DAREDEVIL BY MARK WAID OMNIBUS VOL.1
Writer: Mark Waid w/Greg Rucka
Artists: Marcos Martin, Paolo Rivera, Chris Samnee, Joe Rivera, Marco Checchetto & Khoi Pham
Colorists: Javier Rodriguez
Letter: Joe Caramagna
Publisher: Marvel
Rating: 8.5/10
With the news that Diamond comics won't be shipping any more single issues from today, god knows for how long, I thought it would be cool to focus more on older trades and hardcovers/omnis, something I already did more than collect floppies.
This is a major hit for the comic book industry and now the comic stores need us more than ever. You can't get that newest title or series you have on your pull list from them at the moment, but there are so many great collected comics out there you can get to support your local comic store.
I want to highlight one of them right now. Normally one of Marvels darkest characters, with character defining runs by Frank Miller, Ed Brubaker, Kevin Smith and Brian Michael Bendis, who all put Daredevil through the wringer, comes a surprising lighthearted run by Mark Waid. Don't get me wrong, I love the dark and broody stuff a lot, but in these dark times it's nice to read something light. Mark Waid can also be pretty dark, check his DC classic Kingdome Come or one of Marvel's better crossovers Age of Apocalypse for that, but we are here to talk about the man without fear!
This first omnibus by Waid focuses much more on fast, fun, and shorter paced story arcs with lots of action, taking Matt Murdock back to the classic Stan Lee era instead of the more dark and gritty overlapping longer story arcs from Bendis and Brubaker. DD never had the most brilliant rogue gallery that lets say Spider-Man or Batman has, and Waid used that in such a great way making fun of odd villains like Stilt-Man and Owl but also bringing back old skool villains like The Spot and Kirigi, and also creating new ones like Coyote. Not the most well known characters but done so well, making this in multiple ways a very refreshing take on the devil from Hell's Kitchen.
One of the best things about this run are the artists, who all knock it out of the park ! Marcos Martin, Paolo Rivera and later on Chris Samnee who remains the main artist later one, and with very bright and very vivid colors from Javier Rodriguez this book is popping ! I thought I would never say this but after artists like Klaus Janson, Michael Lark and Alex Maleev I thought Daredevil would never look better. But boy was I wrong. How they depict Matt's radar sense is picture perfect, and I guess the new standard in a way.
This omnibus is very close to perfection with the great binding and collected in two omnis not too big to read, making this a must for Marvelites and Daredevil fans alike.