Daredevil: Dark Nights #1
Written by: Lee Weeks Art by: Lee WeeksWow. Just, wow. There are certain characters like Daredevil that can be open to various interpretations and still work. But for multiple of those interpretations to exist at the same time, and all work so wonderfully, that is a true feat. Daredevil: Dark Nights #1 is a beautiful book through and through. It tackles the inherent drive in human beings for good and evil, and ties that with the Man Without Fear to create another stellar outing for the character. The marriage of word and art in this comic is harmonious, and it is the kind of story that needs to be re-read as soon as you finish it.
The plot of this mini series so far doesn’t seem that complex. During a blizzard in New York, Matt Murdock is wounded by street thugs and rushed to a local hospital. While recovering, he realizes his senses are weakened, but is coherent enough to hear that a girl in the hospital is in need of a heart transplant. Because of the storm, and violence that has broken out in the city, Matt has taken it upon himself to deliver the heart with weakened senses.
It’s the narration that injects this story with its heart. As Matt iterates his perseverance and other characters tell the events of the story, religious quotes are juxtaposed to illustrate the backing for Matt’s strength. The blizzard serves the same purpose as those quotes, to act as the force of nature that drives the civilians to help out one another in a time of disaster.
While the story is layered with powerful visuals, the most striking is the page in which Matt is carried by a stranger to the hospital. The rectangular panels stacked on top of the climax of Matt being carried away makes a truly artful piece of cinematography in comics. With each perspective, Weeks crafts a magnificently dynamic story that matches the urgency and desperation of the characters.
Daredevil: Dark Nights #1 doesn’t even need a conclusion for it to be deemed a good story. On its own, this issue is both lyrically and visually immersive, in a way that evokes emotions effortlessly from the reader. Seriously, pick this up.
