COMIC BOOK REVIEW: Daredevil #21
Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Chris Samnee
The awesome twosome of Mark Waid and Chris Samnee continue to knock the ball out of the park (with a blind batter, no less) in this week’s issue of Daredevil. They’ve managed to take the Spot – a bad guy whose career highlight is being part of the Legion of Losers along with the Gibbon, the Grizzly and the Kangaroo -and turn him into a legitimately creepy threat. We also learn the origin of the Coyote, and we get a decent set-up at the end of the issue for the next story, which appears to be a team-up story (or maybe not).
It’s been less than two years, and already, Mark Waid’s run on Daredevil is one of my all-time favorite takes on the character. Despite the fact that I still take umbrage at Daredevil and Black Cat hooking up, I have to admit that Waid gets the character in a way that nobody else does. Yes, not even Bendis. His DD is actually fun. He uses his abilities in creative ways, manages to use his brains just as much as his own powers to get himself out of trouble, and is interesting enough to make you want to forgive the character for the atrocity that was Shadowland.
They also couldn’t have picked a better penciler to go with Waid’s fresh dialogue than Chris Samnee. Samnee brings a subdued yet youthful enthusiasm to the book; he can do humorous, disgusting, and downright absurd in the same issue and STILL make the whole reading experience feel seamless. This cover – rendered by the talented Paolo Rivera – is also one of my favorite Marvel covers of 2012, and the behind-the-scenes look at the process of creating it is both funny and fascinating.
The surprise cameo at the end of the comic book, however, is the high point of this book for me, and I’m really excited to read the next issue, if only to see how Daredevil and the mystery character will react to each other.
VERDICT: 5/5
Buy this book. Not only will you get a well-written conclusion and an upgrade of sorts for a previously D-lister villain, this book will also answer the question “What do Wolverine and Doc Ock have in common?”
Heh.
(Sorry, really couldn’t resist. Check my review of Avenging Spider-Man #15.1 for the answer!)
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