Mike Murdock

Origin

During an investigation into Kingpin, Daredevil got help from an Inhuman known as Reader. Reader has the ability to make what he reads real, and while reading some of Murdock’s notes, he fell asleep during the part recounting Murdock's time undercover as a fictitious twin brother, Mike. This caused a real Mike Murdock to manifest as something Reader refers to as a fragment.

Creation

Mike Murdock debuted as a real person in Daredevil #606 by writer Charles Soule and artist Phil Noto. He is based on a previous undercover identity that Matt Murdock used starting in Daredevil #25.

Major Story Arcs

Fragment

When Matt first came across Mike, he knocked him unconscious and brought him to a library to confer with Nur and Reader. Reader knew exactly what he was, explaining his origins to the others. Reader seemed to not be that worried about it. He had a way of erasing fragments. However, Mike woke up as they were talking about ending his “life” and acted out of desperation. He took Reader’s dog and held it at gunpoint with Nur’s gun, allowing him to escape.

Scared for his life, he went searching for his brother, not knowing that he and Daredevil were the same person. Desperate, he held Foggy Nelson at gunpoint and forced him to call Matt but got mad when Daredevil showed up. He demanded Daredevil set up a meeting with Matt and took Foggy as his hostage. So, Daredevil changed into his Murdock clothes and met them in the park. They discussed Mike’s new reality, and Matt was convinced that he was real now and deserved to live. Unfortunately, the appearance of Reader spooked Mike into running away.

Still desperate, Mike tries to parlay favor with Kingpin (as mayor of NYC). He informs Fisk of Daredevil’s investigation into his election. He was hoping to get a job and some security out of it, but Fisk pretended to reject him. Instead, Fisk had The Hood reach out to Mike for an opportunity.

One More Day

While working for The Hood, Mike stole a Norn Stone from his vault and hired Black Cat to steal some translated Asgardian spells. He used them in tandem to rewrite history and turn him into a real person.

In this new history, Jack Murdock raised twins given to him by the nuns. Mike grew up saving Matt from bullies while his father tried to teach him not to take the bait. When Matt lost his sight saving a man crossing the street, Mike took it badly, but Mike was the only one to see their mother, Maggie, come visit him in the hospital. While Matt hit the books, Mike hit the streets growing up into a grifter and a scrapper. This disappointed Jack, and the two had a falling out. Matt was still able to convince him to come cheer on their dad at the fight that would eventually leave him dead.

With this new history flooding his brain, Mike woke up in his apartment to some strong emotions. He was approached by Daredevil, who was planning on pleading guilty to manslaughter charges, who told him The Hood was gunning for him. Mike refused to leave Hell’s Kitchen though. After Daredevil left, Mike caught up with his old friend Butch Pharris and plan what their next move was.

Devil's Reign

While Matt was standing trial as Daredevil, they needed a stand-in for Matt Murdock, so Foggy hired Mike to do it. Mike still doesn’t know Matt is Daredevil and was told by Foggy that Matt was in rehab. Meanwhile, Mike is collaborating with Butch to slowly but surely take over the criminal enterprise of Izzy Libris and become the new Kingpins of NYC.

After Mayor Fisk outlaws masked heroes, they take the opportunity to try to take over the streets. It does not go there way due to the police drones Fisk released to catch the heroes. Their business was down 80%. Butch planned on killing Fisk to end the surveillance, but Mike did not approve of the plan. He returned to Matt's apartment to grab his norn stone to try and fix this situation, but Fisk was waiting for Matt. Confusing Mike for Matt, he proceeded to attack and kill him.

Publicly, Mike's death was announced as Matt's so that Matt could go off the grid with Elektra to take down The Hand. He had a large funeral with many of his superhero friends attending, with only a few of them realizing that it was all fake. Kirsten McDuffie was the closest person to Matt who didn't know, thus she gave a genuine eulogy. She slipped a Norn Stone into his casket not knowing what it was, only that it was on him when he was killed and must be of personal importance.

Character Profile

• Height: 5'11"
• Weight: 185 lbs
• Eye Color: Blue
• Hair Color: Red
• Citizenship: American
• Place of Birth: Hell's Kitchen, New York City, NY
• Marital Status: Single
• Occupation: Con artist and thief
• Known Relatives: Jack Murdcok (father, deceased), Sister Maggie Murdock (mother), Matt Murdock (twin brother)
• Distinguishing Features: Appears identical to Matt Murdock, his twin brother, except he still has his vision and eye color.