Daredevil: End of Days
After years in seclusion, Matt Murdock emerges to take on Bullseye in a knock-down, drag-out fight in the middle of New York that ends with the death of The Man Without Fear. Left to pick up the pieces is reporter, and friend to Matt, Ben Urich. Initially reluctant to take the job, Urich soon finds his investigative curiosity stoked when a bystander to the fight shows him cellphone camera footage that reveals Daredevil’s last word to be, “Mapone.” What does it mean? That’s what Urich is going to find out as he goes around investigating everyone important in his friend’s life who also happens to still be alive.
Though this also happens to be the setup for “Citizen Kane,” the durability of the premise is why you keep seeing other writers, Bendis and David Mack in this case, borrowing it over and over again. Of course, it also highlights the main problem with this story: It’s the “final” Matt Murdock as Daredevil tale and it’s all about Ben Urich and investigative journalism. Because that’s what we all wanted in this story, for the title character to barely factor into it. While his presence does color Urich’s journey as he hits up the likes of Nick Fury, Elektra, Typhoid Mary, and the Punisher for information about what “Mapone” means, this is really a story about the reporter more than anything else. Particularly with the way that his son, Tim, factors into things.
Yeah, Tim. Don’t remember him? That’s because the last time he showed up was back in “Wake Up,” the very first “Daredevil” story that Bendis wrote which also happened to be illustrated by this story’s co-writer David Mack. It’s a very good arc and a better example of a “Power of Journalism Story Featuring Ben Urich” than what we have here. However, Tim’s presence is a big signpost that “End of Days” is going to focus more on Bendis’ run than anything else. That’s not too surprising, especially given the setup, yet with the character’s long and colorful history you wish that we’d have seen more variety in that regard.
At least the character’s legacy is honored in art, the vast majority of which is provided by two of the artists most identified with the character: Klaus Janson and Bill Sienkiewicz. Janson provides the pencils and Sienkiewicz goes to town on the finishes and the result is gloriously gritty. If nothing else, their work perfectly conjures up a world that feels less hopeful for the loss of this hero; but, we also get some really intense fight scenes from their collaboration as well. Sienkiewicz also provides painted art capturing some of the character’s more iconic moments, with Alex Maleev and Mack pitching in for the same at certain points in the volume. All of their contributions are very easy to appreciate on the page.
For all of its flaws, the story does play to Bendis’ strengths. It’s a dialogue-heavy, character-driven narrative with a genuine mystery at its core and that’s something the writer excels at. Bendis also does a good job capturing Urich’s world-weariness and the invigoration he feels as he gets closer to the truth, even as he gets beaten up a whole heck of a lot along the way. The other familiar characters we meet along the way are also portrayed in an interesting fashion. Bullseye and Kingpin meet appropriately violent and grim fates, the Punisher remains utterly committed to his mission, while we get a genuinely surprising for Elektra. What winds up happening to her may feel somewhat out of character, but Bendis and Mack make it work by showing us she hasn’t lost her edge.
Though the writers make it easy enough to get invested in the narrative, you’re never quite drawn in enough to forget my main issue with it. Maybe that would’ve been more forgivable if they had furnished a satisfying resolution to the mystery of “Mapone,” but they don’t. It’s not that we don’t find out what it relates to, it’s just that the resolution feels pretty arbitrary and unsatisfying. Urich’s encounter with the Punisher does a good job of giving it some buildup as the one word from a practiced lawyer that could destroy Bullseye. When the truth is revealed, I’m at a loss in seeing how it could’ve done that. Coming at the end of the story, this revelation does more to drag it down than anything else.
Given the parts that do and don’t work here, I’d say that Bendis and “Daredevil” completists are the people who will get the most out of “End of Days.” Though, I think that even they’d want to find a deep discount on this collection first. Currently only available in hardcover, this will set you back $40 if you pick it up at cover price. Be warned though: As was the case with “Wolverine: Japan’s Most Wanted,” I got this for half of its cover price at Comic-Con and still felt unsatisfied. I guess I’ll have to wait for the next softcover edition of Mark Waid’s “Daredevil” to take that feeling away.