Bendis' Daredevil Part 11: Wake Up

[cyberghostface]

I didn't post this during this during my initial 'Bendis' Daredevil' series but I figured I would now. It's his first Daredevil story that he did and it was a stand-alone arc that took place before his main run began (there was another writer's arc in between the two). It's considerably different in style and tone than the rest of his work.

As a warning, this story deals with child abuse.

#16...

The story opens with a fight between Daredevil and "The Fury".







Timmy is the son of Leap Frog. (Well, not *the* Leap Frog but another one who took his costume). Leap Frog is missing and Timmy is in a state of catatonia. Ben Urich is trying to find out the story behind it.



Ben Urich runs into Peter Parker on the way out.







#17...





Urich goes to see some detectives about Leap-Frog's disappearance but they haven't bothered to investigate as there's no sign of foul play and they figure that he just skipped town.

He goes to see Matt but his security tells him that he's in court. He later goes to Timmy's school where he asks his friends if they know anything. Apparently Timmy has a poor home life.

Urich goes to see Timmy's teacher next.







18...



The cops look the other way while Urich goes into Timmy's room.









Urich goes on top of the building for Nelson and Murdock and waits for Daredevil to arrive.



#19...

Daredevil tells him that he followed Leap Frog onto an apartment roof. Leap-Frog is able to get the better of him and knocks him out with a lead pipe. When he wakes up Timmy is there but Leap Frog is missing. Daredevil asks him where he is but he doesn't get an answer and it's as if Leap Frog vanished into thin air.

With the help of Timmy's nurse, Urich is able to schedule a meeting between Daredevil and Timmy.





We see Daredevil's fight from Timmy's perspective; Daredevil is knocked out and his father is beating him. He yells at Timmy to go inside or he's next. Timmy picks up a fallen electrical wire.

Comments

[sagrada]

I'd complain about how maudlin, mawkish, blunt and Americanly sentimental this is, but...this is well-done. The way everything comes together, the way the story is told, how the art and dialogue and lettering and colouring and everything just work as a seamless whole...it's remarkable how just being done well elevates this. It's a little too convenient that Timothy's scrawls and crayons convey their subject so clearly and neatly, but that's more than forgivable.

As well, it is nice that for once a victim isn't used to set up a hero being violent, but caring and gentle instead. That the kid of a super-crook isn't either shoved into the spotlight for crude heartstring yanks or to suggest some kind of horrible genetic predestination where they take up the methods of their abuser.

This is well done. Thanks for posting this, cyberghostface.

[glprime]

How well done this, it actually makes me sad that Urich and his family Timmy and the Urich son, aren't given more focus in other books. They'd make for great supporting cast. Que sera sera.

[cyberghostface]

A teenage Timmy appears in 'End of Days' which I'll be posting tomorrow hopefully.

Although nowadays it seems that 90% of new supporting characters are quickly forgotten by ensuing writers or are discarded as soon as possible. See Milla Donovan for example.

[nate_abril96]

I generally liked Brubaker's run, but I will admit that arc, with Mr. Fear, has never made me more angry at a comic book. I don't care how well written it was. I was prepared to throw it across the room, if not for the fact I was reading on my iPad. And don't get me started about Mr. Fear's "punishment." Gross.

[mrstatham]

Yeah, I liked a lot of Bru's run, but the result of that arc just aggravated me to no end. I *know* Brubaker wanted to depict Matt's life going even more off the rails, but.. Yeah. Matt and Milla's link was tenuous enough at times that you could have easily done something to distance her from him than 'irrevocably mentally ill'.

[nate_abril96]

I will admit that I was generally interested in Milla's decaying insanity, and at times it did hit me emotionally (and this is coming from someone who didn't really buy Matt and Milla's relationship during Bendis's run). At the same time, I do kind of agree that what should have been done was to just have her and Matt both agree that it was better for overall her safety to just stay away from him.

[thatnickguy]

Have you ever checked out any other work by artist David Mack? I highly recommend his Kabuki series, for example.

[sagrada]

I did not know that was something that was similarly good, but I will certainly look for it now.