Daredevil Message Board

[Mike Murdock]

And now, for this thread's namesake.

Daredevil Vol. 1 #362 - Never Look Back

[Dimetre]

I've had this issue sitting in my collection for a long, long time. I must have read it before, but obviously I've remembered none of it.

Rosalind "Razor" Sharpe hasn't made an appearance in a Marvel Comic (to my knowledge) since "Parts of a Hole," and that's close to two decades ago. She only existed as a character for a few years, but I think this issue shows that she had enormous potential. Until this issue she simply came off as a reprehensible woman. This issue shows you how she got that way.

As a lawyer, Razor has always been fearless and tough as nails, and she had to be. Her cleverness is a surprise to even Matt, and there seems to be some genuine affection between her and Billy Grippo, as demented as they both may be. In this issue we get to see some admirable qualities in Razor for the first time.

Still, there are deficits in her personality that make her someone you love to hate. She continues to be disrespectful to both Foggy and Matt. She openly criticizes people's significant others' to their partners' faces. Every word she speaks and move she makes seems designed to her own gain.

Both of these positive and negative traits show her to be a very nuanced character. She could have been the J. Jonah Jameson of Daredevil, and that would have been great. Instead she's gone. What likely happened was that those involved in the Marvel Knights relaunch did not recognize what they had in Razor, and let her fade away into barely a memory.

It honestly doesn't seem that hard to bring her back. She's still Foggy's mother, and is probably still a presence in the legal community. If Foggy and Matt are in a bind, she could probably pop in and offer her assistance, with considerable stings attached naturally. Having now reread this issue, I'd enjoy that.

As for the other plots, the opening dream scene with Black Widow seems to exist for no other reason than to remind us that we're in a post-Onslaught Marvel Universe. Razor's meeting with Karen is puzzling. All the two ladies do is talk about Matt, but I suspect that Razor is aiming to get at Wilson Fisk through Karen, if only to sell him her services. Sure enough, she would represent Fisk in "Parts of a Hole." None of that is on the page in this issue, though.

The development of Razor Sharpe's character is the best thing about this issue, and was a great surprise. I give this issue a four out of five.

[Mike Murdock]

The issue starts off as pretty much a direct continuation of the character work last issue with Matt being afraid Natasha is going to go around murdering people because she's lost her way with the death of the Avengers. That being said, it doesn't really follow up on it. Quite a bit feels like stalling. We get a flashback for little reason. Foggy and Liz hang out together. Rosalind yells at Foggy for his dating choices.

We finally get to the meat of the story when someone tries to kill Rosalind. I have to say, as bad as Deuce is, it was great to see him get involved. Luckily, Rosalind doesn't let this phase her so she takes Karen out for lunch. She's undoubtedly a powerful person and part of it comes down to how ruthless she is. The legal profession, especially for the era she would have come up in, was not kind to women. In fact, there are plenty of areas of the law where it's still pretty bad. I think it's a good opportunity to explore just what could make a woman succeed in the Boston legal field of that time.

The big suggestion is that she had mob ties and that she possibly murdered someone to get out of it. Overall, there are many explanations suggested, but I like that things still feel a bit ambiguous. Either way, it was a good character study to a new character who needed a bit more attention. I've always liked this character. It's a shame how quickly she got written out of the book after Kesel and Kelly left.

I'll go Four Stars. There's a lot of what feels like filler, but I still appreciate the story quite a bit because it takes some time to explore Rosalind's character and demonstrate the story potential there.
_________________
Matt Murdock's cooler twin brother

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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

[Dimetre]

Would you like to see Rosalind Sharpe return to Daredevil's life?

[Mike Murdock]

I would. I don't necessarily think they should be in the same partnership, but an attorney from another firm or just long-term storytelling and character interaction with Foggy would be fun.

Actually, I've though before of a story idea for Daredevil (that is mostly obsolete at this point). One of the ideas was a sideplot with Foggy where he needed an attorney. I just realized Rosalind would be the perfect fit.
_________________
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