Daredevil 17
Poor Foggy - not only does he endure the indignity of being held out of a window by Spider-man at the beginning of this issue - the webcrawler's doubting that he is in fact Daredevil due to the fact that Nelson is 'flabbier' than he would imagine the man without fear to be. Whilst Foggy clearly carries a substantial belly later in the run, he's portrayed as positively svelte in the early issues by comparison. With this mention of flab, though, Foggy is suddenly displayed as packing a few extra pounds, a strange contrast with the previous issue. But he's no Blob - being obese in the austere early sixties isnothing compared with carrying a little bit extra today.
I have to say though, the admirable Nelson holds his own against a stubborn Spidey, convinced he has his man. "Why don't you accuse me of being the Hulk also while you're at it?" Foggy strops back at the webslinger. Stan Lee is a little more sympathetic to Foggy than in previous issues. Here he turns away from his colleagues to bemoan his 'ordinariness' and ruminate on how it was blind Matt who was the glamour boy back in college, getting all the attention. Matt, meanwhile, is nervous about the implications of Spidey's 'unmasking' of Foggy - he's concerned if word gets out, his colleague will be at the mercy of the underworld.
Another first in this issue: DD and JJJ meet! Jonah's heckles are raised straight away as Daredevil uses Spidey's entrance (ie the window) to grab the editor's attention. But he's soon grinning when Daredevil tells him that he thinks Spidey and the Masked Marauder are in cahoots - Jonah's soon on public broadcast TV offering rewards for evidence, feverish with excitement. Jonah though is a puppet in Matt's hands - Matt has told him to let the public know that the Masked Marauder doesn't have the fuel he needs for the engine he stole last issue and thus flush him out from his hideout. Clever ol' Matt.
Later Spidey and Matt meet up again and... surprise, surprise, they're throwing fists at each other once again. Daredevil, though, realises that Spider-man is being set up and tries to inform the webcrawler of this whilst avoiding his blows. This leads to one of the best put downs yet in the comic. Trying to stop him, Matt yells, "You juvenile, jumping jack in the box!" A quality insult. After Daredevil claimed an unlikely victory in the fisticuff stakes last issue, it's Spidey who has the upper hand this time, Matt fortunate to be saved by the Masked Marauder making his assault at the offices of World Motors (where the XB 390 engine was stolen from).
This issue concludes with a plot twist that was strongly signalled in the previous issue. Although, like many villains in the early issues, the Masked Marauder appears to be an all round science whizz, his chief weapon is an 'opti-blast' that temporarily blinds his opponents. Thus when Spidey goes to attack him, having easily seen off his henchmen, he is of course blinded. When Daredevil arrives... well, it's obvious what happens, isn't it? Having tried to dazzle our hero, the Marauder is naturally dumbfounded that his weapon has had no effect and DD quickly disposes of him. Which is fine but, as I say, it was pretty obvious right from the start of the story how this all would be wrapped up.
There is a very nice twist in the tale ending things off though. The Masked Marauder manages to evade capture, knocking out a guard and making off in his uniform. He then overhears Foggy and Karen talking. Karen asks Foggy to tell him if he really is Daredevil. Though tempted to tell her he is, as she appears to be hanging on his every word, he tells her he can say nothing. Karen misinterprets this and thinks that this means Foggy is Daredevil. She promises to keep his secret. Meanwhile the Masked Marauder has heard everything and he now thinks he knows who DD is. An excellent little scene.
Karen-watch. She's still silently smooching after the lawyer without fear. "Even though he's just a quiet court room lawyer," she sighs, "He's all the super-hero my heart could even desire!" Cue readers' hearts collectively melting. There's also a nice moment when Karen asks Foggy if he wants the reports on Ka-Zar brought to his desk. I just liked the way that a previous case is referenced here, giving the impression, (shock, horror) that the lawyers actually occasionally do some work.
It's interesting to note that the Romita artwork here preceeds his work on Spidey. I wonder if he got the gig after Stan the Man saw his interpretation of the webcrawler and his supporting cast. If so, I can't help thinking that it was his manic, bug-eyed Jonah, rather than his movie star handsome Peter Parker, that may have sealed the deal - it's wonderful!
2.5 stars out of 5
