This week I'm dedicating my blog to the new Daredevil story arc "SHADOWLAND". If you haven't been reading Daredevil, shame on you. It's awesome and probably one of my favorite books every month.
Things have really started to heat up considering Matt Murdock aka Daredevil is now the leader of The Hand and has a castle called "Shadowland" built in the middle of Hell's Kitchen. The lines have been drawn and now all the heroes and villains are taking sides on who wants to join The Hand and who wants to stop Matt before he takes it too far.
The first two issues of the "Shadowland" proper title already came out and I already told you all that you need to jump on before you're left in the dust. This week, I'm going to talk about the new tie-in's that came out, that give us a street level view of how Shadowland is affecting New York City.
SHADOWLAND: DAUGHTERS OF THE SHADOW #1 (OF 3)
Colleen Wing was raised a warrior by her grandfather in Japan. She came to America and befriended Misty Knight and together they fought the good fight. This time around, Colleen is enticed to come to Shadowland and learn about her mother, whom she knows next to nothing about. As with all the heroes Daredevil once fought alongside, Colleen is asked to join The Hand.
Writer Jason Henderson does a great job of creating an air of mystery around Colleen's past and her ties to The Hand.
I feel that this mini can have some serious applications to Colleen and her ties to the rest of the superhero community as well as shedding some light on her past and allowing us as readers to follow her down a potentially dark path.
If you're reading Shadowland or you're a fan of The Daughters Of The Dragon, I suggest you go and pick this book up.
4 out of 5
SHADOWLAND: POWERMAN #1 (OF 4)
After Bullseye blew up the building that Shadowland now resides on, one person emerged from the rubble and is now running around as a hero for hire under the guise of Powerman.
Victor Alvarez is a teenager who "supposedly" delivers pizza's by day but by night is the new hero for hire on craigslist as Powerman. He's decided to use his new abilities to help his family, who fell victim to Bullseye blowing up their apartment, by being a hero for hire and working to save up so that his family can return to their normal life instead of being cramped in an apartment with other family members. Victor comes across The Hand as they begin to spread their daimiyo's sphere of influence. During the battle the ninja's notice that their opponents fighting style is the same as Iron Fist and need to find out who taught him and why.
Iron Fist and Luke Cage are notified of the situation and try to deal with it accordingly, trying to find out who this new kid is using Luke's old name.
This mini is actually really cool and I'm excited to find out who this kid really is and how he got his powers. The fact that writer Fred Van Lente is digging into Luke Cage's past and adapting it to this story line is very cool. I like the fact that now everyone's past is somehow being brought up because of Shadowland.
4 out of 5
SHADOWLAND: BLOOD ON THE STREETS #1 (OF 4)
Misty Knight, The Shroud, Paladin and Silver Sable are all being dragged into whatever mess Daredevil and The Hand are creating. The Shroud and Misty Knight are investigating the murder of a known criminal, whom it seems was killed by The Hand. Silver Sable is hunting down an international criminal when she comes to find him murdered and all evidence leads to The Hand.
Daredevil has crossed the line and now everyone is being pulled into the fight for New York.
As I said before i really enjoy how due to The Hand now running rampant in Hell's Kitchen and spreading across New York, that now heroes and villains alike must make the decision to either join or die fighting against the one person no one thought would ever commit such atrocities. The Police have been pushed out and it's a form of martial law being enforced by The Hand. I can't wait to see who else gets involved to either stop of help Daredevil's potential deadly reign.
4 out of 5
DAREDEVIL # 509
In Japan, Elektra and Master Izo, find out what's really going on with Daredevil and The Hand. In New York, Dakota and Foggy learn that their friendship with Matt means nothing anymore and Typhoid Mary makes her return to the pages of Daredevil.
Searching to find the cause behind Matt's rise to power as the new leader of The Hand and somehow find a way to save their friend, Elektra and Master Izo break into The Hand's castle and learn that Matt is just a puppet for Snakeroot, an ancient order within The Hand that wants to take control and dominate all.
Back in New York, Foggy and Dakota are attacked by Hand ninja's and with the help of Luke Cage and Iron Fist, quickly learn that the line has been drawn and no matter what's happened in the past, their friendship means nothing anymore.
This is the part of the book I especially liked because we haven't seen Typhoid Mary since she left The Initiative during a black ops mission to infiltrate HYDRA. She shows up at Shadowland and explains to Matt that she's now in control of all her personalities and can be a vital asset to his cause.
Writer Andy Diggle is really taking this story and this book above and beyond anything. I'm almost inclined to say that he could possibly surpass Bendis as the next big writer of Daredevil.
5 out of 5
Overall, I'm really digging the whole Shadowland story and concept. It's bringing light to a lot of character's pasts as well as creating alliances between characters that we the readers never thought possible. Daredevil as a villain is probably the greatest idea Marvel's had in the past 10 years. Matt Murdock has always been the one hero that no matter what he would never cross the line and kill anyone. To see him murder Bullseye in plain sight and now to rule like a Kingpin goes against everything he's ever stood for. Personally, I hope that he stays a villain and somehow makes a bigger mark on the Marvel Universe than say Dr. Doom. If you're new to Daredevil I highly suggest you get your hands on all the trades available because Kevin Smith, Joe Quesada, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker and now Andy Diggle wrote some of the greatest Daredevil stories that all lead up to this point.
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