Comics Over Time

Murdock and Marvel: 1998 Part 2

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Episode 47 - Murdock and Marvel: 1998 Part 2

Things continued to be grim in the comic world, but it seemed as though the freefall might be over.  Marvel had escaped bankruptcy without missing even a single month of publishing, most of the other companies still in business made it through the year (but not all) and some very interesting new players entered the scene. 

This is part 2 of the podcast. that will feature the year in Daredevil, the Spotlight story. The Takeaway for 1998 - which is a look back at volume 1 of Daredevil - will be released next week as it's own episode.

 

The Year in Daredevil 

Appearances:  Daredevil #371-380, Marvel Knights: Daredevil #1-2, Uncanny X-Men #351, Thunderbolts #10, Unlimited Access #2, Shadow & Light #1, Cable #55, Ka-Zar #15, Spider-Man Made Men #1, Nighthawk #1-3, Avengers #10-11, and Bring Back the Bad Guys graphic novel. 

Writing: Joe Kelly (#371-373) Kelly and Jonathan Barron (#374), Kelly and Chris Claremont (#375), Scott Lobdell (#376-379), Dan G. Chichester (#380) 

Pencils: Ariel Olivetti (#371-372, #374), Richie Acosta (#373), Cary Nord, Olivetti, John Paul Leon, Tom Lyle, Brian Denham and Rick Leonardi (#375), Cully Hamner (#376-379), Lee Weeks (#380) 

Inks: Pier Brito (#371-372, #374), Bud LaRosa (#373), Mark Lipka, Brito, John Paul Leon, Robert Jones, Chis Carlson and Scott Hanna (#375), Jason Martin (#376-379), Robert Campanella (#380) 

  • The year begins with Black Widow and Daredevil discussing their recent run-ins both professionally and personally. Meanwhile Karen goes shopping with Rosalind. Matt and Karen do make up despite Daredevil leaving for a bit 
  • Next Mr. Fear pops back up after we learn something weird happened during the prison riot he planned last year. DD tries to talk to the warden, but Ghost Rider beats him to it. Fear and DD play cat and mouse for a couple issues before things come to a head. Meanwhile, we are introduced to Charlie, a likely cop whose working for Fear, who first tries to kill Fogy’s sister Candice before going after Karen. 
  • In a double sized issue #375, We learn Charlie has been killed and Karen is awaiting trial for his murder. Mr. Fear is trying to manipulate things so that she will go to jail and DD will suffer a breakdown as a result. Matt is Karen’s lawyer and while the case slowly slips away from him, he continues to search for Fear as Daredevil hoping it will save his case. We won’t spoil the ending, as this is the spotlight story for the week. 
  • And just like that, the story quickly shifts to France... 
  • In the final named story arc of volume 1, Flying Blind, we meet Laurent Levasseur whom very much seems like our man without fear – though he thinks his just an artist. Turns out Murdock is working deep undercover for SHIELD and had his memory reprogrammed. Murdock is there to stop the sale of agent information to international buyers of the Kingpin. After spending most of the story trying to remember who he is and save the doctor who initially treated him at the start of this tale, Murdock gets his memories back from a mutant named Synapse just as SHIELD locates him and busts in as the cavalry.  
    • One side effect of the reprogramming was Murdock was able to actually see. He loses it after getting his memories back but he’s able to see his friend Foggy for the first and only time. 
    • In November, Volume 1 ends with one last issue – issue #380 – and the return on Dan G Chichester and Lee Weeks for “a tale from Daredevil's past” dedicated to Archie Goodwin. A pretty straight-forward story though told non-sequentially in which the Kingpin tries to frame a Middle Eastern man for terrorism so he can get his hands on a shipment of weapons; Matt defends the patsy and wins in court; Meanwhile DD takes on several of his deadliest foes to foil the Kingpin's scheme. (The Hand/Bushwacker/Bullseye) 
      • The final page sees Murdock and his mom Maggie walking and having ice cream with narration “You want to know the truth? The good guys don’t always win. But because of who they are, they never stop fighting. There’s always a Daredevil willing to take a risk on our behalf. And in a city that never sleeps, we can all rest easy knowing we have that to protect us.” 
      • That same month, Volume 2 begins under the Marvel Knight branding begins with a new creative team – Kevin Smith, Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmiotti. In the first 2 books of the Guardian Devil storyline, we learn Karen left Matt and NYC for LA 6 months ago and Matt has been trying to move on with his life. A teenage girl brings a baby to Matt that she claims is the new Messiah and leaves the kid in his care but then Murdock is approached by a mysterious old man claims the same child is the Anti-Christ and a curse to those around it. 

        • This Week's Spotlight: Daredevil #375 May 1998 “With a Little Help From My Friends” 

        Recap

        Why We Picked This Story

        Daredevil Rapid Fire Questions

        The Takeaway - Next week

        The Takeaway was a recap and discussion of volume 1 of Daredevil. It ended up running long so we will be releasing that separately. 

        Questions or comments

        We'd love to hear from you!  Email us at [email protected] or find us on Twitter @comicsoftime.

        ------------------

        THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING CREATORS AND RESOURCES 

        Music: Our theme music is by the very talented Lesfm.  You can find more about them and their music at https://pixabay.com/users/lesfm-22579021/. 

        The Grand Comics Database: Dan uses custom queries against a downloadable copy of the GCD to construct his publisher, title and creator charts. 

        Comichron: Our source for comic book sales data. 

        The American Comic Book Chronicles: Published by TwoMorrows, these volumes provide an excellent analysis of American comics through the years.  Because these volumes break down comic history by year and decade they are a great place to get a basic orientation on what is happening across the comic industry at a particular point in time. 

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        Comics Over TimeBy Duane Eckholm and Dan Newland