Featuring: Daredevil
Release: February 4, 1965
Cover: April 1965
12 cents
Written by the master of the spoken word: Stan Lee
Drawn by the master of the printed picture: Wally Wood
Lettered by the monster of the blurb balloon: Artie Simek
20 pages
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Interviewed in London about 7 years back, Stan Lee was asked what his favorite story he ever wrote was. At first he claimed they were all his favorites. But after a moment’s reflection, he began to describe a comic he wrote where Daredevil and Sub-Mariner fought. His description contained some inaccuracies; he was 92 at the time and never renowned for his memory. Yet his description of the ending was pretty much spot on.
And in the end the Sub-Mariner went… back to the ocean and he left Daredevil kind of lying exhausted on the sand, and he said something like, “You were a noble competitor…” I enjoyed the way I think I made them both seem heroic, even though they were fighting each other.
Stan Lee, London Film and Comic Con, 2014
Stan Lee wrote hundreds of superhero comics and in many interviews could barely keep any two characters straight. Yet somehow he spoke with a nostalgic fondness about a single moment at the end of this particular story 50 years later, a single page that he did seem to remember rather clearly.
This is Wally Wood’s third issue of Daredevil. Wood is an artist and storyteller on par with Kirby and Ditko, but won’t be at Marvel long enough to leave the same mark on the characters they did. His greatest contribution to the nascent Marvel Universe will be this issue.
Let’s start with the obvious. Right from the cover, we see Daredevil has a new costume. It’s not really that different from a penciler’s perspective than the one he wore last issue. It’s mostly the color scheme that’s changed. The costume is all red now. Fitting for a devil.
And somehow it makes all the difference in the world. From the worst Marvel costume to an iconic look that will be forever associated with the character. This is the look of Daredevil that endures.
Wood puts more detail into the world than either Kirby or Ditko. We’ve never seen Atlantis quite like this in Kirby’s rendering. Kirby drew beautiful and bold and bizarre shapes in Atlantis, but Wood makes it feel full, like there’s a real city there fading into the background. His cityscapes of New York will be equally impressive.
In next month’s Avengers, which we have already read, Namor turns down a request to join the Avengers because he has vowed to conquer the surface world. This story must take place shortly after that encounter, despite being published earlier.
Continue reading “Daredevil #7”
