Daredevil & Batman: By Frank Miller
Once again, I (Ethan Stranger) return to the world of Comics as I discuss 2 characters (Daredevil & Batman) who were reinvented by one guy (Frank Miller) around the time My Dad was young (even long before I came into the world), so in honor of both Frank Miller & My Dad (whose birthday is coming up), allow me (Ethan Stranger) to breakdown on what made these 2 characters great (that my Dad really enjoyed, who would then pass on his love of comics to me, Ethan Stranger).
Let’s start with the Dark Knight himself (Bruce Wayne/Batman) who was created back in 1939 (by Bob Kane & Bill Finger), he was introduced as a dark bat-themed vigilante who fights crime within the corrupted city of Gotham. Batman is a character that we can all relate to (mainly due to his tragic parent's death, his duties as a business/vigilante, which involves him in battling his inner demons), but when the so-called “Comics Code Authority”, Batman became from a dark Vigilante into more a total goofball.
But it wasn’t until Fellow Writer (Dennis O’Neil) would come along & return Batman to his much darker roots (Comic Cover Picture, Center), thus paving the way for what is to come for Frank Miller to take over.
(Watch this video to learn on how Dennis O’Neil returned Batman to his Dark Roots)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9XvlZQ3oQY
When Frank Miller came on board for Batman, he gave us the Storyline, The Dark Knight Returns, a grim storyline that gave us an older Bruce Wayne suiting back up as Batman to fight in a more grim/gritty way in an even more corrupted Gotham City (Picture, Left) this would later be thrown him into conflict with Superman (who’s working for the US Government), obviously, this inspired some of Zach Synder’s Batman Vs Superman: Dawn of Justice, this, of course, can be related to Today’s Society (not even sure if my Dad can see it like that), but This Gritty Batman represents on what most policemen fail to do when stopping the bad guys & This US Government working Superman Represents someone who oversees the entire nation, thus divides the people on who’s methods work truly better in today’s world.
Before Frank Miller tackled with the Dark Knight, He 1st breathed new life into the Man without Fear, Daredevil (Matt Murdock), who (like Batman) battled a lot of goofy villains from the Silver Age of comics (and was consider a Spider-Man knockoff, due to having his own sense), in the 1970s Daredevil was paired with Black Widow (in which the duo became lovers, sadly we won’t see that in the MCU), but Sales on Daredevil were falling short (leading to the book almost being canceled) until Frank Miller came along & breathed a more darker take on the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen, by slowly having him go through a mayhem of hell before coming back (more tougher & aggressive). This was the Daredevil run My Dad grew up with during his college years (he has issue from the Born Again Storyline).
(Watch this Video to explore more on Frank Miller’s Take on Daredevil)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3veX7NgKTM
It was Frank Miller who gave us the Ninjutsu Clan (The Hand), Elektra Natchios, Made Bullseye a more threatening assassin, have Daredevil battle more organized crime than ever & gave us the Classic Born Again Storyline (which saw Matt Murdock at his lowest point before rising back up). In Fact, Frank Miller’s Daredevil is what influenced much of the 2015 Daredevil Series. Miller also transformed The Kingpin (Wilson Fisk) from a silly James Bond-Styled Villain who battled Spider-Man & Captain America (Picture, Center) into more a tragic crime lord, as he was more violent & ruled all of the criminal underworld with an Iron Fist.
But it was all for his love (Vanessa Fisk) & this new persona for Kingpin would be feature more with Spider-Man, Daredevil & The Punisher (Picture, Right Corner), plus could ever forget Kingpin’s face-off with the Red Skull in the Captain America Storyline, Streets of Poison (read my Captain America: By Mark Gruenwald Post for more info), though Kingpin’s methods aren’t too bad compared to Red Skull’s.
Daredevil has some similarities to Batman (as both have had tragic backstories, dated female anti-heroes, battle ninjutsu clans & have battled the underworld/crime lords multiple times), but Daredevil is relatable to today’s society, though blind, Daredevil relies on his Radar Sense “to see” (in fact Stan Lee himself said that Daredevil’s Radar sense is stronger than Spidey’s Spider-Sense, Picture, Left), Plus being Blind (in general) doesn’t mean you can’t accomplish greatness like Matt Murdock is a Blind loyal, examples of Real-life blind idols includes singers like Ray Charles & Stevie Wonder. Having a disability or condition doesn’t necessarily mean that things will go wrong for that person in the first place (and I feel like that’s what Frank Miller fell in love with the character so much), even though my Dad’s not blind, he himself accomplishes greatness.
Plus Daredevil is Catholic (so am I & my Parents), which causes him to choose on whether or not who deserves to live or die (because in today’s society, a line must be drawn between justice & violence, something that Batman himself also finds himself struggling with too).
Check out this video to see where Daredevil's methods clash with The Punishers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78Wl8WwgaxU
As well as read this to explore more about the Classic Daredevil Storyline, Born Again:
https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/amazing-spider-man-900-zeb-wells-ed-mcguinness-sinister-six
Comics have played a big part of my Dad’s life (he himself collected a few & managed to save as many as he could) & would later pass on that love of Comics (even the love for Comic Movies) to me (Ethan Stranger ), to us, Comics are a way to escape from what goes on in Today's World (it allows us to become a somebody that we can’t be in the real world), plus heroes themselves should us that we don’t need to be perfect to do what's right & that it’s ok to feel vulnerable (thus that's what makes superheroes human) because (eventually) they rise back up, stronger than ever before, showing us that we can be resilient and strong even under the harshest conditions and moments in our lives.
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