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DD Book Club - The Devil in Cell Block D
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Dimetre
Underboss


Joined: 16 Feb 2006
Posts: 1366
Location: Toronto

PostPosted: Mon Jan 13, 2020 4:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

With all due respect to Ed Brubaker, of whom I am a huge fan, I think he got some things wrong in this issue.

Matt tells Fisk, "Talking and fighting has never been my thing anyway." That makes me think Brubaker never read an issue from before the Miller era. Matt talked and fought simultaneously all the time.

Matt yells at Milla saying she shouldn't be visiting him in prison on that day. He demands to talk to Becky. Becky gets on the phone, and he doesn't yell at her. She apologizes and he accepts. It's obvious to me he should spend a panel or two being upset with her.

But neither of those are big deals. My big problem is this.

The final page shows Matt giving a shotgun to Frank Castle, and inviting him to help him break out of prison. I have always had a huge problem with this.

This issue came out in August 2006. The Netflix shows may make it seem like Matt and Frank's differences are merely philosophical, but at this time they weren't. Matt views Frank as a murderer who belongs in jail, which is where he is right now. He is not Frank's friend. Sometimes they may have a cause in common, but Matt does not approve of Frank's methods in the least. He would not give Frank a gun and he would not invite Frank to join him breaking out of prison.

Now, you may be saying, "This experience has changed Matt. He is now willing to consider doing things he may not have before." You're right. Brubaker has alluded to that repeatedly, but he has also included grounding forces for Matt. In this issue he has Milla's line "Remember why I love you," echoing through Matt's head. That's why he doesn't allow Bullseye and Fisk to break out. He obviously doesn't look at Frank on the level he looks at Bullseye, but he wouldn't absolve Frank for what he's done up to this point either.

Matt has standards for his behaviour, and this time in Rykers is obviously testing those standards. I think giving the Punisher a gun and inviting him to break out with him is a big failure, and I think Brubaker misunderstands the dynamic between these two characters.

On the plus side, the prison riot is very well done. I liked the talk between Matt and Milla, and I liked the use of Milla's "remember" line throughout the issue. I liked how Matt looked out for the warden.

I thought Michael Lark's art was a little too sketchy in some parts. When Bullseye embeds a playing card in Morgan's neck, he bends down and picks up a shotgun. Morgan's final line made it sound like there were no guns in the place yet. Morgan and Hammerhead's gangs were getting armed earlier in the issue? Yet Morgan and Hammerhead aren't armed themselves? I suppose Bullseye intercepted the guys running the guns before they could get to Morgan, Hammerhead or Carlos, but he can only hold two guns at the most. There must have been more guns than that lying around, and the last guy Bullseye killed was a few feet away from the three of them. Where are the rest of the guns? That confused me.

The Punisher issue was impossible for me to overlook at the time, and it still is. As much as I respect Brubaker, I can't give this issue a high mark. It gets a 2.5 out of five from me.
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Mike Murdock
Golden Age


Joined: 08 Sep 2014
Posts: 1750

PostPosted: Thu Jan 16, 2020 11:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

There's a bubbling tension as the issue starts. It slows down for a conversation between Matt and Milla but it picks right back up after. Honestly, I don't think I was expecting it to get as bad as it does. Still, after everything that's happened, it's good to see Matt be heroic. The story seemed to set up moral compromise but, when the final moment came, he helped stop Kingpin and Bullseye.

This was a fast read, but I enjoyed it a lot. Four and a Half Stars.
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I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!
Thomas More - A Man for All Seasons
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Mike Murdock
Golden Age


Joined: 08 Sep 2014
Posts: 1750

PostPosted: Mon Jan 20, 2020 9:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Daredevil Vol. 2 #87 - The Devil in Cell Block D: Finale

Quote:
It's the heightened senses-shattering conclusion of "The Devil in Cell-Block D" and many questions are answered! Who is the man behind the Daredevil mask running around Hell's Kitchen? How will Matt get out of the corner he's been painted into? And will he be jumping right out of the frying pan and into a fire of his own making? Mystery and action abounds as fan-favorite creators Ed Brubaker and Michael Lark bring their first Daredevil arc to a close!


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Matt Murdock's cooler twin brother

Not sure what to read next? Check out the Book Club for some ideas!

I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!
Thomas More - A Man for All Seasons
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Dimetre
Underboss


Joined: 16 Feb 2006
Posts: 1366
Location: Toronto

PostPosted: Mon Jan 20, 2020 4:30 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I still have a massive problem with the way Matt's relationship with Frank Castle is depicted. That one page showing Frank landing the helicopter and exiting with Matt is all wrong. Ed Brubaker is trying hard to show that they are different, and that Matt has been affected by his time in Rykers, but I just can't accept Matt's laissez-faire attitude towards Frank. Matt should feel that when Frank was in Rykers, he was where he belonged. Besides, wouldn't Matt's escape from Rykers have been more thrilling if he had done it on his own?

Fortunately, that one page is the only page dealing with this junk. Otherwise, this issue is excellent. It's great to see Matt back in his costume. It's not really clear where he got a Daredevil costume so quickly. I imagine he may keep some hidden in various spots throughout Hell's Kitchen where they're safe from rain and snow, and no super-villain is likely to find them.

The mystery of Alton Lennox is a compelling one, because Matt isn't the only one still dealing with Foggy's murder. We are as well. I like that Dakota was the one who found the clue which would lead Matt overseas for the next arc. It's amazing how long it's been since I touched a fax machine. I've forgotten so much.

This issue features the first reference to Mike Murdock in many, many years, and the last one for many more. (I could have waited longer.) It made me smile, but it's worth noting that he doesn't don the Mike persona from the sixties. He puts in contact lenses and dyes his hair.

Of course, I think everyone was thrilled to see who they saw at the issue's end.

Although the Punisher thing was a huge problem for me, I think this arc got Brubaker's run off to a strong, if somewhat awkward, start. This issue's cliffhanger works great. I can't imagine someone who bought this issue would be able to hold themselves back from reading the next one. I give this issue a 3.5 (I have to mark it down somewhat for the Punisher stuff) out of five, but the entire arc I give a four.
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Mike Murdock
Golden Age


Joined: 08 Sep 2014
Posts: 1750

PostPosted: Tue Jan 21, 2020 8:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

So I don't disagree regarding the Punisher. I get where he's coming from, but it's clearly a moment inconsistent with Matt's history - especially when it seems portrayed as a moment of heroism rather than moral compromise. Sure, Frank Castle isn't as bad as Bullseye, but he's not a hero. That being said, it didn't ruin the enjoyment I had for last issue. In this issue, Frank takes the high ground in wanting Matt to not be him. It's a take that can work, but shouldn't have to have gotten that far.

The big thing I noticed early is that the dialogue is snappy and fun. Dakota North, Ben Urich, and the goons following her have fun lines without being carbon copies of each other. She also gets a moment of being bad ass. The new Daredevil is there too and the mystery gets some fun clues both because the bad guys think he works for them and because she recognizes him. But I have to imagine the reveal it's Danny would have been surprising. Once again, Dakota North is the true hero of the story.

There's also quite a bit of genie being put back in the bottle. I know Bendis wanted his outing to stick and Brubaker ultimately follows the same path, but this story could be seen as wrapping up Bendis's story while hunting for Alton Lennox all while Foggy is in protective custody.

This is a fun issue. It does a good job clearly wrapping up the arc whole building on story threads for a dramatically different status quo. Four and a Half Stars.
_________________
Matt Murdock's cooler twin brother

Not sure what to read next? Check out the Book Club for some ideas!

I'd give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety's sake!
Thomas More - A Man for All Seasons
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