Daredevil Visionaries: Frank Miller, Vol. 1

Daredevil Visionaries #1

by Frank Miller, Roger McKenzie (Writer), David Michelinie (Writer)

All the elements that made Miller's tenure on Daredevil a comic noir classic are here: gritty, street-level action, moody atmosphere, and widescreen adventure told with a cinematic eye.The stories in this volume feature unforgettable characters like the Kingpin, the mammoth king of the New York Underworld; Bullseye, the deranged but deadly assassin; Elektra, the woman Daredevil loves but is forced to oppose; and, of course, Daredevil himself, blind as justice, he is an attorney by day and an urban vigilante by night. Also introduced in this collection is the mysterious ninja brotherhood, The Hand, the group that will ultimately cause Elektra's untimely demise.

The stories included in the volume dedicated to Frank Miller's classic work show the continued development of an artistic legend as his skills continued to grow in stature and depth.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Comic Book, Superheroes, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Frank Miller is an American writer, artist and film director best known for his film noir-style comic book stories. He is one of the most widely-recognized and popular creators in comics, and is one of the most influential comics creators of his generation. His most notable works include Sin City, The Dark Knight Returns, Batman Year One and 300.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Stephen · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.0 to 2.5 stars. Contains Frank Miller's first work on Daredevil (artwork only as he did not take over the writing until later). Okay, but not on the level of the later work when Miller took over the writing duties.

[Roman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Для мене Френк Міллер доволі неоднозначний автор та ілюстратор. Серед його робіт є багато визначних коміксів, але мені його Бетмен та Місто гріхів не дуже заходять, хоча 300 спартанців припало до душі.

Після перегляду нетфліксової супергероїки, а саме Карателя та Шибайголови, у мене з’явилось натхнення на прочитання щось із цими персонажами. Коли для Пунішера є прекрасна серія макс, то у нашого сліпого адвоката теж є чимало серій. Розпочав я свою пригоду із рану Бендіса, котрий для мене дуже потужно стартанув, але потім просідав через великий проміжок часу для прочитання, тому цей шедевр, зокрема 2 та 3 том збірки залишились недооціненими мною…або ж просто не зайшли. Суть в тому, що я від Бендіса по часу заскочив назад.

Інша справа із Шибайголовою Міллера – я не знав чого чекати зовсім. Обкладинка у виданні досить така, хмм..дивна на моє око, а з самого початку нас закидують у вир подій, де зомлів друг Мета – Фоггі, а серед нього якісь панянки намагаються йому допомогти. А я тільки Карен та Електру знаю з їхнього оточення. Та Чорну вдову.

Початок історії видався дещо хаотичним, але варто зазначити типовий для коміксів 80 малюнок, але тут він значно крутіший, ніж Бетменівський, наприклад. Якось весь том виглядає атмосферно, з’являється чимало персонажів знайомих персонажів (у мене просто неймовірно вдало з’явився Отто Октавіус, котрого я сюжетно останній раз бачив у випусках The Amazing Spider-Man, у якому док потонув, а тут він пояснює, як йому вдалось врятуватись) екшн-сцени продемонстровані дуже класно – вся бійка оживає на очах. Мені сподобалось, це все досить таки атмосферно. Не дивлячись на доволі сумнівний початок історії – чим далі, тим краще як візуально, так і в плані сюжету. Хоча, без своїх абсурдиків невеличких комікс не обходиться, але врахувати треба те, що це 80 роки, та й це все не сильно кидається в очі.

Класно розглядати було оригінальні обкладинки, та секрети нашого головного героя, а саме які функції виконує його палиця, як виглядає його дім, та яким чином наш сміливець покидає свій дім для чергового подвигу у місті.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really, this volume is the prelude to Frank Miller's run on Daredevil. It's primarily authored by Roger McKenzie, who worked across the industry from about 1976-1982 before disappearing as quickly as he appeared. Frank Miller simply does the art (and gets a co-author credit for the last three issues, the last of which is written by David Micheline instead of McKenzie).

With the exception of the fairly awful Micheline issue (#167), this volume is much better than you'd expect a late '70s mainstream comic to be. There's a two-parter with Bullseye that focuses on his hatred and fear of Daredevil (#160-161) and a story with the Hulk (#163) that moves far beyond being a simply fistfight (to Matt's relief). Best of all, though, is the continuing subplot with Ben Urich, where he finally reveals his knowledge of Matt's identity in issue #164. Though the story is a bit rough by modern standards, it's still a great plot direction and a moving look at Ben's character. Beyond that, these comics have a strong and extensive supporting cast, who gets lots of attention.

So, this isn't the greatness that would follow as Miller entirely took over the comic, but it's still a goodness that makes it really readable in the modern day, and thus a nice setup to Miller's run proper.

[Daniel McTaggart · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the comic art fan, and Frank Miller fans, this volume of Daredevil stories is a must have. This is early Miller art with brilliant splashes of Gil Kane and Steve Ditko. Perhaps even a few hints of Will Eisner. Miller's art is fluid and dark, aided in no small part by the inking of Klaus Janson. It gives the city the gritty texture it deserves, especially in light of his writing in the following volume. The writing in this volume is by Roger McKenzie, a capable writer but not one who has made a splash in the industry. Miller does have one or two co-plotting credits in this volume, but if you want story to be on the same level as the art, better to start with volume 2.

[Jimbo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Frank Miller did great things for Daredevil--later on. These stories were fine, cleaning a bit of Heather Glenn's storyline and crossing Doc Ock from Spider-man to DD. But overall, they weren't revealing or exceptional, just decent DD stories.

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daredevil is the Man Without Fear, shaped by childhood circumstances to be a nighttime prowler and avenger/crime-fighter. His father's sad demise spurred him to seek justice, but he doesn't stop there. He disciplines his body to further his mission of protecting the innocent and seeing criminals captured, although he never goes over the line to murder.

I am in the minority, but I liked the movie with Ben Affleck. I think they conveyed the essence of the comics fairly well.

Daredevil is actually pretty noirish. The concepts, the setting and the characters. Daredevil has an interesting Rogue's Gallery, a mix of types. While some of the villains/foes that Daredevil faces are over the top and comic booky, a fair amount are amoral criminal types that you might see in the real life of any city's underworld. You can see why he is so determined to wipe out crime in his city as it's evident how far-reaching and destructive its effects are, which Matt Murdock learned intimately. As a lawyer, he sees the failings of the justice system to protect people, so he is not afraid to get physical to see justice done.

Daredevil's ability is really cool. When he was doused with radioactive waste, it blinded him, but enhanced all his other senses. His sense of hearing and smell is super-acute, but he can also see things with sonar, similar to a bat. While Daredevil does have superpowers, he also uses extensive martial arts and physical conditioning to hone his skills, along with his billy club, which is pretty darn awesome. This dude can kick serious butt.

This is an older graphic novel collection, and the coloring and artwork is a bit dated-looking, but otherwise, compelling and well-written despite the dated feel of the illustrations. Many will be familiar with Frank Miller, if not from the comic book world, than from the movie adaptations based on his work. His noir touch is very evident in the stories inked by him, with Daredevil's formidable and well-earned reputation as a denizen of the night who vigilantly protects his city. Matt Murdock is a mall-mannered lawyer by day, stricken with blindness as a child. His personality seems fractured, but he merely hides his purpose from those in his life who would no doubt be hurt by his double life. It's not one of those situations where you wonder why people don't know who he is. Clark Kent, I'm looking at you! His secret identity is rock solid.

I didn't expect to like this as much as I did. I guess I forgot how much I liked what I read of this series. I have read a couple of comic books with Daredevil (years ago, back when I first fell in love with comic books), with a stack of them in my garage I never got around to. I'm glad that my library had the collections that show his origins as a crimefighter. He's a compelling character that resonates with me. Not a carbon copy of Batman, but there are some similarities between them. Goodness knows how much I like Batman. I think I like Daredevil for similar reasons, and he's also a redhead, so that's another level of like.

So yes, I am grateful to the movie version for bringing this character to my attention. I am looking forward to Affleck as Batman too, for the record. I got Volume 2 which has my girl Elektra, so I'm jazzed! I recommend this graphic novel.

[Joe Kucharski · Rating 4 out of 5]

The DAREDEVIL stories that embarked Frank Miller on his career fell throughout the Jim Shooter reign at Marvel, during which two events occurred with titles catalog-wide: the status quo stayed the same, or titles drastically changed. Daredevil was fortunate to have both occur.

The initial stories are scripted by Marvel-mainstay Roger McKenzie, a decent Bullpenner probably best known for his Captain America as President idea, who was solid and advanced the stories in a very formulaic way. Miller doesn’t begin his term as writer until #168, which features the debut of Elektra.

Miller already had the beginnings of his art style, that would later be showcased in the likes of SIN CITY and 300, well in hand with the start of his DD tenure: the use of negative space and, the film noir-stylized shadows that truly made Daredevil a nighttime vigilante. As a writer, he knew how to plot. He started using tiny frames to focus on the action and making the page grander and cinematic, a style he greatly used in his DARK KNIGHT RETURNS story. His scripting, however, was extremely clunky and cliché, not differing too much from McKenzie’s previous work. Luckily, the concluding story arc of the collection featuring the return of the Kingpin set the tone for years of stories to follow. The only true clunker in the collection is the David Michelinie one-off that was filler between McKenzie and Miller’s runs.

These are fun stories told in the mighty Marvel manner of the early 80s and truly a must for any DD collector.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I enjoyed this more than I thought I would! I wasn't sure how I'd feel about earlier Daredevil stories, since I'm so used to seeing Matt inked/colored in newer styles. To be honest though, this was pretty amazing.

Frank Miller's talent for penciling is evident, from the first issue contained in this volume. He brings this gritty noir style to the story that I really ended up liking. I think my favorite part is the way that he drew Natasha, or Black Widow as you might know her. She has this distinctly curvy body, and I loved that she wasn't this stick figure of a character. Too often now that's more the style, and so I was completely enamored with her womanly physique. Plus, well, Natasha is a bad-ass.

Story wise, this was pretty solid too. The dialogue absolutely screams "Early 80's comic!" but it's pretty easy to sink into. It was cool to be able to see where Daredevil's roots came from, and by the time that Elektra came on the scene, I was sold.

This is pretty amazing! I haven't read a lot of older comics, so I'm greatly enjoying this journey.

[J.M. Giovine · Rating 4 out of 5]

As suggested by its title, this special edition-compilation gathers the first 9 issues that marked the involvement of Frank Miller as the recurrent artist in the Daredevil run from the late 70s, being issues #158 through 167 (omitting #162, since that wasn’t illustrated by him) the ones presented here. Miller was the lead artist in all these issues, with writer Roger McKenzie the one in charge of providing the script of the first 8, and finally, David Michelinie writing issue #167. As it goes, most of these were stories tying loose ends of the previous entries, focusing mostly on the return- and incapacitation-, of the villain Bullseye, as well as Daredevil’s encounter with Spider-Man’s long-time villain, Doc Ock, and Matt Murdock’s troubled relationship with his girlfriend, Heather Glenn, with her father being involved in criminal activities. The most interesting aspects of these issues are the character treatments, particularly with Bullseye, who is given a little bit of a background as a criminal leader, hiring guns and henchmen in order to capture and subdue Daredevil, only to realize it has to be done by him.
However, the most interesting issue- and one of my personal favorites-, has to be #164, in which finally Ben Urich confronts Daredevil, and lets him know he is fully aware of his alter ego, Advocate Matt Murdock, which leads to one of the best interactions in any of these comics between the reporter, and the vigilante, with McKenzie using this as an excuse to revisit the early days of Matt prior, and post the accident that’ll turn him blind, complemented by his father’s backstory which placed him as a renown boxing fighter, until he ended up working for a gangster, and ultimately, getting killed, which made Matt turn into the crime-fighter vigilante we all know and love. It might not be written by Miller, but as a stand alone installment in the wider legacy, this became easily one of my all time favorite issues of Daredevil, and an essential to understand his motivations and goals, as well as his origins, even if Miller eventually will comeback to it in 93, with his also excellent “Man Without Fear”.
You can really tell this arc is shifting its tone and shape towards darker, most grounded corners, something the character always seemed to hint at, given some of the maturer materials like his villains, or the moral complexities of Matt’s dilemmas as both, lawyer and vigilante. Bullseye is given much protagonism as an archnemesis- even though that’ll change in the further volumes-, Matt fights against familiar, and newer faces, such as Gladiator, and Doctor Octopus, and his relationship with Heather will face its ups and downs mostly thanks to the involvement of Natasha Romanoff’s role in Bullseye’s plan to take down Daredevil once and for all.
You can clearly tell this wasn’t conceived by Miller as a creator, per se, but his work as the main artist adds the initial ingredients for the series to start its evolving process. He offers the darker and richer blacks of the backgrounds and the shadows, he mixes the athletic abilities of the hero, and his foes, maintaining the familiar dynamism of the character, but also, adding the much-needed depth to the potential damage someone such as Daredevil can get, and not only at a physical level. It’s an ideal combination of pulp and classic comic book style with the indicatives of the stylistic upgrade experience in the early 1980s, and Miller’s artwork in those years is the perfect encapsulation of that particular mix. Visually, this is the arc in which Daredevil obtained his identity as a grounded comic book series meant to please the eye in the same way as Eisner did with his “Spirit” back in the 40s, or the “Dick Tracy” strips in the late 30s, but with that adult-obscure fashion that Miller eventually perfected as his own mythic minimalistic style for things like his “Sin City”, or his “300”. It’s the first step into what can be easily considered “Daredevil’s” best comic book arc, or at the very least, the most influential, and memorable one.

[Przemysław Skoczyński · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jeśli nie jesteś fanem postaci lub samego Millera, nie masz tu czego szukać. Ten run to niestety stara szkoła Marvela, nieznośnie infantylna, bazująca na schematach i często po prostu głupia. Wiarygodność bohatera jest zerowa. Zostaje on np. przejęty przez policjantów i umieszczony w szpitalu, gdzie dochodzi do siebie nadal w stroju Daredevila, dzięki czemu nikt nie zna jego tożsamości. Jest tu również całe spektrum kompletnie niedzisiejszych rozwiązań formalnych. Najgorsze są momenty, gdy Matt myśli rozbudowanymi zdaniami w taki sposób, jakby mówił, komentując w ten sposób to co dzieje się w kadrach. Na dodatek robi to w trakcie walki, a więc te elaboraty dzieją się z ciągu ułamków sekund. Zresztą jednym z głównych problemów jest tu właśnie przegadanie. Podsumowując - ramota, która ucieszy chyba tylko historyków. Mam nadzieję, że kolejne części przyniosą coś ambitniejszego.

[Aki Umemoto · Rating 3 out of 5]

This volume is the introduction of Frank Miller to Marvel and to the world. It covers the first nine issues of Daredevil that Frank penciled with inking by Klaus Janson. The stories are pretty much pedestrian, one mini-series involving Bullseye and the rest are one-shots that include Doc Ock, the Hulk, and the Gladiator. But what you came to see is Frank Miller's artwork. Frank's first issues remind me of Steranko's first issues of SHIELD, the artwork is rough and a little stiff but the layouts are very creative and innovative. It's fascinating to see Frank grow as an artist. This volume is highly entertaining and worth a look.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

This is Frank Miller's early Daredevil work, when he was mostly just the artist and not the writer. The Bullseye issues are great, the others are good but not great. The issues included here aren't the height of the series, as that came later, but it is a great start and a precursor of things to come.

Miller's Daredevil run is possibly the greatest in comic book history, and this was running concurrently with Claremont/Byrne/Austin on X-Men. Marvel was on fire around 1980.

Looking forward to the next volume when Miller truly begins to hit his stride.

[Timo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kiva, että Suomessa vihdoinkin saatiin julki niitä Daredevil tarinoita, mitkä ovat jääneet tähän asti syystä tai toisesta julkaisematta muissa kokoelmissa. Mutta vähän ihmetyttää, että kuin monta kertaa jotkut tarinat jaksetaan Suomessa uudestaan ja uudestaan julkaista, vaikka olisi varmasti tarjolla ihan ennenkin julkaisematonta materiaalia.
Hyviä nämä hyvin varhaiset Millerin kuvittavat tarinat ovat, ei siinä mitää, joten siinä mielessä ansaitsevat julkisuutensa. Toimiavia 70-luvun supersankaripläjäyksiä saippuaopperoineen ja yhteiskuntakritiikkeineen. Sekä kauniine kuvineen.

[Miles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Early Marvel work by the vastly influential Frank Miller. Whoever teamed him up with Klaus Janson as an inker was a genius. Their work complements each other beautifully and may have helped pave the way for Miller's later transition to his black-and-white noir-style graphics. The stories are fine, but this volume is really all about watching Miller's artistic growth. Looking forward to volume two.

[Kirk Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frank Miller's run on Daredevil is so highly acclaimed that it has become difficult to criticize. Before he took on both writing and art chores, Roger McKenzie handled the writing. McKenzie is often overlooked, but is also instrumental in moving the tone of the book from the swashbuckling hero tale that was the character's genesis, to the gritty crime noir character the Daredevil has mostly been ever since.

[Dan Blackley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first volume of Frank Miller's run on Daredevil. I finally got this volume after my collection of Daredevil comics were lost. This is the stories that he did before he did the Elecktra/Hand arc that really set Daredevil loose. These stories include the Hulk, the breakup of the Black Widow and the supporting characters.

If you want to read Daredevil, start with this and also read Vol. 2 and 3

[Rizzie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The title here is really misleading, as this is NOT where Miller's true run begins. However, this is where he began doing art on the series, so it's collected for posterity. It's really not part of the saga as a whole though. You can completely skip it, and probably should. It's pretty hokey generic stuff common to the period. Volume 2 is where Miller really shook things up.

[Leo Encast · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una lectura que genuinamente disfruté y de mi superhéroe favorito. Si bien puede parecer que varios villanos a los que se enfrenta Daredevil en estos números no son precisamente destacables, se nota un ritmo muy ágil y una sucesión de arte bastante entretenido. No hay duda de por qué Frank Miller es lo que es al día de hoy. Muy padre si m lo preguntan 😊

[Buddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty solid, nostalgic Bronze Age Marvel stuff. Early, nicely textured Frank Miller art with stories mainly by Roger McKenzie. Nothing earthshattering, but very readable nonetheless. Only the last 2 stories in the collection are a let down (fairly paint-by-numbers stuff).

[Dania · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only knew a bit about Daredevil thanks to the Marvel War of Heroes game 😀, but this book really laid out his origins, his powers, his greatest secret: his PASSION. What a badass hero!!! 😁🤗
Also, Black Widow and Daredevil had a fling? Really?!

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was very enjoyable! I genuinely love what I've read of Miller's run, and I'm so excited to read more. It's exactly what I'd expect from Daredevil, and it's so formative, it's cemented again and again why I love comics and why I love Matt Murdock in specific. Such a good collection!

[Nick Nguyen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Fun to watch Miller start off as the junior team player who stands out amongst his colleagues right from the starting gate. His intro to this volume offers a nice humble nod to the bullpen that nurtured him in these early days.

The Bullseye and Ben Ulrich issues are standouts.

[Ryan Morris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty solid, actually. Though definitely a victim of time. I do know that I haven't read ALL the Frank Miller DD before, so I'm looking forward to the next volumes.
Really dislike the cover on this one.

[Josh Van · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book

While I will admit that I was a little disappointed that the stories I was looking for containing Elektra and Kingpin weren’t in this volume it still is a good read regardless. The stories and the art are both amazing!

[Dante Petrella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bullseye capturing black widow and knocking her out with a vase might me the coldest fight I've ever seen

Matt also got his ass knocked out by the hulk 😭🙏

That whole foggy wedding side plot was also hilarious Icl

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable. If this were my first foray into Daredevil comics, or older comics, I don't know that I would keep reading, but it's not, so I will. Up next: Frank Miller takes over as writer.

[Christopher Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kind of a Frank Miller Greatest Early Hits. Miller with the edge of having something to prove. Do yourself a favor and check this out.

[Robert Cahill · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good to see Frank Miller's first work. While this volume lacked a story arc, the stories weren't bad.

[furious · Rating 3 out of 5]

SO. MANY. WORDS.

[Aldo]

It was interesting seeing what Daredevil stories were like before Frank Miller started writing them. He really improved every aspect of the character.