'Daredevil: Guardian Devil' Review

Regular readers here at Amongst The Panels are already aware of my love for the blind superhero Daredevil. If you didn't know that, well I just went and told you. Regardless, there are plenty of Daredevil books out there I haven't read yet. And, dare I admit this, there are a few I have been a bit hesitant about reading. Guardian Devil used to belong to that group. Why did I hold back? Well it wasn't because of the writer. I've been a fan of Kevin Smith since I was a young and impressionable teenager, when Clerks, Mallrats and Jay and Silent Bob were the funniest films around. I held back because I wasn't so sure I was going to enjoy Joe Quesada's art. First impressions did not impress. Quesada's style is all his own, that's for sure, but I was worried it'd be a bit too cartoony for my tastes.

Thankfully I ignored the pessimistic thoughts in my brain and purchased Guardian Devil based on the good reviews it's received since it's publication. Guardian Devil's inception came about when Marvel Knights relaunched Daredevil in 1998 after the character had been cancelled due to lacklustre sales in the previous years. Indie film sensation and soon-to-be Hollywood director Kevin Smith, a lifelong comics fan himself, was brought in to take ol' Hornhead in a brave new direction and he was partnered with artist Joe Quesada, who became Marvel's editor-in-chief shortly after Guardian Devil's publication. Together they were tasked to take Matt Murdock from obscurity and force him back into the spotlight. Guardian Devil contains issues #1-8 of Daredevil Volume 2 (because this was the relaunch, after the old Volume 1 was cancelled, remember?). I opted for the fancy 10th Anniversary hardcover edition, simply because it was quicker to get hold of than the trade paperback. My workplace had only one these lovely hardbacks left in the warehouse so I only had to wait a day to get it, rather than the 2-3 days it would have taken to get from Amazon (I'm impatient). Plus, if I can get it at a good price I'll always opt for a hardback over a paperback - I love my hardbacks.

Considering the book only contains 8 issues, Guardian Devil feels like its made up of a lot more. These are lonnnnng issues. That's solely down to Smith's script and the amount of words he manages to cram in. I know how this looks, like I'm complaining, right? Overly wordy comics can suffocate the life out of a story but Smith's script does not suffer from this. There may be lots of words but the quality is top notch and the plot benefits from Smith's attention to detail. However, I was concerned that the heavy Catholic angle I'd heard so much about would turn me off a bit. I needn't have worried because Smith works the religious aspects into the story beautifully and the overall feel of the book wouldn't have been as effective without it. All the reviews I'd read before purchasing Guardian Devil made it clear that this book simply had to be read because of the life changing events that occur within. Now unfortunately I knew going in what this "big event" was (click the link to see, but be aware it's a SPOILER - oh yeah, you should probably avoid looking at the photo below too!) but thankfully it still had the desired effect on me: powerful and traumatic. After finishing the book I could see that the events that take place in Guardian Devil really do go on to shape Matt Murdock's character. This is a character defining piece of work in every sense of the word. It is a tribute to Smith's quality that the writers who succeeded him constantly referred back to Guardian Devil as a source as to why Daredevil is who he is, and more importantly does what he does.

Smith's background in film is obvious throughout: he brings a cinematic quality to Guardian Devil and it quickly becomes clear that the 2003 Daredevil movie took a lot of influence from this book (Smith even had a cameo role in the film). Speaking of cinematic qualities, Quesada's impressive panels really brings Smith's script to life. Once I became accustomed to Quesada's unique style I began to appreciate his skills as an artist. Quesada definitely improves with each issue and by issue 8 he has everything nailed down perfectly. But... there's still something about his style I don't like. Maybe I should rephrase that. I do like Quesada's pencils but I don't love them, and to totally go mad about a book I need to love the writer's story and the artist's pencils. Everything needs to click for me to sing a book's praises to all my friends and unfortunately Quesada's artistic style prevents me from doing that for Guardian Devil. What is it I don't like? I think the body proportions look a bit odd at times, like the character's heads are slightly too big. And there's something about the way Quesada draws their eyes too. Its nit picking really, but everyone has their personal preferences and I'm quite picky when it comes to comic book art.

Overall, Quesada's art doesn't impact the quality of the book that much. It just prevents me from calling Guardian Devil perfect. Smith's story belongs up there with the best Miller, Bendis and Brubaker created in their day. The fallout from the book has had a profound impact on Daredevil stories ever since and there's no question that Guardian Devil is essential reading for all fans of Matt Murdock. It sees our hero go through a dark and painful journey only to emerge from the suffering and into a new millennium. Guardian Devil established the character for over a decade and has only recently been altered with Mark Waid's more upbeat tales. This book marked the beginning of a new era in Daredevil's history, one that equalled and arguably surpassed the heights Frank Miller set in the eighties. For that reason, Guardian Devil is a book no die-hard Daredevil fan can pass up.

Rating: 4/5

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'Daredevil: Bendis & Maleev Ultimate Collection Vol.1' Review

Let's get this out of the way early: Daredevil is one of my favourite comic book characters and easily my favourite Marvel hero. Spidey used to lay claim to that crown but as I got older Daredevil took over. So we're dealing with one of "my guys" here in this review. He wasn't always at the top though. In fact there was a time, not so long ago actually, that I barely had Daredevil on my radar. I knew of the character but had never read any of his books and honestly, I thought what could possibly be so interesting about a blind superhero? But I had heard such good things, especially from my friend Simon, so I decided to give DD a try one day. My love affair with ol' Hornhead started with the incredible Daredevil Yellow by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, which is still one of my favourite graphic novels I own. Yellow got me hooked; I needed more and thankfully there was plenty of good Daredevil stories out there to discover. After Yellow I hit the classics, starting with Frank Miller's Born Again and The Man Without Fear before getting on to Miller's first work on the character with his defining run on DD from the early eighties. That was it, Daredevil had me for good, but I knew there were more stories waiting for me. It turns out I hadn't even scratched the surface because I hadn't gotten to Brian Michael Bendis's mammoth works yet. So I took the plunge and ordered Bendis and Alex Maleev's Ultimate Collection Volume 1, containing issues #16-19 and #26-40. After reading and savouring every glorious page, I can safely say I've left the best until last. This book, for me, is Daredevil at his darkest and grittiest peak.

The book's first few issues are pencilled, or rather painted, by artist David Mack and look stunning, really taking advantage of the comic book medium. Mack's brush strokes succeed in putting the reader right into the head of Ben Urich, the reporter the first arc is based around. Its a wonderful way for the book to begin but its not long until we get into the meat of the book when Bendis combines with Maleev in issue 26. Maleev's pencils are absolutely perfect for the world Bendis has built for Daredevil. I was a little worried that Maleev's style wouldn't do it for me; I was concerned his art might be a bit messy, a style I'm usually not a fan of. Naturally Maleev put any of my concerns to rest because despite his pencils being a bit rough, they are perfectly suited for the nature of the story and any other style would be wrong. The tone set by Bendis's script demands a certain roughness so Maleev's scratchy pencils work perfectly. More refined, cleaner pencils wouldn't complement Bendis's script half as well as Maleev's do. This book is the total opposite to the Daredevil I read every month by Mark Waid; this volume is from a time when it wasn't much fun to be Matt Murdock. However that's not a bad thing, not in the slightest, because this book is still incredibly enjoyable. There's a lot to love here.

Why do I love this book so much? Well it starts and finishes with Bendis's writing. I'll be honest and admit I haven't really read much of the man's work. I enjoyed some of his stuff in Ultimate Spider-Man in the past but I recently read some of his work in New Avengers Volume 1 and I hated it. So despite hearing so many good things about this book, I was a little hesitant that Bendis wouldn't hit the high notes set by Miller in the previous DD books I'd read. Luckily I had absolutely no need to worry because Bendis didn't disappoint; he excelled and exceeded my expectations. I now understand why Bendis is held in such high regard when it comes to Daredevil because its obvious he gets this character completely. More importantly Bendis succeeds in placing Matt, as well as the reader, in the nightmarish environment of Hell's Kitchen, New York City. And its never felt more menacing thanks to Bendis, as Maleev is given full freedom to create pages where you can practically smell the stench of crime wafting off the page. Daredevil's world reeks of evil and darkness and thanks to Bendis and Maleev you really feel like you're right there in Matt's world, like a fly on a filthy wall. Another area Bendis excels in is filling in the back-story. Superhero comics can suffer when the attention isn't focused on the primary character but that's not the case here. Some of the best scenes occur when Daredevil isn't around. From gangsters scheming in their underworld hideouts to the FBI's NYC offices, Bendis keeps the story interesting even when Daredevil isn't directly involved, something rarely pulled off so well.

Overall I'm so relieved that this book succeeded in living up to my expectations. I was really looking forward to reading this volume and desperately hoped it would be as good as I'd heard. Thank God it was. Bendis and Maleev have struck comic book gold here and I'm so lucky because I have two more volumes of their work still to read (once I buy them). My only problem with this volume is I wish I hadn't waited so long to get it! This had been on my Amazon wishlist ever since I first got interested in the character but it took me a while before I snapped and bought it. Thankfully it was worth the wait. If you like Daredevil and crime/noir stories, then this is the book for you. Bendis and Maleev are recognised as being right up there with Frank Miller as Daredevil's top creators and its easy to see why after reading this. A must-read for all fans of Matt Murdock. I cannot wait to get hold of the next volume.

Amongst The Panels rating: 5/5

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