Daredevil (Marvel Comics character)

Daredevil
Promotional art for Daredevil vol. 2, #65 (September 2004). Art by Greg Land.
Publication information
Publisher	Marvel Comics
First appearance	Daredevil #1 (April 1964)
Created by	Stan Lee (writer) Bill Everett (artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Matthew Michael Murdock
Species	Human mutate
Place of origin	Hell's Kitchen, New York City
Team affiliations	Avengers New Avengers Defenders Marvel Knights The Chaste The Hand
Partnerships	Elektra Black Widow
Notable aliases	Man Without Fear Jack Batlin Mike Murdock Scarlet Swashbuckler God Without Fear
Abilities	Superhuman senses, agility, reflexes, stamina, coordination, and balance Echolocative radar sense Master martial artist, hand-to-hand combatant, and stick fighter Expertise in criminology, criminal law, and police procedures Utilizes billy club with multi-purpose functions Expert acrobat and gymnast

Daredevil is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Daredevil #1 (April 1964).

Daredevil is the alias of Matthew Michael "Matt" Murdock, a lawyer blinded in childhood in a chemical accident that gave him special abilities. He is commonly known by such epithets as "Hornhead", "The Man Without Fear", and "The Devil of Hell's Kitchen". While growing up in New York City's Hell's Kitchen, a crime-ridden, working-class, Irish-American neighborhood, Murdock pushes a man from the path of an oncoming truck and is blinded by a radioactive substance that falls from the vehicle. His exposure to the radioactive material heightens his remaining senses beyond normal human ability and gives him a "radar sense." His father, a boxer named Jack Murdock, is a single man raising his now-blind son to form a better life for himself. Jack is killed by gangsters after refusing to throw a fight, leaving Matt an orphan. He hones his physical abilities and superhuman senses under the tutelage of a mysterious blind stranger named Stick, eventually becoming a highly skilled and expert martial artist.

Some years later, after graduating from Columbia Law School, Murdock seeks out the criminal element in Hell's Kitchen and begins to fight crime. He targets the local gangsters who murdered his father and succeeds in bringing them to justice. Eventually, in somewhat of a juxtaposition to his Catholic upbringing, Matt dons a costumed attire modeled after a devil and takes up a dual life of fighting against the criminal underworld in New York City as the masked vigilante Daredevil, which puts him in conflict with many super-villains, including his arch-enemies Bullseye and the Kingpin. He also becomes a skilled and respected lawyer who forms the law firm Nelson & Murdock with Franklin "Foggy" Nelson, his best friend and roommate. He subsequently meets his ex-girlfriend Elektra, who has become a fearsome ninja assassin.

Writer/artist Frank Miller's influential tenure on the title in the early 1980s cemented the character as a popular and influential part of the Marvel Universe. Miller introduced elements of film noir and ninja films, and subsequent writers for the title have continued these themes and imagery. Daredevil is a critically acclaimed series, and has won multiple Eisner Awards, in particular for authors Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker, and Mark Waid.

Daredevil is a prominent example of a disabled superhero, and has served as inspiration and positive representation for the blind and their advocates. He has appeared in various forms of media, including films and TV series. The character was first portrayed in live action by Rex Smith in the 1989 television film The Trial of the Incredible Hulk, and then by Ben Affleck in the 2003 film Daredevil. Charlie Cox portrays the character in the Marvel Television series Daredevil (2015–2018). He reprises the role in the miniseries The Defenders (2017), the Marvel Studios film Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), and the Disney+ television series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022) and Echo (2024). Cox will return in Daredevil: Born Again (2025).

Publication history

Further information: List of Daredevil titles

Further information: Daredevil collected editions

Creation

According to Steve Ditko, Stan Lee presented the proposition of launching a new Daredevil series, offering the option to resurrect the original character or craft a novel one, provided it bore some resemblance to Spider-Man. He declined the assignment, citing his existing commitments. Faced with the unavailability of Ditko, Lee sought the creative input of Jack Kirby to design the envisioned new character. Kirby's initial design sheet formed the basis for the majority of the final cover image, although numerous alterations were made during the process. Paul Young indicates that the basic concept of the character as a heroic blind vigilante is probably inspired by the symbol and motif of blind justice. The character was generally considered second-string in Marvel's pantheon of heroes, and had low commercial viability, for the first decade and a half of his existence, prior to Miller's re-invention.

1960s

Splash page of the first issue of Daredevil (April 1964) features the hero in his original costume. Art by Jack Kirby (penciler) and Bill Everett (inker).

The character debuted in Marvel Comics' Daredevil #1 (cover date April 1964), created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with character design input from Jack Kirby, who devised Daredevil's billy club. Writer and comics historian Mark Evanier has suggested without confirmation that Kirby also designed the basic image of Daredevil's initial costume, though Everett modified it. That original costume design was a combination of black, yellow, and red, reminiscent of acrobat tights.

The first issue covered both the character's origins and his desire for justice on the man who had killed his father, boxer "Battling Jack" Murdock, who raised young Matthew Murdock in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Jack instills in Matt the importance of education and nonviolence with the aim of seeing his son become a better man than himself. In the course of saving a blind man from the path of an oncoming truck, Matt is blinded by a radioactive substance that falls from the vehicle. The radioactive exposure heightens his remaining senses beyond normal human limits, and gives him a kind of "radar" sense, enabling him to detect the shape and location of objects around him. To support his son, Jack Murdock returns to boxing under the Fixer, a known gangster, and the only man willing to contract the aging boxer. When he refuses to throw a fight because his son is in the audience, he is killed by one of the Fixer's men. Having promised his father not to use violence to deal with his problems, Matt adopts a new identity who can use physical force. Adorned in a yellow and black costume made from his father's boxing robes and using his superhuman abilities, Matt confronts the killers as the superhero Daredevil, unintentionally causing the Fixer to have a fatal heart attack.

Wally Wood introduced Daredevil's modern red costume in issue #7, which depicts Daredevil's battle against the far more powerful Sub-Mariner, and has become one of the most iconic stories of the series. In issue #8, it is revealed that his mask contains a complex radio receiver, and that his horns are both antennae to pick up radio signals and amplifiers of his own super-sensory radar blips. However, these concepts would be dropped.

Daredevil embarks on a series of adventures involving such villains as the Owl, Stilt-Man, the Gladiator, and the Enforcers. In issue #16 (May 1966), he meets Spider-Man, who will eventually become one of Daredevil's closest friends. A letter from Spider-Man unintentionally exposes Daredevil's secret identity, compelling him to adopt a third identity as his twin brother Mike Murdock, whose carefree, wisecracking personality more closely resembles the Daredevil guise than the stern, studious, and emotionally-withdrawn Matt Murdock. The "Mike Murdock" plotline was used to highlight the character's quasi-multiple personality disorder (he at one point wonders whether Matt or Mike/Daredevil "is the real me"). This proved confusing to readers, and was dropped in issues #41–42; Daredevil fakes Mike Murdock's death and claims he had trained a replacement Daredevil. The series' 31-issue run by writer-editor Stan Lee and penciller Gene Colan (beginning with issue #20) includes Daredevil #47, in which Murdock defends a blind Vietnam veteran against a frameup; Lee has cited it as one of the favorite stories of his career.

Matt discloses his secret identity to his girlfriend Karen Page in issue #57. However, the revelation proves too much for her, and she breaks off the relationship. This was the first of several long-term breakups between Matt and Karen, who remains a recurring character up until her death in the late 1990s.

1970s

Gerry Conway took over as writer with issue #72, and turned the series in a pulp science fiction direction: a lengthy story arc centered on a robot from thousands of years in the future trying to change history. Even long-standing arch-villain the Owl was outfitted with futuristic weaponry and vehicles. Conway also moved Daredevil to San Francisco beginning with Daredevil #86, and simultaneously brought on the Black Widow as a co-star for the series. The Black Widow served as Daredevil's crime-fighting ally as well as his lover for issues #81–124 (Nov. 1971–Aug. 1975). Issues #92-107 were published under the title Daredevil and the Black Widow.

The writing and editing jobs went to Marv Wolfman with issue #124. He wrote the Black Widow out of the series and returned Daredevil to Hell's Kitchen. Wolfman promptly introduced the lively but emotionally fragile Heather Glenn to replace the Black Widow as Daredevil's love interest. Wolfman's 20-issue run included the introduction of one of Daredevil's most popular villains, Bullseye, and a story arc in which the Jester uses computer-generated images to manipulate the mass media. With issue #144, Jim Shooter became the writer and introduced Paladin in issue #150 (Jan. 1978). Shooter had difficulty keeping up with the schedule, and the writing chores were shortly turned over to Roger McKenzie.

McKenzie's work on Daredevil reflected his background in horror comics, and the stories and even the character himself took on a much darker tone: Daredevil battled a personification of death, one of his archenemies was bifurcated by a tombstone, and a re-envisioning of Daredevil's origin showed him using stalker tactics to drive the Fixer to his fatal heart attack. McKenzie created chain-smoking Daily Bugle reporter Ben Urich, who deduces Daredevil's secret identity over the course of issues #153–163, and had Daredevil using the criminal underworld of Hell's Kitchen as an information network, adding several small-time crooks to the supporting cast. Halfway through his run, McKenzie was joined by penciller Frank Miller with issue #158 (May 1979).

In a story arc overlapping Wolfman, Shooter, and McKenzie's runs on the series, Daredevil reveals his identity to Glenn and becomes partially responsible for the suicide of her father. Their relationship would persist, but proves increasingly harmful to both of them. Though the Black Widow returned for a dozen issues (#155–166) and attempted to rekindle her romance with Daredevil, he ultimately rejects her in favor of Glenn.

1980s

Miller disliked Roger McKenzie's scripts, so new editor Dennis O'Neil fired McKenzie so that Miller could write the series. In this period, Miller modeled Matt Murdock's appearance on the actor Robert Redford. Miller's initial run, first as penciler, then writer/penciler, and last a writer and layout artist begins in May 1979 and ends in February 1983. During this period, circulation doubled, to average sales of 276,812 copies per month. The series made Miller a star in the industry. Miller took writing inspiration from hardboiled crime fiction as well as the superhero comic tradition. For example, he draws on techniques of suspense, dramatic irony, and ambiguous characterization adopted from Raymond Chandler.

Cover of Daredevil #184 (July 1982). Art by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson.

Miller continued the title in a similar vein to McKenzie. Resuming the drastic metamorphosis the previous writer had begun, Miller took the step of essentially ignoring all of Daredevil's continuity prior to his run on the series; on the occasions where older villains and supporting cast were used, their characterizations and history with Daredevil were reworked or overwritten. Most prominently, dedicated and loving father Jack Murdock was reimagined as a drunkard who physically abused his son Matt, entirely revising Daredevil's reasons for becoming a lawyer. Spider-Man villain Kingpin was introduced as Daredevil's new primary nemesis, displacing most of his large rogues gallery. Daredevil himself was gradually developed into something of an antihero. In issue #181 (April 1982), he attempts to murder Bullseye by throwing him off a tall building; when the villain survives as a quadriplegic, he breaks into his hospital room and tries to scare him to death by playing a two-man variation on Russian roulette with a secretly unloaded gun.

Although still conforming to traditional comic book styles, Miller infused his first issue of Daredevil with his own film noir style. Miller sketched the roofs of New York in an attempt to give his Daredevil art an authentic feel not commonly seen in superhero comics at the time. Miller cited Will Eisner and Moebius, from the comics tradition, and filmmakers Orson Welles, Fritz Lang, and Alfred Hitchcock as inspirations. One journalist commented:

Daredevil's New York, under Frank's run, became darker and more dangerous than the Spider-Man New York he'd seemingly lived in before. New York City itself, particularly Daredevil's Hell's Kitchen neighborhood, became as much a character as the shadowy crimefighter; the stories often took place on the rooftop level, with water towers, pipes and chimneys jutting out to create a skyline reminiscent of German Expressionism's dramatic edges and shadows.

Following up a suggestion from O'Neil that he give Daredevil a realistic fighting style, Miller introduced ninjas into the Daredevil canon, bringing a martial-arts aspect to Daredevil's fighting skills, and introducing previously unseen characters who had played a major part in his youth: Stick, leader of the ninja clan, the Chaste, who had been Murdock's sensei after he was blinded; a rival organization of assassins called the Hand; and Elektra, an ex-girlfriend and sometime member of the Hand. This was a drastic change for a character once called "the sightless swashbuckler." Elektra was killed by Bullseye in issue #181 (April 1982).

Artist John Romita Jr., signing a copy of issue 254 of the series at Midtown Comics in Manhattan

After #191 Miller left the series. O'Neil switched from editor to writer. He continued McKenzie and Miller's noir take on the series, but backed away from the antihero depiction of the character by having him not only spare Bullseye's life but express guilt over his two previous attempts to kill him. Miller returned as the title's regular writer, co-writing #226 with O'Neil. Miller and artist David Mazzucchelli crafted the acclaimed "Born Again" storyline in #227–233. In the Born Again storyline, Karen Page returns as a heroin-addicted porn star, and sells Daredevil's secret identity for drug money. The Kingpin acquires the information and, in an act of revenge, orchestrates a frameup that costs Murdock his attorney's license. Miller ended the arc on a positive note, with Murdock reuniting with both Karen Page and Maggie, the mother he thought dead, now a nun. Miller's period of authorship was enormously commercially successful; his story arcs on Daredevil were the only sales competition for Chris Claremont's Uncanny X-Men, the consistent top seller in the 1980s.

Ann Nocenti later became the series's longest-running regular writer, with a four-and-a-quarter-year run from #238–291 (Jan. 1987 – April 1991). In this period, Murdock returns to law by co-founding with Page a nonprofit drug and legal clinic. Nocenti crafted stories confronting feminism, drug abuse, nuclear proliferation, and animal rights-inspired terrorism. She introduced the antagonist Typhoid Mary, and in issues #262–265 used the Inferno event as a backdrop for the collapse of Daredevil's life: the clinic is destroyed, Page goes missing after learning that Matt has had an affair with Mary Walker, and Walker reveals herself as the alter ego of Typhoid Mary. Murdock subsequently becomes a drifter in upstate New York, an especially controversial move in Nocenti's run, as it marked the first time the character had been taken outside of an urban environment. She ended her run with a positive turn in Murdock's fortunes. He returns to Hell's Kitchen, regains his sense of self, reconciles with Foggy Nelson, and resolves to seek out Karen Page.

1990s

New writer D. G. Chichester continued from where Nocenti left off, with Murdock resuming his friendship with Foggy Nelson, struggling to re-win the heart of Karen Page, appealing the revocation of his attorney's license, and bonding more deeply than ever with Hell's Kitchen. Chichester's focus on Daredevil's relationship with New York City went so far as to have two issues devoted entirely to Daredevil defending New Yorkers from ordinary criminals and even simple accidents. The critically acclaimed "Last Rites" arc from #297–300 saw Daredevil regaining his attorney's license and finally bringing the Kingpin to justice.

Frank Miller returned to the character and his origins with the 1993 five-issue Daredevil: The Man Without Fear miniseries. With artist John Romita Jr., Miller expanded his retcon of the life and death of Murdock's father, "Battling Jack" Murdock, and Murdock's first encounters with the Kingpin and Foggy Nelson. The role of Stick in the genesis of Daredevil was expanded, as was Murdock's doomed love affair with Elektra.

The creative team of Chichester and penciler Scott McDaniel changed the status quo with their "Fall From Grace" storyline in issues #319–325 (Aug. 1993 – Feb. 1994). Elektra, who was resurrected in #190 but had not been seen since, finally returned. An injured Daredevil creates a more protective costume from biomimetic materials: red and gray with white armor on the shoulders and knee pads. Revamped billy clubs could attach to form nunchucks or a bo staff. His secret identity becomes public knowledge, leading to him fake his own death and assume the new identity of "Jack Batlin". This new identity and costume last for several story arcs, while Murdock finds a way to convince the world that he is not, in fact, secretly Daredevil (courtesy of a double). A short stint by J. M. DeMatteis returned Daredevil to his traditional red costume and Matt Murdock's identity.

Under writers Karl Kesel and later Joe Kelly, the title gained a lighter tone, with Daredevil returning to the lighthearted, wisecracking hero depicted by earlier writers. Matt and Foggy (who now knows of Matt's dual identities) join a law firm run by Foggy's mother, Rosalind Sharpe.

In 1998, Daredevil's numbering was rebooted, with the title "canceled" with issue #380 and revived a month later as part of the Marvel Knights imprint. Joe Quesada drew the new series, written by filmmaker Kevin Smith. Its first story arc, "Guardian Devil", depicts Daredevil struggling to protect a child whom he is told could either be the Messiah or the Anti-Christ. Murdock experiences a crisis of faith exacerbated by the discovery that Karen Page has AIDS (later revealed to be a hoax) and her subsequent death at Bullseye's hands. When he discovers that the true party responsible for the scheme is Mysterio, who is currently dying of cancer, he leaves Mysterio to commit suicide, deciding to use the money Karen left him in her will to re-open Nelson & Murdock.

Smith was succeeded by writer-artist David Mack, who contributed the seven-issue "Parts of a Hole" (vol. 2, #9–15). The arc introduced Maya Lopez, also known as Echo, a deaf martial artist.

2000s

David Mack brought colleague Brian Michael Bendis to Marvel to co-write the following arc, "Wake Up" in vol. 2, #16–19 (May 2001 – August 2001), which follows reporter Ben Urich as he investigates the aftereffects of a fight between Daredevil and the new Leap-Frog.

The 2001 Daredevil: Yellow miniseries presented another take on Daredevil's origins using letters written to Karen Page after her death. The series depicts the early rivalry between Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson for Page's affection, and incorporates many events depicted in the earliest issues of Daredevil. The supervillains the Owl and the Purple Man appear as antagonists. In this story, Daredevil credits Page with coining the phrase "The Man Without Fear", and she suggests to Daredevil he wear all maroon instead of dark red and yellow.

Issue #26 (December 2001) brought back Brian Michael Bendis. Developments in this run included the introduction of romantic interest and future wife Milla Donovan, the outing once again of Murdock's secret identity, the reemergence of the Kingpin, and Daredevil's surrender to the FBI. Bendis won an Eisner Award for Best Writer for his work on Daredevil, as well as other concurrent titles, in 2002 and 2003. Daredevil by Bendis and Maleev also won the Eisner for Best Continuing Series in 2003. Bendis says he was congratulated for this achievement by Frank Miller.

The impact of the exposure of Murdock's identity as Daredevil continued as a plot point in storylines by the new creative team, writer Ed Brubaker and artist Michael Lark. Brubaker and Lark began with Daredevil vol. 2, #82 (Feb. 2006). Brubaker says that, in his view, "Daredevil is one of the most experimental mainstream comics there is," and cited inspiration from noir fiction. His first story arc had a new character masquerading as Daredevil in Hell's Kitchen. Murdock later discovered the ersatz Daredevil is his friend Danny Rand, the superhero Iron Fist. Murdock is also imprisoned in this period. The series returned to its original numbering with issue #500 (Oct. 2009), which followed vol. 2, #119 (Aug. 2009). Brubaker won Eisner Awards for Best Writer for his work on Daredevil and other titles in 2007, 2008, and 2010.

In 2009, new writer Andy Diggle revised the status quo, with Daredevil assuming leadership of the ninja army the Hand. Daredevil later appeared in the one-shot Dark Reign: The List – Daredevil.

2010s

Following this came the crossover story arc "Shadowland", in which it is revealed that Daredevil's recent actions after taking control of the Hand are the result of him being possessed by a demon. Purged of the demon by his allies, Murdock departs New York, leaving his territory in the hands of the Black Panther in the briefly retitled series' Black Panther: Man Without Fear #513. Murdock finds himself renewed in the miniseries Daredevil: Reborn #1–4 (March–July 2011), where he confronts a drug dealer with the power to make his opponents live their darkest fears. He reaffirms his role as the man without fear as he confronts his enemy's taunts and resolves to return to New York.

In July 2011, Daredevil relaunched with vol. 3, #1 (Sept. 2011), with writer Mark Waid. Waid focused on emphasizing the character's powers and perception of the physical world. In the premiere issue, Murdock finds he can no longer serve as a trial lawyer due to past allegations of his being Daredevil causing a case he represents in court to turn into a media circus. Two issues later, Nelson and Murdock have developed a new business strategy of serving as consulting counselors, by teaching clients how to represent themselves in court. Waid won the Eisner Award for Daredevil in 2012.

Daredevil joins the New Avengers in a story written by former Daredevil series writer Brian Michael Bendis. Daredevil appeared as a regular character in the 2010–2013 New Avengers series in issues #16–34 (November 2011 – January 2013). At one point, Foggy begins to question Matt's sanity, ultimately leading to a fallout between the two. They reconcile once the truth is discovered. Daredevil vol. 3 ended at issue #36 in February 2014, in which Matt is forced to publicly reveal his Daredevil identity, resulting in his being disbarred by New York and prompting him to again relocate to San Francisco.

Waid and Chris Samnee followed this up with Infinite Comics' Daredevil: Road Warrior weekly digital miniseries, which focused on an adventure during Matt's trip to San Francisco. It was reprinted as issue 0.1 in Daredevil volume 4, which launched under Waid and Samnee with a new issue #1 (March 2014) as part of the All-New Marvel NOW! storyline centered on Matt's new life in San Francisco.

Daredevil volume 4 ended with issue #18 in September 2015. A new volume began as part of the All-New, All-Different Marvel branding, written by Charles Soule with art by Ron Garney with the first two issues released in December 2015. In this series, Matt returns to New York, where he now works as an Assistant District Attorney. He had a redesigned costume and a new apprentice in Samuel Chung, an undocumented immigrant who has been living in New York's Chinatown since he was a child, who has taken up the codename Blindspot. Flashbacks in a later story arc reveal how Matt regained his secret identity; when the Purple Children acquired a machine designed by their father to enhance his powers after Matt had saved them from a mob, they used the machine to erase the world's knowledge of Matt's identity as Daredevil, Matt only allowing Foggy to know his secret identity afterward, enabling him to be re-instated as a New York Attorney. Using his restored secret identity, Murdock is able to take advantage of a subsequent court case to establish a precedent for superheroes testifying in court without the need to expose their secret identities. Despite interference from the Kingpin, Murdock succeeds in taking this precedent to the Supreme Court so that all superheroes will have the same rights in future cases, and afterward returns to his traditional red costume.

Following the release of Issue 28, much like with other Marvel series as part of the Marvel Legacy event, the Daredevil series renumbered, as if it had never been relaunched, with #595 which was released on November 8, 2017, where Daredevil's longtime nemesis the Kingpin became the Mayor of New York City and begins a campaign to make costumed vigilantes officially criminals. Although Murdock's attempt to set up a sting operation results in his allies being arrested when the Kingpin turns this trap against him, Fisk's legal manipulations work against him when he is attacked by the Hand, leaving Fisk in a coma and Murdock legally mayor of New York from his position as deputy mayor due to a loophole added by a prior administration that had not been amended, allowing Matt to take control of the city and release his fellow heroes to help him stop the Hand.

Throughout his career as a superpowered vigilante, Matt Murdock would often pretend to have a sighted identical twin brother named Mike Murdock, who Matt would claim was Daredevil whenever his identity was made public knowledge, and he would occasionally impersonate this fabricated twin. In 2018, Mike Murdock is actually brought into existence following Matt Murdock’s encounter with a reality-warping mutant.

Charles Soule released his final Daredevil storyline "Death of Daredevil" during the October and November 2018 releases, in a 4-part bimonthly release which ended the series. Afterwards the series went on hiatus for two months and resumed distribution in February 2019, with a brand-new volume written by Chip Zdarsky. The primary artist on the series is Marco Checchetto. This new volume follows Daredevil's return to crime-fighting as he accidentally kills a robber during an arrest, leading him to doubt his status as a hero and to a confrontation with Spider-Man. Murdock later abandons his Daredevil persona and focuses on his job as a parole officer, feeling that Daredevil does not bring justice and only harms the Hell's Kitchen community. His mantle is taken up by several vigilantes trying to replace Daredevil, eventually leading Murdock to don a black variation of Daredevil's outfit and fight against the mob, which has taken over Hell's Kitchen, usurping Wilson Fisk's control over the district.

2020s

After he helps save Hell's Kitchen, Daredevil, still in his mask, gives himself up to police custody, stating that he wants to stand trial for his crimes but will only do so on the condition his identity is never revealed. He voluntarily confesses to the killing and is sentenced to a prison term. While Matt serves his time, Elektra takes up the Daredevil costume and protects Hell's Kitchen at his behest. In the prison, Murdock grapples with the idea that Daredevil and Matt Murdock work together to put people in prison, which he comes to see as ruining people's lives without reforming them or setting them on the right path.

In August 2021, it was confirmed that volume 6 of the series would end in November 2021, at Issue #36. The series lead into the crossover event "Devil's Reign" with the same creative team. Following the conclusion of that series, another Daredevil series, also written by Zdarsky, was launched in July 2022.

In May 2023, it was announced that volume 7 and Zdarksy's time on Daredevil would conclude with issue #14 in August 2023, with a new volume written by Saladin Ahmed and drawn by Aaron Kuder set to launch in September that same year.

Characterization

Fictional character biography

Matthew Murdock is born in Hell's Kitchen, a working-class Irish-American district of New York City. Suffering from post-partum depression, his mother, Maggie, abandons the family and becomes a nun. His father, "Battlin' Jack" Murdock, is a struggling professional boxer. Matt's father is loving but controlling and over-protective, and physically abusive on one instance. Eventually, Jack Murdock is killed in the ring. As a youth, Matt Murdock is struck by a truck carrying radioactive materials. The accident blinds him, but gives him enhanced senses that give him extraordinary perception of his environment. Matt is mentored by Stick, a mysterious sensei. Matt is driven to bring his father's killers to justice, and eventually does so. Matt attends Columbia University and meets Foggy Nelson and Elektra Natchios. Nelson becomes Murdock's best friend, and Elektra becomes Matt's first serious girlfriend. Matt and Foggy found a law firm, Nelson and Murdock. Karen Page eventually joins the firm, and becomes Nelson's girlfriend after college. Matt begins a second career as a costumed vigilante. He encounters many supervillains. He reveals his secret identity to Page, but she is anxious about the relationship and eventually leaves to pursue a career as an actress in Hollywood. Briefly, Murdock moves to San Francisco and lives with Natasha Romanova, who is also a costumed adventurer under the name Black Widow. After they break up, he returns to New York and begins a relationship with Heather Glenn. However, his ex-girlfriend Elektra returns, now a mysterious and fearsome ninja. Together, they find a criminal organization called the Hand. However, she becomes an enforcer for a local crime boss, the Kingpin. She is eventually killed by a hitman, Bullseye. Karen Page has become a drug addict, and betrays Murdock's confidence by selling his secret identity to criminals. However, she returns to New York and begs forgiveness, which Murdock gives her, and she recovers from her drug addiction. She is later killed by Bullseye as well, however. Daredevil later has his secret identity revealed again, is imprisoned, runs for mayor of New York, and experiences many other adventures and misfortunes.

Personality and motivation

Critics have commented that Daredevil is unusually psychologically complex, by the standards of comic-book superheroes.

He is highly determined and willing to make bold decisions to in order to fight crime in his city. In his public personality, as trial lawyer Matt Murdock, he also tries to defend his clients and to work within the established legal system. Miller argues that Murdock has taken on two demanding careers (as lawyer and vigilante) because of a need to prove himself, compensating for his blindness. Miller believes that, like Batman, Daredevil is driven by his concern for justice, but while Batman is primarily concerned with punishing criminals, Daredevil is more interested in finding redress for victims. The contrast between his love of the law in his regular life and his exceptional vigilante activities often produces problems for him. He is also sometimes ruthless and deceptive, and this can put his friends and loved ones at risk. Timothy Callahan even argues that Murdock is often mentally unstable or even psychotic "in his willingness to layer the fabric of lies in his relationships with others." One of his fundamental conflicts is between his attraction to extra-legal justice and punishment and his simultaneous fascination with objective order and legal, rational explanation.

Miller says that Murdock is drawn to violence because of anger at the world regarding his disability as well as his unresolved conflict with his father. Murdock's father, "Battlin' Jack", was a professional boxer who prohibited Matt from any athletic activity and compelled him to devote his time to study, attempting to mold an entirely different life for his son. Learning of his disobedience, the father resorted to corporal punishment to control his son. These events led Murdock to become obsessed with determining the proper moral and legal rules for behavior, and to develop a highly ambivalent relationship to combat sports and thrill-seeking behavior. Film and comic scholar Paul Young points out that the stories often depict a gap between Murdock's stated motivations and his actions, demonstrating that Murdock has inherently limited self-knowledge and sometimes deceives himself with incomplete justifications for his choices.

Murdock is a devout Catholic and often tormented by religious and moral guilt. However, he also has many romantic affairs, which frequently end badly. Miller also sees the character as driven by sensuality. Psychologist Travis Langley and literary scholar Christine Hanefalk comment that this disposition could be described as a sensation seeking personality trait. They note that while Murdock has had many lovers, his takes the approach of serial monogamy rather than promiscuity or sex addiction.

Other characters often underestimate Matt Murdock because of his blindness, and he has a humorous and self-deprecating approach to his disability.

Themes and motifs

Political corruption and moral ambiguity

Like other comic books influenced by film noir, Daredevil comics often depict modern urban society as highly corrupt, with no trustworthy authority. The comics frequently present a crisis of authority in which Daredevil or various antagonists, such as Kingpin, attempt to achieve a position of sovereignty in order to enforce some kind of recognized order. Daredevil comics also present debates on questions about religion and the relationship between human and divine justice, as well as Christian ideals of forgiveness and generosity. The comics are also often frequently concerned with vexing romantic relationships and femme fatale characters.

Disability

The comic series also often addresses the challenges of disability. Along with Professor X, Daredevil was one of the first modern disabled superheroes. Other supporting characters in the series are also blind, and Daredevil's former romantic partner, Echo, is deaf. Writer/co-creator Stan Lee said that he was worried that blind people would be offended at how far he exaggerated the enhancement of a blind person's remaining senses, but that his fears were assuaged by letters from organizations such as the Lighthouse for the Blind, which said that blind people greatly enjoyed having Daredevil comics read to them.

Violence and trauma

The stories also often address the long-term effects of trauma and adverse childhood experiences. Matt Murdock's abandonment by his mother, physically abusive treatment by his alcoholic father, and bullying from childhood peers are all detailed by the series. Other prominent characters, such as Kingpin and Elektra, are also revealed to have experienced childhood misfortunes that affect aggressive and thrill-seeking behavior in adulthood. In 1981, Miller declared that "violence is actually the theme of the book," insisting on the depiction of realistic injury in order to convey the hazards and moral ambiguity of a heroic lifestyle.

Powers and abilities

Frank Miller, seen here signing a copy of issue 181 at Midtown Comics, revamped the character's Radar-Sense to make it more believable.

Although the character is blind, his remaining four senses function with superhuman accuracy and sensitivity, giving him abilities far beyond the limits of a sighted person. Few characters know that the hero cannot see. Daredevil developed a Radar-Sense, as well as echolocation.

When Frank Miller expanded most of Daredevil's abilities, he attempted to make them "extraordinary enough to be exciting, but not on par with Superman", noting Superman's distinctly unbelievable powers. When Miller joined the title in 1979, the first thing he did to the character was "revamp" his radar sense and made it less distinct and more believable; he wanted Daredevil to have the "proximity" sense that some martial artists claim to have. Due to the character's sensitive sense of touch, Daredevil can read by passing his fingers over the letters on a page though laminated pages prevent him from reading the ink. Daredevil has commonly used his superhuman hearing to serve as a polygraph for interrogation by listening for changes in a person's heartbeat. This ability can be fooled if the other person's heart is not beating at a natural rate, such as if they have an artificial pacemaker.

Just as Daredevil's other senses are stronger, they are also sensitive; his main weakness is his vulnerability to powerful sounds or odors that can temporarily weaken his radar sense. This weakness is often used to immobilize Daredevil. Alternately, the lack of taste or smell of certain substances can be used against him, as in one instance of a hallucinogenic drug designed so that Daredevil could not tell he was drugged. His senses are highly acute, capable of sensing the minor atmospheric disturbance created moments before a teleporting character appears. People with superhuman speed, such as Spider-Man, are too fast to be detected and targeted by his radar sense.

While his radar sense mostly compensates for his blindness, it has certain limitations. He cannot perceive color without touch, and he can only read printed matter if the ink is raised enough for his sense of touch. Most photographs, televisions, and computer screens are blank to him. However, the radar sense has shown on numerous occasions the ability to "see" through walls and fabrics. The radar sense also grants him an omnidirectional field of vision. These two latter abilities are the most notable advantages the radar has over normal vision.

The extent of Daredevil’s superhuman physical attributes beyond his super-senses and radar sense varies depending on the writer and depiction of the character, though he has always been portrayed as having a superhumanly enhanced sense of balance and coordination. In most cases, he is depicted as also possessing superhuman agility, reflexes, and stamina. In all cases, Daredevil is depicted as a master of martial arts and expert acrobat and gymnast, with his superhuman attributes aiding him in his mastery of these skills. Having been trained by Stick, Daredevil is a master hand-to-hand combatant. He uses elements from a wide variety of martial arts, including Ninjutsu, Aiki Jūjutsu, Aikido, Judo, Karate, Jujitsu, Kung Fu, Silat, Capoeira, Wrestling, and Stick Fighting combined with American-style Boxing while making full use of his Olympic-level gymnastic capabilities.

Daredevil's signature weapon is his specially designed baton, which he created. Disguised as a blind man's cane in civilian garb, it is a multi-purpose weapon and tool that contains 30 feet of aircraft-control cable connected to a case-hardened steel grappling hook. Internal mechanisms allow the cable to be neatly wound and unwound, while a powerful spring launches the grapnel. The handle can be straightened for use when throwing. The club can be split into two parts, one of which is a fighting baton, the other of which ends in a curved hook.

In his civilian identity, Murdock is a skilled and respected New York attorney. He is a skilled detective and interrogation expert.

After his identity was publicly exposed and he was forced to relocate to San Francisco, Matt Murdock's secret identity as Daredevil was restored by the Purple Children, the children of his old foe the Purple Man. From the description given by the Purple Children, their influence renders it impossible for anyone to determine Daredevil's secret identity through deductive research unless he actually tells them who he is under the mask, or someone unmasks him.

Supporting characters

Elektra

Main article: Elektra (character)

Elektra is a pivotal character for Daredevil, although she appears in relatively few of his stories. At different times, she is an enemy, a romantic partner, and an ally. Elektra made her debut as a bounty hunter, and though her time as part of Daredevil's rogues' gallery was brief (spanning barely a year of the first Frank Miller series), her romantic past with him is an important part of the mythos. Created by Frank Miller, the character first appeared in Daredevil #168 (Jan. 1981). Her violent nature and mercenary lifestyle has served as a divisive point of conflict between her and Daredevil, which, in 2020, culminated in her becoming the second Daredevil.

Elektra is an unusually ruthless antihero and femme fatale. Scholar Paul Young defines some of her defining initial characteristics as including her succinct speech patterns, her "athletic, eroticized body," her father complex, and her lethal weapons and fighting prowess. He notes that another critic, Larry Rodman, memorably compared her to a "psychotic swimsuit model.

She shows few compunctions about killing her adversaries, and in some stories even kills innocent people. However, she maintains a strong affection for Matt Murdock and, later, other people she admires. She is often morally conflicted, and eventually attempts to use her skills for good. Miller says that Elektra's violent disposition originates from the trauma of the loss of her father, and that he meant the character to illustrate Jung's Electra complex: "She was a young woman who had her sexual interest centered on her father, and just as she was transferring this to another man, her father is killed." Miller argues that this initial anger led to corruption by other forces (the Hand and the Kingpin). In his view she is not essentially good, but rather "one of the villains who's got a weak streak in them."

After her resurrection, in the 1996-98 Elektra ongoing series written by Peter Milligan, she has a more conventionally heroic disposition. Elektra briefly resumes her relationship with Daredevil in this series, although he is unfaithful to his primary girlfriend at that time, Karen Page. She has continued to appear in various subsequent series as a complicated anti-hero. In stories of the 2020s, she even takes on the identity of Daredevil herself, initially because the original Daredevil is imprisoned.

Allies

Throughout the core Daredevil series, many characters have had an influence in Matt Murdock's life. His father, "Battlin' Jack" Murdock instills in Matt the importance of education and nonviolence with the aim of seeing his son become a better man than himself. He always encouraged Matt to study, rather than fight like him. Jack forbade his son from undertaking any kind of physical training. It is his father's murder that prompts the super-powered character to become a superhero, fighting gangsters. He was trained by an old blind ninja master named Stick following his childhood accident.

Matt Murdock's closest friend is Franklin "Foggy" Nelson, his college roommate, sidekick, and law partner. Their relationship in the early years of the series was fraught with tension due to Nelson's sense of inferiority to Murdock as a lawyer and as a target for the affections of their secretary, Karen Page. They frequently argued over Murdock's preference for defending supervillains, as Nelson's enthusiasm is for corporate law. The pudgy and fallible Nelson has often been used by writers for lightheartedness and even comic relief.

As a superhero, one of Daredevil's best friends is the hero Spider-Man. With his enhanced senses, Murdock was able to physically identify Spider-Man on their first meeting, and Spider-Man in turn learned his secret identity some time after. Due to the events of the "One More Day" storyline, Daredevil no longer knows Spider-Man's secret identity. Spider-Man also initially lost all memory of Daredevil's secret identity following the Purple story arc, but regained it at the beginning of the Red Fist story arc. Iron Fist would later become one of his greatest friends, and at one point took on the role of Daredevil himself. Jessica Jones, a former superhero turned private investigator acts as a bodyguard for Matt Murdock in his civilian life. Her husband, Luke Cage, is a friend of Daredevil as well. Ben Urich, a reporter for the Daily Bugle discovered Daredevil's identity and eventually becomes his friend as well, though during his identity dispute Daredevil decided to end his "secret professional relationship" with Urich to avoid getting Urich mixed up in his problems and being used against him. The Punisher, anti-hero Frank Castle, is one of Daredevil's reluctant allies, as well as his antagonist due to their different philosophies in crime-fighting.

Romantic interests

Daredevil has a convoluted and often tortured love life. His relationships often end badly. The longest connections he has maintained with women have been with other costumed fighters: Black Widow and Elektra. The relatively high number of violent deaths for his partners has been criticized as examples of the women in refrigerators trope, according to which female characters in comic books are often disposable and serve as plot devices to motivate or complicate male heroes.

Murdock had a long-term relationship with Karen Page. Initially, Murdock and Foggy Nelson constituted a love triangle with page, with each vying for affections. Murdock revealed his secret identity to her in Daredevil #56 (September 1969). Page has various doubts and anxieties about her relationship. However, in Daredevil #86 (January 1972) Page leaves to pursue an acting career in Hollywood. He maintains an on-again off-again relationship until her tragic death. Like Elektra, Page is murdered by Bullseye; but she is never resurrected.

In the 1970s, he had a romantic relationship with Black Widow, who partnered with him to fight crime while they both were in San Francisco. They cohabited, which was a daring choice for the time period. She had complaints about sexist attitudes on Daredevil's part, and broke off the relationship because she did not want to feel like a sidekick. They remain as close confidantes in ensuing stories, and some stories suggest the possibility of resuming the relationship.

In the later 1970s, he began a relationship with Heather Glenn. As with Page, he reveals his identity to her in a 1977 storyline. However, in contrast to Page, Glenn is a party girl and an heiress whose personality is very different from Karen Page as she initially appeared. As Young puts it, Glenn has "a casual and flirty manner, and a voracious sexual appetite;" she is also elusive and casual regarding her relationship with Murdock. Young compares to her to one of the Sternwood sisters from Chandler's The Big Sleep. As initially characterized by Gerry Conway, Glenn is somewhat stereotyped because of her flighty nature. However, Young argues that the Miller period gives her a degree of verisimilitude, even arguing that she has more depth than Chris Claremont's female heroes. In contrast, J. Andrew Deman has argued that Miller's depiction of women is much more stereotypical than Clarement's. Glenn eventually kills herself, in Daredevil #220 (March 1985).

In the late 1990s, he also had a brief relationship with Maya Lopez, a deaf woman and skilled martial artist. While Murdock and Lopez fell in love, Lopez was manipulated by the Kingpin into believing that Daredevil had killed her father (while it was Kingpin himself who was responsible) Under the name Echo, Lopez fought Daredevil and was eventually convinced of his innocence.

In the 2000s, Murdock marries a woman named Milla Donovan. Donovan shares Murdock's disability. Eventually, one of Daredevil's enemies drives her to insanity.

Enemies

Main article: List of Daredevil enemies

In his early years, Daredevil fought a number of costumed supervillains, the first of these being Electro, a prominent Spider-Man foe, in Daredevil #2. A number of recurring villains would be introduced over the years, such as the Owl, the Purple Man, Mr. Fear, Stilt-Man, Gladiator, the Jester, the Man-Bull, and Death-Stalker. The supervillain duo of the Cobra and Mr. Hyde have frequently clashed with Daredevil, and Hyde has fought Daredevil alone on several occasions. The psychotic assassin Bullseye was introduced by Marv Wolfman in issue #131, and was a frequent antagonist over the next six years of the series.

Frank Miller's run on Daredevil pared down the rogue's gallery to three significant antagonists: Kingpin, Elektra, and Bullseye. Like the Purple Man, Death-Stalker, Assassin, and several others, the Kingpin has long known Daredevil's secret identity. In Daredevil #254, Ann Nocenti introduced Typhoid Mary, an assassin for the Kingpin with dissociative identity disorder (the diagnostic term for multiple personalities), who would become a prominent Daredevil foe.

Other versions

End of Days

Daredevil: End of Days is a 2013 eight-issue comic book miniseries that chronicled Daredevil's final days. During his final battle with Bullseye, Daredevil whispers the single word "Mapone" to Bullseye before being killed by a blow to the head by his own billy-club. Several years before his death, Daredevil had confronted the Kingpin when he returned to Hell's Kitchen. Fisk had made a deal with the government and Daredevil, seeing no other options to stop Fisk, killed him in front of many people on the streets. After killing Fisk, Daredevil disappeared many years until his final battle with Bullseye, having either alienated from or shunned by his friends and fellow superheroes. Matt had been training Tim Urich, the adopted son of longtime friend Ben Urich, to become the new Daredevil. After finishing Tim's training and becoming aware of Bullseye's return to Hell's Kitchen, Daredevil returned to prevent any more of his past enemies to affect his successor. His actions during his final battle drove Bullseye mad with curiosity over the word "Mapone", leading him to commit suicide.

It is revealed that Matt had fathered a daughter named Mapone Romanova with the Black Widow. After Natasha's death, Matt and Mapone seemingly became estranged. Matt was also allegedly the father of four other children with several of his past lovers: Elektra Natchios has a son also named Matthew, Milla Donovan has a son named Franklin, and Mary Walker is the mother of twin boys.

Spider-Gwen

Main article: Kingpin (Matt Murdock)

Matt Murdock serves as the main antagonist for most of Spider-Gwen. His ninja training, law background, and powers are the same as his mainstream counterpart. However, he eventually becomes this world's version of the Kingpin and constantly antagonizes Gwen Stacy, who is the Spider-Woman of this dimension.

Ultimate Marvel

See also: Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra

The Ultimate Marvel version of Daredevil (Matt Murdock) has appeared in two different limited series, Ultimate Daredevil and Elektra written by Greg Rucka, and Ultimate Elektra, a team to take down the Kingpin. It is revealed in Ultimate Spider-Man #109 that his father Jack was a boxer killed by the Kingpin (a.k.a. Wilson Fisk) when Jack would not throw a match. Later, after the Kingpin burns down Murdock's law offices, a crazed Daredevil breaks into Fisk's apartments and threatens to murder the comatose Vanessa Fisk, but is convinced not to by Spider-Man. During Magneto's flooding of New York during the "Ultimatum" storyline in which millions of people are killed, Daredevil was found dead by Spider-Man and Hulk.

Reception

Daredevil has been inspirational for readers with disabilities, particularly those with visual impairment. For example, Tom Sullivan, a blind man, writes that "When I read my first Daredevil in the mid-'60s, I decided Matt Murdock represented everything I thought I could be." Further, he argues that blind people in real life sometimes experience enhanced awareness of other senses, like Daredevil and that this can help them in athletics; he credits inspiration from Daredevil with cultivating his own abilities.

Daredevil was also groundbreaking in the degree of violence that could be depicted in a mainstream superhero comic book, particularly in the instance of the murder of Elektra by Bullseye in 1982.

Daredevil was also a strong inspiration for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The concept took its ninja imagery from Daredevil. In the original comics, the characters were even implied to be the pet turtles of Matt Murdock, who mutated as a result of the same accident that gave him superpowers.

Joe Quesada, an editor at Marvel, says that Kevin Smith's authorship of the "Guardian Devil" arc of the Daredevil series in 1998-1999 "changed everything" and that this is "probably the single most important development in this particular era of comics, from the '90s to today." This is because Smith was the first Hollywood director to write a mainstream superhero comic, and this encouraged subsequent authorship of comics by writers from film, TV, and literature, such as Joss Whedon and others.

In other media

Main article: Daredevil in other media

Daredevil has appeared in various other media, particularly in television and film. He first appears in live action in the TV filmThe Trial of the Incredible Hulk, portrayed by Rex Smith.

A Daredevil live-action feature film starring Ben Affleck as the character and directed by Mark Steven Johnson was released in 2003. The film received mixed reviews from critics, and was a moderate box-office success.

In 2015, a Daredevil television show, starring Charlie Cox as the protagonist and created by Drew Goddard premiered on Netflix and lasted for three seasons. This was acclaimed by critics and attracted a cult following from fans. Steven S. DeKnight, an executive producer of the show, has said that it took inspiration from the Frank Miller period as well as the storylines by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev, with Maleev's art in particular providing "a template for the look of the show."

Then-Disney CEO Bob Iger stated that if Marvel's Netflix TV shows such as Daredevil become popular, "It's quite possible that they could become feature films". In December 2013, Marvel confirmed that Drew Goddard would be the executive producer and showrunner for the series, and would write and direct the first episode. By May 2014, Goddard had departed as showrunner, being replaced by Steven S. DeKnight, while Goddard was to remain with the show as a consultant. Later that month, Charlie Cox was cast in the starring titular role. Filming began in July 2014. The first season was released in April 2015, the second season was released on March 18, 2016, and the third and final season was released on October 19, 2018. Cox also reprises the role in The Defenders, a crossover miniseries in which Daredevil teams up with Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist.

Cox reprises his role as Murdock in the film Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), wherein he successfully clears Peter Parker's name from Mysterio's death. The film does not reference his superhero identity beyond a brief display of his enhanced senses when he catches a brick thrown through the Parkers' window. According to Tom Holland, Murdock's appearance was written after filming began due to uncertainty about the rights to include the Marvel Netflix characters.

In March 2022, Marvel Studios was revealed to be developing a Daredevil reboot series, with Kevin Feige and Chris Gary producing. The following month, Cox was revealed to have also joined the cast of the Disney+ television series Echo (2024) alongside his Daredevil co-star Vincent D'Onofrio, who had recently reprised the role of Wilson Fisk / Kingpin in the series Hawkeye (2021). Later in May, the Daredevil reboot was confirmed to be taking the form of a new series in development for Disney+, with Matt Corman and Chris Ord attached as the series' head writers and executive producers according to Variety. The series was also described by The Hollywood Reporter as a continuation of the events of the prior show as opposed to a full reboot.

In July 2022, it was announced at San Diego Comic-Con that Charlie Cox would reprise his role voicing an alternate version of Daredevil in the animated series Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (2024). He was also confirmed to be reprising his role in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022), as well as in his own series: a revival of the Netflix series entitled Daredevil: Born Again (2025).

See also

• List of Daredevil titles
• 1964 in comics
• Animal echolocation
• Ben Underwood
• Daredevil (Lev Gleason Publications)

References

Bibliography

• Langley, Travis, ed. (2018). Daredevil Psychology: The Devil You Know. Sterling. ISBN 978-1-4549-3011-2.
• Miller, Frank and Klaus Janson (2022). Daredevil by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson Omnibus. Marvel. ISBN 978-1-302-94553-4.
• Young, Paul (2016). Frank Miller's Daredevil and the Ends of Heroism. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 9780813563817.

External links

• Wolk, Douglas (January 5, 2006). "Secrets, lies – and lawyers!". Salon.com. Archived from the original on December 7, 2011.