Daredevil #9

Written by: Charles Soule

Art by: Goran Sudzuka

Coloured by: Matt Milla

Lettered by: Clayton Cowles

After a very interesting, relatively action-less previous issue, with Daredevil playing poker and gaining intel, this issue follows Daredevil teaming up with Spider-Man to obtain a mysterious briefcase from the triad. Although a bit of a break from the main story of Daredevil and Blindspot, this issue sets up possible plots and arcs with several well-known criminals back in the Big Apple. So how does Daredevils trip to China (presumably) end, and what is revealed about Daredevil's mysterious ability to put his identity back into secret?

The story follows Daredevil and Spider-Man as they infiltrate the high-rollers floor of the casino from the previous issue. Their target is a mysterious briefcase being held by the triad, the content of which is a mystery that Daredevil refuses to reveal to Spider-Man. What results is a few well-done action sequences of both Daredevil and Spider-Man fighting thugs, avoiding gunmen, chasing down helicopters, and even essentially water skiing. Its a weird mix of action and dialogue that works surprisingly well in the story, as Spider-Man urges Daredevil to relax and enjoy himself a little. The most unusual part, however, happens near the end when, having stolen the briefcase from the triad, Spider-Man proceeds to steal it away from Daredevil, threatening to destroy it if he does not reveal what is inside. This is an odd shift from the previous tone of the interaction between the two, and while it is not completely without cause, seems a bit out of character for Spider-Man to be this weirdly vindictive towards someone he himself continually refers to as a close friend.

The art in this series remains superb, the stylized shadows and focus on red and black giving the book its own identity and shows a representation of how Matt sees the world. The only real issue I take with the art is Spider-Man. I'm not a fan of the glowing eyes and spider symbol on his new costume. This is not the fault of Goran Sudzuka or Matt Milla, of course, although the symbol generally looks like it just has a ring of light around it rather than the symbol itself glowing at the edges, and sometimes the symbol just fails to glow at all.

Ultimately, I enjoyed this issue. It was a slightly silly romp with Daredevil showing his lighter side, something Daredevil rarely does, while paling around with a fellow superhero. The ending felt slightly off, and we still haven't gotten a real explanation for why everyone has suddenly forgotten that Matt Murdock is Daredevil, but the explanation seems less important than the stories that they are telling surrounding it, such as Matt's return to law and his ability to go under cover as a gambler, rather than having a highly recognizable face. With a return to New York and a focus on gang leaders and street level villains hinted at by the end of this issue, I expect that Daredevil will continue to be one of the most solid quality books going at Marvel for at least the foreseeable future.