Daredevil #610 Review

Daredevil #610 Review

Daredevil #610 Review

The Death of Daredevil storyline got off to an interesting start as Matt Murdock was faced with his own mortality after a major traffic accident. Through this near-death experience Matt has set his sights on ending his war with Mayor Wilson Fisk once and for all. To get that done Matt has revealed his identity as Daredevil to his new allies and is battling through some major injuries. Its a good thing that Elektra showed up at the end of Daredevil #609 to possibly lend a hand. Can Elektra help Daredevil turn things around in his war with Wilson Fisk? Let’s find that out now with Daredevil #610.

Writer: Charles Soule

Artist: Phil Noto

Story Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10

Art Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10

Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10

Synopsis: Matt Murdock asks Elektra why she showed up. Elektra just responds with “Matt, why not?” They then proceed to have sex the rest of the night.

When Matt wakes up he notices Elektra is getting ready to leave. Matt approaches Elektra and asks her to stay.

Daredevil #610 Review
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At the library Matt introduces Elektra to Reader, Frank McGee and Cypher. Frank isn’t sure about having Elektra around but Matt vouches for her by saying they will need her when things get rough.

Cypher shows Matt and the others that he was able to discover James Wesley’s schedule for the next week. Matt uses that information to tell the team about the precise operation they have to run to capture Wesley.

Sometime later as Daredevil and the others have captured Wesley they get into a car chase with Mayor Kingpin’s security team. Elektra is able to disable the security team’s car and quickly jump back into Daredevil’s car.

As Daredevil tells Reader where to go someone throws several knives at their car and hits the tires. This causes the car to flip multiple times.

Everyone gets out of the crash safely and Daredevil discovers the bone knives the mysterious person who attacked him the other day on the tires. Another bone knife is thrown at Wesley but Elektra is able to deflect it.

Daredevil and Elektra rush Wesley into a nearby church.

Daredevil #610 Review
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Inside they are confronted by the mysterious assassin. Daredevil asks who the person is. They reveal their name is Vigil and they watch over those that are dying like Wesley.

Vigil takes out two bone swords and starts fighting Daredevil and Elektra in order to get to Wesley. While Daredevil’s radar isn’t at a 100% they are able to dodge Vigil long enough for Elektra to pin him to the ground. When Elektra goes to kill Vigil, Daredevil stops her.

This gives Vigil a chance to chase after Wesley. Daredevil goes after Vigil but is to late. Daredevil and Elektra discover Vigil has already killed Wesley.

Elektra tells Daredevil not to be surprised since killers kill. She then states that this was all a mistake. As she walks away Elektra says goodbye she also states that she’ll remember Daredevil. End of issue.

The Good: Continuing the momentum from the first chapter of “The Death Of Daredevil” Charles Soule keeps the story moving forward without looking back. The efficiency in how quickly we go from one development to the next was a surprising turn of events throughout Daredevil #610. That sense that Daredevil was only looking forward created an intriguing scenario that could lead to this story living up to its name.

Daredevil #610 Review
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By far the strength of Daredevil #610 was its pacing. From the opening page you can tell that Soule knows exactly where he is going with “The Death of Daredevil” story. At no point does he spend time on any side content. Everything about Daredevil #610 is about pushing the story forward as we see Daredevil quickly move forward with his plan to take down Mayor Wilson Fisk.

Even the opening scene with Matt Murdock and Elektra having sex was done to give us a moment of reprieve. That moment only last a short time as Soule used Matt and Elektra reconnecting to bring in Elektra into the story. Understanding how important Elektra is to Matt, Soule used the importance to create a greater emotional tie to everything that is going on with Daredevil’s plot.

What made Elektra’s involvement particularly standout was that Soule never forgot who Elektra is. Throughout Daredevil #610 we get to see the gentle side of Elektra, as shown by how she interacts with Readers dog, and how she quickly shifts to her assassin mode. As we go through the transition Soule does not lose sight of how Elektra should be written. He even highlights how while she is more on the superhero side of things she is still a trained assassin. That means that when she feels necessary Elektra is willing to kill to get things done.

Daredevil #610 Review
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Elektra’s portrayal complimented Matt’s current mindset right now. As Soule established in the last issue, Matt is now barrelling ahead with taking Wilson Fisk at any cost. Though now we saw that there are lines Matt isn’t willing to cross. And that line is killing. This created a very good way to bring Elektra and Matt into conflict as their respective fighting styles clashed when they had a chance to end the threat of Vigil.

What made this conclusion particularly strong was the fact that Soule didn’t have long dialogue sequences between Daredevil and Elektra. All of their interactions were short and to the point. The connection they have is deep enough that they don’t have to share too many words. That also goes for when they clash with their ideologies. Soule did a very good job in using just a few words to show how both Daredevil and Elektra had a heartbreaking exchange to leave their relationship without anyone dying.

This resolution for Daredevil and Elektra’s current relationship put into question where Matt will draw his limits. Because as we see with Daredevil #610 Matt is perfectly fine with kidnapping James Wesley in broad daylight and get into a car chase the public can see. The lack of hiding his goal of taking down Wilson Fisk puts a further spotlight on how Matt previously facing his own mortality has caused him to change his approach. And some of that change in approach does come off as being sloppy and very un-Daredevil-like.

Daredevil #610 Review
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Daredevil’s approach to taking down Wilson Fisk creates some questions as how the dynamic with Reader, Cypher and Frank McGee will evolve. While the trio continue to trust Daredevil we are starting to see some cracks in the team forming. Frank questioning Daredevil on having Elektra join the ranks was a good example of that. As Daredevil becomes more desperate with his plans to end things with Fisk it’ll be very interesting as to where Soule takes Reader, Cypher and Frank McGee in relation to all of this.

The new villain Vigil also came off a lot better in Daredevil #610 than he did in his previous appearance. Soule did a very good job making Vigil look like a dangerous threat from his presence alone. At the same time Soule didn’t go to far with trying to put Vigil over Daredevil and Elektra in their fight. Vigil came off competent enough to be a threat while still showing that Daredevil and Elektra are almost an unbeatable duo. What Vigil’s motivations are at this point is not clear but this showing goes a long way to create interest in finding out what that is.

The fight with Vigil also pointed a spotlight on the fact that Daredevil is still not 100%. While he is powering through Daredevil is still injured from getting run over by a semi-truck. With his radar not functioning correctly Soule opens things up further to explore what Daredevil can do when he is not at 100%.

Through all of this Soule is able to further build the dangerous aura around Wilson Fisk without actually having the character physically present. Its a smart way to build up to the eventual final clash between Daredevil and Wilson Fisk since we have seen the two interact so much in the past. And with Fisk not physically around there is a greater perception that his threat is everywhere in New York City. This all builds greater anticipation to what will happen when Fisk actually shows up in “The Death of Daredevil” story.

Daredevil #610 Review
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Phil Noto’s artwork was much stronger in Daredevil #610 than in the previous issue. Noto found a good groove with the style he is giving Soule’s final story in this issue. The opening sequence in particular helped enhance the inner monologue Soule wrote. And with dialogue during action scenes being kept at a minimum it gave Noto a chance to tell the reader what was happening through his artwork, further enhancing the impact of the story in this issue.

The Bad: Nothing

Overall: Daredevil #610 is a fantastic second chapter to “The Death of Daredevil” storyline. Charles Soule continues to show his masterful understanding of Matt Murdock’s world. Bringing in Elektra to team-up with Daredevil and his crew made the story even better. The way things went between Daredevil and Elektra built further anticipation as to how this war with Wilson Fisk will end.