[Comic Book Review] Marvel Comics' DAREDEVIL (2019) #2

PopCultHQ received an advance review copy of DAREDEVIL (2019) #2 from Marvel Comics. Available February 27th, 2019, the creative team for this series features writing from Chip Zdarsky, art from Marco Checchetto, colors by Sunny Gho, and lettering from Clayton Cowles.

Here’s PopCultHQ’s spoiler-free review of…

Daredevil #2 - Main Cover — Daredevil #2 – Main Cover

DAREDEVIL (2019) #2

Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artist: Marco Checchetto
Colorist: Sunny Gho
Letterer: Clayton Cowles

Main Cover Artist: Julian Totino Tedesco

KNOW FEAR.

PopCultHQ’s Comic Book Review:
DAREDEVIL (2019) #2

It looks like Daredevil has made a triumphant return from near-crippling injuries in vain. The clock ticks as Daredevil hunts for clues to clear his name. Accused of murder and hunted by what seems like the entire city.

Writing:

A strong opening issue is requisite in our times of fleeting attention. To steer through the universal praise and produce a tellingly strong second issue is where legitimacy grows. Chip Zdarsky’s fantastic recent work on Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man seems like a high-end warm-up lap compared to what he’s doing with Daredevil. In just two issues, he’s layered rich storytelling and fully-formed characters voiced with distinction to create, what they tout in the book-world as, a page-turner.

This isn’t just hyperbole. The rabid ravings of a manic Daredevil die-hard, fiending after a quality hit. This is the plain and simple truth. In the wake of this week’s Oscars, the storytelling and the quality of writing is on par with being worthy of golden statue glory.

There is a lot going on in what is only the second issue. Police procedural. Mystery. Intrigue. Action. Superpowers. Corruption. Everything you want in a gritty Daredevil tale is in heaty supply. Continued to be told in a fresh voice. The strength of the narrative and the heart-stopping turns will vie for every second of your attention. That is until the final page is turned and you’re forced into the anxious wait for the next installment.

Art:

The acting, the illustrative way that Marco Checchetto uses his characters to perform Zdarsky’s words is just one sublime note in a symphony of great art. The subtle artistic homages continue with Checchetto’s rendering of The Kingpin, recalling John Romita, Jr.’s imposing work from the Man Without Fear limited series.

The character traits that each rendered figure emits, even without words, advocates the leaps and bounds the artist has progressed from in the short time between Old Man Hawkeye to now. Tell me you can’t look at Detective Cole North in every panel and, just by looking, know everything about the character.

Checchetto’s direction, choice of vantage points, camera angles and tight zooms indicate a career in movies could just have easily been the path taken.

His strength in backgrounds is showcased in this issue once again. I can feel the grit of a New York back alley underfoot while reading. I feel I could sneak a glance around any given wall and see a fully realized urban sprawl waiting for me.

The fine details on both character and setting demand a second and third pass over the book, just to admire the intricacies. Even the shadows feel like they have every inch of foreboding darkness wrung out of them in the hands of the artist’s magic touch.

Colors:

Sunny Gho brings depth and dimension, by way of the color spectrum, to the lines of every panel. He has the keen intuition and eye for detail to realize where the reader’s view is from, and colors accordingly. If Checchetto places the camera outside of a window, the colouring is tinged with quiet tones that suggest a layer between the reader and the scene. If we’re watching Daredevil from distant rooftops, the skyline is rendered in muted tones to reflect the time of day, and interrupted by a cacophony of natural effects to infuse the cityscape with a sensory ambience that bows with authenticity. The glow that backlights scenes in churches and mayoral offices give the scenes in which they’re rendered an extra serving of atmosphere. Gho’s digital palette is the perfect partner in crime for Checchetto’s next level art.

Letters:

It’s not just the speed lines and muscles on the figures that tell you exactly how hard a heavy bag is being worked on the opening page. It’s the solid, sizable PAF that confuses your eyeballs into thinking they’re your ears. The sound of DD’s billy club launching into the night air should look comical, offsetting the lone action of the panel. But it’s perfectly aligned to work in sync with the image. The climactic moment, the penultimate act of the issue? You best believe it wouldn’t have the shattering impact it does without the prolific talent of Clayton Cowles.

PopCultHQ’s overall assessment

Firing on all cylinders, the creative team delivers a granite, body blow of an issue that will one day sit as much aside true grit storytelling like Gotham Central, as much as it will co-exist with Garth Ennis’ Punisher and Tom King’s current Batman run. If you aren’t already reading this title, you can either run to your local store and rectify that now or report to confessional and repent. You’re missing out on a quality book.