The Best And Worst Day Of Daredevil's Life
When Matt Murdock suffered at the hands of the Kingpin... and then learned not to care.
Since his introduction in 1964, Daredevil has developed something of a reputation for being Marvel's most miserable character. He's been to Hell and back, lost everything, and almost always finds himself the target of New York's supervillain community, both in day as Matthew Murdock, and by night as the Man Without Fear himself.
Who's responsible for this? Well, there are some pretty famous names out there. Frank Miller pretty much redefined the character by putting him through a never-ending gauntlet during his run in the 1980s, and future DD scribes Ann Nocenti, Brian Bendis and Ed Brubaker would emulate that approach to varying levels of darkness. It is also, however, an approach that has brought great success; today, Daredevil isn't just considered one of the most pained characters in Marvel's library, but one of their best too.
To call it a winning formula would be the understatement of the year, but there's a lot more to the character than his worst encounters. Scratch beneath the surface, and you find a version of Daredevil that isn't just compelling, but one who genuinely revels in both his career as a lawyer, and in his one as a superhero.
These two, contrasting versions of the Man Without Fear are perhaps exemplified best by two contrasting events: the worst day of Matt's life - found in Miller and Mazzucchelli's Born Again - and his best, found within the pages of Mark Waid and Chris Samnee's run.