It would seem that Marvel is jumping on the whole new number 1’s band wagon, because Daredevil is back at #1 again, as is The Hulk and Uncanny X-men later this fall. If any character needed a fresh new start at number one, it was Matt Murdock. He and his alter ego have gone through a shitload over the years. The deaths of two girlfriends, insanity, nervous breakdowns, divorce, his secret identity being compromised, prison and being possessed by a demon. That’s more than a lot of our other heroes go through.

Even though he needed a fresh start, there was no need to cop out and restart continuity from a certain point. (Spidey!) But it’s definitely a breath of fresh air for us the reader to see Matt Murdock back in Hell’s Kitchen with a more carefree attitude. He actually looks to be having a little fun being back, saving the daughter of a mob boss at the boss’s wedding and kissing the bride in the middle of a fight. That was a classic moment! The villain he fights in that scene was just as Daredevil described him – “Dumb name. Disturbing power.” Yes the Spot is an extremely dumb villain name, but his power to open holes in space at will is something you don’t take lightly. Especially after you see his hands come out of nowhere to snap a mob guy’s neck.

Everyone in New York from Matt’s morning coffee guy to the new assistant D.A. still believe that Matt is Daredevil, so the fallout from the Bendis-Maleev run is still there. But all Matt can do at this point is deny it and play dumb… er blind. I wonder if things will ever get back to normal for him. Him and Foggy can’t even hold onto clients because the opposing attorneys do nothing but bring the fact that Murdock is or was Daredevil. It is good to see the Matt and Foggy duo back. Those two just wouldn’t be the same without one another. It’s a true bromance all the way even though they are polar opposites in almost every way.

The ending was a bit of a shocker if his attacker is who I think it is but we’ll have to wait until the next issue to find out. I give the issue a 4.5 out of 5 bears.

Mark Waid is a fantastic writer and is able to catch the essence of Matt Murdock, Daredevil and Foggy Nelson just as good as Bendis or Brubaker ever could. The art by Paolo Rivera will take some getting used to, but overall I enjoyed it. The cover price of $3.99 was definitely worth it because there was a little bonus story in the back that was pretty enjoyable. Hopefully Daredevil is back on the right track with Mark Waid pulling the trigger because I just sort of lost interest when Andy Diggle took over. Not to say Diggle is a bad writer, I just don’t think he is suited for the character of Daredevil. I’ll definitely be picking up issue 2!