I got this issue of Daredevil in trade from my neighborhood friend Bruce when I was very young. (I can tell, because he had the habit of writing his name on the cover - and it's right there by the newspaper headline.)
I've held onto this issue tightly ever since, and it shows - the poor comic is terribly threadbare and barely holding together, but it's just a good a "read" as ever.
Cover dated April 1965, this issue features the first appearance of Daredevil's red-and-black costume, courtesy of Hall of Fame artist Wally Wood. He's at the top of his game here (and boy, is that saying something), as he takes us from the undersea splendor of Atlantis to the middle of Manhattan, throwing in one of the greatest fight sequences ever just for fun. When it came to detailed art, dramatic poses, powerful characters and amazing battles, Wood couldn't be beat.
Written by Stan Lee, the story begins with Namor the Sub-Mariner being coaxed into finding a way to allow Atlantis to find its rightful place in the surface world. Rather than declare war, Namor decides to try to find a peaceful solution - so he goes to New York to hire a lawyer so he can sue the human race!
By an amazing coincidence, he arrives at the law firm of Nelson and Murdock, but doesn't appreciate their advice (good luck suing the entire Surface World).
Namor decides to force the surface men to take him to court by going on a rampage in the town (obviously Namor is a bit impulsive), which brings him into conflict with Daredevil.
The contrast between the characters is entertaining all by itself - Daredevil is light-hearted, joking, but intent on protecting the city, while Namor is a noble but destructive force of nature - and Lee and Wood get the maximum out of the humorous potential of Namor being a "fish out of water," as he struggles to cope with revolving doors and elevators, ultimately dealing with them in a straightforward (if destructive) manner.
When DD and Namor first fight, it's a relatively short battle, and as expected, Namor has little trouble dealing with the Man Without Fear. Namor surrenders to the authorities and awaits his day in court, when urgent news forces him to leave (as he proves the adage, "Iron bars do not a prison make").
Fearing Namor will hurt innocent bystanders, Daredevil again tries to stop him, and stages a battle that's amazing for its ingenuity and for the incredible courage and determination exhibited by DD.
It's easy to be a hero when you have the advantage, but as Daredevil shows here, it takes something extra to stand up against an opponent who much more powerful.
I won't spoil the ending, but up to this issue Daredevil had always been just another comic book character. After reading this adventure, I thought of him as a true hero.
(This post is part of a series about the comic books I kept when I recently sold most of my collection. This post includes part of an essay written in January 2010.)
Grade: A+
2 comments:
As always, a nice side trip down memory lane! All your "comics I Kept" seem like perfect choices. I first caught DD #7 in reprint form and it really is one of the great issues, with some of the great final three [?] panels. I didn't come onboard the Marvel bandwagon for another few months. DD #9 was one of the first I ever bought! And my copy of Journey Into Mystery with Thor #119, bought at the same time, is as threadbare and well-loved as your FF #7.
I haven't read the early Daredevil stories , but I love Wally Wood's art. I do remember seeing this cover in ads of some other Marvel titles I read at the time, probably Fantastic Four or Spider-Man.
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