"To the Devil, His Due" (Part 3 of 5)
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artists: Michael Lark & Stefano Gaudiano (p & i), Matt Hollingsworth (colours)
Publisher: Marvel Comics
In this issue of "To the Devil, His Due" Brubaker takes his story to the next level, ratcheting up the tension with a more exciting and thrilling chapter than might be expected from a story at the halfway point. As a mystery villain begins to put the next stage of his master plan into action, Matt finds himself compelled to help Lily Lucca in her plight, and Daredevil is forced to cope with the increasingly unpredictable and violent activities of Melvin Potter, the Gladiator.
If we got a feeling that Brubaker was holding back on the action in previous issues, he really cuts loose here, showcasing Potter's deranged rage with a scene of wanton destruction in a Chinese market. Artistically, it's a perfectly-judged sequence, with Gaudiano and Lark showing just how scary the Gladiator can be when he's unleashed, and flitting back and forth between the past and present to juxtapose Potter's actions with their eventual effects. The visuals convincingly convey the idea that the Gladiator is an unstoppable killing machine with no moral conscience, with one panel in particular - in which Potter coldly walks away from the bloody aftermath - evoking a real sense of evil (I was particularly reminded of the Keyser Söze scenes from Bryan Singer's Usual Suspects). It's also a sequence which works on an emotional level, as although the Gladiator certainly makes for a fearsome villain in a physical sense, the knowledge that he isn't acting in his right mind sets up some more character-based drama for future issues when he finally has to come to terms with what he's done.
A second action sequence sees the Gladiator attack Matt Murdock in his civvies, whilst he's out at a restaurant with his wife. Despite the preponderance of violence in this issue, however, the fighting never seems gratuitous, and the directness of Potter's attacks is far more plausible than the usual monologues and posturing that so often accompanies costumed super-villains. Daredevil is given a visible grace and elegance in his movements which befits his honed fighting style, and the contrast between our hero and the juggernaut that is the Gladiator makes for a dynamic and intense scene. Even scarier than Potter's killing sprees and attacks on Matt, though, is the growing sense that someone is meticulously planning this entire sequence of events as part of a concerted effort to destroy Daredevil. It might be a plot idea which has been seen before in the pages of Daredevil (most notably during Frank Miller's classic Born Again), but Brubaker gives it a paranoid thriller angle which sets it apart from previous storylines, and his use of Matt's wife Milla as a pawn in the unseen villain's game (both in previous issues, and in this installment's cliffhanger) gives it such a personal element that I can't wait to see who Brubaker has lined up as the latest bad guy to be meddling in Matt's life. The knowledge that we're only halfway through Brubaker's strongest arc on the series so far makes me eager to get hold of the next couple of issues as soon as possible - and that's a sure sign of great serial storytelling.
Quieter character moments provide some pause; Foggy Nelson provides a little comic relief as he muses on Matt's luck with the ladies. There is an interesting evolution of the subplot involving the irresistible Lily Lucca, and a classic noir vibe is evoked by Daredevil's rhetorical questioning of one of Melvin's victims as he lies dead in a bloody bathtub. Perhaps Brubaker's new Criminal project is building on his strengths as a straight crime writer even further? Brubaker combines all this with a familiarity and ease which would have you believe that he's been writing Daredevil for years. I love the logical, natural, almost casual use that Brubaker makes of his heightened senses, whether he's tracking down a murder victim by his scent, or predicting that "Lucca's about to walk in." It makes for a book which the usual overused superlatives don't do justice. Simply put, it's one of the best superhero books currently on the stands, and if issue #100 is going to be the landmark issue that it deserves to be, I can't wait to see what Brubaker has planned for the next few issues.
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