DAREDEVIL #5: KNOW FEAR (pt. 5)

This issue sees Matt’s injuries take more of a toll on him. Desperate to atone for the death on his hands but spiraling towards despair. Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and Jessica Jones come to Matt’s aid. But he may be too far gone to help.

The 1990s used to throw up stories all too often where a hero went over the edge. Where he’d go too far and be confronted by allies who were trying to stop their friend from falling. Daredevil fell prey to plenty of these fall from grace story lines. Hell, one was even called Fall From Grace. Let’s be honest, that’s what this issue is.

It’s a hero hitting rock bottom.

Only it’s more.

Chip Zdarsky, genius that he is, has taken deliberate time to reveal this arc as one about a hero who needs help. A man who fights beyond his limits who is finally feeling the toll it takes.

This issue is an intervention.

A powerful depiction of grief, acknowledgment, and perhaps PTSD ( in a way that another writer has completely missed their mark in dealing with lately).

We’ve had Daredevil injected with grit and realism before. This is beyond that. This is a man who cannot help himself, who has lost his way so much that he has to be told to stop. A story of his famed hyper senses failing him because he can’t see how far gone things are.

Ultimately it’s deconstruction storytelling, but it’s not done as part of a trend or because there are no new ideas out there. It’s done by a creative team who believed they have good stories to tell and the balls to do these stories with a character who has a history filled with watershed runs.

Checchetto alters his style slightly on the art again. I love an artist who can do that without losing what makes their style recognizable. Who can challenge themselves on an issue by issue basis creatively. Each issue has showcased the strength in certain elements of the artist’s arsenal. With this issue it’s the way he lays out an action sequence. It’s a “borrow-from-the-best-parts” collage of pin-up images, great sequential motion, creative transitions, gritty realism, flights of fantasy, and iconic imagery.

Checchetto can play with tension and tempo really well. See the way that the Owl suddenly breaks into a shout from being seemingly calm in the panel before. That single panel expertly communicates the level of frustration and anger in the character to instantly react to the page around it and shoot up the urgency levels going forward.

You also must admire the poignant way that the artist handles the script in the scene between Daredevil and Spidey towards the issues end. It’s a fine tuned balance of frank discussion and silent reaction as Matt finally processes all the turmoil.