Daredevil Message Board

[Marcus Plato]

I posted the following under the "trapdoor a la Scooby Doo" topic, but I wanted to start it as its own discussion.

I have to say that... (gulp) I've almost had enough of DD.
In truth, I haven't truly enjoyed many issues since Shadowland. Now he outs himself, moves to San Francisco... FALLS INTO A FREAKIN' PIT FOR PETE'S SAKE!!! Oh well, at least now all the bad guys know to always carry an air-horn on their capers, just in case they run into that superhero WHO TOLD THE WORLD HOW TO BEAT HIM!!! AAARRRGGGHHH!!!

I got into DD because of its sense of "noir"; it was a SERIOUS book with very little comic relief. Now we're fed drivel like this, and frankly I think Samnee's art is awfully childlike and I believe over-rated. It's like they're trying to capture the 7-10 year old demographic. So...

...if they mess up the Netflix show, I'm done. I'll turn my back on my biggest passion, give up 30 years of being commited to JUST ONE BOOK.

If I could have one wish, it would be for everything since Shadowland #1 to have just been some horrible nightmare!

Otherwise, watch this space for me advertising my collection on eBay!!!

[Daredevil24]

You said everything I been feeling about Waid's Daredevil run since day one. I have finally stopped reading it and I been collecting DD forever. I even own issues dating back to Stan Lee's run but I can no longer handle Waid's modern day silver age take on Daredevil.It's filled with corny humor,blind puns,boring stories and preschool art and I can't stand the I'm not Daredevil crap.I have no idea why fans find this stuff so amusing, DD's secret identity was one of the coolest things about his character and now it's turned into to some big joke. If Waid's DD is used in the Netflix series they should cast Adam West or George Clooney to play him

[jriddle]

Here's a particularly awful thought: This is Daredevil's 50th year of publication. Should be a huge anniversary, and instead, we're stuck with Waid.

Perusal of the sales figures on this page confirms Waid has been detrimental to sales--even Diggle's run (which I haven't read but which sounds absolutely dreadful) sold better.

[Daredevil24]

I hated Diggle's run but it's far better than Waid's run. One day a criminal gonna unmasked DD and find Peter Parker or Dick Grayson under the mask. Matt Murdock's been dead since DD Reborn imo.And it's a damn shame

[qtmxd]

Thanks, guys, nice to have someplace to go for some sympathy. I've been reading DD on and off almost since it's inception in the 60s, have been obsessed with the character, and felt privileged to read every issue since the Smith renumbering up to about the middle of the dreadful Shadowland. I agree with what all of you have said, and have probably annoyed some fans by having said it repeatedly myself. Not lately though, I've admitted defeat and stayed away, though I like checking in to be assured that it really is still as a bad as the issues of Waid that I've read, and I'm not missing anything. Silly, awful humor, moments of dumb horror, and possibly the worst art I've ever seen in a serious comic. And I can't imagine what travesties Waid will inflict on Sister Maggie. My only re-assurance is that when a comic lasts for decades, it's impossible to feel everything as canon, even if it's supposed to be, and I hope I'll someday be able to forget the past five years. Who knows, though. I've been fortunate in reading the Miller and Bendis runs... maybe that will have to be enough for one lifetime.

[Daredevil24]

The whole public celebrity super hero lifestyle doesn't fit his character either.Waid is killing DD and whoever writes him next will have their hands full. I never thought I'd see the day when I enjoy reading Elektra more than Daredevil

[Francesco]

Wow, thank god. I thought I was the only one.

[james castle]

I started out liking Waid quite a bit. The new tone was nice and I really liked some aspects a lot (like Matt's hilarious "I'm not Daredevil (wink)" thing). That's said I've soured on it as well. The weird (and needless) trip to monster town or wherever was sort of a bridge too far. Plus, the whole conclusion to the last volume felt dumb and cheap. Haven't read any of the new volume yet but it sounds like Waid has doubled down on camp. Which is bad news.

BUT, I'm a bit shocked by all these long term DD fans declaring this to be the worst ever and even vowing to drop the book after all this time. To them I say: what? Why now? How haven't you dropped it many, many times before?

When Daredevil is good, it's very, very good but it's also wildly inconsistent. I've been reading since Nocenti and since then there have been loads of terrible runs. Living through terrible runs is part of being a DD fan. So strap in and wait for the next one.
_________________
JC

So why can't you see the funny side?
Why aren't you laughing?

[Marcus Plato]

Like I said, if this all turns out to be some (very long) nightmare, I'll be happy. The problem is that some of the best things about DD, the things that fascinated us, have been taken away.
For example, keeping his identity secret (why don't they just lose the mask while they're at it?), keeping his abilities to himself (even from most of the MU) and keeping him in New York (and Hell's Kitchen more specifically). What other hero looks after just one neighbourhood? That was cool!
Was. Lot of past tense in the forum lately...
Our concern is that this run's mistakes will be permanent, and they've turned scotch on the rocks into a vanilla milkshake.
And what's with the stupid-looking square-ended billy club hook?
Look, change can be good, but no recent change to DD has been.
Just give him back his sight and be done with it! Remember "Flying Blind"? Eeeshhhh!
What's next; will the Punisher become a crossing guard?
Will Steve Rogers become a communist?
Will Wolverine become a synchronised swimmer?
Fundamental changes to a beloved character are absolutely grounds for concern.
Goes to show how much we all CARE!
Some care so much that it feels like we're being cheated on.
To some, that's grounds for divorce...

[Daredevil24]

I don't see dropping this title as being disloyal to DD, especially when a character that you love so much has become unrecognizable to every degree possible. When a writer strips everything away from a character that you loved and has done so for going on 4 freaking years what choice do we really have? Kelly/Kessel didn't even stay on nearly that long so the change was more tolerable. Waid has been doing this for 3 and a half years now and we're tired of it.We miss what made us all fall in love with DD in the first place,which is the mature and serious content of the book. I don't want some annoying DA lady blabbering about how I know you're Daredevil all the damn time.Kathy Malper was a better DA than Annoying McDuffie. I think she's the worst DD love interest since Milla

[qtmxd]

Well, I'm a big fan of Milla, so how about whatever her name was that Bob Gale came up with.
The main point is that this is going on so long, and we had the recent surprise of Waid staying after most of us thought he was leaving. And again, the art.... when I started reading fantasy comics in the 60s, it was Kirby, Ditko, and Infantino... this guy would have been on Little Lulu. And I think most (all?) of us agree Shadowland was horrible, and maybe that Brubaker was floundering after a strong start, so it's really been ages since there've been top level stories.
I'm still assuming though, that the TV show will mean a change. Sure, the comics and tv don't have to be the same, and the tv audience is much bigger, but Marvel owns both here, and why would they want viewers of the noir tv show to check out the comics and find this kid stuff? I just found the story today about the FF going on hiatus, quite possibly to undermine the Fox movie. So this is how Marvel does business. Let Waid play in the sandbox for now. But there's a lot of work still to be done on the show, and it's already mid-2014, so we could have a lot more Waid and maybe even a hiatus before a reboot. And the FF hiatus is another reminder of DD's incredible staying power... 50 years, no real hiatus, and always Matt behind the mask. Although this version of him is so unrecognizable that it might as well be a different character.

[Marcus Plato]

I miss Bullseye.
I miss rooftops and skyscrapers and Fisk's office.
I miss Josie's and Turk and Grotto.
I miss action packed DETECTIVE stories.
I miss inner monologue describing how his world works ("Time Marks A Cry For Help"; my favourite issue).

I miss Daredevil.

[jriddle]

[Daredevil24]

Well you know what they say about super hero deaths. We'll have our DD back soon enough but it's nice to have some place to vent our frustrations

[Kuljit Mithra]

Good to see so many people's comments. I know you guys are a passionate bunch. If you are not a fan of this current team's work, that's fine. I enjoy it (so far), but I can see why you may not. It hasn't yet surpassed some of my other favourite runs, which still are Miller, O'Neil and Bendis.

I've seen it all running this site... it seems we do go through these cycles... ever since I started back in 1996, there's always been a thread that pops up concerned about Kesel's interpretation, or Kelly's, Lobdell, then Smith, Mack, Gale, Bendis, Brubaker, Diggle... every single one has had its "when is the next guy coming on the book" thread. Shows you guys care about the character.
_________________
Kuljit Mithra
www.manwithoutfear.com