Obsessively putting our comics in chronological order since 1985.
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Daredevil #219
Issue(s): Daredevil #219
Cover Date: Jun 85
Title: "Badlands"
Credits:
Frank Miller - Writer
John Buscema - Penciler
Gerry Talaoc - Inker
Bob Harras - Assistant Editor
Ralph Macchio - Editor
Review/plot:
Frank Miller returns for a special fill-in while "regular scribe Deny O'Neil was off fighting the Dreaded Deadline Doom" on Iron Man. As an added treat, John Buscema is on pencils. They deliver a story straight out of the Clint Eastwood Western playbook, with a vigilante (played by an out-of-costume-the-whole-issue and dialogue-free Matt Murdock) rolling into a small town on the heels of a wanted pyromaniac.
He uncovers the town's seedy secret, involving the murder and cover-up of the town's sheriff by his corrupt replacement...
..., and sets things right before leaving (with the help of a falsely accused biker), never to be seen again.
The story takes place in post-industrial New Jersey instead of a western boom town, but it's still essentially a Western. And it's a fun, well done story. Not as impactful as Miller's longer Daredevil runs, but a welcome return.
Quality Rating: B+
Historical Significance Rating: 1
Chronological Placement Considerations: N/A
References: N/A
Crossover: N/A
Continuity Insert? N
My Reprint: N/A
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Comments
One of my all-time favorite standalone stories, and a grubby precursor to Sin City, too.
I'd never read anything so hard-boiled in 1985. I borrowed it each year I went to my friend David's for his birthday, to read again. The seediness and the ghost theme and the uncomfortable acknowledgement crooked things go down in little towns everywhere, and you'd probably die trying to set it right. Unless you're Matt Murdoch. Growing up in the South, it definitely touched on ingrained tough guy/ macho sensibilities, and maybe it's any nerd's fantasy to be aloof and strong and just. You don't need anyone, you punch unfairness square in the nose.
You don't have to be nostalgic to enjoy Big John's art, though. Easy to see why he longed for non-superhero work and true variety; he cartoons real things and people as well as anyone this side of Joe Kubert, in this era...you think?
Why was there an asterisk next to Miller's name on the title page?
Cecil has a point, this seems like a pretty good standalone Daredevil story. One of my favorites include "34 Hours During the Life of Daredevil"; very well narrated and one of the slickest examples of Daredevil using his prowess at its very best. The other one takes place in upstate New York, in a humble inn owned by a man whose brother is a mob enforcer of sorts, with flashbacks of their childhood, when the latter psychologically tortures the former, involving the dramatic death of their pet dog.
@Sam, the asterisk goes to a footnote saying that Frank Miller being on this issue is explained in the lettercol. And in the lettercol they say that it was because Denny O'Neil needed a deadline break, and they also discuss how they wanted to do something offbeat for this issue and mention some other upcoming Frank Miller projects.
It is a great issue. One gets the impression that they bribed Frank Miller with the chance to do anything he wanted [a hard-boiled crime story] with any artist he wanted. Left me shaking my head when the issue was new, but it only grows on you.
