Daredevil #199
Date:
October 1983
Publisher:
Marvel Comics Group
Cover Price:
60¢
Stats:
22 color pages plus ads, Bullpen Bulletins and “Devil’s Advocate” letters page
Writer:
Denny O’Neil
Artists:
William Johnson, Danny Bulanadi, Bob Sharen and Joe Rosen
Notable Notes:
Daredevil battles ninjas… in Japan!
The Land of the Rising Sun
I am fascinated by Japan. Back in my first year of college I took a year of Japanese, then actually spent a few weeks in Japan with some native students. It was a truly wonderful experience! The ancient capital of Kyoto is one of the coolest places I have ever been. Now-a-days, China, and to some extent Korea, are the really big players from Asia, but when I was growing up in the 1980s the Japanese were the up-and-comers that were causing people here to worry about their jobs. But also there was a general fascination with ninjas, samurai, Japanese business practices and Godzilla movies! So it was with great pleasure that I read this issue – where my favorite superhero travels to my one of my favorite countries. And with the superb writing and art it certainly didn’t disappoint!
Synopsis:
Matt Murdock wakes up to an earthquake… in a barn… after having spent the night with a Japanese criminal’s daughter! Gasp! And to top it all off he has a head injury which is somehow mentally linking him with his arch-enemy: Bullseye. Bullseye, it turns out, is nearby – recuperating in the compound of Dark Wind, the warlord. Dark Wind wants the throwing assassin to kill a Japanese diplomat, so he sends his ninja warriors to take care of Daredevil and Yuriko. They fail abysmally. You knew that though, right? I mean, c’mon! Daredevil and Dark Wind’s scarred daughter finally make it to his compound, where she rescues her lover (um, Japanese lover, that is!) and Matt takes care of everybody else. Well, almost everybody else – he does need Yuriko’s help dispatching her evil father… and Bullseye makes a clean get-away too, after betraying Dark Wind and slipping through the fingers of his henchman.
How I Rate This Issue:
-
Story:
– This story was awesome! There was lots of drama and action, and some very cool mysterious elements as well.
-
Art:
– The art was almost perfect. The only downside to the beautiful drawings and colors was that Matt’s eyes were really weird in a few panels. Weird in that it appeared that he was looking at people and things, and that made it seem as if he wasn’t blind.
-
Fun Factor:
– This was a really fun issue to read! I liked the characters, the setting and the story. All around goodness – highly recommended!
Where To Get Your Own Copy:
