Ever since it came to light that Matt Murdock aka Daredevil has been possessed by a demon spirit of The Hand, the entire Shadowland deal has fallen down a notch. Up until now it’s been the story of a man who has been pushed so far his psyche became twisted and all the things he did for the light had fallen into shadows.
With the addition of the “demon possession” a largely mature and interesting story has become, for lack of a better term, chronically comic bookish. The Shadowland story arc is now nothing more than yet another comic book tale and Daredevil #510 does little to change that.
Daredevil #510 is a well-written, well-paced story and Andy Diggle still has a masterful touch with the pen. Opening on Foggy Nelson and Dakota, holed up in a cheap hotel trying to escape The Hand, Daredevil #510 introduces a new ally to the fight to save Matt Murdock as well as a detailed look at how the presence of The Hand has driven people over the edge.
There’s also the necessary debate by the superhero community about whether or not to kill the man without fear and of course the Kingpin is slithering around looking to take control. Diggle has layered this story very well and it’s nice to see the Kingpin as a straight bad guy after a few years of him riding the fence.
I also like the fact that there is dissension amongst the ranks of Shadowland as well as the continuing hard line Luke Cage is taking with the Daredevil issue. Cage has always been a realist and while everybody preaches on “saving Matt Murdock” it’s cool to have one of his good friends argue that stopping him is more important than saving him.
With all of its good points Daredevil #510 never rises above a comic book story, especially now that the demon possession is out of the bag. Before Daredevil acted like a man torn, a man driven by ego and passion who couldn’t see the harm he was doing. Now he struts around like Darth Vader, making lame “all powerful” comments and even doing a one handed choke to Black Tarantula. I also grow tired of White Tiger’s “The Hand will soon rule, the end is near” statements. We get it, you’re evil, move on.
Artist Marco Checcheto does some solid work here, especially when capturing the dark mood of the city. Checcheto has a real knack for noir and has a great ability with making things claustrophobic. It feels through the entire book as though the city is collapsing on itself. I’m not sure why Checcheto’s rendition of The Kingpin looks like The Vulture and The Penguin had a love child but that’s what he looks like.
In the end, Daredevil #510 just doesn’t feel like Daredevil. This was always a street book, the gritty, two-fisted, man-against-the-world stories that removed all of the aliens, super villains and world ending storylines. By adding this demon possession idea Daredevil steps boldly into a world it doesn’t belong in and that’s too bed, especially with this being the final arc of the entire series. Whatever happens with Matt Murdock and Shadowland, I hope Marvel allows Diggle to pull something deeper out its pages.
