Vincent D'Onofrio's take on the Kingpin was a delightful treat, a captivating mass of contradictions that surprised viewers with a timid, soft-spoken, almost childlike demeanor, carefully concealing the mammoth monster of a man simmering just below the surface. D'Onofrio's Wilson Fisk was a powder keg for sure; an unpredictable, calculating mastermind prone to fits of extreme brutality, who often struggled with his violent nature but found a sanctuary of sorts in the form of Vanessa Marianna, his future wife. Vanessa provided Wilson with an anchor to his humanity, and his love for her knows no bounds. He'd move heaven and earth if it meant keeping her safe, and in Daredevil: Love And War, there's a glimpse at the depths of his devotion. At his wit's end, Wilson Fisk kidnaps the wife of a renowned doctor as a means of intimidating him into curing his long-suffering wife's ongoing psychological problems. The situation is quickly complicated when Daredevil gets involved, and Kingpin eventually finds himself alone and heartbroken when the dust settles. Frank Miller's potent storytelling is bolstered by Bill Sienkiewicz's surreal, almost eerie watercolors, and the result is a powerful examination of desperation and love. Miller's talents are on full display here; he scratches away at the veneer of Wilson Fisk, and reveals the humanity deeply buried within the Kingpin Of Crime.
