Daredevil was one of my all-time favorite characters. I devoured the Gene Colan/Tom Palmer issues, which captured the speed and vertigious high that a man without fear (or a teen with loads of it) would consider his lifeblood. Or his monthly vicarious fix of it, at any rate. So as a comics pro years later, when the opportunity to do my take on DD was offered , I leapt at the chance. The result, the graphic novel Daredevil: Love and War,(with Frank Miller) is one of the things I've done of which I'm most proud. At the time, my artwork was undergoing a one of many intermittent stylistic shifts, each change was borne out of frustration and the need to explore. In this particular incarnation, I found the artwork moving away from a realistic linear approach to anatomy, etc., into more painted and collaged abstraction (shape, color, pattern ,design, and movement.) I was chomping at the bit to see what those elements, those choices, could bring to a story. The decision was tantamount to abandoning my aspirations to Michaelangelo for delusions of Tex Avery. Or vice versa. For reasons that still defy explanation, I continued to get work. What not many readers are aware of, is that Love and War was originally slated to be a story arc in the actual run of the monthly DD comic. Had it been so, I'm not sure what the result would have been or how it would have played out in the visual continuity of the series. There were even concerns it might not see the light of day at all.

It wasn't until EIC Jim Shooter saw the pencils, and he felt the story deserved its own separate forum - a painted graphic novel - that it all really seemed to click . His decision turned out to be exactly the right one. It seems such an obvious a choice of format in hindsight, but at the time, it was a gamble. Judging by the reponse the book has gotten over the years, it seems to have paid off.

Now, even though I tend to see Love and War as more of a stand-alone, separate entity from the main DD continuity, it's still a thrill to have contributed a small chapter to one of the greatest Marvel characters ever.

Daredevil was the first "real superhero" I ever wrote and when I did the character--in a fill-in issue plotted by an overworked Stan Lee--I felt I was in the comics big time. He was the kind of good guy I liked, and still like: human-scaled, heroic in spite of flaws. Later, Daredevil was a pure joy to edit, mostly because of the extraordinarily talented people who contributed to the title. (Nothing like brilliant writers and artists to make an editor look good.) I sometimes miss those days and I'm grateful that they were part of my professional life.

My most memorable experience regarding Daredevil didn't come while I was writing the comic book; it came in l997 when I had the pleasure of working on the Daredevil movie, back when Chris Columbus was producing and Carlo Carlei was attached to direct.

They'd been through a number of drafts and I was asked to come up with my take. I went off, banged my head against the wall for a few weeks, pulled out some great elements from Chris and Carlo's drafts, injected a healthy dose of my own ideas and then wrote a lengthy, detailed treatment, which was very well-received by the producers and the director. Then came the best part:

I came home one afternoon to find a message on my answering machine: it was from Stan Lee, who then went on to say that he thought my treatment was the best film interpretation of a Marvel character he'd ever seen. There are very few people in the world who can transform me from reasonable adult into bug-eyed, open-mouthed, innocent fanboy, but Stan's one of them. He's always been a literary hero of mine. And now here he was, co-creator of the Marvel Universe, telling me how much he loved my treatment. It truly was a moment to remember.

Hollywood being what Hollywood is, our version of Daredevil never saw the light of day. When the movie finally came out, it was the work of another studio, another producer, another director, and another writer. A disappointment? Absolutely.

But that phone call from Stan made it all worthwhile. Thanks, Stan...and thanks, Daredevil.

For me, it was an exciting time to be working in comics and when Joe and I created Marvel Knights, the first character we asked for was Daredevil. At that time, the book was being cancelled and we thought we could bring the numbers and interest back up to where it should be. The run with Kevin Smith and Joe was a lot of fun and having been a fan since the book began, I took special pleasure in interpreting all the characters in this modern version and then seeing what we did make it to film. Probably the most fun was doing the Wizard 1/2 featuring Daredevil. I got to work on the cover and ink John Romita, as well as pencil a piece that was inked by my favorite, Kevin Nowlan. All around, working on the title was a great experience.

I'm honored to work on the title with such great talent and history as much as I am honored being part of the team that brings the book to stands currently. To all who have contribute to the character and to all who work with me and help me, I'd like to use the anniversary as an opportunity and gratefully say: "Thank you!"

It meant everything to me.

My pleasure in working on Daredevil came from my creations, Bullseye and Torpedo, among others, as well as doing the very intricate Jester storyline that, 10-15 years before Photoshop and the wide spread use of computers, predicted a computer technology that only recently has started to emerge. I also loved working with Bob Brown.

Getting the Daredevil assignment was an important moment in my career. During my first five years in comics, I had floundered (in my estimation) and grown tired of the very thing that I had always loved doing more than anything -- drawing ... and telling stories with those drawings. In fact, I was depressed. I hadn't just grown tired of it -- I was despising it. It wasn't the assignments, necessarily, or certainly not the people I worked with, because I worked with some of the finest. But, other than the first assignment I'd ever drawn (a short story for an anthology book published by Eclipse Comics that I drew in '85, written by a good buddy), every subsequent job was something that came my way and not something I had aspired to do. I wasn't choosing my path, but it was being chosen for me. Today, as a Christian, I relish my path being chosen ... by my Lord. But back then it felt more like being tossed about on the stormy seas -- without any purpose or direction.

In early '90, my wife became pregnant and it was like a light switch turned on -- I knew things had to change. I finally asked myself a simple question; "If there was any book you could choose to draw at Marvel and you had that opportunity, which book would it be?" I didn't have an immediate answer, but over the next night or so I sat on my living room sofa and sketched...and sketched...and sketched. At one point, the sketches started to wear horns and I liked it -- I liked it a lot. I had, like everybody else, _loved_ the "Born Again" storyline by Miller and Mazzuchelli a few years earlier. Corny as it sounds, I related to Matt's struggles and his internal search for purpose in his life. I determined to seek out a Daredevil assignment. For those who know me now, they might find this hard to believe, but it was a terrifying thing for me to consider going in and asking or telling an editor what _I_ would like to do. I hadn't done it in five years! But a few weeks later, I found myself in the office of Ralph Macchio (the then Daredevil editor) after turning in a job to another editor. Ralph asked if I'd like to do a back-up spot in one of his books -- five pages an issue for five issues. "Sure", I said, continuing the pattern of taking whatever I was asked to do. I chatted a while with Ralph (he had given me my very first Marvel assignment in '86), all the while having an internal dialogue, trying to talk myself into asking for a DD gig. I'm not kidding -- I was chicken!

Well, the conversation waned and I began to head for the door. Straddling the threshold, I decided to take the plunge and turned back with this remark; "Hey, Ralph, by the way (like it was such a casual thing for me!!), I'll put a hit on any enemy of your choosing for the chance to draw a DD inventory...if you ever have the need." He looked at his assistant (Mike Hiesler), who returned the look. They raised their eyebrows with a sort of, "what the heck", shrugged their shoulders, and Ralph turned back and said, "Y'know... now that you mention it..."

That was a big moment for me. Sure, it's just comics, and things are lot different now. The pregancy that started all this is now my almost 14 year old daughter. I have another girl who is 12. I can't think of a character or an assigment that I long for as I longed to work on that one back then. I became a follower of Jesus Christ a few years ago, and although I still have a great fondness for the craft of comics, I'm not happy with the content of a majority of what the comics' industry has to offer. In fact, I think they are missing opportunities with people who'd love to see less titillation, blood and guts, and profane language; people who'd love to see good clean adventures that have a purpose and a message -- if not THE message. But, there will always be 1991. There was much good that came out of that experience of working on Daredevil. I got to work with one of the greatest comics illustrators of all time in Al Williamson. My DD stint lead to a long line of projects -- most of which I was very happy to work on at the time. Lastly, I had the honor of being invited back to finish off the original run of the Daredevil book with issue 380, which also gave me the opportunity to re-unite with DD writer and good friend, Dan Chichester.

I hope I was half as good to the book as it was to me.

I felt very comfortable working on Daredevil since he is one of my favorites! Unfortunately at the time that I worked on DD, I was working on other projects at the same time and the artistic result was not as good as I hoped. But the inks of Pier Brito helped so that everything came out well.

Other than the fact that, in my humble opinion, DD is the most enjoyable character to draw,I also have a fondness in my heart for DD because the cover to #12 was the image that "dragged" me into the comics industry, so to speak!

As an 8-year old, I came upon my father working on Daredevil #12 and, to make a long story short, was struck by the comics hammer! To that point, all my father had been doing was romance comics and I wasn't interested. One quick conversation and I was hooked!

Daredevil was an interesting turning point in my career. As I recall, I had been working at Marvel about a year when I got the assignment. Prior to that, I had done some superhero work -- a few issues of Iron Man, a brief run on Sub-Mariner, assorted fill-in issues -- none of it very notable. My initial work on Daredevil wasn't much to get excited about either. The art was so-so. (Gene Colan had departed the book as regular artist.) The stories and characterizations were, to be honest, very shallow, and far too derivative of other writers' work on the series. As I admitted in one DD letter column, I was trying to write Stan Lee's Daredevil, or Roy Thomas's, or Gerry Conway's. I didn't have much of a clue as to what might constitute a Steve Gerber Daredevil.

Sales on DD reached a critical point. In those days, the book was one of Marvel's marginal sellers. It was always on the verge of cancellation, but with the problem of revolving-door artists and a writer groping to find his way, its demise looked imminent. I didn't want it to happen on my watch. Fortunately, neither did Marvel. Gene was brought back for a few issues, which helped immensely. Gene moved on again, but this time the artistic duties were handed to Bob Brown, who not only had a feel for the character but was able to stay with the book on a regular basis.

While all that was going on, I basically learned how to write a superhero book my way, incorporating what I had learned about characterization and plotting and pacing from the various horror series I was writing. Over a period of months, I found what you might call my superhero voice.

Sales began to rise again. The fan mail, which had been harshly critical, took a turn for the positive. We had rescued the book, and I had gained a great deal of knowledge in the process.

So, in short, working on Daredevil taught me how to write superhero stories. It meant a lot to me.

I guess I could say it's a dream project to be working on Daredevil but that wouldn't be doing it justice. Working on DD, for me, has been almost therapeutic in nature and completely life altering. Matt Murdock and his life are so Shakespearean, that you to work out a lot of your own personal demons as you create stories for Matt and his world. But more importantly, I will eternally be indebted to Matt and DD, he is the character that has changed my life and I guess by virtue of that changed Marvel. If it wasn't for DD flagshipping Marvel Knights with Kevin Smith, MK wouldn't be the success that it turned out to be. It's "the little imprint that could!" From there DD helped get me this very cool job I now have as EiC. So, although Spidey and X-Men are the big players here at Marvel, it took a little guy dressed in red to change the direction of the company and my life completely.

I've been reading Daredevil comics ever since I was old enough to read, so I leapt at the chance to bring Hornhead to life. I felt very protective of this character and I wanted to ensure that he would be treated with the respect he deserves. There were many battles in that regard -- some of which I won and some of which I lost. The scenes I am most proud of are the ones which came directly off the pages of the comics themselves. Unlike Spider-man or X-Men, Daredevil was unknown to the general public. That the movie grossed $180 million is a tribute to the power of that character. I remain very fond of the film, despite its flaws.

Daredevil was a favorite of mine as a reader back in the sixties when it first came out. I especially loved the issues Wally Wood worked on. I believe Joe Orlando drew one issue that Vince Colletta inked, also one of my favorites. The issue in which Daredevil fought Sub-Mariner, which used, essentially, the old Red-Baron-salutes-the-valiant-foe plot, was perhaps the one I loved most. That plot may be old, but it was utterly revolutionary in comics at the time -- the hero lost! There were many such startling, unheard of, revolutionary things introduced in those early Daredevils and Marvel Comics in general in those days that are staples now, and taken for granted.

The first writing I did on Daredevil was dialogue only for pages drawn to someone else's plot. That was in 1976, I think, while I was associate editor of Marvel. Eventually I got to write the series. The prevailing wisdom at Marvel at the time, promulgated by former Editor in Chief Len Wein and then-EIC Marv Wolfman, was that there were titles that were naturally "first-string," like Spider-Man, the Hulk, Thor and the Fantastic Four, natural second-string titles like Daredevil, Defenders, Master of Kung-Fu and X-Men, and third-string dregs like Ghost Rider, Luke Cage Power Man, Werewolf by Night, and Iron Fist. I thought that was nonsense. I thought that Daredevil, and any title we thought was worth publishing, should be treated as first-string. I did my best to make Daredevil as good as I could. After I became EIC, I tried (and often failed) to extend my philosophy to all Marvel titles, to bring every title to the fulfillment of its potential. My stint on Daredevil was memorable because I got to work with greats like Gil Kane, Klaus Janson and Carmine Infantino. I never managed to make Daredevil into the runaway hit it always should have been, and had to give it up because the EIC job didn't allow much time for writing. Eventually, though, editor Denny O'Neil got this talented kid Miller on the book, and it finally took off (after a year or so) and became a mega-hit -- proving my point.

When I first got to work on DD during Fall From Grace, it was a real honor- it was my first big gig and it was Daredevil. I've loved the characters since I first started reading in the 80's and can't wait to work on the book again at some point.

It was a pleasure on all fronts. It was the first time Tim [Sale] and I had worked at Marvel Knights under the care of Joe and Nanci Quesada. It was the first work from Tim where the entire book was done in ink wash which provided spectacular artwork. In terms of the character, it was the first time I had written him, but was particularly drawn to the relationship he had with his father. At the time, not much had been done with Battlin' Jack Murdock and Daredevil: Yellow was meant to celebrate his contribution to the legend. I also have a smile when Daredevil in the Yellow Costume is now referred to as "Daredevil: Yellow" on all merchandise, a name that had never been used prior to DDY. Lastly, the yellow costume had always been something of a joke -- Why does Daredevil wear such an ugly yellow costume? Because he's blind! And I think Tim and I did our best to give that early period in DD's life some real meaning.

Daredevil was one of three comics I collected growing up, the other two being Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. I know that primarily it was the combination of soap opera and the artwork that got me, and with DD it was the era of Gene Colan, Mike Murdock, and the Foggy-Karen-Matt triangle. I just loved the loose and jaunty way that Colan drew. There is an issue, I think #32, where Mr. Hyde and the Cobra lure DD to an abandoned lighthouse and there is a long fight sequence in the dark, and DD takes advantage that way of being able to "see" in the dark, and triumph. It was that power, the blind man seeing, that connected with me also, it just seemed so out there and cool. When I had the opportunity to put my own spin on DD, I knew I had the perfect partner in Jeph Loeb to bring all those elements into play, the romance, the unique powers and everything.

The gig on DD meant a lot to me for a variety of reasons. I grew up on the Miller run on DD and was a huge fan of his initial run as well as stuff he did with Mazzucchelli and Sienkiewicz. Great stuff. So, naturally, when the offer came in to work on the book with Brian Bendis and Alex Maleev, I jumped at it. Alex and I worked together and I loved working over him, and it was being written by a great writer who was bringing back the flavor of why I originally liked the character. It was a good match and I found myself on a team with a great sense of shared vision. We saw the book the same way. I loved my run on the book and find it to be one of the those books I can show non-comics fan friends with a huge amount of pride. Thanks go out to Joe Quesada, Stuart Moore, Nanci Quesada, Kelly Lamy, Jenny Lee, Axel Alonso, and most of all to Brian and Alex for all the great work and great stories.

When I was an editor on staff at Marvel, Daredevil was generally thought of as THE book to work on. Very few writers got a shot writing it because they had the shadow of Frank Miller's run all over the place. Daredevil attracted the cream of the comics field due to its gritty urban setting and its very conflicted hero. So to get a chance to work on that title as a writer and colorist was a huge ego boost and confidence builder. The work I did on Daredevil also helped to land me some higher quality jobs with top notch creators. For me, Daredevil was the one character who was the most fully developed. He wasn't a goody-goody, he wasn't an anti-hero, and he wasn't perfect. In his world, actions always had consequences. And as a writer, the title meant more possibilities and challenge. As a reader, Daredevil was always a good read because you never knew what might happen. Daredevil's the sort of superhero you might actually want to be.

"What did working on DD mean to me professionally and personally?" I enjoyed working on a comic that many of my heroes had worked on, Frank Miller, David Mazzucchelli, Gene Colan, etc. That is a great feeling. Of course I never feel like I'm giving any of those gentlemen a run for their money. Professionally I had the pleasure of working with Bill Reinhold and I always enjoy that. I think he and I did some really nice stuff. What a great, fun character to draw.

There are a couple of reasons why I got a thrill out of working on Daredevil. One, is that Daredevil was the series that started me collecting Marvel comics. In 1968 at a shop that had a rack of new comics, they happened to have DD #40 and DD #41. Got the bug and never stopped. Second, a couple of artists drew Daredevil that had a big influences on me, Gene Colan and Frank Miller. Nuff said!

It's quite easy to get attached to and even develop affection for the fictional characters one writes. And who knows, some day they may discover a physics principle that confirms a shadowy reality to creations of the imagination. So, I must admit I adored Daredevil during the 5 years I wrote the title. Daredevil is such a mass of contradictions, no matter which way you turn, a good story presents itself. The legal justice-loving vigilante. The lapsed Catholic with the devil's mask. The compassionate man with a taste for dark women. The fearless daredevil terrified only of what makes his own mind tick. How could you not have fun with a guy like that? Of course, just as much fun for me was the chance to create Shotgun, Bushwacker, scores of others, but most especially, Typhoid Mary. So, Daredevil meant a great deal to me, personally and professionally. I worked with so many talented artists, John Romita Jr. most importantly, and a terrific editor, Ralph Macchio. As for Daredevil, I looked at that guy in red from every angle, and I still don't understand him. That's the mark of a great comic book character. One of the very best, I think.

DD was my first job on a well known character in a regular book, so that in and of itself was special. The themes that have defined DD since his inception are so powerful and so human that you can't help but enjoy working with the character. As a bonus, I basically got to put my father in the flashback story we did about Matt in college-- a little autobiography when you're working doesn't hurt!

Getting Daredevil was a very special thing. It was an opportunity to work on a steady character. One I could continue to develop. Up til then, I was all over the map. All of his powers were a big challenge to me to see how I could portray them in a realistic way. I was thrilled to get the opportunity and held onto it for quite a few years. I always liked Daredevil best of all. Good story content and I enjoyed what I did. At some point, I got the thought of how to illustrate his blindness so the reader could understand what it was like to be Daredevil. I thought I should show images in his mind as to what was in front of him with a minimum of detail. But when it was necessary to see things more clearly for his own safety, he intuitively knew how to see things sharper. Artistically, it was a great challenge.

Daredevil has been one of my favorite superhero characters since I first read the classic Miller/Janson issues. Working as a colorist, I've had the pleasure of working on Daredevil a couple of times, but it was really an honor to re-color those classic Daredevil issues in Marvel's recent "Visionaries" reprints. I worked closely with Klaus Janson, who originally colored the series, to keep the intent of the original coloring while cleaning it up and adding some "modern" touches. Professionally, I'm very proud of this project--personally, I had a great time working with my pal Klaus! I hope that some day I'll get a chance to work on Daredevil as a writer/artist instead of just as colorist!

I was really pleased to be on a comic I had read for years and loved when Colan and Palmer were doing it, as well as greats like Kane, Brown, Romita, (Windsor-) Smith and others. But I was filling in for Klaus Janson (still my favorite inker in comics) doing his best work to date over Frank Miller's pencils, and I felt by comparision, I was doing a substandard job.

Professionally?
I had fun.
I gained respect from folks I wouldn't have otherwise been respected by.
I earned legitimacy in a field I've always adored.
I got to work with good friends on something we all believed in, and helped restore an amazing character to its former greatness.
I fulfilled another life-long dream.

Personally? Well, that's personal.

Though I liked the book, DD was not a personal favorite or anything, so I wasn't as thrilled to get that assignment as I was when I got some others, like AVENGERS. Still, I enjoyed working on the book, at first with Barry Smith (who mostly plotted them, with some input from me) and then with Gene Colan, where I took over the basic plotting. Gene's drawing always excited me, and I guess I'm proudest of a few things like the sexual way DD asked Karen to remove his mask... sound effects like KUDDA-LIK-KUDDA-LIK for horses' hooves... Brother Brimstone and the scene in the LaBrea Tar Pits I had just visited in L.A.... and just the generally more realistic tone of DD.

Well... I hesitate to say this, but to be completely honest, it was a bit of a disappointment. While I was extremely grateful for the work, it was sold to me as a completely different kind of job than what it turned out to be. For someone to be as big a Daredevil fan as I was (and am), and work on a storyline that didn't actually feature the character (or hell, *any* of the characters) as himself... let's just say that it wasn't an ideal situation, in my opinion. On the other hand, all the people with whom I worked on it were very cool, so there was at least that.

The way in which it affected me most was that I resolved to myself that someday I'd get a real shot at the character! Hopefully, that'll happen before I die...

I had discovered him in #16 - Romita art, Spidey guest-starring, before Romita did Spidey - and as I worked my way back through collecting, I found Wood, Orlando, and Everett, so DD had a very dark and different mystique for me, compared to other Marvel heroes. That's why I started my first [and only] issue with a completely black splash page: his POV.

I loved working as an editor on Daredevil. And it was also great working as an assistant to Denny O'Neil on the title as I was priviliged to see the growth of Frank Miller as fostered by Denny.

D.D. is a character I believe is every bit the work of genius that Spider-Man is. I was honored to have overseen one of the great characters in comics over many years. Even with Frank's departure, I watched scripter Ann Nocenti and penciler John Romita Jr. really come into their own as top talents on this title.

DAREDEVIL has had its ups and downs during my run as editor but the core of the character always shown through. The amazing lawyer/vigilante dynamic tension that motivates the series is something I'll always be taken with. Matt Murdock is such a truly human character with all the frailties and flaws any man can have, yet he has risen above it all to become one of the great heroes in the Marvel Universe. And he's handicapped. He's blind. A blind super hero. There's just no end to what makes him special--a joy to work on. Definitely one of the high points of my career was editing and assistant editing on The Man Without Fear!

It meant everything. It's the book with the highest standard of excellence attached and it taught me what a comic could be.

DAREDEVIL is an odd one to me, because people have never thought of him as one of Marvel's big characters. But there's something about him that people love, and that's inspired some of the best talent in comics to do their best work.

Matt Murdock is a very moral character, but he's also extremely flawed. The toughest thing about him, for me, is keeping that balance. Both Frank Miller and Brian Michael Bendis have written him as unsteady, always trying to do what's right, but surrounded by an amoral world and deeply flawed inside. That's what makes him interesting.

(This may be heresy, but it sure isn't his villains. They're a pretty sorry bunch. Once you get past Bullseye, Elektra, and the Kingpin -- who came over from Spider-Man -- there's not much to work with.)

For myself, it was a pleasure to kick off the Bendis/Maleev era of DD, which I think ranks as one of its best. And working with Stan Lee and Gene Colan on a special story for the anniversary issue was also great. DD was and is the flagship book of the Marvel Knights line, and I expect that to continue for a long time.

Daredevil was very important to me because he was the first superhero I created who had the serious physical handicap of blindness.

It was a challenge to me to find ways for Matt Murdock to overcome his handicap and actually function as a credible superhero.

I'm enormously pleased that the project turned out so successfully, evinced by the fact that Daredevil has been a popular hero for four decades. It's also a source of great satisfaction to me that each succeeding writer has brought new, interesting concepts and characters into the series.

So here's to our good ol' Man Without Fear. Long may he reign!

Excelsior!