Comics Over Time

Episode 63 - Murdock and Marvel: 2002 Part 2 The world was a dangerous and frightening place, and America was trying to come to terms with how to move forward, both internally and on the world stage.  And comics showed a lot of that anxiety.  But even so, 2002 was a big year for all involved in the comics world, as sales of actual honest to goodness comic books actually rose 10% this year to 230 Million dollars, the first time that the industry had seen that occur since 1993, when comic sales had peaked at around 850 Million.  And even as traffic in stores was increasing, Hollywood was starting to understand how to make comic properties work on the screen, both small and large.    This is part 2 of the podcast. that will feature the year in Daredevil, the Spotlight story and the Takeaway for 2002.   The Year in Daredevil  Appearances:  Daredevil #27-38, Daredevil: Yellow #6, Paradise X: Heralds #1-2, Elektra #6, Giant Size Mini-Marvels: Starring Spidey #1, Marvel Knight: Millennial Visions #1, Peter Parker: Spider-Man #39 and 41, Essential Marvel Team-Up #1, Paradise X #0-5, Marvel Knight #2-6, Marvel Knights Double Shot #1 and 4, Amazing Spider-Man #2, Ultimate Spider-Man Special #1, Order #5-6, Spider-Man/Daredevil #1, Marville #2 along with Marvel Masterworks: The Submariner #1 and Daredevil: Yellow, Fantastic First, Life and Death of Captain Marvel graphic novels  Writing: Brian Michael Bendis (#27-38)   Pencils: Alex Maleev (#27-37), Manuel Gutierrez (#38)  Inks: Alex Maleev (#27-37), Manuel Gutierrez (#38)  The year for Matt Murdock and Daredevil begins with a 6-part story called Underboss that began in December 2001. In that story we see a bombing attempt on Matt Murdock’s life just outside of the courthouse and we see Sammy Silke and several of the Kingpin’s other bosses repeatedly stab the kingpin leave him dying on the floor.  So, who put a hit out on Matt Murdock and who is this Sammy Silke who rallied Kingpin’s underlings against him? We start to get answers about this over the next 5 books through flashbacks while the story continues forward. Silke is the son of a crime boss in Chicago who needed to get out of town. He came to New York and went to work for the Kingpin – but when the Kingpin wouldn’t let him put a hit on Matt Murdock – He caught wind of Murdock’s seemly open secret within the Kingpin network and set in motion a plan to take out Murdock and Kingpin with the help of Kingpin’s son – Richard.  Vanessa Fisk finds out her husband has been stabbed and in critical condition (and not killed as reports claim). She goes to New York and despite objections from his doctor, wants Kingpin taken to the airport and flown out of the country. She also orders those that betrayed Kingpin to be killed -including her son Richard whom she visits and kills herself.   Underboss ends with Silke, fearing for his life, turning himself into the FBI and asking for protection. When the FBI refuse, he tells them Murdock’s secret identity.    From there, things start to really go crazy for Matt Murdock. An FBI agent, needing some cash, sells Murdock’s secret to the Daily Globe (the Bugle’s rival paper) and it’s ran as a front-page story and a media circus descents on Murdock’s brownstone.   Ben Urich and Peter Parker tell J. Jonah Jameson the DD secret identity story is a hoax but both refuse to tell him who DD really is; Foggy tries to get Matt to give up his life as DD. Seeing the story, Mr. Hyde shows up and starts destroying Murdock’s house before Daredevil and Spider-Man can intervene.  After some time away, Matt Murdock holds a press conference denying he’s Daredevil. We’ll jump into more detail about that during this week’s spotlight.  After a rooftop chat with Elektra at the urging of Black Widow, it looks like things will be settle with the Daily Globe after Daredevil visits the FBI agent who gave up his secret, but then the Globe owner Rosenthal nixes the deal because Murdock was being so smug about the agreement.  The year ends with part 1 of the next named storyline, The Trail of the Century, which we’ll talk about in 2003.  This Week's Spotlight: Daredevil volume 2 #36 October 2002 “One Hundred Percent Untrue” Recap Why We Picked This Story Daredevil Rapid Fire Questions The Takeaway Big Box Office does not necessarily translate to big bucks at the comic shop. Questions or comments We'd love to hear from you!  Email us at [email protected] or find us on Twitter @comicsoftime. ------------------ THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING CREATORS AND RESOURCES  Music: Our theme music is by the very talented Lesfm.  You can find more about them and their music at https://pixabay.com/users/lesfm-22579021/.  The Grand Comics Database: Dan uses custom queries against a downloadable copy of the GCD to construct his publisher, title and creator charts.  Comichron: Our source for comic book sales data.  Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History  DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_based_on_English-language_comics  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Marvel_Comics_superhero_debuts  https://comicbookreadingorders.com/marvel/event-timeline/  https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/past-recipients/past-recipients-1990s/ 

Episode 99 - Murdock and Marvel: 2025 In a year so recent that we don’t even have Eisners for it yet, comics continued to thrive and movie ticket sales continued to dive.  It was a great time to be a comic retailer, but a very bad year if you happen to be a political cartoonist.  Lets talk about the year that was 2025. Preshow New era of Daredevil comic begins in March: https://www.marvel.com/articles/comics/daredevil-stephanie-phillips-lee-garbett-new-era-true-believer-blind-bags-march-2026  The Year in Comics  Comics in Other Media Comic Sales Notable Comics Top Comic News Notable Passings Marvel Eisner Awards - Hall of Fame Judges Choices Dan's Favorite The Year in Daredevil  Appearances: Daredevil v8 #15-25, Daredevil: Unleash Hell – Red Band #1-5, Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell #1-3, Timeslide #1, Alligator Loki Holiday Special #1, Women of Marvel: She-Devils #1, Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur 10th Anniversary Special #1, Marvel Masterworks: Daredevil #19, Marvel/DC: Deadpool/Batman #1, Undead Iron Fist #2 Writer: Saladin Ahmed (#15-25)  Pencils: Luigi Zagaria (#15), Aaron Kuder (#16-19), Jose Luis (#20, #24-25), Luis and Carlos Nieto (#21-23)  Inks: Luigi Zagaria (#15), Aaron Kuder (#16-19), Oren Junior (#20, #24-25), Junior and Carlos Neito (#21, #23), Junior, Nieto and Jonas Trindade (#22)  As we open the year, the Introductory Rites storyline continues: Daredevil and Elektra find her private investigator dead in an alley, and the tension between them is thick. Matt insists he’s chasing Jason, not causing collateral damage — and Father Javi backs him up later at Saint Nicholas, reminding him that not every tragedy is God’s doing. But before Matt can steady himself, a scream in the night leads him to a rooftop encounter with the sin demon Wrath — fast, brutal, overwhelming. Matt gets absolutely wrecked and blacks out.  He wakes up shaken, served with a legal summons from Nelson & North Legal Services. Foggy is suing Saint Nick’s over Matt beating down a would-be pimp, Chris Rizzollo — and Matt is convinced a demon is behind it. He tries to exorcise Foggy with scripture, only to learn the hard way that when he burned his priestly clothes, he gave up that authority. The demon inside Foggy taunts him: judgment is coming. Even She-Hulk can’t help — legally, Matt has to defend the youth home himself.  Meanwhile, the horror escalates. Matt finds part of Bullseye’s detached arm in an alley and soon discovers Wrath again — only this time, when he looks closely, he sees Jason’s face inside the monster. Realizing he can’t fight this with holy words, Matt tries violence, but Wrath slips away. Back at Saint Nick’s, the kids are divided — some happy to see him, others angry and afraid. And as Foggy challenges him to beat him in court to learn where Cole North is, we see North barely alive… with Wrath looming over him.  Courtroom Matt returns, defending Saint Nicholas himself while Foggy — still demon-possessed — tears him apart on the stand. During a recess in the park, Matt admits he’s ready to concede. That’s when the demon Pride abandons Foggy in fury, claiming Wrath will finish Matt anyway. Free at last, Foggy points him to the building where North and Jason are being held. Inside? A massacre. Daredevil finds North barely breathing before Wrath attacks again and forces Matt into the cruelest choice imaginable: save Foggy… or Bullseye.  In the final rooftop showdown, Matt refuses to play the demon’s game. He saves Foggy without hesitation and even throws a line to the one-armed Bullseye — who misses and plummets to the street below. Wrath releases Jason and declares Daredevil “worthy of hell” before vanishing. Days later, Elektra tells Matt she still can’t find Kingpin. Matt offers to help — she declines. And in a quiet, heavy final beat, Matt returns to Saint Nicholas one last time… to apologize, and to say goodbye.  In the second and final storyline of volume 8, Rites of Reconciliation, It opens with Matt wakes up from devil-and-Bullseye nightmares and we find him living with Nyla Skin—someone he first connected with back when he was “Jack” and had lost his memory. He’s freelancing legal advice through an app, trying to be semi-functional, but of course a missing girl case pulls him back into the suit. What starts as a simple disappearance turns into a full-blown bio-horror situation: spores, infected tenants, shady corporate cover-ups, and Justin Stromwyn reborn as the fungal monster Lionsmane. Nyla actually saves Matt with a coded clue, and he finishes the job with industrial fungicide—because sometimes the devil fights mold with hardware-store science.  Meanwhile, Hell’s Kitchen is tearing itself apart under a new gang called Nouvelle Direction. Matt learns that Cole North has been working with Elektra—and yeah, that stings. He clashes with Taskmaster (who was hired to kill him), gets his senses scrambled by grenades, and Elektra swoops in for the save. Matt tries to talk feelings; Elektra shuts that down immediately. Back home, Nyla calls him out for always leaving, always choosing the mask. She’s right. He walks away realizing he’s pushed almost everyone out of his life.  Back in the red suit, Matt rescues Father Javi, reconnects with Elektra, and starts chasing the real power behind Nouvelle Direction. Bodies begin turning up—gang leaders executed, scripture written in blood. After a brutal bar fight with Wrecker and another grisly discovery, Daredevil finally recognizes the handwriting. The blood. The message. It’s not just gang warfare.  It’s Kingpin.  The conclusion of Rites of Reconciliation and volume 8 will be our final spotlight...  This Week's Spotlight: Daredevil Volume 8 issues #25 (#687 LGY) from November 2025 “Rites of Reconciliation Part 6” Recap Why We Picked This Story Daredevil Rapid Fire Questions The Takeaway Comics had their biggest year yet. Questions or comments We'd love to hear from you!  Email us at [email protected] or find us on Twitter @comicsoftime. ------------------ THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING CREATORS AND RESOURCES  Music: Our theme music is by the very talented Lesfm.  You can find more about them and their music at https://pixabay.com/users/lesfm-22579021/.  The Grand Comics Database: Dan uses custom queries against a downloadable copy of the GCD to construct his publisher, title and creator charts.  Comichron: Our source for comic book sales data.  Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History  DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_based_on_English-language_comics  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Marvel_Comics_superhero_debuts  https://comicbookreadingorders.com/marvel/event-timeline/  https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/past-recipients/past-recipients-1990s/ 

Episode 98 - Murdock and Marvel: 2024 Can comics survive without big-screen movies to prop them up?  Yes, it appears they can.  It was another great year for comics in stores, even as the pop-culture phenomenon of the MCU seems to have largely died.  The Year in Comics  Comics in Other Media Comic Sales Notable Comics Top Comic News Notable Passings Marvel Eisner Awards Dan's Favorite The Year in Daredevil  Appearances: Daredevil v8 #3-14, Daredevil: Black Armor #1-4, Daredevil: Gang War #1-4, Daredevil Omnibus #3, Giant-Size Daredevil #1, Daredevil: Woman Without Fear #1-4, Venom War: Daredevil #1, Daredevil Epic Collection #7, Avengers Epic Collection #11, Amazing Spider-Man Collection #10, Defenders Epic Collection #2, Scarlet Witch #5, Dazzler Omnibus and the Deadly Hands of Kung-Fu: Gang War graphic novel.  Writer: Saladin Ahmed (#3-7, #9-14), Ahmed, Erica Schultz, Elsa Sjunneson, Ann Nocenti, D. G. Chichester, and Ty Templeton (#8)  Pencils: Aaron Kuder and Farid Karami (#3), German Peralta (#4), Karami (#5), Kuder (#6-7 and #11-12), Kuder, Jan Bazaldua, Eric Koda, Stefano Raffaele, Ken Lashley, Tommaso Bianchi and Ty Templeton (#8), Juann Cabal (#9-10), Chris Campana (#13), Luigi Zagaria (#14)  Inks: Cam Smith and Farid Karami (#3), German Peralta (#4), Karami (#5), Kuder (#6-7 and #11-12) Kuder, Jan Bazaldua, Eric Koda, Stefano Raffaele, Ken Lashley, Tommaso Bianchi and Ty Templeton (#8), Juann Cabal (#9-10), Craig Yeung (#13), Luigi Zagaria (#14)  Matt Murdock is living as Father Matt, devoting himself to St. Nicholas Youth Home, which is suddenly facing shutdown over financial and other disagreements with the church despite its bills being secretly paid by Elektra. When Matt aggressively defends a girl from attackers, it’s clear Daredevil’s instincts are still right under the surface — even if he’s trying to bury that life.  A mysterious demonic force possesses Elektra and turns her against Matt. During their fight, his lost memories begin resurfacing — her name, their past, everything. He frees her through prayer, but the entity warns they’re only the first wave. Matt refuses to abandon the priesthood, yet the pull of Daredevil grows stronger.  Online smears claim St. Nick’s is a criminal training ground, bringing police and CPS to the door. As Daredevil, Matt traces the lies to Ben Urich and the Daily Bugle — who’s shockingly possessed by a demon — and learns about a new gang called The Heat rising under Bullseye. Matt begins realizing these possessions aren’t random.  The pattern clicks when She-Hulk is also overtaken. After Matt frees her, Doctor Strange arrives with the truth: the Seven Deadly Sins have manifested as demons, and they followed Matt back from Hell. Strange sends him on a spiritual trial that returns him to New York wearing a white Daredevil suit, symbolizing a holy war rather than street justice.  Trying to stop the spread, Matt clashes with a demon-controlled Wolverine (Lust) in a brutal, city-spanning fight. Instead of winning through force, Matt prays and drives the demon out. Proving faith is his greatest weapon in this new battle.  Meanwhile, gang war erupts in Hell’s Kitchen. Daredevil and Elektra confront The Heat and Bullseye, only to discover Wilson Fisk is backing the operation — who is also supernaturally empowered by the demon of Greed, which makes him stronger and more cunning than ever. This was part of a 60th anniversary issue that will be this week’s spotlight.  At St. Nick’s, Jason — a troubled boy whose father died in a past Daredevil-related disaster — learns Matt’s secret and runs away, believing Daredevil ruins lives. Bullseye manipulates the boy while demonic forces begin directly attacking the orphanage.  After repeated setbacks, Matt confronts a painful truth: he’s been guilty of greed too, trying to keep both lives — priest and vigilante. Accepting he can’t do both, he burns his clerical clothes and offers one final prayer, choosing to serve God the only way left to him — as Daredevil.  As the year closes, Jason is still missing and there’s whispers of a monster haunting Hell’s Kitchen. Matt is fully back in the mask full time and appears determined to take on whatever is coming.  This Week's Spotlight: Daredevil Volume 8 issues #8 (#670 LGY) from June 2024 “Introductory Rites Part 8” Recap Why We Picked This Story Daredevil Rapid Fire Questions The Takeaway The takeaway is back, just long enough to say comics seem to have hit a new level of popularity post-pandemic, and that popularity has the potential to grow even more. Questions or comments We'd love to hear from you!  Email us at [email protected] or find us on Twitter @comicsoftime. ------------------ THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING CREATORS AND RESOURCES  Music: Our theme music is by the very talented Lesfm.  You can find more about them and their music at https://pixabay.com/users/lesfm-22579021/.  The Grand Comics Database: Dan uses custom queries against a downloadable copy of the GCD to construct his publisher, title and creator charts.  Comichron: Our source for comic book sales data.  Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History  DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_based_on_English-language_comics  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Marvel_Comics_superhero_debuts  https://comicbookreadingorders.com/marvel/event-timeline/  https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/past-recipients/past-recipients-1990s/ 

Episode 97 - Murdock and Marvel: 2023 The pandemic book that brought comics to their highest sales figures ever finally ended, and sales dropped about 7% from 2022’s all-time high. Even so, both sales and quality made this another fantastic year for American comics.  The movies…well that is something else… Preshow Talk Alec Seguera’s Enemy of My Enemy: https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781368095365 Comic Book Yeti: https://www.comicbookyeti.com/ The Year in Comics  Comics in Other Media Comic Sales Notable Comics Top Comic News Notable Passings Marvel Eisner Awards Dan's Favorite The Year in Daredevil  Appearances: Daredevil v7 #5-14, Daredevil & Echo (#1-4), Daredevil Omnibus #2, Daredevil v8 #1-2, Daredevil Epic Collection #6 and #17, Thor Epic Collection #9, Captain America Epic Collection #5, Defenders Omnibus #2, Moon Knight Epic Collection #7, Iron Man Epic Collection #6, Amazing Spider-Man Epic Collection #27, Marvel Masterworks: Daredevil #18 and Devil’s Reign Omnibus  Writer: Chip Zdarsky (#5-14), Saladin Ahmed (v8 #1-2)  Pencils: Marco Checchetto (#5, #8, #10, #12-14) Rafael De LaTorre (#6, #11) Checchetto and De Latorre (#7), Manuel Garcia (#9), Aaron Kuder (v8 #1-2)  Inks: Rafael De LaTorre (#5-6, #11), Elisabetta D’Amico (#7), Marco Checchetto (#8, #10, #12-14), Manuel Garcia (#9), Aaron Kuder (v8 #1-2)  Quick refresher from last week’s 2022 Daredevil talk: We left off with The Red Fist Saga kicking into gear—Matt confronting Butch, revealing his identity to Spider-Man, and realizing the Hand is now being steered by bigger, scarier forces tied to the Stromwyns and the Punisher, making it clear Hell’s Kitchen isn’t the endgame anymore.  Where it landed: Matt pulls Foggy and Cole North out of New York, links up with Elektra and Stick, and by the end of issue #4 the ritual is complete—Matt and Elektra are declared King and Queen of the reborn Fist (and man and wife), officially stepping into a global war that takes Daredevil far beyond the streets we’re used to.  As 2023 kicks off we learn - A reborn Fist with real stakes. The resurrection ritual doesn’t just crown Daredevil and Elektra as King and Queen—it supercharges everyone, including Foggy and Cole North, and the Book of the Fist literally rewrites itself to guide them. Its warning is chilling: the Hand is using the Lunate Talisman to replace world leaders with undead puppets, quietly steering global power while no one notices.  Recruiting monsters to stop monsters. Daredevil leads a breakout at the Myrmidon, offering prisoners a chance to fight for something bigger. Speed Demon, Stilt-Man, Agony, Stegron, and others join up. During the escape, Matt easily takes down U.S. Agent and is shaken to find Robert Goldman imprisoned there, clearly still part of a larger “plan.” In the aftermath, Iron Man and Captain America watch the footage and agree on one thing—Daredevil has crossed a line and needs to be brought in.   Elektra lights the fuse. While Doc Sasquatch tries to hold this unstable team together through therapy, Elektra infiltrates the White House, confirms the President is a Hand construct, and throws him out a window—on camera. It’s a tactical win and a PR nightmare, pushing the Avengers closer and painting the Fist as terrorists instead of saviors.  Doing good the hard way. Matt insists the Fist prove they’re different, leading a mission to North Carolina where they stop illegal evictions, defuse coordinated bombings, and protect a falling child—caught midair by Stilt-Man. Afterwards, Bullet leaves to find his son Lance, and we learn he’s unknowingly walking straight into the Hand’s trap.  The war with the Hand. Knowing it’s a setup but knowing they need to save Lance, Daredevil still attacks when the Book warns that the Punisher—who’s leading the Hand—is killing again. The battle is massive and brutal: Daredevil and Elektra vs. the Punisher, Stick vs. Aka, Cole North vs. a Hand-controlled Bullet, and the rest of the Fist fighting dragons and assassins. They lose ground, barely escape, but Elektra steals the Lunate Talisman—proof the Hand can be beaten.  Everything falls apart. The Avengers close in, the Stromwyns escalate, and Re-Cid gas bombs rain down on the Fist’s base. Elektra destroys the Talisman, which reveals the truth _ Stick and Foggy were resurrected by the Hand—then disintegrate. The cost to beat the Hand is devastating as the Avengers arrive to arrest most of the team.  God’s plan goes loud. Daredevil manages to escape along with Robert Goldman, who unleashing an avalanche that forces the Avengers to retreat while nearly everyone else is captured. Weeks later, Cole North snaps Matt out of his spiral—telling him to put the suit back on, go fix it. Matt confronts the Stromwyns and trades himself for Elektra’s freedom, proving his loyalty by plunging blades into his own eyes.  Death, rebirth, and the real enemy. Believing sacrifice is the only answer, Matt travels to Japan to die at the Beast’s gate and rescue the trapped souls—Foggy included. Elektra tries to stop him; he dies anyway, is reborn in white, and learns he’s been manipulated by the Wild, sister to the Beast. In the collapsing afterlife, Matt rejects comforting illusions, frees Foggy and the others through love and willpower, and stays behind—armless but defiant—to face the Beast alone.  The final book of volume 7 and the Red Fist Saga was an epilogue to this story and seemly sets us up for volume 8. This seemed like a good book for this week’s spotlight story.  We did get the first 2 books of volume 8 at the end of this year with a new creative team but we are going to save those and talk about them when we look at 2024.  This Week's Spotlight: Daredevil Volume 7 issue #14 from October 2023 “The Red Fist Saga Part 14”  Recap Why We Picked This Story Daredevil Rapid Fire Questions The Takeaway No takeaway - too recent Questions or comments We'd love to hear from you!  Email us at [email protected] or find us on Twitter @comicsoftime. ------------------ THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING CREATORS AND RESOURCES  Music: Our theme music is by the very talented Lesfm.  You can find more about them and their music at https://pixabay.com/users/lesfm-22579021/.  The Grand Comics Database: Dan uses custom queries against a downloadable copy of the GCD to construct his publisher, title and creator charts.  Comichron: Our source for comic book sales data.  Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History  DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_based_on_English-language_comics  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Marvel_Comics_superhero_debuts  https://comicbookreadingorders.com/marvel/event-timeline/  https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/past-recipients/past-recipients-1990s/ 

Episode 96 - Murdock and Marvel: 2022 It was a good year for comics, with things being stable, but still pointing up.  In the movie world, though, there were some dangerous signs of problems to come… The Year in Comics  Comics in Other Media Comic Sales Notable Comics Top Comic News Notable Passings Marvel Eisner Awards Dan's Favorite The Year in Daredevil  Appearances: Daredevil v6 #36, Daredevil v7 #1-4, Devil’s Reign #1-6, Devil’s Reign Omega #1, Daredevil Epic Collection #12, Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus #1, Marvel Masterworks: Werewolf By Night #1, Mighty Marvel Masterworks: Namor the Sub-Mariner #1  Writer: Chip Zdarsky (v6 #36, DR #1-6, v7 #1-3) Zdarsky, Rodney Barnes and Jim Zub (Omega)  Pencils: Manuel Garcia (#36), Marco Checchetto (DR #1-6, v7 #1), Rafael De Latorre, Luciano Vecchio and Guillermo Sanna Bauza (Omega), Checchetto, De Latorre, Alex Maleev, Paul Azaceta, Phil Noto, Chris Samnee, Klaus Janson, Mike Hawthorne and John Romita Jr (v7 #2), De Latorre (v7 #3-4)  Inks: Cam Smith, Scott Hanna and Victor Nava (#36), Marco Checchetto (DR #1-6, v7 #1-), Rafael De Latorre, Luciano Vecchio and Guillermo Sanna Bauza (Omega) , Checchetto, De Latorre, Alex Maleev, Paul Azaceta, Phil Noto, Chris Samnee, Klaus Janson, Mike Hawthorne and Scott Hanna (v7 #2), De Latorre (v7 #3-4)  The year begins with the final book of the Lock Down storyline we talked about in 2021. Fisk gets married to Typhoid Mary and while at his summer home finds his secret file with information on Daredevil’s secret identity.    That leads us into the big crossover event for 2022 – Devil’s Reign. Since it’s a huge crossover event that basically takes the place of a Daredevil volume for much of 2022, this will be our Spotlight story for the week.   Following Devil’s Reign in July, we get an epilogue book called Devil’s Reign Omega. In it there are 3 stories:   In “Fall and Rise” Reed Richards tells Daredevil he believes Fisk has traveled to Latveria before everything pauses for Matt Murdock’s funeral, with Kirsten delivering the eulogy and the Marvel cast quietly circling the truth—Foggy grieving, Jessica learning Joe is alive but warehoused in an orphanage, and Butch Pharris showing up just long enough to confirm he knows Mike died in Matt’s place and to ask the one question no one can answer: where is Matt?  Daredevil and Elektra watch the post-funeral scene, telling Luke Cage and Danny Rand that Matt being “dead” is the only way they can leave New York and take the fight to the Hand. A quick bank-robbery stop turns awkward when the Thunderbolts arrive and remind everyone that Fisk may be gone, but the Powers Act—and their authority—very much isn’t.  The story ends with Jessica Jones freeing Joe from his inhibitor collar and takes responsibility for him, Kirsten quietly buries the Norn Stone with Matt and admits she knows, somehow, this isn’t goodbye.   In “Mayor For Hire” we see Luke Cage reflect on his past before his first press conference as Mayor. During the opening statement he tries to bring people together and afterwords talks about the role of the Thunderbolts.  In “Cleaning House” Luke Cage tries to recruit Monica Rambeau to lead the Thunderbolts and reform them from within. She turns him down and it’s suggested they try asking Clint Barton next.  By September the events of Devil’s Reign have wrapped up and Daredevil volume 7 starts. In it we get the first 4 issues of a storyline entitled “The Red Fist Saga”. It opens with Matt —posing as Mike—confronting Butch and learns about Fisk’s fate. He then drops the act and with Spider-Man backing him up gives Butch a clear warning: rule like Fisk, and the heroes will come. Before leaving the city, Matt finally trusts Peter with his secret identity, then races to stop Kirsten from leaving town—only to miss her train as it explodes, pulling him into a nightmare orchestrated by the unnervingly calm Robert Goldman – a former college friend.  Goldman claims he’s been shaping Matt’s life all along, pushing him toward greatness through tragedy—revealing he may have caused Elektra’s father’s death and the train bombings to “reforge” Daredevil. Their rain-soaked clash ends with Goldman leaping away and turning himself in, while Matt reunites with a very much alive Kirsten, confessing his love but still keeping his true identity hidden.  Elektra and Stick establish a base near the Fist’s origin, meanwhile Luke Cage stands his ground as mayor against the Stromwyns. Matt recruits Cole North for what’s coming, learns the Hand is allied with the Stromwyns and the Punisher is now leading the Hand from Aka, a former mentor of Elektra’s while she was in the Hand.   As the year ends, Matt and Elektra complete a brutal spiritual trial, defeating the lingering souls of the Hand. Stick seals the ceremony, declaring Matt and Elektra King and Queen of the reborn Fist as well as husband and wife—before calmly telling them, “Now let’s get to work.”  This Week's Spotlight: Devil’s Reign issues #1-6 from February 2022 to June 2022  Recap Why We Picked This Story Daredevil Rapid Fire Questions The Takeaway Oversaturation and poor quality led to comic book fatigue. Questions or comments We'd love to hear from you!  Email us at [email protected] or find us on Twitter @comicsoftime. ------------------ THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING CREATORS AND RESOURCES  Music: Our theme music is by the very talented Lesfm.  You can find more about them and their music at https://pixabay.com/users/lesfm-22579021/.  The Grand Comics Database: Dan uses custom queries against a downloadable copy of the GCD to construct his publisher, title and creator charts.  Comichron: Our source for comic book sales data.  Marvel Year By Year: A Visual History  DC Comics Year By Year: A Visual Chronicle  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_films_based_on_English-language_comics  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Marvel_Comics_superhero_debuts  https://comicbookreadingorders.com/marvel/event-timeline/  https://www.comic-con.org/awards/eisner-awards/past-recipients/past-recipients-1990s/