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daresplaining · 5 years

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Who are your favourite DD villains? Fisk, Bullseye and Mr Fear all sound brilliant from what I know of them, but are there any others with similarly iconic influence on Matt?

There are! Daredevil comics aren’t known for their well-crafted villains to the extent that, say, Spider-Man or Batman comics are, but I really enjoy a lot of Matt’s rogues gallery. Fisk and Bullseye are probably the two biggest names, but there are many others who have had major impacts on his life, and the Marvel Universe in general, over the years. Here are some of the most notable DD villains, in my opinion:

Gladiator (Melvin Potter) is a major antagonist who, over the years has become arguably one of the most nuanced and interesting Daredevil characters. I wrote a longer post about him, way back when we thought we might actually get a Gladiator origin story in the Netflix show, but in general, a lot of his lasting appeal comes from the complexity of his character. When he was first introduced in Daredevil vol. 1 #18 he was a pretty standard Silver Age villain: a guy with semi-logical origin story, a funky costume, and a penchant for monologuing. Specifically, Melvin Potter was the owner of a costume store who was sick of being disrespected by his customers, and so decided to make a name for himself by attacking people with spinning blades.

[ID: A panel from Lee’s Daredevil run. Daredevil is battling the Gladiator. Daredevil hoists himself up on a big crate to dodge one of the Gladiator’s spinning wrist blades.]

Matt: “He’s not fooling with those wrist blades… he’s fighting for real! But, why? I’m certain I’ve never met him before!”

Melvin: “You can’t keep dodging me forever! And the moment you slip, you shall have the honor of being my first victim!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #18 by Stan Lee, John Romita, and Sam Rosen

Over the years, various writers have worked hard to add nuance to his character. Despite his fearsome appearance and goal of gaining respect, most early Gladiator stories involve Melvin being manipulated by stronger, smarter supervillains. Later, he becomes even more sympathetic: a dangerous killer who, at heart, is gentle and naive and hates when he loses control and hurts people. This creates an inherent discord in his character that adds an emotional hook to all of his stories. Matt tries to help him, and Melvin is grateful for Matt’s friendship and returns that favor when he can, but sometimes they end up having to fight each other. Essentially, Melvin’s story is the relentless tragedy of a man who wants to live a peaceful life but keeps falling victim to his own demons and the cruelty of the world around him.

[ID: A page from Miller’s Daredevil run. Matt Murdock, in civvies (a tan suit and blue tie) confronts Melvin Potter, who is in a prison uniform and holding his Gladiator helmet.]

Matt: “Melvin, we’ve come so far. I know how much you want to be well… to go straight. We can help you, Betsy and I.”

Melvin: “I been trying, Matt. I been sitting in that courtroom, listening to them say those things about me, feeling my guts churn up, wanting to rip them all to pieces… They hate me. They all hate me… so I’m gonna hate them back!”

Matt: “I’m not letting you off that easy. If you want to become the Gladiator again, you’ll have to get past me.”

Melvin: “Past you?! Look at you– you’re just a skinny little blind guy! I’d break you in half! It’d be easy…”

Matt: “Is that what you want?”

Melvin: “Why not? I’m the Gladiator! The Gladiator! When I’m wearing my armor, I’m unbeatable, I’m…”

[ID: Melvin throws the helmet and falls to his knees.]

Melvin: “I’m all alone. Help me… please…”

Daredevil vol. 1 #173 by Frank Miller, Klaus Janson, and Glynis Wein

This complicated and heartwrenching characterization has helped Melvin to remain a fresh and popular antagonist (anti-hero, even) and a regular guest in Daredevil. He is one of several characters who complicates the hero/villain dichotomy, and thereby both emphasizes and challenges Matt’s own heroism.

Typhoid Mary/Mary Walker is another one of the more famous Daredevil villains, and someone who has had a significant impact on Matt’s story over the years. I wrote a longer post on her as well. Female antagonists in particular seem to suffer from a variety of weaknesses in their depictions, and Typhoid– as a sexual character by nature, as well as someone who plays upon “crazy” villain tropes– has had her share of not great depictions over the years. However, at her core, she is a wonderfully compelling character and a dangerous villain who is literally multifaceted by design. Even moreso than Melvin Potter, Mary plays upon the concept of a good person who is powerless to prevent themself from doing violent things– in Mary’s case, through genuinely having multiple psyches inhabiting one body. She is in constant conflict with herself, as gentle Mary and bloodthirsty Typhoid battle for dominance. As much as she is an antagonist to Matt and the other heroes whose paths she crosses, she is her own arch-enemy.

[ID: An excerpt from Nocenti’s Daredevil run. Typhoid Mary and Daredevil are both underwater, in the East River. Mary looked panicked partway through strangling Daredevil, and flees out of the water.]

Mary/Typhoid: “Don’t kill him! You! Shut up! I love him! Stop! Get out of my head! You can’t kill him! Get out of my head! Oh, god! Where am I? Why am I dressed like this? What have I done?!”

Matt: “Curious. That’s a completely different woman running away! What came over her?”

Daredevil vol. 1 #256 by Ann Nocenti, John Romita Jr., and Christie Scheele

Matt’s dealings with Mary have brought about some of the more unheroic moments in his career. In Joe Kelly’s attempt to integrate the Man Without Fear-verse origin story into the 616 universe, he proposed that Matt nearly killed Mary on his first superhero outing. When Typhoid, in her introductory arc, is hired to seduce Matt, it works– he cheats on Karen with her. Later, when attempting to bring down the Kingpin’s empire, Matt removes Mary from the equation by sleeping with her to get her guard down and then forging documents to have her locked away in a psychiatric hospital. She hits all of his weak points: as Mary, she is a victim who needs rescuing… and an attractive one at that. As Typhoid, she is a dangerous enemy who must be stopped. In addition to her skill with weapons, she has all kinds of awesome psychic powers– including, most notably, pyrokinesis– and something about her physiology messes with Matt’s senses and makes her difficult to fight. She is a challenge on every level, and in many ways, Matt serves the same purpose for her– Mary (and, arguably, Typhoid as well) accidentally falls in love with him, representing a loss of power and control that she can’t stand.

[ID: Excerpt from Nocenti’s Daredevil run. A series of panels alternating between Daredevil falling off a bridge and a tear sliding down Typhoid Mary’s cheek.]

Daredevil vol. 1 #260 by Ann Nocenti, John Romita Jr., and Christie Scheele

The Hand I love the Hand– which is to say, I love the Chaste, and part of why I love the Chaste is because I love their rivalry with the Hand. On some levels, the Hand are your standard Big Bad Secret Organization, but I also find them to be a lot of fun, and they have been a significant force in Daredevil comics since they were introduced. The Hand are key players in Miller’s updated version of Matt’s origin, which introduced Stick and gave him a purpose for training Matt. They also had a huge role in Elektra’s origin, since her attempt to singlehandedly bring them down from the inside led to her becoming an assassin. And of course, Matt’s role as leader of the Hand and temporary vessel for their patron demon, the Beast, was a defining moment in recent DD comics and a low point of Matt’s career. The Hand are dangerous because they are vast, and their high-ranking members have all kinds of cool powers, which I love. And there’s also a certain amount of weakness and dysfunction to the Hand that makes them appealing. They are a once-great organization relegated to being mercenaries-for-hire. Their low-ranking members are fairly weak– as Matt quips in Volume 1 #380, “a little harsh language and [they’re] up in smoke!” They were led by a Skrull (disguised as Elektra) for a while, and didn’t even notice. Arguably their most dangerous enemy, Master Izo, mostly just bothers them with Hand puns.

[ID: A panel from Diggle’s Daredevil run. Daredevil, seen from the back, is standing in an empty room. The light from the sunset streams in through the windows. Izo is sitting behind him on the floor, drinking tea.]

Matt: “Look, you wanted me leading the Hand, you got it… but I never agreed to be your puppet.”

Izo: “‘Hand puppet.’ Heh.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #503 by Andy Diggle, Roberto De La Torre, Marco Checchetto, and Matt Hollingsworth

I also enjoy the way the Hand and the Chaste operate and Matt’s relationship with them. Matt isn’t an official member of the Chaste (like Elektra, he was rejected for being too emotional– which, in his case at least, is a fair assessment) but he still teams up with them on occasion, and the experience almost always puts him out of his depth in really entertaining ways. Matt is one of the Hand’s biggest enemies and one of the Chaste’s most useful allies, so he gets dragged into their business even when he doesn’t want to be involved.

[ID: Excerpt from Daredevil: Ninja. A conversation between Daredevil and Stone in a series of face close-ups.]

Stone: “We need your help.”

Matt: “You should have asked me to come.”

Stone: “Would you have?”

Matt: “I hate this ninja crap. I hate it. Every single time it’s nothing but lies, half-truths, and misguided loyalties. Stay away from me and my life.”

Daredevil: Ninja #2 by Brian Michael Bendis, Rob Haynes, and David Self

There are also two excellent (and, I’d say, influential) alternate universes in which Matt joins the Hand and thrives in their presence: What If? Daredevil vs. Elektra and Earth-65 (Spider-Gwen-verse).

Lady Bullseye (Maki Matsumoto) And if we’re discussing the Hand and the Chaste, I have to mention Maki– undisputed head of the Bullseye Fan Club and another of my favorite Daredevil villains. She’s relatively new (she was introduced during Brubaker’s run) and so hasn’t had a particularly big long-term influence on Matt, but she is a great character with extensive connections to Daredevil history. One thing I love about her is the fact that while she modeled her look and identity on Bullseye, she isn’t treated as just female version of him, as her name might suggest. They actually have very little in common; she just chose to honor Bullseye because he played a role in her origin story by indirectly rescuing her from a human trafficking ring.

[ID: Panels from Brubaker’s Daredevil run. Bullseye is single-handedly beating up a bunch of gun-toting mobsters in a warehouse building. Maki Matsumoto watches him between the bars of a large cage.]

Caption: “She remembers that so vividly. Remembers the joy she beheld that day from her cage. She had never seen anything so beautiful, she thought. Of course, she was nearly insane already by then. But then, like a miracle… freedom.”

[ID: Maki reaches between the bars of the cage and grabs a key from a dead mobster’s pocket. As she tries to escape, another mobster runs toward her.]

Man: “You– back in your cage, girl!”

Maki: “I think not.”

[ID: Without looking at him, she slices his throat with the key.]

Daredevil vol. 2 #111 by Ed Brubaker, Clay Mann, and Matt Hollingsworth

Since then, Maki has teamed up with Bullseye– mostly notably, resurrecting and caring for him after his death in “Shadowland”– but more often, she operates on her own as an assassin. Like both Elektra and Matt, she was trained by the Hand and the Chaste without forming an official allegiance with either, and it seems her primary teacher was Master Izo– thus making her Matt and Elektra’s ninja aunt and/or sister in the Chaste Family Tree that definitely exists in my head and nowhere else.

[ID: Excerpt from Brubaker’s Daredevil run. Lady Bullseye and Izo are standing on a Manhattan rooftop as the sky brightens behind them. Pigeons are flocking around them; Izo has one perched on his hand.]

Maki: “You said I would lead the Hand.”

Izo: “I said a lot of things when I was training you, girl… Said whatever I needed to say.”

Maki: “You’re as bad as them.”

Izo: “No. I didn’t put you in a cage and sell you to the Yakuza.”

Maki: “You still used me.”

Izo: “Yes, I did… but I’m not going to apologize.”

Maki: “Someday I’ll kill you for this. You know that, right?”

[ID: Izo leaps off the roof.]

Izo: “Yeah, well… get in line.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #500 by Ed Brubaker, Michael Lark, Stefano Gaudiano, Matt Hollingsworth, et al.

Maki masterminds the destruction of Matt’s life that leads him to join the Hand. She is extremely smart (she passes herself off as a lawyer during Brubaker’s run and fools both Matt and Foggy; as far as anyone knows, she might actually have a law degree…?), an excellent fighter (arguably better than Matt, not quite as good as Elektra), an absolute badass, and an all-around great antagonist who deserves her own solo series (hint, hint, Marvel).

Death-Stalker I’m not sure Death-Stalker counts as a major Daredevil villain, but he was used about once a week in late 70s Daredevil so he’s certainly been a recurring presence. I also just find him really cool, conceptually. One of the interesting things about Death-Stalker is that he started his existence as a completely different supervillain: the Exterminator, who is best known for “killing” Mike Murdock! The Exterminator had a weapon that could shift its victims out of sync with the time-stream. When Matt blows it up to fake Mike’s death, the Exterminator is caught in the blast, with shocking consequences:

[ID: Excerpt from McKenzie’s Daredevil run. A series of flashback panels: the Exterminator (a kind of goofy-looking villain with a purple and white costume and blue antennae on the side of his mask) watching Daredevil pull a lever, then the Exterminator getting caught in an explosion and falling into a void.]

Death-Stalker: “How many long and empty years has it been, Murdock? How many… since you so callously destroyed my awesome Time-Displacement Ray… catching me fully in the time-shattering explosion?! How long has it been since I was hurled through the fabric of time? But what you believed to be my death proved instead a macabre rebirth! I found myself in a timeless limbo! Unobserved, I could go anywhere! Do anything!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #158 by Roger McKenzie, Frank Miller, and George Roussos

Thus, the Exterminator returns years later as Death-Stalker– a villain who can move freely through time and space, become intangible at will, and whose mere touch is lethal. This, combined with his new appearance (glowing eyes, bony hands, huge billowy cape…) makes for an excellent creepy character concept, and some of the Death Stalker issues feel more like horror stories than the typical Daredevil comic.

[ID: Excerpt from Gerber’s Daredevil run. A tired Daredevil is making his way through a swamp. Death-Stalker appears behind him out of the fog and puts a skeletal white hand on his shoulder. Daredevil collapses.]

Matt: “H-he’s gone! Nothing but an empty cape! It’s not possible! It– where did he go?!”

Death-Stalker: “Here, Daredevil. I am here. Death is at your back.”

Matt: “Huh? Wha– No!! My… shoulder… your fingers… like ice–!”

Death-Stalker: “Like death, Daredevil. Like the grim, glacial embrace of the North Wind. No use to flee… you can’t outrun the wind.”

Caption: “For Daredevil, for this sightless adventurer, all the world is blackness, all the time. But now, a different kind of darkness envelopes him, a sort of oblivion he has never known before. He hears his heartbeat slow… feels his mind empty of all thought… feel his every nerve tingle, then go numb… and he knows that he is… dying. And that is all he knows when the darkness claims him and the Death-Stalker relaxes his grip.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #114 by Steve Gerber, Bob Brown, and Stan G.

Sadly, though, I don’t feel he was ever used to his full skin-crawling potential, particularly considering how dangerous his power-set was. He was mostly just a nuisance who rarely got the upper hand, and he was killed in Daredevil #158 when he accidentally materialized through a tombstone during a fight with Matt. One of my favorite details about Death-Stalker isn’t Death-Stalker himself– it’s that his mother lived in a booby-trapped mansion and owned an army of exploding robotic children that she sicced on Matt to avenge her son’s death. But that’s a story for another post…

Jester (Jonathan Powers) The Jester gets no respect, and it’s a shame because he’s both genuinely a great villain when he’s used well and highly entertaining when his 1960s goofiness is played up, and he manages to embody both of those characterizations with absolute panache. He has played a role in some fairly major Daredevil stories over the years and I’d consider him a staple DD villain. His origin story is pure Silver Age silliness: he was an actor who received bad reviews for his first major starring role, found his career heading downhill, and so decided to become a supervillain instead. This is pretty typical of motivations for villains of this time period (see the Gladiator’s origin story above, and Stilt-Man below), but even this aspect of his character has been put to good use. Daredevil #218 features a surprisingly touching story of the Jester stealing the chance to reprise that first starring role– and of Matt keeping the cops distracted (by pretending to be the Jester!) so that his enemy can finally live his dream.

[ID: Excerpt from O’Neil’s Daredevil run. The Jester is dressed as Cyrano de Bergerac. He pulls off his false nose and bows dramatically to Daredevil and the cops who have come to take him in.]

Jester: “A moment ago you unmasked. Now I shall perform a similar gesture… I am your humble and obedient servant… the Jester! At your service!”

Matt: “You deserve the bow. You were magnificent.”

Jester: “Indeed! I trust the critics will change their tune.”

Daredevil vol. 1 #218 by Denny O’Neil, Sal Buscema, and Christie Scheele

Throughout the issue, Matt draws comparisons between himself and the Jester: their shared mask-wearing and the experiences of disillusionment that shaped their lives– and while it certainly doesn’t give the Jester the emotional depth of certain other Daredevil villains, it’s a memorable connection.

But where the Jester is at his most dangerous is not as an actor looking for attention– it’s as a creator of chaos. The Jester is a master of illusions and media manipulation. In his introductory arc, he frames Daredevil for his murder and turns Matt into a wanted criminal. Later, he uses a campaign of false news reports and misinformation to sabotage Foggy’s run for District Attorney, turn the superhero community into targets, and throw the whole country into an uproar. Most recently, in Waid’s run, he manipulated TV footage to cause rioting in NYC in the wake of an unpopular and highly publicized court ruling. His plans don’t always succeed, but even then, the scope and effectiveness of the damage he causes makes him a truly formidable villain.

[ID: Excerpt from Waid’s Daredevil run. The Jester is sitting in front of computer monitors in a dark room, yelling into a microphone. In the next panel, we see random civilians in a cafe, watching “Mayor Jameson” (played by the Jester) on TV.]

Jester: “Listen to him. God, he’s so smug. No matter. This is a minor setback. Daredevil’s not the ultimate target, after all. The city’s the target, and it’ll burn. Voice synthesizer on… People of New York… this is Mayor Jameson! Effective immediately, I am rescinding all handgun regulations in Manhattan! Take up arms– for your own protection– and await further instructions!”

Daredevil vol. 3 #32 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Javier Rodriguez

The Owl (Leland Owlsley) The Owl has, unfortunately, been overshadowed by the Kingpin for most of his existence, and as such, hasn’t been given anywhere near the same amount of character development or nuance. They were created based on the same character concept: a high-powered mobster with a shadowy network of pawns who controls the city’s criminal underworld.

[ID: A series of panels from Lee’s Daredevil run, showing a man in a long green coat and brimmed hat walking into an office building. His face is not shown; the people he passes looked at him with fear.]

Caption: “This is Wall Street, heart of New York’s Financial District, where fortunes are made and lost by the world’s greatest financial wizards! And, within the canyons of this street, we are about to find one certain man… a merciless man… a man with no friends… no loved ones… nothing to connect him with the human race, save the fact of his birth! Let us follow this man… let us study him as he walks into a towering office building, his heavy footsteps reverberating through the huge marble lobby! For we shall see much of this man on the pages that follow… He walks slowly, but with a sure, steady tread… looking neither to the right nor the left… ignoring those he passes and those who pass him! But he himself cannot readily be ignored by others! His very presence seems so fraught with evil, with menace, that his fellow humans shrink back from the mere sight of him! There are some who recognize him… who speak his name in whispers… for his wealth is said to be legendary, and his power almost beyond measure!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #3 by Stan Lee, Joe Orlando, and Sam Rosen

Unfortunately, the Kingpin just ended up doing it better, and while there are a few Owl story arcs that I really like, I’ve never found him that interesting. However, he is hugely significant because he was the very first Daredevil supervillain, introduced all the way back in Daredevil #3! (In #1 Matt fights the mobsters who killed his father, and in #2 he fights Electro, who is a Spider-Man rogue.) Thus, he has had an impact on Matt’s life simply from having been around for so long. This also means there’s a huge range in his stories, verging from extremely ridiculous (he sometimes eats rats, and used to own an owl-shaped airplane. How cool is that?) to slightly more grounded. There is a great Owl story arc in which his bird-like body modifications start killing him, which gives his law-breaking more nuance, because he is doing it to look for a cure. Matt, upon discovering this, tries to help him.

[ID: Excerpt from Chichester’s Daredevil run. Daredevil and the Owl are on a fire escape together. The Owl has metal cybernetic legs and has collapsed. Daredevil is comforting him.]

Matt: “You’re going to make it, hear me? You’re gonna–”

Owlsley: “You should’ve let me…”

Matt: “Unh-uh. You take my hand– you’re willing to take my hand– I don’t let go. You’ve got some long ways to go, mister… but you can count on me…”

Daredevil vol. 1 #303 by D.G. Chichester, M.C. Wyman, and Christie Scheele

There’s also great point in Bendis’s run when the Owl, in a surprising demonstration of cleverness, hires a lawyer to sue Daredevil for breaking and entering. It doesn’t work, but it throws Matt off and is absolutely priceless.

The Owl has also had several children– two unnamed young kids who were introduced in Alias, and Jubula Pride, who was introduced in Daredevil Volume 4 and worked alongside Matt to rescue her father. Jubula’s brief-but-memorable appearance added a bit more depth to the Owl– allowing us to see him in the role of a parent as well as a villain. But mostly, over the years the Owl has remained one of the more insidious of New York’s mob bosses, always scheming to stay in power and fight his way out of the Kingpin’s shadow. And he’s been doing it for so long that he feels like an integral part of Daredevil comics.

Turk Barrett He’s not a costumed supervillain or even much of a threat, but Turk has become an iconic Daredevil antagonist for both his sheer ineptitude and his plucky ability to stay alive. Of all of the recurring low-level mobster characters, he has the most engaging personality, and his dynamic with Matt is one of long-held friendly animosity. Daredevil isn’t the most dangerous person in Turk’s life, Turk isn’t the most dangerous person in Matt’s life, so they mostly just annoy each other. They’ve even been known to team up, when Turk thinks the odds of survival are in his favor.

[ID: Excerpt from Daredevil: Love and War. Turk Barrett (dressed in a white shirt and blue pants) is mopping the inside of an elevator. The doors open, and Daredevil walks in. They ride the elevator together.]

Matt: “Turk! You got the job!”

Turk: “No, man… this… I mean, I’m working undercover, man… I’m your backup!”

Matt: “I believe you, Turk.”

Turk: “Even know what level the doc’s on, man… So how’d you get in, Devil?”

Matt: “I flew in, Turk.”

Turk: “…Course. I knew that. ‘Spose the window locks weren’t much trouble…”

Matt: “Melted them with my heat vision.”

Daredevil: Love and War by Frank Miller and Bill Sienkiewicz

Turk is an underdog. He’s kind of a goof and he’s certainly a criminal, but he’s also a small fish in a big and dangerous pond, working in a career where most people eventually end up at the bottom of the East River in concrete shoes (or a taxi, as the case may be). He’s slippery and resourceful, he stays just harmless enough to keep himself out of danger, and you can’t help but root for him, even when he does dumb things like stealing Stilt-Man’s stilts or trying to kill Daredevil for the hundredth unsuccessful time.

Stilt-Man (Wilbur Day), of course, requires no introduction. He is another personal favorite of mine, and a rare case of a goofy Silver Age villain surviving into the modern era while remaining exactly as goofy as he was when first introduced. The great appeal of Stilt-Man is, in fact, that he’s a bit of a joke, while at the same time being quite dangerous, in a comic book physics-kind of way.

[ID: Excerpt from Lee’s run. Daredevil is battling Stilt-Man on a daytime city street.]

Wilbur: “Hah! You missed!! Have you forgotten so soon how easily I can change my height, thanks to my magnificent hydraulically-operated stilts?!!”

Matt: “Mebbe so! But I haven’t forgotten that I’m the gent who whumped you good last time fought! (Man! It sure is lucky I was here! If Stilt-Man ever managed to get the Leap-Frog safely away, what a team those two would make! But, I hear the boys in blue hauling that human jumping jack right now! Which means Stilty and I can go it alone!) Heads up, dad! It’s time for fun ‘n games again!”

Wilbur: “Hah! Didn’t expect me to seize your cable, did you? I should have warned you, little man– I’ve modified my protective armor in such a way as to double my strength! Which means I’m more than a match for your limited talents!!”

Daredevil vol. 1 #26 by Stan Lee, Gene Colan, and Artie Simek

Part of the charm of this characterization is the fact that he’s a joke in-universe as well; most of his appearances in modern comics consist of Stilt-Man being made fun of and/or of the audience being reminded that he’s actually a threat. This creates a great balance in his depictions; the jokes are fun, the sight of various superheroes being beaten up (at least a little) by Stilt-Man is fun, and he remains an enjoyable, mostly lighthearted presence in a landscape that has become dominated by Dark, Serious, and Disturbing villains.

[ID: Excerpt from Bendis’s Daredevil run. Matt is sitting at his desk in his darkened office, talking to Wilbur Day– a short, bald guy in a black jacket, with his arm in a sling.]

Wilbur: “Wilbur Day– I’m Stilt-Man. We’ve met four hundred times.”

Matt: “Stilt-Man– Huh. Oh, you mean that burglar guy Stilt-Man? Who wears the stilts and robs things?”

Wilbur: “Can we please just–”

Matt: “We’ve met when?”

Wilbur: “I–”

Matt: “Are you in some kind of legal trouble? Is that why you’re here?”

Wilbur: “Okay, fine.”

Daredevil vol. 2 #41 by Brian Michael Bendis, Alex Maleev, and Matt Hollingsworth

Stilt-Man is just a short guy in a ridiculous outfit who wants to commit some crimes and get a little respect– and really, who can’t relate to that?

Ikari (???) I’m mentioning Ikari not because he’s a long-established Daredevil villain– he’s not– but because I am fascinated by his potential. He’s a favorite of mine as much for what we don’t know as for what we do. In his introductory arc, we learn this: He was engineered/commissioned by Bullseye to kill Matt, his fighting abilities equal Matt’s, he has hypersenses, and (as a horrified Matt discovers later) he can also see.

Ikari: “Someone has, in fact, managed to re-create the toxic chemicals that blinded you, gave you enhanced senses. Someone whose hate for you keeps him alive. But he didn’t waste the process on weak, malnourished vagrants. He used it to baptize a warrior. A fighter trained to be every bit your equal in skill– and now, in power.”

Daredevil vol. 3 #25 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Javier Rodriguez

And that’s it. We don’t know who he is or where he came from, or what the consequences are of having that degree of sensory perception (presumably his vision is heightened too?). We don’t know what his personal goals or motivations are, since we’ve only ever seen him as a pawn– first of Bullseye and then, later, of the Kingpin. But the concept of his character as someone who shares Matt’s powers plus some– who is essentially, skills-wise, a criminal version of Matt– and all the mystery that surrounds him, is hugely compelling to me.

[ID: Excerpt from Waid’s Daredevil run. Both Ikari and Daredevil are out on the street, being shot at by cops. As Daredevil hides behind a parked car, Ikari attacks the cops and cuts their guns in half with his blades.]

Matt: “The cops are hunting me under an open-fire command. Presuming they’ve been advised of Ikari’s prison break, I’m sure the same order applies to him. I wish it scared him. I wish anything did.”

Daredevil vol. 4 #17 by Mark Waid, Chris Samnee, and Matt Wilson

In his last appearance he was killed by the Shroud, but his body was stolen, leaving the door open for him to maybe return sometime in the future and receive more development. I hope he does.

#soulfireinc #Gladiator #Typhoid Mary #The Hand #Lady Bullseye #Death Stalker #Jester #Owl #Turk Barrett #Stilt Man #Ikari #Asks #Adventures in Continuity

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partysan · 7 years

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An adult glamping version of a festival away from the Springbreak Party Islands in Croatia with an extraordinary program of yoga, lectures, workshops, sport and music.

Sounds great – that’s what we wanted to see.

Obonjan is a 1.5 km long island on the Dalmatian coast, about 6 km before Šibenik. Originally conceived as an “island of youth” for boy scouts, the island is very beautiful and really serves all clichés of the Adriatic: turquoise-blue water, pine and olive trees, beaches and the obligatory background sound system for cicadas. With a small ferryboat you can reach the island about one hour from Šibenik harbour. In the 1950s, the scouts left behind a complete infrastructure of ports, houses and streets. All beautifully ingrown and a little wild. In 2016 the island was renovated by a Croatian/English event agency, partly rebuilt and put back into operation.

On the island there are tents for about 500 guests, divided into two categories. The tents are new and of high quality, equipped with AirCon and in the category “Forest Lodge” even with refrigerator, toilet and shower. For the tents of the “Bell Tent” category there are sanitary facilities available as on a camping site. All the public buildings we saw were in order, some of them new or renovated and clean.

Obonjan offers two restaurants and three food stalls (pizza, burgers, curry) for catering. In the big restaurant “The Kitchen” on the highest point of the island there is a breakfast buffet and a large seawater pool. The small restaurant “BOK” at the harbour opens at noon and serves mainly seafood. And then there is a small “Green Bar” which offers tea, smoothies and allegedly veggie / veganes food, but during our one-week visit the bar was mostly empty.

At the harbour there is a bar all day long which is played by DJs in the afternoon and in the evening. At events, parties or concerts there are more bars at the amphitheatre and at the open-air club. Then there is the “Zen-Den”, a wellness, massage and yoga temple and a pavilion for all kinds of events.

The seasonal programme is dedicated and of high quality. Every week a label, publisher, promoter, agency or other organisation takes care of the work. The curator brings together bands, DJs, performers, artists, trainers, coaches, etc. and brings the associated followers to the island. An interesting concept that reads itself thrillingly and holds many surprises and discoveries ready.

Here is an overview of the 2017 programme

[toggler title=”Curators” ] Gilles Peterson and Worldwide FM, Wanderlust, Electric Elephant, The Numinous, Late Night Tales, Hunger, The Hoxton, Unit 44, Supersoul, Fashion Revolution, Visual Fodder, Wildfitness, R&S Records , Ernest Journal, Secret Yoga Club, Gottwood, SHE, Phonica, She’s Lost Control, Soul & Surf, Creative Social, Refinery, Switch On, Serenebook, East of Eden, Yogarise, Your Space Berlin, and Yoga Hero.[/toggler]

[toggler title=”Tune-In – Music” ] Daniel Avery, Dave Maclean (Django Django), Flamingods, Garden City Movement, Gerd Janson, Gilles Peterson, Hercules and Love Affair, Horse Meat Disco, Jack Savidge (Friendly Fires), Jordan Rakei, Josefin Öhrn, Justin Robertson, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Khraungbin, Low Life (Bill Brewster & Frank Broughton), Man Power, Midland, Mister Saturday Night, Norman Jay MBE, Phaeleh, Prosumer, Ray Mang, Roy Ayers, and Sean Johnston.[/toggler]

[toggler title=”Explore – Talks + Workshops” ] Daniel Pinchbeck, Patternity, Laraaji, John Higgs, Lisa Luxx, Anthony Peake, Sam Bompas, David Bramwell, The Wild Swimming Brothers, Nick Jankel, Kto Wong, Loba Diaries, MA-TT-ER, and Super Human Earth.[/toggler]

[toggler title=”Restore – Wellbeing + Fitness” ]Jasmine Hemsley and Sound Sebastien, Patrick Broome, Meghan Currie, Seb Eubank, Ruby Warrington, Michael James Wong, Lani Rocillo, Steffy White, Alexandra Roxo, Toby Huntington-Whiteley, Swim Dem Crew, Susan Rozo, Chloe Brotheridge, Wolf Sister, Pip Roberts, Run Pack Berlin, Paula Andreewitch, Charlotte Welfare, Carlos Romero, Pandora Paloma, Jessica Skye, Bess Shipside, Gail Schock, and Kate Taylor.[/toggler]

And after a short acclimatization period you can get really busy. Here’s a typical Obonjan day.

[column size=one_quarter position=first ]07:30 am – 10:30 – 14:30 17:00 19:30 – -[/column]

[column size=two_quarter position=second ]Early Morning Yoga Breakfast Mediation – Session Lunchtime Beach Life, swim and/or swim and / or hang out at the harbour Readings, workshops, coachings, etc. on the tent veranda enjoy the view and sip the first glass of wine Sunset Yoga Dinner In the evening a concert, a party or a film on big screen?[/column][column size=three_quarter position=third ][/column][column size=three_quarter position=last ][/column]

Great! An Eco-Hipster-Art-Professional-Chiller-Paradise.

But on closer inspection we were really disturbed by some points, which we don’t want to share here as an offending online review and experience report, but as a call to guests, media and organizers.

If you look at the Obonjan SocialMedia and website and read through the programme, you will get the impression of a committed, sustainable, organic & eco-resort. Unfortunately, this is not the reality.

Disposable dishes, plastic cups, plastic cutlery, plastic straws, coffee to go paper cups even at the breakfast buffet. Not a single solar panel all over the island, no grey water recycling, no waste separation, delivery vans and cars on the island are normal petrol, no call to recycle or any other recognisable spirit for a sustainable island life. And the air-conditioning systems in the tents are not really necessary either.

The team, the employees on Obonjan seem to be recruited partly from unpaid volunteers, who are mostly gastro beginners and also by the bank only minimal-friendly. But the organisation worked out well for us – but good mood feels different.

Vegetarian or even vegan dishes are scarce. In the restaurants and stalls there are hardly any meatless or vegan options (or the veggie paddies at the Burger Grill or the summer rolls at the Green Bar are just randomly off…). If you are not into meat, fish and cheese, you should bring enough food from the mainland, otherwise it could get cramped. Anyway – Basically the food was good to OK everywhere.

At some bars, menus and drinks disappear inexplicably and drinks seem to be charged according to a kind of daily rate; especially the later the evening, the more volatile the prices can become. And watch out for the Beer/Lemonade Mix Shandy – then you will soon have two drinks on your bill: a small beer and a lemonade = 2 x 36 kuna / 9,80 € – without tip: -) Tricky is the payment even if you haven’t brought enough kuna. But it gets complicated when you pay in € and get Kuna change back. Then it becomes expensive and here too there are different, suboptimal exchange rates.

In the little shop with limited, completely commercial offer and prices like at the bar there is a ban on photos. On demand: why? … there’s the answer “Because my boss said so.” Which, by the way, is something you get more often as a curious guest.

The prices are not cheap all over the island.

Beer 0,3l = 35 Kuna / 4,70 € Beer 0,5l = 52 Kuna / 7 € Corona 48 Kuna / 6,50 € Cuba Libre 85 Kuna / 11,50 € Burger 65 Kuna / 8,80 € Pizza 85 Kuna / 11,50 € Curry 90 Kuna / 12 € Breakfast buffet 100 Kuna / 13,50 € Small Water 20 Kuna / 2,70 €

But hey – it’s an island and not the mainland, every can of beer is brought by ship.

All this is not dramatic and doesn’t deserve a rip-off stamp.

The somewhat „Mediterranean“ gastronomy practise has to be taken sporty and nobody can be really good and friendly all the time. But the impression transported by the Obonjan communication of an Eco Village, which is operated only by yogis, gurus, hedonists, vegans and mindful eco guerrillas, we see then nevertheless as genuine label fraud.

The people we met in Obonjan were just as amazed and disappointed about all the mentioned non-ecological points. Obonjan manages to bring a great, open, interesting and mixed audience to the island and then disappoints on the spot with small and big failures, which leave a more than bland aftertaste. Obonjan could be so much more.

Obonjan could be a lighthouse for the entire tourism industry of the Adriatic Sea. The advertising for this has already been placed, and the appropriate guests have already arrived.

“The spirits I called…”

Many of the Obonjan visitors we spoke to agreed that there will be a lot of feedback when you bring such an environmentally conscious target group to the island and then do not fulfill expectations. The pressure on the organizers must be big. The complaints, concerns and comments must take on alarming proportions. All curators have to be asked whether they will continue to support this or demand changes.

You can’t have a wellness / ecological festival, throwing around with disposable dishes and hardly offering veggie food without an echo of the guests?

Actually we are Obonjan fans. But just disappointed Obonjan fans. As a real eco island, the 2018 season might be fully booked already – think about it.

The Obonjan project is a respectable feat of strength, the organisation, the infrastructure, the booking, all this is not stomped out of the ground in one season. We realize that. In the second year the shop seems to be running a little more smoothly, but in many areas there is still room to move upwards.

We could imagine going back to Obonjan again. But next time we’ll ask what has changed. And whether the eco awareness yoga meditation marketing show has perhaps even become a reality by now. We wish the whole Obonjan team much success for the third and many more years.

Go-bonjan! www.obonjan-island.com

Tips for the Obonjan trip: Bring: Eye mask (the tents are bright), Ohropax (the tent walls are thin: -). Food/Beverage: a bottle of wine, a few beers, some snacks and a couple of water bottles are allowed and useful. Of course, the organizers also have to earn money, but you can also bring along what you consume in the tent. Enough Kuna: the exchange rates on the island can become crazy. Except in the two restaurants, cash is used everywhere. There is an ATM on the island, but we didn’t try it. Internet / W-Lan: There are top free wifi almost everywhere on the island. Water: The tab water is drinkable. Children: Obonjan is not really meant for families / children. Guests: The promoters come from the UK, so most of the guests are british but we’ve met people from all over the world. Arrival with your own car / parking lot in Sibenik: We drove with our own car from Munich to Sibenik and after 8 hours of driving we stayed for one night in Hotel Jure **** / Solaris Beach Resort (170 € double room incl. breakfast). The resort has a large, guarded parking lot and we have parked the car there for a week (7 € / day) Taxi / Bus: From the resort there is a bus for 17 Kuna p. P. to Sibenik. With Uber the trip from Sibenik Harbour to the hotel costs 45 kuna, taxis in the city wanted three times as much for the same trip – they just haven’t heard the gong and keep trying to advantage from tourists.

Deutschsprachige Version dieses Artikels @ www.fernwehblues.de

Obonjan Island? Our Experience with the Million-€-Wellness-Organic-Musik-Festival TUNE IN - EXPLORE - RESTORE Amidst a breathtaking scenery, Obonjan regenerates body, mind and soul. Reward yourself with the unique experience of music, yoga, meditation, fitness and sport.

#English #festival

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gokinjeespot · 5 years

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off the rack #1282

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

We left for a trip to the US of A last Friday and returned home last evening. Spent most of our time in South Freeport, Maine (motto: So Free Me, get it?) Freeport has the big L. L. Bean campus of stores which are open 24/7, 364 days of the year. They only close Christmas Day. I did not buy anything there. We also went into Portland where I discovered Casablanca Comics, a clean and spacious store down a few steps from street level. I got a copy of "Is This How You See Me?" by Jaime Hernandez that they fortunately had in stock. It was their last copy. Unfortunately, I fell ill and spent the last 24 hours of our trip in bed back at the motel. I am so happy to be home now.

The Immortal Hulk #24 - Al Ewing (writer) Joe Bennett (pencils) Ruy Jose, Belardino Brabo, Marc Deering & Roberto Poggi (inks) Paul Mounts (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). We've seen a lot of changes since this book hit the racks and there are plenty more to come. This is a crucial issue and you don't want to miss it.

Daredevil #12 - Chip Zdarsky (writer) Marco Checchetto (art) Nolan Woodard (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). Matt tries to rescue a bogus Daredevil from some crooked cops but he's out of shape and practice. His new teacher lends a helping hand. I haven't felt this good about a reunion since Bruce and Selina got back together. Meanwhile Mayor Fisk trying to go legit finds it hard to let go of old habits. How is he going to cover up this impulsive act?

Absolute Carnage Immortal Hulk #1 - Al Ewing (writer) Filipe Andrade (art) Chris O'Halloran (colours) Travis Lanham (letters). Now this is interesting. We get a recap of the most recent goings on in The Immortal Hulk for most of this issue and then the big surprise on the last page raised so many questions in my mind that I feared it would explode. This is a one-shot so I wonder where this new Hulk is going to go. The end doesn't line up with what I just read in The Immortal Hulk #24. I hate when that happens.

Superman Up In The Sky #4 - Tom King (writer) Andy Kubert (pencils) Sandra Hope (inks) Brad Anderson (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). Here's a story that I am reading only because it's so well written and drawn. There's no reference to Action Comics or Superman but I care about what's happening to Clark and Superman in this issue because they've become separated somehow. Meanwhile, the little girl Superman wants to rescue finally shows up again.

Runaways #25 - Rainbow Rowell (writer) Andres Genolet (art) Federico Blee (colours pages 1-9, 13-20) & Matthew Wilson (colours pages 10-12) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). We meet a possible new mentor for the young heroes and it's not who I thought it was based on the cover. Plus it's moving day. These kids are a lot less super hero-y than Young Justice. Maybe that's why I like them so much.

Fantastic Four #15 - Dan Slott (writer) Paco Medina with Bob Quinn (art) Jesus Aburtov (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Introducing The Unparalleled: Sidearm, Elementa, Kaylo, Kor, Belter, Citadel and Sky, protectors of the planet Spyre. Where are the FF? Don't worry, they show up after the introductions of these new super heroes and their powers and there's a big fight of misunderstanding. Then Reed gets the translators working and off we go with a new adventure. I think that's it's cool that when the FF first appear on the planet that their word balloons have alien lettering to show that the Spyricans can't understand what they're saying but I felt ripped off not being able to read the FF's dialogue. Especially since there was a lot of FF dialogue. Please don't do that.

Young Justice #9 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Andre Lima Araujo (art pages 2-11, 15-18) John Timms (art pages 1, 12-14, 19-22) Gabriel Eltaeb (colours) Wes Abbott (letters). They're still stuck on Earth-3 fighting evil versions of themselves but this issue also tells the origin story of Keli, the sort of Green Lantern of the team. They're going to be here for a little longer because Red Robin has decided he wants to kick some evil twin ass.

Spider-Verse #1 - Jed MacKay (writer) Juan Frigeri & Carlos Lopez (art pages 1-4, 16-17) Stacey Lee (art pages 5-6) Arthur Adams & Federico Blee (art pages 7-8) James Harren & Dave Stewart (art pages 9-10) Dike Ruan & Carlos Lopez (art pages 11-12) Sheldon Vella (art pages 13-15) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). So you say you liked the animated feature with Miles, Spider-Gwen and Peter Porker from last year. Well, this comic book is for you. The Web of Life & Destiny is sick and Miles must save it. I'm sure there is going to be lots of action and plenty of villains. I know there's going to be mucho Spider-Folks. If that's your poison then enjoy. Me, not so much.

DCeased #5 - Tom Taylor (writer) Trevor Hairsine (pencils) Stefano Gaudiano (inks) Rain Beredo (colours) Saida Temofonte (letters). This is it folks. The penultimate issue and it looks like all is lost. When the Flash is infected Superman is the only one who can stop him from infecting the remaining survivors. But in doing so, the Man of Steel bends. I don't know how the human race is going to keep from going extinct.

House of X #6 - Jonathan Hickman (writer) Pepe Larraz (art) Marte Gracia & David Curiel (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). The Council of Krakoa, the new Mutant Nation, start making laws and sits in judgment of one of their own. Sabretooth is charged with crimes against humans. Read this to find out the verdict and punishment. I really liked the use of the 9-panel grid for the heavily dialogued pages. Now that this mini is finished I anxiously await the next project that Pepe Larraz gets to draw. (Pepe just informed me that it's a one-shot but he couldn't tell me anything more)

Batman #80 - Tom King (writer) John Romita Jr. (pencils) Klaus Janson (inks) Tomeu Morey (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). They're back in town and ready to rumble. Batman and Catwoman return to take back Gotham City from Bane. I await their reaction to the news of what happened to Alfred. The art disappointed me. It had a boring sameness quality that turned me off. The threat on the final page didn't even move me. I hope this story doesn't end with a whimper.

Contagion #1 - Ed Brisson (writer) Roge Antonio (art) Veronica Gandini (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). The Thing fighting off infected Moloids on the cover looked interesting and the art inside looked good otherwise I would have passed on this new 5-issue mini. Then I read the first page and went ugh. Someone in the mystical city of K'un-Lun saying to the blindfolded Yu-Ti "there is something you need to see" really bothered me. Then he says "you can see" two pages later. She's blind folded! "I need to show you something" would have been better and the "you can see" wasn't even necessary in that word balloon. Boy, did that burn my britches. I don't know what it is about all these infection type stories on the racks these days like Absolute Carnage and DCeased, but they're not very appealing to me. The Fantastic Four are featured this issue and Iron Fist and Power Man the next. I'm going to let the CDC take care of the rest of this one.

Lois Lane #4 - Greg Rucka (writer) Mike Perkins (art) Paul Mounts (colours) Simon Bowland (letters). It's therapeutic to read something good after something not so good and boy, is this ever good. I love this depiction of Lois. I'm jealous of Clark now. When a writer makes me care about a character so much that's when I'm happiest reading a comic book. It also helps that I think the art is really good too.

Ghost-Rider #1 - Ed Brisson (writer) Aaron Kuder (art) Jason Keith (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Fans of the Spirit of Vengeance rejoice, Johnny Blaze is back on the racks. Here he's the current King of Hell and he's back on Earth hunting escaped demons. Danny Ketch even makes an appearance. Meanwhile back in Hell, Lilith is fomenting a coup. If those names don't mean anything to you but you like mystical fantasy on the dark and bloody side you might enjoy this. I thought the art was fantastic.

Legion of Super-Heroes: Millennium #2 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Nicola Scott, Jim Cheung & Jeff Dekal (art) Tomeu Morey & Jordie Bellaire (colours). There was no list of creator credits so I don't know who lettered this issue. This 2-issue mini was a great way to introduce the new team even though you don't get to see them until the end of this issue. I loved how Rose & Thorn was used and the sneaky way that Booster Gold was snuck into this story. I am so looking forward to the regular Legion book with art by Ryan Sook.

Future Foundation #3 - Jeremy Whitley (writer) Will Robson & Paco Diaz (art) Greg Menzie & Triona Farrell (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). The word count in this issue is huge. Find out everything you need to know about Rebecca "Rikki" Barnes as her origin story is told as a prelude to the kids getting out of their current predicament. The surprise on the last page will make you gasp.

Savage Avengers #6 - Gerry Duggan (writer) Kim Jacinto (art) Tamra Bonvillain (colours) VC's Travis Lanham (letters). Not even in the good old days of Marvel Team-Up would we have seen an adventure with Conan the Barbarian and The Punisher, but here we are. Frank is bringing the remains of his family home while Conan goes off exploring when they part ways. This would be a fitting end to this title but the next issue teaser has a beautiful rendition of Elektra by David Finch so now I can't wait to read it.

Black Cat #5 - Jed MacKay (writer) Travel Foreman (art) Brian Reber (colours) Ferran Delgado (letters). The fight with Blastaar takes up most of this issue and I don't remember what Felicia was trying to steal from the Fantastic Four. I had to read the last issue recap to find that out. I think the heist was a success. Now to see what's next.

Marvel Comics #1001 - There aren't 1001 writers, artists, colorists and letterers listed on the credits page but way too many to list here. Just turn to the back page to see who did what. I liked reading these one-pagers because I'm a Marvel Maniac and get all of it. If you're not a Marvel fan then you might be scratching your head at some of the references. Maybe it may make you want to seek out the old comic books to read about some of those old timey characters or see where these heroes and villains started from. The Eternity Mask is supposed to be the big deal with this title and I am still curious to find out what the heck that thing is going to be.

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