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Although Out continues directly from the previous storyline, Underboss, and shows the consequences of that storyline, the two are made distinct in a few ways. The most crucial is structural: whereas Underboss was defined by its chronological fragmentation, Out uses flashbacks much more rarely. The characters who dominant Underboss -- the Kingpin, Silke, and Vanessa -- are largely absent here: the F.B.I. members dealing with Silke become more important than Silke himself, though Silke's secondary importance is perhaps not immediately apparent from the first issue of the storyline, which prominently features Silke in flashback. This subtle distinction and shift from Silke to the F.B.I. to Matt Murdock serves to ease the transition from one storyline to the next.
The titles of the two storylines are indicative. Underboss is really the story not of Daredevil but of Silke, who gets both the first page and the last. Out, on the other hand, is decidedly Matt Murdock's story. While Underboss was an excellent and artistic crime story, Out is a far subtler stuff, organized around Matt Murdock's psychology.
The title Out has rich implications with contemporary Western homosexuality, in which the term has transformed from a definition of place -- "outside" or "(moving) out of" -- to a definition of public identity. The term "out" is applied to homosexual persons who are open about their sexual preference. Homosexual advocates have "outed" people as being gay in the interest of advancing their cause by normalizing homosexuality as the public recognizes as gay beloved and successful figures. Often, though "outed," a person will deny that he is homosexual and accuse his accusers of slander, as did Tom Cruise who won lawsuits to that effect. Both terms have more recently been adopted into the language as applying to any personal element, so that someone can say "I'm out as a Republican in Hollywood." The difference between "out" and "outed" should be kept in mind as it pertains to this storyline, which might more accurately have been called Outed: Matt Murdock, outed as Daredevil, ultimately resists coming out.
Although Out does not feature the same kind of temporally fractured narrative that Underboss did, it did feature some flashbacks. In addition to this, providing a table of the sort that follows provides a convenient separation of the narrative into sequences as well as a plot summary. In the following table, those rare flashbacks are indicated by placing their "cited time and location" in grey.
| PAGES | CITED TIME AND LOCATION | PLOT DESCRIPTION |
| 32.1-4, part of 6-7, all of 8-12, 14-19 | "FBI HEADQUARTERS, MANHATTAN 3:11AM" | Dr. Davis arrives at the F.B.I. to hear the news Silke has shared and of Vanessa's murders of the conspirators |
| 32.5, most of 6-7, all of 13 | "THREE HOURS AGO" | a flashback to Silke's interrogation |
| part of 32.6 | none | a flashback within a flashback to Silke avoiding a hit on him (from #31) |
| 32.20-22 | 18 April 2002 (taken from newspaper) | Foggy Nelson discovers and reacts to The Daily Globe with Daredevil's identity on the front page |
| 33.1-5 | none | Matt Murdock wakes and hears the reporters; Foggy Nelson arrives and denies the story on his way in, whereupon he gives Matt the news |
| 33.6-7 | "TWO DAYS AGO" | continuing from the end of 32.19, Henry, one of the two F.B.I. men, leaves to meet his wife |
| 33.8-9 | none | Henry meets his wife, who subtly reminds him of their money troubles and his low pay |
| 33.10-14 | none | Henry tries to talk to Matt, who's not in, then stakes out Matt's place, where he sees the Black Widow arrive |
| 33.15-16 | none | Henry, back at work, hears S.H.I.E.L.D. has taken control of the Daredevil information |
| 33.17 | none | at night, Henry calls a connection at The Daily Globe |
| 33.18-21 | "NOW" | Matt and Foggy talk; Foggy suggests Matt retire |
| 34.1-9 | none | J. Jonah Jameson berates his reporters; Ben Urich claims the story is untrue and that he knows Daredevil's real identity; Peter Parker arrives and says the same |
| 34.10 | none | Ben Urich and Peter Parker talk outside the Bugle offices |
| 34.11-22 | none | Daredevil jumps around the city |
| inset panels on 34.11-20 | none | flashbacks continuing from the last page of #33, plus images of Daredevil's past and Elektra reacting to the news in London |
| 35.1-8 | none | Daredevil spies on reporters, then stops a crime before hearing a sound and departing |
| 35.9-18 | none | Mr. Hyde attacks Matt Murdock's home, but both Spider-Man and Daredevil intervene |
| 35.19-20 | "TWENTY-SIX DAYS LATER" | Matt, who has been in Japan, talks to Ben Urich and states that he will give a press conference tomorrow |
| 35.11-22 | none | Matt begins the press conference |
| 36.1-4 | none | at the press conference, Matt denies that he is Daredevil |
| 36.5-13 | "THREE WEEKS LATER" | the Black Widow visits Matt, then talks to Foggy |
| 36.14-16 | none | Matt meets with Vanessa, who has sold off the Kingpin's criminal empire |
| 36.17-21 | none | Matt's bodyguard, Luke Cage, drives Matt home, where he climbs to the roof and sees Elektra |
| 37.1 | "TWELVE YEARS AGO" | a flashback to Matt and Elektra in bed |
| 37.2-6 | "TODAY" | Matt talks with Elektra |
| 37.7-9 | none | Mr. Ingersol, lawyer for The Daily Globe's owner, Mr. Rosenthal, visits Matt and Foggy, stating that his client is eager for a trial |
| 37.10-12 | "APARTMENT OF FBI AGENT, HENRY DOBBS / BROOKLYN" | Daredevil wakes the informant, intimidating him without saying a word |
| 37.13-17, captions on 18-21 | none | Matt meets with Mr. Rosenthal, who offers a settlement, then defiantly decides on a trial instead |
| 37.18-21 (except captions) | none | Daredevil goes out on the town, saving a girl from a fire |
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This issue was cover-dated June 2002.
Much of this issue summarizes, in innovative form, the events of Underboss -- but Bendis uses this opportunity for more than that. First, he takes this opportunity to provide additional information about the events of Underboss, explaining certain elements and giving names that were not given there. Secondly, the sequence provides another step in the leaking of Daredevil's identity by depicting in more detail events at the F.B.I. Of course, the last three pages advance the plot significantly, jumping forward in time to do so, adding great drama to what might otherwise be an excellently made issue that accomplished little more than recap.
This memorable cover was reused at the cover to the Out trade paperback. Note that it is not the cover of The Daily Globe on the day that Daredevil's identity was exposed, which is seen on the penultimate page of this issue, but a mélange of elements, with the main illustration of Matt Murdock surrounded by red marker reflecting what Mr. Davis of the F.B.I. does to a photograph of Matt Murdock (before he fills in the red outline) in this issue.
Page 1
Panel 2: We do not know it yet at this point in the narrative, but the F.B.I. agent on the left is Henry Dobbs, who will be the focus of most of the following issue and who will change Matt Murdock's life forever. The more talkative other F.B.I. agent is Mr. Driver, identified as such in the next panel.
Panel 3: Mr. Davis's point about how much more money he makes is meant to assert his power over the two agents, but Dobbs is quite stressed about his finances, as seen on 33.9.
Panels 4-5: The Danes generally do not like hearing pastry generically named after their nation.
Pages 2-3
"Out": As was the case with Underboss, the title of the storyline appears once in the body of the story, appearing early and never again. This is at odds with most serialized stories in comic books, with some for at least a little more than a decade placing the title on a separate page prior to the story. Bendis's Daredevil struck a new position, including a separate page to summarize past chapters but nonetheless including, in a fashion reminiscent of film, the title of the multi-issue storyline once within the narrative itself.
The board with photographs, which provides a memorable prop throughout this issue, depicts the various players of the Kingpin's empire. At the upper-left is the Kingpin and Vanessa, with their son Richard Fisk shown as their offspring; the blue "X" over the Kingpin, as opposed to the red "X" on the others, suggests that his death has not been confirmed -- in panel 1 on page 9, the F.B.I. seems to know that he is alive, but it is unclear when this information was learned. In the tier below the Kingpin are Daredevil (the Kingpin's foe), Elektra (the Kingpin's former assassin), Spider-Man (the Kingpin's foe), and, obscured by the F.B.I. agent but seen on the next page, Bullseye (the Kingpin's former assassin) and the Owl (the Kingpin's far more pathetic rival), the latter of which will be an important player in the Lowlife storyline. In the tier below this are the Kingpin's men, assassinated in the previous issue, followed by Mr. Dini, who was seen aiding Vanessa and the wounded Kingpin in #29 and #30, and none other than Sammy Silke. Note that the F.B.I. knows of the various assassinations, except for Richard Fisk's, and presumes the Kingpin dead.
The large-lettered type on the side of the binder in the lower-right-hand corner is the name of a printing store and not an indication of the binder's contents. The type looks like "Office Speadly," which is close to Sir Speedy, a commercial printing company.
Page 4
Panel 4: This is the first time Silke's Chicago mobster family is given a name. Silke came in to the F.B.I. in the last two pages of the previous issue.
Page 5
Here we jump three hours back in time to Silke's interview when he came in.
Panel 3: The stabbing occurred in the first seven pages of #26, Bendis's first issue as ongoing writer. Presuming this really was "the other night," all of the "today" sequences of Underboss -- and other sequences which must occur in the present -- happen within the course of a little more than 24 hours.
Panel 4: Silke here claims to have himself participated in the stabbing, although he seems to sit back while the others do so when the stabbing was depicted on 27.1-7.
Page 6
Panel 1: This "deal" was established in the extended and complex flashback in #30.
Panel 3: "They," of course, is actually Vanessa, as seen in #31.
Panel 4: This panel is a cropped and tinted reproduction of panel 5 from 31.18.
Panel 5: This panel is a tinted reproduction of panel 6 from 31.19. The lower right-hand corner has been blackened, originally depicting the closest gunman's hand as if he was leaning at an angle due to his rushing after Silke.
Panel 6: Here we jump back to the present. This is the first time that these three names have been given. Their deaths were seen on 31.16-17.
Page 7
Panel 1: In answer to Mr. Davis's question, we again flashback to Silke's interrogation. Silke has arrived at the wrong conclusion, though he does have evidence.
Panel 2: Silke here confesses that he was looking to take down, or at least get leverage on, the Kingpin from the beginning -- "horny for an angle on the Kingpin."
Panel 3: The notion that the Kingpin's men were sick of his rule has little textual evidence.
Panel 4: Silke seems to be utterly lying: hardly constantly whispering, Richard Fisk was known for his utter silence. But Silke has a point in that, when Richard Fisk finally spoke to Silke, he did indeed "plant seeds" by revealing the unspoken common knowledge of Daredevil's identity and proposing a coup on 30.5-8.
Panel 5: Here we cut back to the present. Although "the Kingpin's own son" was not quite the mastermind Silke makes him out to be, he was a major co-conspirator and it is "pretty damn Shakespearean" -- all the moreso for Vanessa's stunning role, not known to Mr. Davis at this time. Davis will make exactly this point in panel 6 of page 10.
Panel 6: As just mentioned, there is considerable truth to this claim that Richard Fisk used Daredevil's identity to rile up Silke, although not necessarily the Kingpin's men.
Page 8
Panel 2: The message is obviously that Richard Fisk's body has been found -- a problem for the theory that he is behind the hits.
Panel 7: A .22 caliber, known as a girl's gun, was the same gun used to kill Falzone, as observed by Daredevil on 31.9.
Page 9
Panel 1: It seems as if the F.B.I. already know that the Kingpin isn't dead, hence the blue "X" as opposed to a red "X" over his photograph. But it is unclear whether this is old information or new information, derrived from the note just delivered. If it is old information, why would an "X" be put through the Kingpin's photo at all? -- unless they knew he was still near death, though this is not mentioned here and almost certainly would be if known to the F.B.I. If this is new information, why would the "X" over the Kingpin's photo not be red? -- unless it indicated that his body had not been recovered and thus his death was unconfirmed. In any case, this is the only real explanation of how Dini recovered the Kingpin yet provided (29.3-4 would be the place such information would have made sense to have been provided in Underboss, although it was not given there); Silke and his conspirators apparently never discovered the disappearance of what they thought to be the Kingpin's body.
Panel 2: Vanessa arrived from Switzerland at LaGuardia on 29.2. Identifying this event as "this very night" is important for dating the bulk of issue #31.
Panel 4: Dini himself admitted to this in panel 2 of 29.4. The information that he called The Daily Bugle and that he did so himself, however, is new: it is this alone that lets us believe that it is Dini on the phone to Urich on the last page of #27.
Panel 6: "Something like this" refers to the murders, not to putting out the phony story.
Page 10
Panel 1: Now the F.B.I. had advanced the correct theory of the murders.
Panel 6: Davis previously observed the Shakespearean quality of the crimes, based on a false theory of them, in panel 5 of page 7. Bendis, it seems, is taking the opportunity to admire his own handiwork.
Panel 7: Under a previous writer's tenure on the title, Richard Fisk adopted the super-villain persona of the Rose and struck at his father.
Page 11
Panel 7: It is unclear from where the F.B.I. agent gets the photograph of Matt Murdock, though it is possible that it was lying around due either to the recent assassination attempts on Matt Murdock, Matt's previous work for the Kingpin, or simply due to Silke's confession.
Page 13
This entire page flashes back, for one last time, to Silke's interrogation. Silke will not be seen again until #45.
Panel 2: I know of no evidence to support the theory that Richard Fisk was the first to find out his father's secret knowledge of Daredevil's identity.
Panel 4: The F.B.I. agent's question is a good one, one Bendis seems to have asked himself.
Panel 5: The real answer, of course, is writerly avoidance of the difficult issue. Bendis is in a double bind here: if he provides a capable answer within the narrative, he undermines his own originality by praising his predecessors; if he gives an incompitent answer, he raises the same question about his own compitence. Silke hedges between the two, reporting a theory of the Kingpin's behavior second-hand. His explanation is not particuarly satisfying, however, and I have myself suggested (in the annotations to Underboss) that a more complex relationship exists between Daredevil and the Kingpin, characterized on the Kingpin's part by respect, if not identification, and the persistance of having leverage over his "opponnent." Surely, a great story of the Kingpin pouring over research on Matt Murdock's life and identifying with Matt's impoverished past, as well as the death of his father, has yet to be written.
Panel 7: The value Silke places on "protect[ing] his own men" is fraudulent, as an analysis of his values in his selling the conspiracy in #30 reveals.
Page 14
Panel 2: The event to which Davis refers was Nitro's attack in #26.
Panel 3: "Almost every attempt" clearly implies that there have been attempts on Matt Murdock's life that we have not been shown. Boomerang and Shotgun attempted an assassination of Matt Murdock in #28.
Panel 4: We have not seen, nor heard of, Matt Murdock checking "into the New Yorker Hotel under the alias Mike Nelson," so this is news to us.
Panel 7: S.H.I.E.L.D. is a governmental agency, usually run by Nick Fury. The organization is a mix of a James Bond spy agency and the super-hero genre, so that it has improbable gadgets including androids and the helicarrier (a helicopter / aircraft carrier) as well as telepaths.
Page 15
Panel 3: The story of Matt Murdock's childhood, beginning here, is true and is a staple of the series.
Panel 7: The medical report of Matt Murdock as a child in the hospital has little precedent.
Page 16
Panel 1: As ridiculous as this sounds, this is quite true in the super-hero genre: Spider-Man, the Hulk, and the Fantastic Four are other obvious examples from the Marvel universe.
Panel 4: Davis would die of leukemia because he belongs in a story of the crime genre, as Bendis has been writing, more than a story in the super-hero genre.
Page 17
Panel 1: Under a previous writer of the title, Matt Murdock's firm did take work from Wilson Fisk.
Panel 4: A "little, private battle of wills" is a fairly accurate discription of relationship between Daredevil and the Kingpin.
Panel 5: These events occurred during the famous Born Again storyline in which the Kingpin learned Daredevil's identity and set out to destroy Matt Murdock's life. While this is good evidence here, it is unclear how Silke, and thus the F.B.I., would know "the time[frame in which Wilson] Fisk found out this Daredevil info" -- it is one thing to overhear the Kingpin's secret and quite another to hear when he learned it.
Panel 7: Elektra was an assassin for the Kingpin during Frank Miller's original run on the title.
Panel 8: All of this information is quite true. The shared past of Elektra and Matt was first revealed in Frank Miller's first issue as full writer, Daredevil (first series) #168, cover-dated January 1981, featuring Elektra's first appearance. Elektra's death, prior to her subsequent resurrection, occurred in Daredevil (first series) 181, cover-dated April 1982.
Page 18
Panel 8: Davis is right in his guess that S.H.I.E.L.D. will freeze the pursuit of the Daredevil information. Vanessa was last seen in Fisk Towers near the end of #31 and will next be seen on 36.14-16.
Page 19
Panels 1-3: Davis takes a noble, and almost certainly unexpected on the reader's part, tone here. It echoes the sentiments of the elder policeman on 27.7-8. But note that it is not necessarily the right thing to do: the rookie cop in that same scene had a point, that Daredevil is a vigilante, and Daredevil's own violent thoughts in panel 3 of 29.11 demonstrate that this position holds weight.
Panel 4: Here the "camera" pulls in on Henry Dobbs, still anonymous at this point in the narrative. The implication, by juxtaposition with the three-page sequence following, is that he is responsible for not keeping "this information ... in this room," although we will have to wait until next issue for this to be substantiated.
The next page will jump forward in time, though we will return to this precise moment on 33.6.
Pages 20-22
Note the light blue page border on these three pages, almost the only time a non-black page border is used in this storyline. This serves at least three effects: first, it separates this sequence from the rest of the issue, serving to instantly inform readers that the setting has changed; secondly, it suggests that this scene occurs outside during day, as opposed to the late-night interior of the F.B.I. offices; third, and probably most importantly, this effect serves to emphasize the shock of Foggy Nelson on the last page, demonstrating that something special is happening and that Daredevil will never be the same book again.
Page 20
Although we are not told as much, we have jumped forward two days from the previous page. The next issue will begin almost directly following the conclusion to this one, then jump to "two days ago" and resume the narrative from the previous page.
Panel 2: Foggy's smart-ass comment may be read as an advertisement for Marvel's subscription program, or else the reverse, since comic book subscriptions offer far less discounting than do newspaper and newstand magazine subscriptions.
Page 21
This page was used, in cropped and enlarged form, as page 7 of Alias #10 (also written by Brian Michael Bendis). This cover of the Globe is also seen in some detail on 34.2.
Note that, although the dates given for the narrative have been relative (e.g. "TODAY" or "THREE HOURS AGO"), the specific date of 18 April 2002 is given here through an artifact within that narrative. The same date is used in the Daily Globe header on the cover. Though the day is cropped, 18 April 2002 was a Thursday. (Note, however, that when this cover is featured on 34.2, the cover's date is incorectly depicted as Wednesday.) This has an interesting implication: new comics are shipped to comic stores on Wednesday, making Thursday the day after any surprises are received, according to the convention familiar to U.S. comic book afficianados. Indeed, this issue was published on Wednesday, 17 April 2002. Thus, the real-world message implicit in the very dating of this fictional Daily Globe is this: "alert the press. Daredevil's identity is out."
"MJ": This refers to Michael Jordan, the famous basketball player who had (in the real world) recently come out of retirement to play, despite being middle-aged, for the Washington D.C. Wizards, a team he owned. The headline, cropped by the left edge of the panel, reads "COULD MJ LEAD / THE / WIZARDS TO THE / NBA FINALS?" The NBA is the National Basketball Association, the major leagues of American basketball. Amusingly, both "MJ" and "Wizard" have meanings in comics as well: "MJ" is more typically read as "Mary Jane," Spider-Man's girlfriend and later wife; Wizard is the name of the highest-selling comics magazine.
"Osama": This is, of course, Osama Bin-Laden, leader of the terrorist group Al-Qaeda, which was behind the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks upon the United States of America.
Page 22
I can just imagine this newstand vendor interviewed on TV in the days subsequent, telling the press of Foggy's reaction, prompting the media to ask, "if Murdock's not Daredevil, why would his partner act this way? Crying because of libel?"
Panel 1: The magazines available for sale in the right of this image seem to include one with a woman, presumably naked, spread-eagle on the cover, hands perhaps tied behind her back. Even a line of public hair, a vertical slit reminiscent of a vagina and vulva, can be discerned.
Panel 4: Foggy Nelson's extreme shock is meant to be indicative not only of his surprise within the narrative but of the importance of this revelation and the way the book will handle it. The concern would be that the revelation would be written away, publically revealed to have been a "lie" perpetrated by some villain, causing the public to soon forget the "discredited" revelation. Brian Michael Bendis (on Newsarama.com) specified exactly this about Foggy's extreme, tearful reaction here:
I see a reaction like that as totally pure; he couldn't help it. And I wanted to signal to the readers that we're not doing shtick, and we're not joking around. Foggy knows the shit [censored in the original interview] has really hit the fan now. There's no going back to life as he and Matt knew it. It's all new from here on."
 Larger Version Available |
This issue was cover-dated July 2002.
Alias #13, published around this time and also written by Brian Michael Bendis, featured (in its final pages) a radio broadcast discussing the recent revelation of Daredevil's identity. That sequence probably occurs around the time of this issue's opening and closing (most of this issue being a flashback). On pages 10-11 of the following issue, Alias #14, has Matt Murdock calling the title's protagonist, Jessica Jones, and requesting her services. She will be seen subsequently in the storyline.
Matt Hollingsworth's process of coloring Alex Maleev's cover for this issue was given two pages in the Daredevil Vol. 2 hardcover.
Ironically given this attention, I find this cover fairly lackluster in a storyline for which the covers, even for Maleev, were absolutely top-notch.
Page 1
This sequence continues following the conclusion of the previous issue.
Panel 1: Note that this panel lacks borders and, a rarity for the storyline, extends to the edge of the page.
Panel 2: What a great shot worthy of Orson Welles: the "camera" is over the ceiling fan, that fan consuming a large percentage of the shot, all black and obscure.
Page 2
Note Alex Maleev's fantastic linework.
"My life is over": Here the notion Bendis intended with Foggy's reaction is reinforced through Matt Murdock's own thoughts. The theme of awaking to knowledge is invoked here: Matt is, in a sense, awakening to the fact that Ben Urich has already told him (on 30.4) -- that his secret identity may be known by more than he thought (as he stated on 27.12).
Page 3
Panel 1: Matt awakes to his home and life beseiged. From his thoughts, expressed in captions in this panel, it seems clear that he hears them saying the story of Daredevil's identity even before Foggy brings Matt the paper.
Panel 3: Foggy's heart pounding reinforces his reaction at the end of the previous issue.
Page 4
Panel 1: The tail-less word balloons demonstrate the overlapping shouts common to such media feeding frenzies. Note that they are already speculating whether Matt Murdock will be going to jail.
Panels 2-3: When I first read this passage, it floored me for its implications. Foggy Nelson believes that some sort of statement must be made, and has clearly been preparing what he will say. His denial already predetermines the course Matt must take: if Matt were to "come out," he would be making his friend a liar. Most shockingly, Foggy's playing of the handicapped card -- an utter deceit and a very low move -- is the most severe demonstration of how desperate he is. Knowing no statement or a simple denial won't satisfy, Foggy chooses to chastise the reporters by accusing them of "picking on the handicapped" -- a strong rhetorical maneuver, but one indicative of utter desperation.
Page 5
Panels 2-3: As another sign of how severe he knows the case to be, Foggy has to recollect himself after putting on a brave face and lying with snappy, desperate lines to a cadre of reporters.
Panel 5: Foggy holds up The Daily Globe, but Matt cannot see it -- although he can read through his enhanced sense of touch. We are so used to imagining Matt as not really blind, given his radar-sense and enhanced abilities, that it is easy to forget that this is one of his remaining weaknesses, an area of the effects of blindness not overlapped by the larger area of his powers. It was through this same technique that Ben Urich proved -- in Daredevil (first series) #164, cover-dated May 1980 -- his belief that Daredevil was Matt Murdock.
Panel 9: Matt's statement shows his apprehension of the gravity of the situation, but holds little weight as a statement of his belief in the invulnerability of his secret identity, which Ben Urich deconstructed on 30.4.
Although the next page will begin a flashback that answers Matt's question here, we will return to Matt and Foggy on page 18 of this issue.
Page 6
This sequence, occurring "two days ago," begins at the conclusion of the main sequence in #32, just before that issue cut forward to Foggy finding The Daily Globe.
Panel 1: This panel is a shrunken and cropped reproduction of panel 1 on 32.19. The dialogue there is stripped of its emphasis here. "And" has been added at its start. The elipse ("...") has replaced the dash ("--"). "Our" has been replaced with "the FBI's" -- which has the advantage of reminding us who these people are.
Panel 2: This panel is a shrunken and cropped reproduction of panel 2 on 32.19. The dialogue there is the same as here, except that the emphasis has been removed.
Panel 3: This panel, showing agent Henry Dobbs, is new, except that the dialogue is that of Mr. Davis from panel 3 on 32.19.
Panel 4: Beginning here, the contents are entirely new. Apparently, the two F.B.I. agents had a bet as to how Mr. Davis, who they called into the office at 3:00 in the morning (see 32.1). Henry Dobbs is the one who lost the bet.
Page 7
Panel 1: Henry Dobbs handing over money here reinforces his anxiety over money troubles, revealed on page 9.
Panel 2: "Breakfast," as well as the light in the windows and the following scene, suggest that these two men have been up all night working over the information Silke has provided.
Page 8
It can only be called remarkable that, in the issue following the public revelation of Daredevil's identity, Bendis has chosen to give so much of the issue to Henry Dobbs. Granted, this demonstrates how the information fell into the hands of The Daily Globe, but what is really remarkable, beginning in earnest on this page, is the characterization of Dobbs so that we not only understand what he did but why he did it. Moreover, this characterization remarkably renders Dobbs, who has destroyed our beloved titular character's life, sympathetic even in this act. This, too, is positively Shakespearean, though far more subtly than what Mr. Davis praises as Shakespearean in #32.
Panel 1: This is the only time Sherry is named. It is not exactly clear where the couple is at this time, nor how Henry knew where to meet her, though it is suggested that they are outside of their appartment (in Brooklyn, revealed on 37.10) and that Henry has just caught her as she steps out for work.
Panel 2: This is the first time Henry Dobbs is given a first name. His last name will be given in a title on 37.10. The time is indicative: it is some four hours after the beginning of #32 and some seven hours after Silke was being interrogated; this has indeed been a long and busy night.
Panel 4: We, if not Sherry, know just how shockingly true Henry's excuse really is.
Panel 6: Sherry turns away, as if her love prevents her from challenging Henry further, though she remains unsatisfied.
Page 9
Panel 2: Henry's request is really rather reasonable: he only wants ten minutes, out of both his and his wife's busy schedule, to spend with her. Her response is considerably more violent than his request is ridiculous.
Panel 3: Appartently, it takes Sherry two hours to get to work. Her angry comments about their financial sitatuon echo in the reader's, and almost certainly Henry's, mind -- providing, along with their general estrangement and his love for her, his motivation.
Panel 4: Henry hangs his head. Note the stark contrast to the face he puts on in panel 2.
Panel 5: Sherry reacts to Henry hanging his head by trying to retreat from her earlier anger, to strip her point of its emotionally damaging tone, but Henry interrupts to say he knows what she is trying to say, interrupting as we often do in such cases to prevent the further emotional pain of the new reiteration. All of this is communicated in shorthand, as between a couple who has known each other for some time, and demonstrates Bendis's ability -- though not always used -- for dialogue.
Panel 6: You know you have problems when you cannot articulate them.
Page 10
Henry Dobbs is here apparently staking out Matt's legal firm.
Panel 6: Note that Foggy here has, of course, not yet read the revelation in The Daily Globe, hence his apparent relaxation.
Page 11
Panel 1: Here Henry Dobbs is apparently looking into his rear-view mirror, watching Foggy walk off. Note the box from "Uno Chicago Bar & Grill" (the "Best Food Around") on Henry's dashboard, suggesting that he has been sitting there a while.
Panel 3: Henry Dobbs has gone inside and is talking to the secretary.
Panel 6: If Matt is in court, it is unclear what case he is trying. (He won a case a week and two days ago in #26.) The secretary may be lying.
Panel 7: As at many points in Underboss, had events transpired differently, the end result would have been much different. It is unclear just what Henry Dobbs would have said to Matt, and I do not think even he knows.
Page 12
Panel 1: Henry Dobbs has apparently moved his car and is now staking out Matt's living quarters.
Panel 3: It is unclear what Henry has in his mouth, though Henry does not smoke and it is probably a pen.
Panel 5: The figure is that of the Black Widow, who we will see in #36. She is a Russian trained by her government but who defected. For a time in the 1970s, Black Widow was regularly featured in Daredevil, so much so that her name appeared below his on the cover.
Page 13
Panel 1: The Black Widow is apparently looking around, making sure that she is not being watched before entering Matt's brownstone.
Panel 3: Here the Black Widow is flipping down and through the window.
Panel 5: Here the Black Widow is inside, proving her connection with Matt Murdock.
Page 14
Panel 1: Here the Black Widow has emerged, Matt Murdock apparently not being home. Note that Dobbs and the F.B.I. have the information that Matt has checked into a hotel (panel 4, 32.14).
Panels 3-4: Here the Black Widow is departing.
Panels 5-6: Henry's straining to look indicates both the surprise of the moment, his desire to ascertain whether she has indeed left, and perhaps some desire to look at such a beautiful woman.
Page 15
Panel 1: Henry is returning to work at the F.B.I.
Panel 2: The fingers are Henry's, working on his laptop, searching the internet for information on Daredevil.
Panels 3 and 8: Just below the other agent in panel 3 (on the wall of Henry's cubicle) and also seen in panel 8, is an image of someone looking very much like O.J. Simpson, famously tried in the 1990s for killing his ex-wife and her lover. The non-stop media coverage of that trial shares a theme with the coverage that will soon occur over the Daredevil story, and also has deep resonance with the following storyine, The Trial of the Century.
Panels 4-7: We only hear of what has happenned to Silke, who was really the main character of Underboss; he will not be seen or heard of again throughout Out and will next appear in #45, during the Lowlife storyline.
Panel 5: Henry is here slyly tilting down the screen of his laptop to avoid his partner seeing it.
Page 16
Panel 1: Henry Dobbs knows that apparently learned that S.H.I.E.L.D. has taken the Matt Murdock information out of the F.B.I.'s hands. Henry's parter has not made such inquiries, and only reports that he has heard nothing.
Panel 3: Note that had Henry not tilted down the laptop's screen, it would be visible here to his partner.
Panel 4: Henry, as the Black Widow did earlier, checks to make sure no one is watching.
Panel 5: Henry is looking at The Daily Bugle's website, looking at a story concerning not only Daredevil, but Black Widow, who he has just seen. The story is entitled "Daredevil and Black Widow Capture Stilt-Man -- Save President Clinton." The villain Stilt-Man will be seen during the Lowlife storyline. To the right of this story is a tabloid-esque story about an alien, although note that, in the Marvel universe, such tabloid tales may well be true.
Panel 9: It is after Henry looks at the image of himself happy with his wife, and thinks of their present troubles, that he calls his connection at the Globe.
Page 17
Panel 1: Depicting Henry with his hand on the phone in its own panel emphasizes his hesitation, or at least that he knows this to be a momentus act.
Panel 3: Presumably, after "talk," the man on the other end of the phone says something like, "Well, we're talking. Talk." After "in person," Henry's interlocutor says something like, "About what?"
Panel 4: Presumably, after "paying for stuff," the man on the other end of the phone says something clever like, "For what? For furniture?" After "a story," Henry's interlocutor says something like, "Is it big?"
Panels 4-6: The more distant "camera" here, pulling us back from thinking solely of Henry Dobbs and more of the wider world he will affect. Note that, in the foreground, a rat spies a bird, pounces on it, and then struggles with it. The suggests the violence of the world, in which Henry to make money and to help his relationship must prey on the life of another. Symbolically, of course, Henry is the rat.
Page 18
Here we return to the present, following page 5 of this issue. Apparently, some time has passed since that page, given that Foggy is now seated and sipping hot coffee or, less probably, tea.
Panel 1: The newspaper caught in the wind high above the city emphasizes the shift back to the present. The image of this newspaper blown about by the wind is taken up on the cover as well.
Panel 3: The china from which Foggy drinks emphasizes the luxury to which the two are accommodated, and thus how much they have to lose. Matt's comments echo his disbelief in the last panel of page 5, as well as his statement (in panel 5 of 27.12) to Foggy in the hospital following Nitro's attack.
Panel 4: Foggy's statement may be seen as affirming the intelligence of Bendis's story.
Panel 5: Spider-Man, unfortunately, sells far more books and thus is more difficult to change in this fashion. But the point, that we always think things will happen to others but not to ourselves, is well-made.
Page 19
Panel 1: Foggy is absolutely right at the generally one-sided nature of their relationship. The most recent example of Matt helping Foggy was during the Guardian Angel storyline -- running in the first eight issues of Daredevil (second series) and written by Kevin Smith -- in which Foggy was falsely arrested for murder. Foggy's desire to help Matt in return goes a great way to explain his behavior in the remainder of the storyline. Foggy Nelson has never been an exceedingly strong character, but he really becomes one in this issue: even his statement to the reporters (on page 4) demonstrates great strength, as if the trauma of reading the paper and realizing how much trouble Matt was in, for once, allowed him to find his strength. Throughout this sequence, Foggy's dialogue and tone demonstrates this strength, even placing it as strangely superior, and even condescending, to Matt. Note, however, that Foggy on 45.7 will explain his behavior here this way:
You didn't need me yelling at you too. I made a mistake when all this started. I wailed on you about being Daredevil, because, well, because I was scared out of my frickin' mind. I was wrong.
Panel 4: Foggy's tone is one of pity for Matt, who is indeed acting naïve.
Panel 5: "Faking a trial against Daredevil" refers to the Playing to the Camera storyline -- written by Bob Gale and running through Daredevil (second series) #20-25, the issues immediately preceding Underboss.
Panel 6: Foggy Nelson's point, that Matt's coming out as Daredevil would result in disbarment, finds evidence in Matt's own thoughts while in court in panel 4 of 26.11, where he uses his powers to determine how each of the members of the jury will vote.
Pages 20-21
Most of Alex Maleev's black-and-white final versions of these two pages were included in the back of the Daredevil Vol. 2 hardcover, where they were accompanied by Bendis's script for most of the page and the beginning of the next, where they were accompanied by Bendis's script to most of these two pages.
Page 20
Panel 2: Foggy's advice is exactly that of a good lawyer. Matt, by contrast, has been thinking like a super-hero rather than a lawyer.
Panel 4: Just as Daredevil in Underboss did not know who was ordering the hits on Matt Murdock, so he here also has no villain to hit.
Page 21
Panel 5: Foggy's statement not only provides a good cliffhanger, but offers the first illustration of the position he will take subsequently in the storyline, encouraging Matt to restrict his activities as Daredevil as much as possible -- not only because of the legal problems, but because those activities have been psychologically damaging for Matt.
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This issue was cover-dated August 2002.
An early sketch of this cover can be seen in sketchbook section in the back of the Daredevil Vol. 2 hardcover.
Page 1
To open this issue with J. Jonah Jameson, having a natural reaction to the news, is not only unexpected but quite remarkable: in a gripping tale of Matt Murdock having his secret identity revealed, the tale shifts to show us a delightfully human scene, covering the reaction of others in Daredevil's world.
Panels 1 and 3: The two women to the right of Jameson are passing notes to each other during the meeting.
Panel 4: Note the change of face, from panel 2, on each and every character.
Panel 5: Jameson's snide tone, answering his own question, is remarkable dialogue, leading calmly into his explosion on the next page.
Page 2
This copy of the newspaper claims that "April 18" was a "Wednesday," although it was a Thursday, which carries a meta-narratological point. (See annotations to 32.21.)
Page 3
Panel 1: The Daily Globe is seen as a tabloid, at least in comparison to the Daily Bugle.
Panel 2: What's important here is what's not being said. Ben Urich here looks confrontational, intellectual in response to a criticism of him as a reporter. We know that Urich knows -- and has long known -- Daredevil's identity, and Jameson's criticism, made without such knowledge, is not so dissimilar to the self-criticism Urich has made about himself for his silence on the matter.
Panel 3: As Jameson turns to demand an outright offense on Matt Murdock, Urich takes a pacifistic post, closing his eyes to the horror of his boss's rant against a man Urich knows to be good.
Panel 4: Jameson's strategy is not uncommon in the media world. There are two aggressive responses to another media outlet breaking a story: to bury it and not talk about it, and to try to take the story over, to do it better than the one that initiated it and thus obscure the competitor's victory.
Panel 5: Here Urich listens to Jameson's revelation of his motivations. Remember that Jameson is against super-heroes and famous for covering Spider-Man as a menace whenever possible.
Panel 6: Here Urich winces at Jameson's rhetoric, abstracting from Daredevil to "all these costumed yutzes!" For Jameson, this is not about Daredevil or Matt Murdock; this is about his hatred of super-heroes.
Panel 7: Hatred of lawyers is just a bonus. For a man combining his long-standing hatred of super-heroes with a more conventional hatred of lawyers, this really is "Christmas."
Panel 8: The small lettering of Urich's word balloon indicates that it is hushed. That it overlaps Jameson's word balloon indicates that it interrupts Jameson's rant. Urich is, of course, lying; he knows full well that the story is true. Ironically, it is Jameson and everyone else in the room who should be wondering if the story is true; Urich, the only one who questions the story, is also the only one who knows it to be accurate.
Page 4
Panel 1: Jameson is shocked -- perhaps more that someone would interrupt him than at what he thinks he has heard. His rant has uncharacteristically given way to silence.
Panel 2: In this remarkable panel, Urich, surrounded by silence, repeats his claim, again in muted words.
Panel 4: Urich, still muted, repeats his claim, looking away from his boss, to whom he is lying.
Panel 5: Jameson follows with the obvious question -- how do you know?
Panel 6: At this point, Urich could simply say he doesn't trust the Globe or has heard through the grapevine that the evidence on this story was weak. Instead, still muted and looking away, he plays a much bigger trump card -- supporting his lie with a claim for the strength of his knowledge, therefore putting his job in jeopardy before his angry boss.
Panel 7: Understandable silence in response to Urich's revelation.
Panel 8: Jameson can't believe it. This is just great characterization: in disbelief, Jameson, angry at his reporter if he heard correctly, smiles.
Panel 9: Urich looks in Jameson's face. Notably, this time he is not lying.
Page 5
Panel 1: Here Jameson is pointing, his rhetoric again anti-super-hero.
Panel 2: Urich seems to respond to Jameson's rhetoric, and the inevitable anger to come, by tilting his head down sadly.
Panel 3: The "it's true" here is spoken not by Jameson, but by Peter Parker, seen in the next panel.
Panel 4: This twenty-something man in the back is Peter Parker, the alter ego of Spider-Man. Parker worked at the Daily Bugle for many years, beginning in his earliest days as after becoming Spider-Man, but he does no longer.
Panel 5: Urich looks up again, expressing interest, analysing with his reporter's mind.
Panel 6: The implication is that Peter Parker just walked in, but that interrupting one of these sessions -- like interrupting one of Jameson's rants -- is simply not done at the Bugle.
Page 6
Panel 1: Peter's stumbling over the words suggests that he has just overheard Ben Urich's statements and is repeating them. The moment is a very strange one: two people coming out of the woodwork to state that they know who Daredevil is.
Panel 3: Jameson is understandably shocked.
Panel 6: Urich, judging from his word balloon, is speaking louder here, as if the firmness of his stance has been enhanced by Peter Parker's words.
Panel 7: Jameson's rage makes perfect sense to him. He's the boss. The idea that someone in his emply would not share such information -- vital to him and his anti-super-hero agenda -- appalls him.
Page 7
Panel 6: Jameson seems shocked, holding the same position, by Peter Parker just walking out on him.
Page 8
Panel 2: Ben Urich's point is clear: Jameson really is treating -- and routinely treats -- his staff as children.
Panel 3: Jameson cuts off Urich.
Panel 6: Here Urich points at Jameson, as Jameson pointed at Urich earlier. Urich has been pushed to openly confront his notorious boss, which is something he distinctly avoided doing.
Panel 7: Note the other senior staff members, who have been plunged into a situation where they are hearing these revelations. Note also the posters for the U.S. military, strange for a meeting room in a newspaper's offices, though not for Jameson's personality; these posters can also be seen on the next page.
Panel 8: Urich argument that Daredevil's identity is not news reflects a very "old school" approach, in which people's private lives are not the purvue of the news. Think of reporters covering up Franklin Delano Roosevelt's handicap.
Page 9
Panel 3: Jameson did just say so. See panels 5-6 on page 3.
Panel 4: Jameson replies with his deeply-rooted assumptions about the nature of super-heroes. His stance, however, is not totally unjustified. Daredevil is, of course, a masked vigilante.
Panel 6: The argument over what constitutes the "profession" of journalism gives a deeper tone to the character-driven scene, rooting the characters' personal reponses in their occupations.
Although J. Jonah Jameson will not be seen, following this memorable sequence, for the rest of this storyline, he was prominently featured in Alias #10 (also written by Brian Michael Bendis), in which Jameson hires Jessica Jones, in the wake of the Daredevil exposé, to try to discover Spider-Man's identity. (Ben Urich also appears in that issue, which has no word balloons, prefering instead to list characters' statements in the form of a play's script.) It is worth noting that it is not altogether clear when Alias #10 occurs in relation to Jessica Jones's narrative, and thus to Daredevil's. If Alias #10 occurs between Alias #9 and #11, it occurs not long after this scene. But the revelation of Matt Murdock's identity seems to be fresh news in the conclusion to Alias #13, and Alias #10 was reprinted in the third trade paperback of that series, between #15 and #16. It is probably there that the story best belongs in terms of Jessica Jones's narrative; in which case, because Alias #15 intersects with Daredevil #36 (chapter 5 of this storyline), Alias #10 would occur around (or immediately following) the end of Out.
Page 10
Panel 1: Although we do not see either character leaving, Ben Urich has apparently rushed to catch up with Peter Parker, catching him just outside the Bugle building.
Panel 5: The awkward silence results from both men not having known that they worked with someone who knew Daredevil's identity. Of course, they do not know whether the other person really knows, and they seem ot be judging this. Note that, in their following conversation, no reference is made explicitly to Matt Murdock, his occupation, or his life.
Pages 11-12
Here we begin a complex sequence that will last until the end of the issue. The images of Daredevil, jumping around the city, occur in the present. The inset panels with white borders also occur in the present. The inset panels with light yellow borders are flashbacks, as are all of the word balloons, which continue Matt's conversation with Foggy Nelson from the end of the previous issue.
Inset panel 2: The dialogue here -- beginning with "no" -- continues immediately following the end of the previous issue, which ended with Foggy saying, "It's time to retire."
Inset panel 3: A shot of the reporters on Matt's doorstep, to which Foggy refers in his dialogue.
Inset panel 4: Interrupting the conversation is a shot of a neighbor being interviewed on Matt's doorstep. The implication is that Matt, in the flashback, overheard this with his enhanced hearing, as the implication is that he is now replaying the conversation as he leaps around the city, tyring to get his frustration out of his system.
Inset panel 5: Foggy's point about how sports players have a relatively short career, as it applies to super-heroics, is not unprecedented but is rather sound.
Pages 13-14
Background panel: Here the camera is looking straight up at Daredevil jumping the gap between buildings.
Inset panel 5: Here we see Peter Parker dressing up as Spider-Man in the present, presumably preparing to go check on Matt in response to his conversation with Urich. Spider-Man will appear in the following issue.
Inset panel 6: This shot of a neighbor being interviewed continues from inset panel 4 in the previous two-page spread.
Inset panel 7: Foggy is responding to Matt, continuing from inset panel 2.
Inset panel 8: Foggy's suggestion that Matt might meet "a nice girl who isn't, you know, nuts" offers Matt the promise of a civilian utopia of the bliss of love and sex. The suggestion, that Matt's going out as Daredevil is keeping him from such a utopia, or that both problems stem from the same self-destructive psychological tendencies, will be articulated by Foggy in a bit more depth later.
Inset panels 10 and 12: Here Matt seems to be smelling his uniform, as if to remember the certainty it gave him, the black-and-white, simpler world of Daredevil as opposed to the disastrous mess of Matt Murdock.
Pages 15-16
Inset panel 1: Elektra, in London (Big Ben is in the background), seems to be reading a newspaper reporting the Globe's revelation of Daredevil's identity.
Inset panel 4: Matt, in pointing upwards, is pointing to the rooftops. His words recall the moral certainty of Daredevil's world: "to do soemthing worthwhile for someone."
Inset panel 5: Here Foggy is angrily snatching the Daredevil uniform away from Matt.
Inset panel 6: Here Foggy is handing it back. While this seems calm, the analogy of handing an alchoholic back his bottle should be considered.
Inset panel 7: This image, of the Daredevil mask being slid on in rather desperate fashion, is taken up on the cover.
Inset panel 9: Again, a shot of Elektra reading the news. Her words, through juxtaposition, comment on Matt going out as Daredevil as well.
Inset panel 10: Here we return to the neighbor, her story increasingly bad for Matt as she recalls more and more suspicious moments in her history as Matt's neighbor.
Pages 17-18
Inset panels 1, 4-5, and 10: Here Deredevil is looking through the skylight down upon Foggy Nelson, who continues to talk.
Inset panel 2: This is a flashback to Boomerang, who Daredevil busted during an assassination attempt on Matt Murdock in #28.
Inset panels 6-8 and 12-14: These images are reminiscent of the similar flashbacks in #28, particularly on pages 5-6.
Inset panel 6: An image of Elektra, as she was before her death at the hands of Bullseye.
Inset panel 7: An image of Karen Page, also killed by Bullseye.
Inset panel 8: An image of Bullseye.
Inset panel 12: An image of Elektra dying or dead on Matt Murdock's steps.
Inset panel 13: Another image of Bullseye.
Inset panel 14: An image of Karen Page dying in Daredevil's arms.
Pages 19-20
On this page, it becomes increasngly clear that these memories are spiralling out of control in Matt's mind.
Inset panel 1: Here we have jumped back to inset panel 7 on page 14. The images of Foggy Nelson are talking to Matt as if he were at his own level, as opposed to already looking down from the skylight, as seen on the previous two pages. Thus, although the word balloons continue sequentially, the images accompanying them do not.
There is no way to read the inset panels in a determined sequence, already strained on previous pages but here exploded into simultaneity. Remember that inset panels with white or blue borders seemed to indicate the present, whereas yellow borders seemed to indicate flashbacks; here, this is repeatedly upset.
Inset panels of Foggy Nelson: These go from yellow to white, with the last three images of Foggy being within entirely white borders. Foggy's dialogue, wrapping around this page, originate solely within an inset panel of him with a soft yellow border. This suggests that Daredevil is thinking of Foggy in the present, still standing, wordless, in Matt's house.
Inset panels of images Daredevil holding the dying Karen Page: This image first occurs with a white border, then with a soft yellow border, blurring past and present.
Inset panels of Bullseye: The three images of Bullseye (one on the left margin and two on the right margin) have yellow borders, suggesting that Daredevil has not encountered Bullseye for some time; his memory, like his images, seems to enclose or ring the other memories.
Other inset images of Daredevil's past: These include Bullseye actually delivering the killing blow to Elektra and two images of Karen Page, all in soft yellow borders. These also include an image of Daredevil and Bullseye fighting in a stronger yellow frame, and (across the fold between pages) an image of the blind Kingpin from Daredevil's second visit to him during Underboss (29.14-16), where the Kingpin was alone and considerably pathetic.
An inset image, in a soft yellow frame, of the Globe cover is also present.
An inset image of Elektra in London reading the news, as seen on the last two pages, is seen in a yellow frame, also given to the two previous frames of her reacting.
"What do you call a person who can't learn from a mistake?": One definition of insanity is doing the same thing and expecting a different response.
"you sick twisted #@$@@!!": Foggy gets hostile, openly cursing his friend who refuses to listen.
"Does Bullseye have to kill me now?": Foggy comes very close to blaming Matt for the deaths of Elektra and Karen Page, and (particularly in the second case) there is some truth to this. This will be a point in Foggy's conversation with the Black Widow in #36.
Page 22
Here Daredevil has come to rest on a light overlooking the reporters encamped at his doorstep.
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This issue was cover-dated September 2002.
Page 1
Panel 1: Matt is still on the light overlooking the crowd around his brownstone. Not a flashback, this panel continues directly from the end of the previous issue.
Panel 5: Note the glossy look in Matt's eyes, suggestive of his blindness.
Page 2
Following the series of increasing close-ups on the previous page, this full-page panel pulls back, establishing the scene. Matt's assertion of his nickname, "the man without fear," is particularly desperate here, following his protesting too much on the previous page. The irony generated here by the appellation "the man without fear" shows how serious this story is: we do not get such serious questioning, if not explosion, of the super-heroic identity when Daredevil is fighting some brightly costumed super-villain.
Page 3
Panel 2: Matt's realization here is, of course, quite warranted.
Panel 5: This reporter is apparently spotting Daredevil as he swings.
Page 4
Panel 1: The reporter cursing here that he missed the shot seems to be the one seen in panel 5 of the previous page.
Panel 3-4: The frenetic series of photographs illustrates the media's mob mentality: they are not too smart, responding to the stories others (like the Globe) start, but they are zealous in their pursuit of their prey. The first rumor and photo snapped seems to set off a chain reaction of photos as seemingly every photographer snaps wildly, hoping to get that magic money shot.
Page 5
Panel 3: Here Matt has his mask off again, though he is presumably further from prying eyes. Presumably, there is something about having his mask off in public while wearing the uniform. Perhaps it is the breeze against the skin of his face, reminding him of his personal identity even as he is out as Daredevil, with the freedom that comes with it. Perhaps it is the risk that appeals to him; after all, as he points out, he is not making -- and has rarely made -- the best decisions and, as Foggy Nelson articulated, he has a self-destructive streak. Perhaps it is some combination of these elements, and the result is resonant: Matt seems to enjoy the freedom of being Daredevil, yet seems to want to come "out," to show his face.
Panel 4: Both "center" and "focus" resonate with photography, though particularly the later, repeated in the next panel.
Page 6
It is not altogether clear on this page what these thugs are after, though we will see the handbag that was stolen on the following page. The talkative one is desirous of murdering the victim, but no statement is made about robbery, although that is likely the purpose. Fortunately, the motivation is irrelevant for the sake of the plot: the point is just that they are very bad men.
Page 7
Panel 3: The criminal seems to be running inside under his own power.
Panel 4: The criminal falling over the table may initially appear to have been thrown, but the previous panel suggests that he is simply running too quickly and not watching out for the table just past the door, seen open here. The confusion is enhanced by the fact that the exterior of the building, past the window and door, where we see Daredevil standing, is not dark enough (or blue enough) to suggest that it is the nightly exterior of the previous panels.
Panel 5: The setting seems to be an 1950s-style diner.
Panel 6: Daredevil hands back the rather large handbag to the woman who was being mugged on the previous page. (One can tell this by the hair, if nothing else.) Apparently, she has come into the diner between panels. Her handbag has also appeared mysteriously, since it was not in the hands of the fleeing and falling thug seen here. The victim's stance here seems particularly brave in the presence of the attacker who wanted to kill her a minute or so before, even if that attacker is weakly kneeling in surrender to a costumed vigilante. Fortunately, all such realistic concerns are largely irrelevant to the meaning of the panel.
Panel 7: Note that The Daily Globe with the Daredevil exposé is still sitting around.
Panel 8: The flippant question is, of course, an excellent one. What Bendis is doing is showing how easily someone can, following Daredevil's "outing," poke holes in Daredevil's public persona.
Page 8
Panel 2: The man in this panel (as well as the last two) appears to be affraid of Daredevil and of the potentiality of being attacked. Daredevil's threatening pose emphasizes his frustration and the idea that he is, to use an expression from popular psychology, on the edge.
Panel 4: Here Daredevil is rushing from the diner. Note that, perhaps lamentably, the diner's façade is not shown when it first appears on the previous page (as is often done to establish the scene).
Panel 5: The woman at the table with the man who asked the question is here pointing out that Daredevil failed to respond not to the previous question ("the hell is that?") but to the question of her male companion (that sought to test whether Daredevil was blind).
Pages 9-10
Note the considerable space devoted to showing Foggy's reaction and the damage to Matt's brownstone, rather than being devoted to Spider-Man in an opportunistic attempt to raise sales.
Pages 11-12
This is the first time that Matt Murdock has been attacked in the wake of the Globe's exposé. Note, of course, the ready-made mass media coverage.
Page 13
Panel 2: The name Mr. Hyde is, of course, a reference to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the classic novel.
Panel 3: This comment represents another in a continuing series of comments by characters within the narrative on the ridiculousness of the conventions of the super-hero genre -- or, within the narrative, the conventions of those who put on costumes and take the roles of super-heroes and super-villains.
Page 14
Panel 1: This is Foggy Nelson inside Murdock's home. His right hand is to his head, presumably, not because he is injured but because he is still on his cell phone (as he was when previously seen on page 10).
Panel 5: In the top left corner, we can see Spider-Man's webbing pulling the van off-panel.
Page 15
This is the first time Brian Michael Bendis wrote the mainstream Marvel Universe's Spider-Man, but he was already the writer of Ultimate Spider-Man, writing all stories featuring the Spider-Man of Marvel's popular "Ultimate" universe, featuring Marvel's super-heroes as if they were debuting in the present day. Ultimate Spider-Man was and would remain one of the most popular comic books of the time, and some of its fans were eager to see Bendis write the Spider-Man of the mainstream Marvel universe.
Maleev's more realistic and more gritty style would at first seem at odds with Spider-Man, a character defined by fun if not irrelevant flippancy, but his depiction of Spider-Man casts that character in a tone as convincing as it is realistic and unconventional.
Note that, while Spider-Man's popularity far exceeded that of Daredevil, his appearance here is really confined to four pages -- and, of course, the attention-garnering cover. The cover is a nice work of art and commercially a virtual necessity, but note that (while we are counting pages) Mr. Hyde gets six pages to himself prior to the arrival of either super-hero.
Page 16
Panel 2: For those unfamiliar with the Marvel universe, The Mighty Thor is, and has long been, the title of a Marvel comic book featuring Thor, literally the god from Norse mythology, transplanted into a contemporary, science fictiony, comic book aesthetic.
Page 17
Panels 1 and 3: Daredevil here twice hits Mr. Hyde with a dropbox of the United States Post Office, seen on so many streetcorners. In the U.S., tampering with the mail, including mailboxes, is a federal crime (because the federal government operates the post) and thus treated far more seriously than misdemeanors or violations of local ordinances or state law. Daredevil is literally committing a felony in this panel.
Page 18
Panel 2: Spider-Man's comment about loving the press is sarcastic and a reference to the fact that the press, most prominently the Daily Bugle and J. Jonah Jameson, notoriously seems to have a vendetta against Spider-Man. Alias #10 plays off this simularity between Daredevil's present circumstance and Spider-Man's status quo: it has Jameson hire Jessica Jones to investigate Spider-Man's identity in the wake of the Globe revelation about Matt Murdock.
Panel 4: Manischevitz is a kosher wine used by religious Jews in their ceremonies.
With the end of this scene, rather than show the inevitable conversation between Spider-Man and Daredevil over Matt's present predicament, we cut to one that occurs some twenty-six days later. While this may be laudable for avoiding excessive use of a popular character, it does feel somewhat less than satisfying. Following the conclusion of Kevin Smith's Guardian Devil storyline (in Daredevil #1-8), in which Matt lost longtime friend and sometime-girlfriend Karen Page, Daredevil memorably talked with Spider-Man about recent events. Such a scene here might have provided a nice mirror, especially with Bendis's ear for dialogue.
Pages 19-20
Note the purplish hues used throughout the inset panels.
Inset panel 1: Note the presence of Foggy Nelson to the left of Ben in this panel. His presence is not shown again until the eighth inset panel, and he does not speak during this sequence. The reason for his presence, made clearer in the following issue, is that Matt is increasingly following Foggy's advice.
Inset panel 6: Matt implicitly "heard what you did for me at the Bugle" from Spider-Man, who was there in his Peter Parker identity. Interestingly, revealing this fact may help (however slightly) to expose Peter Parker as Spider-Man, especially when spoken to such an apparently keen reporter.
Inset panel 7: Matt's words work both ways. If he is planning on revealing the truth, his statements about Ben Urich's lies refelct his own desire not to lie anymore and his own value on truth. If Matt plans on obfuscating, his words show concern for a friend who would otherwise have to lie to defend Matt's lie.
Page 21
Panel 2: The image of Matt here seems classic: note the shadow around his head that makes his face look as if it is floating (red Lennon sunglasses and all) against a predominantly black background.
Page 22
The lack of an immediate answer, and the holding of the moment, exaggerates and prolongs the suspense. This page is, after all, a cliffhanger. Note that the use of sound effects, with (what is presumably) a flash bulb "POP"ing after a series of more modern "SNAP"s, also serve to heighten the tension, ending with a "POP" alone in the last panel -- as if Matt's life is about to "POP" (a sound also indicating surprise, causing people to jump to their feet).
 Larger Version Available |
This issue was cover-dated October 2002.
Page 6
Panels 2-4: These panels are the same as panels 1-3 on the first page of Alias #15, although there they are drawn by Michael Gaydos. That comic continues the scene from the point of view of the bodyguards, Jessica Jones and Luke Cage. The two points of view will reconvene four pages later, on page 10.
Panel 3: The woman on the left by the door is Jessica Jones, the protagonist of the comic book Alias -- though she looks considerably more beautiful here, drawn by Maleev, than in her own book (where she is largely drawn by Michael Gaydos).
Page 10
Panel 7: Following this page, Natasha leaves Matt's office, thus passing his two bodyguards again. This is shown on page 9 of Alias #15, where the Black Widow mutters "arrogant..." as she walks out.
Page 13
Panel 7: Natasha is presumably calling Elektra.
Page 14
Vanessa has not been seen since the concluding pages of 31.21. Davis of the F.B.I. ordered her put under surveillance in panel 8 of 32.17, though no indication of this surveillance is given in this sequence.
 Larger Version Available |
This issue was cover-dated November 2002.
The style of this cover -- particularly in its fractured, layered, or textured appearance -- is reminiscent of Bill Sienkiewicz, notably his work on Elektra: Assassin, the famed eight-issue mini-series written by Frank Miller and published in 1986-1987; Sienkiewicz is generally acknowledged the premiere illustrator of Elektra.
Page 1
Note the different panel border on this page, a great rarity for this storyline, which has a magical feel to it and serves to separate this one-page, idyllic flashback.
Page 18
Note that this page has no panel border, the only time this occurs in this storyline. Many super-hero comics commonly use this same effect to make it seem as if the characters are bursting off the page, which is the effect achieved here. The extremely sparing use of this device heightens its effect, demonstrating visually Matt's desire to burst out of the stilted, lawyeristic, lie-necessitating conversation that precedes this image (and continues over it in captions) and that, to some extent, his life has become.
Page 20
This moving page offers exactly what the narrative needs at its conclusion: to show how the men and women on the street react to Daredevil following all the controversy. Compare this to the elder cop's endorsing Daredevil to his zealous rookie partner in the last panel on 27.10.
Panel 3: "Guy saved my cousin." A moving line, after all of the shit we and Matt Murdock have been through, that effectively ends the argument. Yes, Daredevil's actions are illegal. Yes, they are frequently morally questionable. But -- particularly in the wake of the traumatizing 11 September terrorist attacks upon the U.S., the greatest effect of which was to make indefensible the moral relativism that the West had increasingly (and understandably in times of peace and prosperity at home) adopted in the name of sensitivity over the last few decades -- it cannot be argued that those who save lives do good. This dynamic is, in a sense, the same at that of Mark Millar's The Authority, in which that super-hero team controversally (both in their comic and in the reaction to it) adopted interventionist politics: with all the suffering in the world, you cannot argue that those doing good, no matter how questionable their exact methods, are not heroes for doing what they do. And, as another bystander makes clear in this panel, this is all the more the case when those positive actions are done not for personal acclaim but in spite of hardship, of being called a criminal and the like for doing so.
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