Daredevil #31 review

New struggles and a returning character could mean death, but for whom?

June 28, 2021

Since Chip Zdarsky has taken over as Daredevil‘s writer, he has caused some significant turmoil in Matt Murdock’s life. Also, he has given the legacy of Daredevil to Elektra, taking care of Hell’s Kitchen while Matt is in prison.

SPOILERS AHEAD for Daredevil #31!

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The new supporting characters that Zdarsky has created are unique, and it has been great to see a creative team that creates agitation and emotion with their settings and situations. These new characters shine in this issue as they interact with the principal players. I will not be spoiling this issue in my review since we will release this early, but take a look at the Amazon description for the Vol. 6 trade paperback. This description has me thinking that this issue and the next will work for a mini-arc for Lock Down and put the players in place for a confrontation.

This idea of a mini-arc has been done before in issues #19 and #20 from this volume. If you can recall those issues, then you’ll remember the excitement and adrenaline that was coming from each character as they all intersected with each other in the Battle for Hell’s Kitchen. The significant part was the change that came after, which has shaped where we are with the Daredevil series now. When you read this issue, appreciate the characters’ paths so you can guess where they will lead to in the next issue.

Let us switch over to the art here and celebrate Mike Hawthorne’s solo issue! Previously it has been shared duties with Marco Checcetto, and their styles blended very nicely. Here, we see how Hawthorne goes from only covering Matt and Wilson’s portions to the whole story. It was great to see how Hawthorne handled Elektra’s adventures as Daredevil and watched as he crafts new movements for a different character to highlight their fighting styles. There is an excellent set of panels with screaming characters that Hawthorne uses to change the scene. Enjoy Hawthorne’s character emotions as he plays off of Zdarsky’s situations.

There is no major reveal or revelation in this issue — instead, this is all setup for the next part. I have a strong hunch that if you examine this cover and think about who the character on the cover could be, you can probably piece together what Zdarsky is setting up for character confrontation. I think fans of Frank Miller will probably wonder if Zdarsky and company will challenge his historic run — both are phenomenal, and we’re so lucky to see Matt’s life and adventures in such disarray. Get to your local comic shop early and pick this issue up and also tell them to hold issue #32 for you as well; otherwise, you’re going to miss out!

Daredevil #31 review

Daredevil #31

Fantastic issue! Chip is letting all the pots on the stove boil and it is going to be an entertaining disaster in the kitchen. Lots of setup here, but Chip has proven before that he can deliver.

Reader Rating10 Votes

6.9

The cover by Marco Checcetto is beautiful and also such a great tease of what is coming

The side character stories have been building up but now it looks to start having them engage each other in explosive ways

The struggle of Elektra trying to play by Matt's methods is going to be tested with what she has learned here

Matt Murdock makes quite a move in this issue and now I think he is scarier as a man with anger

The art team of Mike Hawthorne, Adriano Di Benedetto, and Marcio Menyz create a spectacle that is pure dynamite!

Fantastic

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