Much of the United States may be in a winter freeze right now, but in the version of Hell’s Kitchen in the Marvel Universe, things are heating up. Daredevil and the Punisher (the Sam and Ralph of the superhero world) just cannot seem to keep out of the way of each other, and it is going to come to a head soon.
But before that, some walls will be smashed through, some grenades will be thrown, and some faces will get really banged up. Can these two ever get along?
Making A Federal Case Out of It
Daredevil is on the hunt for the three criminals he overheard planning to fill the power vacuum left by the Gnucci family. This hunt, which began in issue one, starts with Rancid Randy. He catches up with Randy, but so does the Punisher. Of course, given their long history of working together, the two vigilantes are able to talk through their differences and find common ground. Oh, who am I kidding? They throw down, and in the chaos Rancid Randy makes a run for it. In the end, Randy ends up in custody, Punisher ends up in the wind, and Daredevil ends up with a little bit of information: it seems that Rancid Randy is really Federal Informant Randy. That explains how he got out of prison early for "behavior."
What about the other two, Russo and Quinn? Are they working with the feds too? The answer to that is a "no," as we soon learn that they are working for a mysterious "Boss" who is the one who can get people out of jail even when the key should have been thrown away. Now, with Daredevil and the Punisher getting closer to them, the Boss is going to work their magic and get a few psycho heavy hitters an early release so that they can be turned loose against our heroes.
Later, Matt Murdock has another meeting with Misty Knight, where they compare notes about all of the crooks who seem to be getting early releases lately. They are interrupted when Misty is visited by someone else that she had helped put away, and a little fight scene breaks out. Matt pulls out a few sneaky moves in order to help out while not revealing that he is Daredevil. It has been a long time since we saw him actually care about keeping the secret identity of Matt Murdock secret. Soon the fight is over. Then Matt hits her with a big ask: can Misty facilitate a meeting between her friend, the Punisher, and the client of Matt, Daredevil?
That will not go badly at all.
Sam and Ralph
For a miniseries set decently far back in the histories of both characters, at a time when Daredevil has no book of his own and a cynic would say this is just keeping him on the shelves, this book punches way above its weight class. Each issue tells a decently stand-alone story while still advancing the overall plot of the crime bosses trying to fill the void left by the Punisher taking out the Gnucci family. It is still way more of a Daredevil book than a Punisher one, and that is actually to the benefit of the story. This being set in the days before Daredevil was "out," so Matt Murdock is still a defense attorney, means there is a lot to be done with him while keeping Punisher as the background menace.
The reveal that one of the three "early release" criminals is a federal informant, but the other two are not, moves the overall plot forward. I have some concerns about who the "Boss" is going to be revealed as, given that there are only two issues left in this miniseries. I am hoping it is not just Wilson Fisk, although I cannot even remember what the status of Fisk was at this time in the history of Daredevil. I am having a hard time thinking of who else would fit in that role now, though. Maybe it is Tombstone, but he is pretty overdone these days. The Owl? Jigsaw? I guess we will find out soon enough.
The fight scene at the Chinese restaurant with Misty Knight may seem a bit gratuitous and disconnected from the overall plot, but we do not read these things just for the talking heads, do we? It was a fun little fight with some nice choreography. However, I do have a little issue with the implication that the one bad guy died due to some of the shenanigans of Matt. At least based on the art, I do not see how he would have survived. That should be a big deal for Matt if that is the case, and not immediately glossed over and forgotten about.
Marvel(ous) Team Up
Jimmy Palmiotti continues writing duties for this miniseries and, as before, he is doing a solid job. His plotting is complicated without being convoluted, and the characterization of our two leads is spot-on. But then, he goes way back with both of them, so that should not be surprising.
Art duties are once again split between Tommaso Bianchi and Gabriel Guzman, although this time it is a much more clear split. Bianchi handles the first thirteen pages, and Guzman takes the last seven. The story handles this split well, with the pages of Guzman encompassing the portion of the story involving Misty Knight, while Bianchi took care of everything up to then.
The art of Bianchi is a little more to my liking of the two, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with the work of Guzman either. His work just has more of a darker edge to it. Additionally, his version of Matt is twice as scruffy as the version of Bianchi. I blame Charlie Cox for Matt being as perpetually scruffy as he is these days. I get it; he is blind, and it is going to be hard to shave. However, he is also a respected defense attorney, and are they not supposed to have a relatively "clean" look in order to impress the jury? Maybe I am nitpicking a bit on that point, but I do not know.
If You Can’t Take the Heat
This is a really good comic book. It is not revolutionary, and it does not boast that things will never be the same again. It just has a story it wants to tell, and it tells it well. Additionally, knowing that it is a miniseries means that we know it will not get dragged out forever, but has a set beginning, middle, and end. There is a lot to be said for that these days.
Daredevil is easily one of my favorite characters. He has had an utter embarrassment of riches in terms of creative teams over the years. The Punisher is a character that never really connected with me, although I am starting to get a little more of an appreciation for him when he is used properly. If the creative team sticks the landing, this book could fit in with the majority of the great Daredevil runs and not seem out of place. Furthermore, the usage of the Punisher in this book should be made part of the rulebook for whenever someone new goes to write him.
If you are a fan of either character, or you like the more gritty and grounded side of the Marvel Universe, or you just like good comics, you should check this book out. Again, it is not trying to change the world or anything like that. It is just trying to tell a good story. So far, it is succeeding. Three issues are down, and there are two to go. Fingers are crossed that they can stick the landing.