DAREDEVIL BY CHIP ZDARSKY, VOLUME 5: TRUTH/DARE (MARVEL Comics)

Written by Chip Zdarsky.

Art by Mattia Iacono; Marcio Menyz; Francesco Mobili; Victor Olazaba; Manuel Garcia; Le Beau Underwood; Chris Mooneyham; Rachelle Rosenberg; JP Mayer; Mike Hawthorne; & VC’s Clayton Cowles.

Collection Cover Art by Marco Checchetto & Erick Arciniega.

SUMMARY:

Released by Marvel Comics in 2020, this 144-page trade paperback collects Daredevil # 21-25 and Annual # 1 from the same year. 

In the aftermath of their alliance defending the city, Mayor Wilson Fisk orders Daredevil’s arrest for killing thug Leo Carraro.  With help from NYPD Detective Cole North, Daredevil later surrenders to the District Attorney, who is stunned by the vigilante’s secret identity.  Led by Foggy Nelson, Daredevil’s defense enlists Matt Murdock’s ex-girlfriend: Kirsten McDuffie, who doesn’t realize Matt and Daredevil are one and the same.

Due to a magical spell, a wildcard is a convenient figment from Matt’s imagination now materialized into his adult identical twin brother (and perpetual scam artist), Mike.  With Daredevil’s origin now retroactively correlating their turbulent lives growing up together, even Matt doesn’t know who Mike’s current allegiances are truly with. 

Accepting that prison is inevitable, Matt seeks out Spider Man and Tony Stark/Iron Man’s help in protecting Hell’s Kitchen from Fisk and his handpicked successor’s ongoing schemes.  Immediately worse is the mega-rich Stromwyn siblings, who have their own nefarious plans for the same neighborhood.  Also lurking is yet another shadowy presence, who may well outmaneuver rival billionaires Stark and the Stromwyns’ vast resources.

With Matt’s conscientious ideology opting for incarceration (while still retaining his masked identity), Elektra Natchios makes a stunning decision to regain Daredevil’s trust.  Guest appearances/cameos include Black Cat, Luke Cage, and Steve Rogers/Captain America.  This storyline’s additional villains include Typhoid Mary, The Hood, Hammerhead, and The Owl.

Note: This title is also available in paperback and digital formats.

REVIEW:

When on his game, writer Chip Zdarsky’s storytelling ought to be an ideal fit for this terrific art squad, as far as pitching a great read.  The reality is slightly more than half-right.  This volume’s visuals are consistently likable, but the same doesn’t apply to Zdarsky’s uneven plotting. 

Aside from playing too much off Matt’s sanctimonious attitude, the premise of Daredevil going on trial and then willingly off to prison exudes intriguing potential.  Yet, Zdarsky opts to peddle unnecessary contrivances that risk sabotaging the next arc: Elektra Natchios as a new Daredevil.

Case in point: where are Matt Murdock/Daredevil’s trusted super-friends (i.e. Black Widow) to show support during his legal predicament?  Seeing only two Avengers in civilian attire in the courtroom gallery can only infer that Daredevil has burned far too many past friendships.  Yet, among this volume’s M.I.A., shouldn’t Jennifer Walters’ She-Hulk at least have made a fitting cameo offering Matt (or, by extension, Foggy) pivotal defense strategy advice, given the circumstances? 

For that matter, wouldn’t/shouldn’t  Daredevil logically be incarcerated in one of Marvel’s super-max prisons (i.e. The Raft, The Vault, etc.)?  It also doesn’t bolster Zdarsky’s plot credibility when Elektra easily accesses Matt’s cellblock (presumably, on Riker’s Island), without any semblance of an instant security lockdown.

Such knocks are trivial by comparison to the ridiculous cliché Zdarsky most relies upon: the eye-rolling existence of Mike Murdock.  Beyond the preposterous ‘twin brother’ angle (echoing Spider-Man’s Ben Reilly clone), there is this illogical plot hiccup: why wouldn’t a supposedly savvy Mike recognize Matt as Daredevil? 

Others, like Kirsten McDuffie, might be excusable utilizing this superhero genre plot cheat.  In the dubious instance of Mike Murdock, however, it comes off as an insult to any reader’s intelligence.  All it does is make one wonder how much better Truth/Dare would have been running Matt Murdock/Daredevil ragged (switching in and out of costume), without resorting to the identical twin ploy.     

Otherwise, had Zdarsky simply tapped a plausible alternative for a Matt Murdock impersonator (i.e., the Chameleon, an evil android, etc.), then the game-changing Truth/Dare would score as a definite keeper for fans.    

ADDITIONAL CONTENT:

In a full-page format, the covers by Marco Checchetto & Erick Arciniega (Issues # 21-25) and Chip Zdarsky (Annual # 1) precede their stories. 

Also, in a full-page format, the variant cover gallery consists of: Annual # 1 (artist: Declan Shalvey); Issue # 23’s ‘Timeless’ (artist: Alex Ross);  Issue # 24’s demonic ‘Knullified’ (artist: Ken Lashley); Issue # 25 (artists: Salvador Larroca & Frank D’Armata); and finally Issue # 25’s 2^nd printing design variant showcasing Elektra’s Daredevil (artist: Marco Checchetto).

BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING:                     6 Stars