The Man Without Fear: Daredevil Appreciation

[CuteClops]

My ranking:

Frank Miller
Ed Brubaker
Brian Bendis
Mark Waid
Ann Nocenti

[CuteClops]

I've been disappointed with Soule's run. I'm looking forward to a fresh, new start.

I can't wait for Soule's run to be over.

[cc008]

That's a shame. Soule's run is easily one of the best (so far). I'm overjoyed that it's continuing for some time.

Agreed (obviously). In a world with constantly rotating creators, Daredevil continues to have consistent people working on the book for a good chunk of time. I love that. Hope Soule is able to continue well past this Fresh Start phase.

[Jekyll]

Agreed (obviously). In a world with constantly rotating creators, Daredevil continues to have consistent people working on the book for a good chunk of time. I love that. Hope Soule is able to continue well past this Fresh Start phase.

I agree as well! I have very much enjoyed Soule’s run and hope he stays on.

[Mike_Murdock]

Writing wise, I definitely agree that the others are better. But I love Gene Colan's artwork, so I went with it at #4

I had debated Roy Thomas and Colan. I honestly think Lee's strongest Daredevil issues were the initial burst of creativity, which was pre-Gene Colan. But Colan drastically improved the art (to me, he still has the definitive Karen Page).

[cc008]

How are the DD Epic Collections? I have pretty much everything in hardcover but may need to just get those to round out my collection.

[Mike_Murdock]

I think they're great. They have a good amount of content for the price. The quality is good. They're focusing on the less-printed runs first so they can help ensure everything is complete. They include pretty much everything. There have been a handful of instances where the fact that it's a trade paperback has disrupted a clear two-page design layout, but nothing too dramatic (although we haven't gotten to Frank Miller yet).

One nice thing about the Epic Collections is they'll eventually have everything in Volume 1 as a complete set. If you're going for Hardcover as well, you'll be splitting the difference, but that's up to you.

[Nanashi]

Does anyone think Jester has the potential to be a Joker level bad guy for DD if given the Christopher Nolan Dark Knight treatment? Im surprised no one over the years has tried to revamp him in such a way given their obvious similarities in their countenance and villainous gimmicks. Worth it to try? Or would it be too plainly mirroring the Joker to be distinctive (I'm not too familiar with Jester so other than his appearance and name I don't know closely he already parallels the Joker if much)?

[The Whovian]

I can't wait for Soule's run to be over.

I thought maybe it was just me. Glad to know I'm not alone.

[Mike_Murdock]

I think it's a mistake to treat Jester as the Joker. To me, the definitive Jester story is #219. He's a scorned stage actor. He'll do joker-themed prop gadgets on occasion, but the big thing he does is fakeouts and elaborate productions and what he craves more than anything else is attention. I'm a big defender of the character, but it's important to understand what he is and what makes him tick.

He's also currently dead, fwiw. I'm not begrudging it, though, since it was one of the few interesting parts of Civil War II. It also showed that he was interesting as a reformed villain (which is also what he was in a lot of issues since #219, although I can't speak for whether he was exclusively reformed).

[The Whovian]

That's a shame. Soule's run is easily one of the best (so far). I'm overjoyed that it's continuing for some time.

Maybe it will read better if I read it all at once in a collected edition. It's happened to me before. I will not like a series reading it monthly, but then pick up the trade and like it.

[Nanashi]

Maybe it will read better if I read it all at once in a collected edition. It's happened to me before. I will not like a series reading it monthly, but then pick up the trade and like it.

Interesting. I think it's one of the few series that does really well issue to issue so as not to create any desire to wait for the collected editions. I'm at least glad you're not dismissing it wholly. There's a lot to love.

[Nanashi]

I think it's a mistake to treat Jester as the Joker. To me, the definitive Jester story is #219. He's a scorned stage actor. He'll do joker-themed prop gadgets on occasion, but the big thing he does is fakeouts and elaborate productions and what he craves more than anything else is attention. I'm a big defender of the character, but it's important to understand what he is and what makes him tick.

He's also currently dead, fwiw. I'm not begrudging it, though, since it was one of the few interesting parts of Civil War II. It also showed that he was interesting as a reformed villain (which is also what he was in a lot of issues since #219, although I can't speak for whether he was exclusively reformed).

I actually missed that. Do you recall in which issue it happened? I'll try to check out #219, too. I'm curious.

[Raffi Ol D'Arcy]

Does anyone think Jester has the potential to be a Joker level bad guy for DD if given the Christopher Nolan Dark Knight treatment? Im surprised no one over the years has tried to revamp him in such a way given their obvious similarities in their countenance and villainous gimmicks. Worth it to try? Or would it be too plainly mirroring the Joker to be distinctive (I'm not too familiar with Jester so other than his appearance and name I don't know closely he already parallels the Joker if much)?

I always pictured Jester as a second rate Daredevil villain although he had his moments. He is no way near the level of deranged as Joker. He's just a down and out actor. I think it would also be too cliché to make him out to be a Marvel Joker.

I think it's a mistake to treat Jester as the Joker. To me, the definitive Jester story is #219. He's a scorned stage actor. He'll do joker-themed prop gadgets on occasion, but the big thing he does is fakeouts and elaborate productions and what he craves more than anything else is attention. I'm a big defender of the character, but it's important to understand what he is and what makes him tick.

He's also currently dead, fwiw. I'm not begrudging it, though, since it was one of the few interesting parts of Civil War II. It also showed that he was interesting as a reformed villain (which is also what he was in a lot of issues since #219, although I can't speak for whether he was exclusively reformed).

I actually missed that. Do you recall in which issue it happened? I'll try to check out #219, too. I'm curious.

During the Spider-Men II miniseries, Jester turns up alive and disclosed from his death.

[Raffi Ol D'Arcy]

My top 5 Daredevil runs:

Frank Miller
Denny O'Neill
Brian Michael Bendis
Mark Waid
Ed Brubaker

Special mentions: Stan Lee, Joe Kelly, Roy Thomas, Charles Soule.

I would place Ed Brubaker much higher if not for the fact that he had Matt cheat on his wife which I hated and also seemed very off.