Daredevil Message Board

Blind Alley · Last edited by Blind Alley on Thu Jan 24, 2008 1:34 pm; edited 1 time in total

The first two polls aren't already closed but I think the tendancies are clear enough to predict the winners.
So let's get to the next showdowns...

ROUND 1
Showdown 1 : #169 "Devils" (9 votes) vs #245 "Burn !" (3 votes)
Showdown 2 : #191 "Roulette" (13) vs #247 "The Backwards Man" (1)
Showdown 3 : #192 "Promises" vs #266 "A Beer With The Devil" vs V2 #88 "The Secret Life of Foggy Nelson"
Showdown 4 : #219 "Badlands" vs #268 "Golden Rut" vs V2 #94 "Our Love Story"
Showdown 5 : #185 Guts vs #223 "The Price" vs #277 "Of Crowns and Horns"
Showdown 6 : #225 ". . . And Then You Die" vs #291 "All The News That Fits"
Showdown 7 : #208 "The Deadliest Night of My Life" vs #236 "American Dreamer" vs #304 "34 Hours"
Showdown 8 : #220 "Fog" vs #238 "It Comes With The Claws" vs #380 "Just One Good Story"
ROUND 2
Showdown 9 : Winner of 1 vs Winner of 5
Showdown 10 : Winner of 2 vs Winner of 6
Showdown 11 : Winner of 3 vs Winner of 7
Showdown 12 : Winner of 4 vs Winner of 8
ROUND 3
Showdown 13 : Winner of 9 vs Winner of 11
Showdown 14 : Winner of 10 vs Winner of 12
FINAL :
Showdown 15 : Winner of 13 vs Winner of 14

Showdown 3 is our first three-ways match and it features issues showcasing supporting characters or just "normal people" and their relationship or interaction with Old Hornhead.
- V1 #192 is written by Alan Brennert and penciled by Klaus Janson. It provides a nice exploration of the Ben Urich character.
- V1 #266 is from Ann Nocenti and JRJR. It's set in the aftermath of the Inferno crossover, with DD having drink in a bar among ordinary people, visited by marriage-breaker Mephisto.
- V2 #88 is a recent one shot from Brubaker and David Aja, focusing on Franklin Nelson (his friends call him Foggy).

As stated on previous showdowns : try to re-read the issues before voting, tell us what you liked (or disliked), which details you remembered, what makes the story special to you... anything you want that relates to the issue ! Express yourself !

This poll will be running for four days.
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jumonji · Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:08 pm Post subject:

Well, I read Vol 2 #88 recently (and more than once), so I didn't feel like I had to revisit that issue. I think it's good, though. Not spectacular, but good.

After reading #192 and #266 again, I found my winner in #192. I'll discuss it further down, but first, let's look at #266. First of all, I don't like John Romita Jr's art. I realize I'm probably "swearing in church," as we say, by admitting that, but I feel that the way he draws Matt/DD is too harsh and too stern. There's no warmth there for me. If there were, maybe I could take Ann Nocenti's writing better, but the way things are it doesn't exactly help. While technically very good, Nocenti's writing often feels too pretentious for me. I never have any problem understanding what it is she's trying to say, but I rarely enjoy it. I usually find myself being either bored or offended. In this case it's just boring, but I'll get back to the offensive stuff in some other thread. So DD has a beer with the devil, which sounds exciting enough. It isn't. I don't learn anything new about the character either. I know I'm in the minority here and that most of you guys probably think I'm nuts, but I can't help it - I don't like Nocenti. Next!

Okay, so #192. What I find interesting about this issue is that this, as far as I know, is Alan Brennert's only DD issue, right? Pretty nice job for a guest writer, I must say. If I had to sum up the theme of this issue in one sentence, it would be something like: "work to make a difference in any way you can, according to your own conscience, and learn to accept and appreciate that which you can't change." Ben Urich really shines in this issue without being some kind of saint. He's human, he's tempted to make the wrong decision, but ultimately realizes what he has to do. Meanwhile he gets a reminder of what's really important in life. Nice, well-rounded issue with a complex and realistic portrayal of everyone involved. Maybe not one of my top ten favorites, but in this round, it's a definite winner.
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rgj · Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2008 4:25 pm Post subject:

What the!? I thought we were going to wait a week on these??

If we go this fast I may not be able to re-read these issues, what with having to pay the bills and all.

rgj

Blind Alley · Posted: Wed Jan 23, 2008 5:06 pm Post subject:

Though I nominated V1#192, I've hesitated to vote for it or for V1#266.

Why not V2#88 ? No Foggy love ?
Well, this one came in a time when there hadn't been one-shots for a while and I liked it.
It has a neat plot and cool drawings from David Aja but I just see it as a good fill-in issue.

The two others share a common topic with totally different treatments : "Evil's seduction".
In #192, it's treated via the mob angle and in #266 it's via Mephisto's presence.
Another common topic is love.
Ben Urich loves Doris and thinks about selling his life to the Kingpin to content his wife.
Matt loves Karen but he has betrayed her and then he spends Christmas alone.
In both stories, Daredevil is questioning his own morality.
In #192, the Kingpin throws him off-balanced by reminding him that DD used the Kingpin's love for Vanessa to blackmail him.
In #266, Mephisto reminds DD he cheated on Karen.

Overall, #192 is more optimistic and has a touching conclusion whereas #266 is more of the beginning of the big arc that will send DD to Hell.

"A beer with the Devil" hasn't left me a great aftertaste. I'll go for #192 which is holding the "Promises" of its title.
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Gloria · Posted: Thu Jan 24, 2008 8:50 am Post subject:

Blind Alley · Posted: Fri Jan 25, 2008 7:44 am Post subject:

This is the closest showdown so far : 4 votes for #192, 5 votes for #268 and one for V2#88.

Could someone who enjoyed "A beer with the devil" post his review on this issue ?
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