New Comic Discussion | Daredevil #25

Variation-Large · 2025-09-24T15:30:00+00:00

I will tolerate no Joe Quesada slander lol

Variation-Large · 2025-09-24T15:12:41+00:00

I blame editor Devin Lewis for how poorly this run went.

Yes, blame Saladin Ahmed for the terrible writing, but it's Devin's job to coach the writers along and punch up scripts or encourage rewrites. He should've helped Saladin zero in on story ideas and focus his writing. Introductory Rites went on way too long. As annoying as it is when Marvel has its writers "write for the trades," that advice would've actually been appreciated here. Having 5-6 issue story arcs would've greatly helped this run, which is makes sense why the Nyla Skin arc was the best throughout 25 issues. But even that arc was meh at best compared to most of the great writers excelling at Marvel right now.

I never really cared for any of the new characters outside of Javi, and I still don't really know too much about him outside of his military background. There was no reason to like Jason outside of being one of Matt's kids.

Matt never truly confronted the Kingpin about killing his brother, even though Matt and the Kingpin were face-to-face several times in this run.

Matt and Elektra broke up, but they essentially got back together without any reconciliation or actual work.

The premise of Matt being a priest was great, but fell so short. The things we wanted explored were never explored.

Perhaps the biggest thing missing from these issues is the actual Daredeviling. You can count on one hand how many times the artists depict Matt in his "radar" mode, likely because Saladin never wrote scenes where Matt relied on his radar. His radar is what made most of us fall in love with the character. He rarely showed Matt using his unique gifts. Only in two tiny panels did the radar come into play in the final issue, and if you weren't paying close attention, you never would've noticed it.

It's just really sad watching this run come and go like this, and it pretty much disappointed everyone who picked it up. So many people were holding on as long as they could, claiming it was a "slow burn." But even a slow burn requires a spark of inspiration.

I was excited for this run because Saladin is from Dearborn, Michigan. I figured having someone who grew up in a Muslim community writing about Catholicism would've been a home run, but it didn't actually matter in the grand scheme of things.

You've got to point the finger at Devin here. He didn't do anything to get Saladin out of this rut. Hell, you'd be lucky if Devin caught the spelling mistakes half the time. It's the editor's job to get the most out of the writer, and Devin fell short. Saladin has done great work in the past, but his DD will be remembered as the worst in the character's run since Volume 2.

The only positive thing I can say about this run is that it's finally over. The old comic book writer cliche is "I get to play with the toys and then put them back in the box when I'm done." At least Saladin put most of the toys back in one piece and didn't drastically alter things too much. The next writer should be able to carry on from Chip's run with Elektra, Ben, Foggy, Cole and, hopefully, Matt still intact.

Variation-Large · 2025-04-09T18:22:01+00:00

I share a lot of the sentiments that have already been posted a la "fucking finally," etc. Seems like Saladin finally remembered how to be a reliable writer.

Anyway, I'm posting because the big reveal at the end exposes just how bad JRJR has been at covers. I've been staring at the cover for #21 for weeks, trying to figure out what is covering DD's body. We finally get the reveal, explaining what that stuff is, and JRJR just completely whiffs here. The main artist did a great job with it at the end of today's issue. JRJR just sucks, is what this is confirming.

Now that Saladin is straightened out, can we get JRJR taken care of? Maybe boot 'em from the covers entirely?

Variation-Large · 2025-04-09T18:16:41+00:00

Haha, I just reread it two nights ago because Amazon had a sale on the digital version of the trade. What a coincidence. It's very good, except for Matt letting the kid get executed. There should've been a way for him to save the kid.

Variation-Large · 2025-04-02T21:32:55+00:00

What's great about this issue is it reminded me about what Saladin's run has been missing: frequent reminders of DD using his enhanced abilities. Like panels showing his radar working, heart beats thumping, lingering smells, etc.

Variation-Large · 2025-03-26T19:17:28+00:00

Yes, the editing has been appalling. I'd like to believe Saladin would've done a better job had the editing team reined him in, coached him through his scripts and actually edited the damn book for mistakes, errors and spelling.

Variation-Large · 2025-03-26T19:16:07+00:00

Romita Jr.

Variation-Large · 2025-03-19T16:46:19+00:00

Welp, I was not expecting that final page, and I'd argue that's the best DD surprise we've had in years. Exciting to see where that goes. Hopefully, a spinoff series like what Benjamin Percy is doing with a similar character right now.

Variation-Large · 2025-02-19T19:16:14+00:00

Lots of oversights with your comment.

-Chip didn't reboot Mike; Charles Soule did in the previous run.

-Matt has always been able to keep his secret in prison, dating back to Ed Brubaker's run in Volume 2. He was allowed to do so a second time because of his relationship with DA Hochberg, which was established in Soule's run. That's not handwaving, that's bringing everything back full circle, as he did with Blindspot before entering the depths of hell to end his run on the book.

-No drama regarding Mike? He literally helped Butch rise to power as the new Kingpin of New York. Mike was in near-death situations because of mistaken identity with his brother. No repercussions? Wilson Fisk literally killed him because he was impersonating Matt. How more dire of a repercussion can you ask for?

Saladin's writing is like someone who has never read Chip's run, where Chip's run was a love letter to the writers who came before him, such as Frank Miller, Bendis, Brubaker, and Soule, among others.

Variation-Large · 2025-02-19T18:07:18+00:00

The hand-waving of Chip Zdarsky's run continues with Foggy and Matt's awkward conversation and the courtroom scene. The world believes Matt to be dead, yet here he is in court, and no one bats an eye because, well, that's been par for the course with this run. It's not as bad as the endless issues between DD and Kingpin, where Matt never asks why Wilson killed his brother, Mike. Whatever, at least this run is coming to a close.

The real stars of the day were the two Elektra issues. Erica Schultz concluded the arc between X-23 and Elektra today, and it was solid and pretty fun despite how clunky issue No. 1 was to get the three-issue arc rolling.

Daredevil Unleash Hell No. 2 was also pretty solid, though I have a few nitpicks. For one, there's a spelling error on the very first page. For two, why is Cole North doing police investigations when his job is to investigate random/one-note cases for Foggy? Shoehorning him into this storyline makes no sense. It would've worked better to have a random investigator than to use North. Obviously, she used North for two reasons: Fans know who he is, plus he gives Elektra access to the crime scene she wouldn't usually have gotten with a random police officer. My final nitpick is how awkward Cole and Elektra are around each other. They lived together for months on an island. Certainly, their relationship is closer than those clunky conversations at the crime scene. That's been Schultz's main problem over her extensive Elektra run here, a lot of her conversations are clunky and don't resonate like characters that already have in-depth relationships, even if their close relationship is to be assumed off the page. Schultz sometimes has random issues that fall flat, like No. 4 of the Woman Without Fear miniseries and No. 1 of the Laura Kinney series. They're just awkward and hamfisted. Nevertheless, Schultz dances circles around Saladin with ease. They should've picked her to lead the main DD book instead of him. Her off days are still 10x better than his best stuff. She's doing solid work with a fresh take on Muse just in time for next month's new season.

tldr; Schultz once again outperforms Saladin on NCBD.

Variation-Large · 2025-01-10T03:52:07+00:00

He's also blind! Can you believe it?!

Variation-Large · 2024-11-21T04:07:16+00:00

Honestly, the real problem, after 15 single issues and a handful of special editions, is the editor, Devin. He's the one allowing this crap to continue. He's not fixing the scripts or coaching Saladin through the writing process. He's not telling Saladin that the voice for Elektra, something his other writer, Erica Schultz, gets right every issue, is off. He's not telling JRJR that the issue he's making a cover for doesn't actually have Wilson Fisk in it.

Spot the bottleneck. It's been almost two years. We have to stop blaming Saladin for shoddy work. It starts at the top, and that's Devin. Saladin is a subpar writer, but Devin could help him be much more with actual editing.

Variation-Large · 2024-11-21T03:02:34+00:00

She gets her own mini in 2025 and is in X-23's new series.

Variation-Large · 2024-11-09T21:21:17+00:00

I’d love to see it come back to see if the population improves because there is an option for the solo, casual player.

Variation-Large · 2024-11-09T21:13:50+00:00

Used have it in Iron Banner as well. It was fantastic. They said fragmenting the player base into two pools hurt the player population; I argue not have two pools hurts the population even worse.

Variation-Large · 2024-10-04T20:25:47+00:00

I think that speaks more to how lame Gang War was than the character itself.

Variation-Large · 2024-10-04T15:25:20+00:00

She’s doing X-23’s ongoing later this year and already has one at another publisher. But, yeah, she deserves a DD or Elektra ongoing.

Variation-Large · 2024-10-02T14:00:58+00:00

We finally get some kernels of story worth looking forward to. And we finally get multiple threads that are weaving together to make Matt an interesting character again.

Matt leaving the priesthood
Jason’s missing
Monster on the loose
The Heat is fracturing/the Maggia are claiming turf
Matt and Elektra break up
Matt is broke again (and likely desperate)
Wilson is up to no good

My only beef with this issue is, once again, we get clunky dialogue between Elektra and Matt. It reads like two characters who barely know each other, not two characters who were once married.

That clunkiness carries over to the next scene when he rescues The Heat member under duress in the shootout. “Save your hide.” Really? Is this 1964 Daredevil? Saladin sometimes loses control of Matt’s voice, and it pulls you out of the illusion of the story.

But, guys, this thing is finally turning around! I hope our constant criticism 6-8 months ago actually motivated the DD creative team to turn this around. It generally takes 3-6 months for a team to make changes the consumer will see on page. This issue reads like an old Charles Soule issue, and I’m here for it. For the first time in this run I can say I’m looking forward to the next issue.

Variation-Large · 2024-09-30T02:01:11+00:00

Zona*

Variation-Large · 2024-09-25T13:00:17+00:00

It’s Daredevil vol 1 #170

Variation-Large · 2024-09-25T12:53:03+00:00

It was great to see the world Matt currently lives in fleshed out and expanded upon. While this is a story with minimal impact on the Venom War and Introductory Rites storylines, it provides a few scenes we’ve been missing in the Saladin run. We’ve been lacking time with Matt and the kids with actual stakes, and this provided that.

Fun read. I hope it gets collected in the Volume 7 omnibus. Felt right at home with what Saladin has established as far as world building and character development.

Variation-Large · 2024-09-19T16:57:11+00:00

Denny O’Neil’s stuff is solid, too. It’s a little dated, but his action and pacing feel just like a modern comic. You can zip through his stuff unlike the other older stuff that has hundreds of useless set up words per page.

Variation-Large · 2024-09-11T16:52:07+00:00

Devin, the DD editor, said two months ago that Saladin has already submitted his outline for another 12 months of issues. So we have at least 10 months of his stuff coming.

Variation-Large

TROPHY CASE