Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell takes what could have been a standard “Old Man Superhero” story and managed to make it a compelling read, thanks to the amazing work of Charles Soule and Steve McNiven. The duo crafts a dark vision of a Marvel Universe without superheroes, and a Matt Murdock who regained his powers after years of blindness. It’s been a hell of a ride, and Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell #3 is where it all ends.
Most of the book is dedicated to one final fight between Daredevil and Bullseye, televised across New York City. It’s a hell of a fight, thanks to the level of detail that McNiven pours into his art. No quarter is given; Bullseye utilizes a substance that finally stabilizes his body, allowing him to reclaim his deadly aim, and he wastes no time in using it on the innocent and Daredevil alike. Daredevil, on the other hand, is slowly losing his enhanced senses again, but when it’s active, McNiven draws red radar rings echoing all across New York – punctuated by pure black panels here and there to represent Murdock’s fading abilities.
McNiven doesn’t hold back on the bloody elements either, especially once the Punisher gets loose and gets his hands on a mechanized battlesuit. Heads get ripped apart, stomachs punched through, and a nose is even bitten off. It’s raw and brutal, but it’s what you’d expect from Frank Castle – even if he doesn’t have limbs and is far older.
Marvel
Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell #3 isn’t just a big, knock-down, drag-out fight, however. Soule takes one last dive into Daredevil’s head, revealing what keeps him going even in the darkest times. Is it his faith in God? His desire to see the right thing be done? The answer lies somewhere in between, and it makes for a rather poignant ending where he convinces Tyra, the young girl he saved way back in #1, to use her powers to save New York. “Do you hide in the dark, or step into the light?” he asks her – a sentence that defines Daredevil to his core. There is one choice that I feel Soule and McNiven shouldn’t have made regarding Daredevil and the Punisher, but it’s only a minor quibble.
The final piece of what makes Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell #3 work is the gorgeous color art from Dean White, paired with lettering from Clayton Cowles. Red is one of the most prominent colors: whether it’s Daredevil’s suit, the bloodshed that Bullseye and the Punisher carry out, or Matt’s inner thoughts. Black follows close behind, representing the darkness both literal and metaphorical that Matt finds himself in. But at the end, there’s a third color: a blinding white representing the light of a new day, which makes the final pages sing all the more.
Daredevil: Cold Day in Hell #3 brings one of the more compelling Daredevil stories to a brutal, poignant end. This is more than just Daredevil’s Dark Knight Returns; it’s one of those stories that digs down to the core of what makes Daredevil work, even in his darkest hour.
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