DAREDEVIL #11
Writer: Charles Soule
Penciler: Ron Garney
Colorist: Matt Milla
Inker: Matt Milla
Letterer: VC’s Clayton Cowles
Price: $3.99
Release Date: September 7, 2016
Plot: Matt Murdock continues to hunt down the illusive creator of the painting made from human blood. The Man Without Fear has to, once again, learn how to juggle life as a district attorney by day and vigilante by night, but with a new eerie villain harming the streets of Hell’s Kitchen.
Story: Daredevil #11 picks up with the mystery of the new artistic killer at large and Matt is attempting to track him down, but he also has to deal with his current job as district attorney. One of the best things about Daredevil is reading along as the character balances his life as an attorney and as a vigilante by night. Yes, every hero has to go through this but Daredevil is unique because his job as an attorney takes up more time at all hours of the day, which has created for some tough decisions that are addressed in this issue.
Matt walked out of a night court case in a previous issue which has led to a confrontation with his boss in Daredevil #11. Despite having the best intentions for leaving his job early, Matt’s in the position where he cannot reveal the truth and believes he will be fired. Soule’s decision to incorporate so much of Matt’s day job helps display the amount of added pressure the character faces and just how many people are relying on him. Matt has a reputation as a lawyer, which is why he was hired, and his boss has been completely unimpressed because of the random variables that always seem to creep into Matt’s cases.
Soule seems to understand that a big part of Daredevil as a character is his job as a lawyer, and he has done a great job with writing the office drama surrounding that. It’s interesting to read along as Matt and Daredevil’s jobs are beginning to come closer and closer to one another.
Everything is currently focused on the new evil artist killer, who is attempting to make a statement with the crimes he commits. While reader’s don’t fully know who the killer is yet, there are so many great side stories that play into the crime. In issue #11 Soule has begun to incorporate the different types of Hell’s Kitchen residents, revealing the multiple ways people view and deal with horrible situations. The art gallery owner wants to keep the painting up, make money off of it and sell it with no emotion towards the fact that people were killed to create it. On the other hand, readers are introduced to city councilwoman Andrea Pearson, whose niece was one of the painter’s victims. Little character inclusions like this really round out a book and give it diversity and depth; readers now have more sides of the story and a larger ability to develop a stance on the plot because Soule incorporates more characters for them to relate to.
Art: The art in Daredevil #11 looks really great and feels like such an appropriate style for the character and book. Artist Ron Garney draws the characters with good details but a unique style that captures the tone of the story. He keeps panels focused on dialogue simplistic in the background with a heavy focus on the characters while also having the ability to create beautiful half or full page panel’s that are important to the story and provide a lot of information.
An interesting aspect of the story is that Matt and best friend Foggy are currently in an uncomfortable place that has the characters more distant to one another than usual. Garney depicts Foggy standing up about to leave while Matt stays sitting, which speaks loads about the current state of their relationship because Foggy is the one ready to just leave their meeting and walk away from it all. Matt Milla also really shows off his color and inking ability by shrouding Matt and Foggy in all black because it again it shows the severity of their problems.
The art in this book has really been stunning and the different types of scenes have all been drawn and inked near perfectly. While the office and dialogue driven scenes have been drawn with a focus on the characters, the fighting sequences have been very creative. Garney and Milla keep everything simplistic which makes it look cool while getting the point across in a style similar to what David Aja did in Hawkeye. Although there is only a small portion of action in this issue, it looks great in the silhouettes minimalistic style.
Garney and Milla have been using different techniques and styles depending on the scene, which is unique and works really well for Daredevil. The majority of the drawing has a grainy texture overlaying the scenes that adds a subtle but cool look to the entire issue. It almost seems to echo the idea that Matt is blind and the double meaning behind no scene being perfectly smooth, but having a texture.
Verdict: Daredevil is another hit for Charles Soule who continues to display he is a fantastic writer that understands the core behind the characters that he writes. There is a great balance of mystery, action and drama in this book that should have readers returning each issue. The story reveals itself a little more with each issue that delivers some great reveals while creating bigger questions. On top of everything, the art feels appropriate and looks phenomenal which only adds to the suspense and reveals of important moments.