Daredevil HC Vol 6, The Murdock Papers

Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev, Marvel 2006

this was bendis' last arc on the book. and i have to say that he fucking topped it off like only he could do. Everything that made this run as great as it was, is here in this last arc. Matt's faith and desire for a healthy relationship. Fisk's position, even from prison, as the scariest, most powerful fucker in New York. Elektra, in her new position as leader of the Hand, still very much in love with Matt. Natasha, ultra-cool, ridiculously sexy, and probably in love with Matt. Even Maria Hill, acting director of S.H.I.E.L.D., and one of my very favorite Bendis creations, makes a perfect appearance. Urich, Foggy, Luke Cage, Agent Del Toro, ooohh and The Night Nurse (i loooovve the Night Nurse). The gang's all here and their voices have never been truer. Oh and a fan-tas-tick rooftop scene, a staple of the series really. If you are not caught up on the Bendis run, please don't pick this up. go get 'em all. every issue is golden. and as a run, they are as good as super-heros get.

Maleev's art is breathtaking. actually breathtaking. your breathing...it stops. light, shadow, weight, texture. all magic. certainly he uses photo reference, but he gives it such a gravity. soaks it with so much ink. masterful, really. along with Dave Stewart's colors. fucking hell, they are all alive. heavy and real. in some kind of saturated way.

so what happens.

the kingpin brings Urich to prison to have him report on Fisk's proposed deal with the fbi; they let him walk and he gives them proof that Murdock is daredevil. he has the feds by the balls. everyone knows it. of course they are gonna deal.

the story hits the press just as matt is in bed with Milla, who has come back saying she's still in love with him. that she freaked out. that she wants to be with him. the absolute worst time right. just like every other thing in this poor bastard's life.

electra is standing in the window in one of those holy-fuck-bendis-moments. holy fuck. there to tell matt of the Murdock Papers and lead him to the evidence against him, which she and only one other person know the location of. they bail and leave milla.

the black widow goes to see maria hill, (who i love more every time we see her), to ask her the favor of making the evidence go away. hill says sorry, its out of her hands. "take it up with Fury" she says.

Cage and Iron Fist grab Foggy before the media trample him.

the new White Tiger, Del Toro, quits the fbi and runs to help dd.

then Bullseye (oh fuck, Bullseye!), the other person who knows where the papers are, shows up and gets his ass kicked by DD and Elektra. then gets hit by a truck!

then BOOM!, the fbi director has Matt sniped by an unknown black book agent in exchange for that agent's clean slate. ho-ly-fuck.

just then fisk says there are no papers! but now they have the gun shot wound. fuck u feds.
Urich snaps, cursing Fisk. awesome.

cut to the night nurses secret med center. elektra calls the hand, danny and luck show up with foggy and widow shows up with milla. up pull the feds. and just before a free for all explodes, Matt staggers out of the med center, healed by hand medicine, wearing his fucking costume! and gives up. "i dont want this fight" he says.

This is how Bendis hands the title over to Brubaker. Are you fucking kidding me? Matt in prison, exposed. Now i've read that they discussed how Bendis would end it before the hand-off. but shee-sus. unbelievable.

i'm exhausted.