Sunday, August 10, 2008

What Do You Know, The Crazy Guy Was Right After All

Still going through the collection, came across Daredevil #181, which, if you don't know, is the issue where Bullseye introduces Elektra to the pointy end of one of her sais.

It's kind of interesting to see the Punisher show up in the title (as this was during a prison stint for him), and encourage Bullseye to escape, telling him that Kingpin wasn't going to get him out, because he'd found a new killer (that'd be Elektra). Of course, Frank figured Bullseye would attempt a break out (correct), and get killed in the process (false). Probably shouldn't tease the guy who can kill with anything, Castle.

Anyway, Bullseye escapes, finds a place to lay low, and plans to eliminate Elektra and Daredevil. While doing some planning, it starts to occur to him that Daredevil and Matt Murdock might be connected, seeing as how one always seems to closely follow the other, yet they never appear together. After Bullseye finishes Elektra, he watches Murdock in the morgue, and a little test with a scapel confirms his suspicions. He scrambles off and tells Kingpin about it. How Murdock was blinded as a kid, but his brain scans showed increased sensitivity to sound and scents, until that mysteriously faded. What if, Bullseye posits, the ability didn't fade, Murdock just concealed it?

Fisk interrupts before Bullseye can get to the part about Matt's father, which might have struck a chord with Fisk*. Fisk dismisses Bullseye's theories as nonsense, designed to get his job back**, and tells Bullseye to get on with killing Daredevil. Bullseye goes to Murdock's apartment, but gets faked out and subsequently abandons his theory of Murdock being Daredevil.

I've only read the latter parts of Born Again, so you tell me, was there a moment, when Fisk learns that Murdock is, in fact, the Man Without Fear, where he mused to himself about how Bullseye was right all along***? I'm not expecting the Kingpin to regret not believing Bullseye, or to feel bad about not believing him, but I think Fisk might be wryly amused that the loon who kills people with whatever's handy, actually put it together all by himself. Actually, Fisk might be a little regretful, mostly because if he'd had this information sooner (or believed it) he couldn't have removed Murdock from the equation long ago.

* Is Fisk the one who killed Battlin' Jack Murdock in the comics, or was that strictly something they added for the movie, because Kingpin being a dangerous crime lord who ruins lives and ordered the death of a lady Matt was quite taken with wasn't enough motivation?

** How was that going to get Bullseye's job back, even assuming Fisk had believed him? It's not like Bullseye said, "I know who Daredevil is, if you want that info, give me my job back," he flat out told Fisk what he believed. Besides, he's an assassin, not a planner. Fisk wouldn't be hiring him for his deductive ability, so what would it matter?

*** Presumably while standing at the window, gazing out upon his city, with his cane in one hand, and a fine cigar in the other.

5 comments:

Jason said...

You know, I don't think it came up in Born Again. Though, Fisk never really seemed surprised that Murdock was DD, so maybe it was in the back of his mind. Then again, I don't know why he found the information more solid this time, seeing it was coming from a drug-addled porn-star. I would actually find a costumed psychopath the more believable of the two.

Jake said...

Nope. No such mention in Born Again. Though there are a few scenes where Kingpin stands before a window gazing out upon the city with a cane in one hand and a fine cigar in the other, so you get partial credit.

CalvinPitt said...

jason: Did Karen have any evidence, or did she just say it? I guess Fisk would know she used to work for Murdock, and that they had a relationship, so maybe that sold him on it. Or maybe he figured it was no skin off his nose if he was wrong, since he probably wasn't fond of Murdock anyway.

jake: Yeah, I've seen a few of those in the issues of Born Again I do have, which is where I got the imagery from, I guess.

Anonymous said...

Karen doesn't have any evidence, just the name. But in the opening issue of "Born Again" he waits six months, then starts screwing with Matt Murdock's life in various little ways, to see how Daredevil reacts.

A frustrated Daredevil blurts "WHO WANTS TO TALK ABOUT MATT MURDOCK?" after tearing up a watering hole, which proves to Kingpin that they are one and the same.

Kingpin is NOT connected in any way in regular continuity with the men who killed Battlin' Jack Murdock. He was still a mid-level enforcer around then.

In the original origins and the revamps DD chased down and beat up the men who killed his father, and the boss who pulled the trigger and had Battlin' Jack in his pocket died of a heart attack running away from DD.

CalvinPitt said...

dan coyle: That's pretty smart of the Kingpin, especially the waiting part, since it could have been a trap.

I'm glad to hear Fisk wasn't connected to Jack Murdock's death. That would have just been too much.