with Karen, she has a long and interesting history, which I thought I’d explore in a number of posts, starting at the very beginning. In the beginning, Karen was a picture of beauty and innocence, so sweet that if you could eat her, she’d be cotton candy. She was also immediately pulled into a love triangle with Matt and Foggy who both pined for her. She, in turn, had a thing for Daredevil – and Matt. Let’s have a look at some Karen moments from the first four issues, shall we?
Here’s Karen way back in Daredevil #1 from 1964. Notice the lovely hairdo and the ever so becoming Florence Nightingale tendencies:
Foggy looking for Matt, Daredevil #1
More Karen under the cut –>
Tagged as:
Daredevil for beginners,
love triangle,
Nelson & Murdock
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