Daredevil Legends, Vol. 1: Yellow by Jeph Loeb

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Before reading Daredevil: Yellow, I read the original Daredevil Comics in Essential Daredevil Volumes 1-3 containing most of the early stories of the Man Without Fear's encounters with Karen Page. To me, Karen Page was really one of the worst love interests in Silver Age Marveldom. At times, she was condescending to Matt Murdoch's blindness. At others, she was irritatingly stupid. At others still, she was just plain annoying. And I kept find myself really asking, "What does a great guy like Matt Murdoch see in her?"

This gives me a special appreciate for what Loeb and Sale did in this book. They took a love letter to a deceased character like Page and made the book work. That is art and that is talent.

These better told than the originals, but on all essentials, the basic plot is the same. The art is expressive and astounding in Tim Sale style. Combined with with Loeb's evocative scripts, the story flows brilliantly. We get more on "Battlin' Jack" Murdoch than Issue 1 of Daredevil had, and a real strong feel for who this man was and what he meant to Matt.

The book is about Matt's honor for his father, his nostalgia for a better time when the costumed villains didn't kill, and yes his love for Page. In the end, I didn't feel any better about Karen at the end, but also realized I didn't matter. Karen's like that girlfriend you know is bad for a good friend. But when she dies, she remains forever as he remembered her. It's true that love, like Daredevil is blind.

The re-imagining manages to add depth and quality to the original along with a knowledge of what would be retconned into Daredevil's past. Making a great package combination of old and new and a must read for comic fans.



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