Episode 43 - Murdock and Marvel: 1996 Part 2

Well, here we are, Duane. At the End of Days. I have been promising you that everything was going to explode eventually. And finally we have arrived. Welcome to the fateful year 1996, when Marvel came crashing down.

This is part 2 of the podcast. that will feature the year in Daredevil, the Spotlight story and the Takeaway for 1996.

The Year in Daredevil

Appearances: Daredevil #348-359, Punisher #4, What if…? #83, Marvel versus DC / DC versus Marvel #2-3, Green Goblin #6 and 12, Doom 2099 #40-42, Over the Edge #6 and 10, Wolverine #103-104, New Warriors #73, Spider-Man Unlimited #13, Essential Wolverine #1, Essential X-Men #1, Spider-Man #74, Elektra Megazine #1-2, Essential Spider-Man #1 and Age of Innocence: The Rebirth of Iron Man, Spider-Man’s Greatest Team-Ups and Elektra Lives Again graphic novels

Writing: J.M. DeMatteis (348-350), John Rozum (351), Ben Rabb (352), Karl Kesel (353-357), Joe Kelly (358-359)

Pencils: Cary Nord (348-349, 353-357), Ron Wagner (350), Shawn McManus (351-352), Pasqual Ferry (358), Nord and Larry Hama (359)

Inks: Bill Reinhold (348, 350), Al Williamson (349), Shawn McManus (351-352), Matt Ryan (353-357, 359), Pasqual Ferry (358)

The year begins with Matt trying to reconcile his recent identity crisis while Foggy is angry about the secret he’s finally learned. Matt tries visiting with his mother Maggie, but it’s his old Mentor Stick that helps him – though in the process he ends up taking on the Chaste.
Foggy and Matt begin practicing law together again. From there, things return to normal (or at least what’s normal for Daredevil or Matt Murdock), He takes out Agent Vice who’s extorting money from other criminals. Daredevil must take on Mastermind who is also Matt Murdock’s client.
In June we get a new creative team that was teased at the end of issue 352. Karl Kesel and Cary Nord. We also get a re-imagined Mr. Hyde from John Romita Jr. Hyde seems to be totally unhinged (with an equally terrifying look). Daredevil confronts Hyde in an old Osborn warehouse where a woman has been murdered. Hyde continues to act crazy and is ultimately arrested.
- During this issue Foggy and Matt (mostly Matt) are asked to partner with hotshot lawyer Rosalind (Razor) Sharpe. Sharpe tells Matt privately that the two are a package deal. She doesn’t just want Foggy. Foggy seemed weirdly eager to join her so Matt accepts.
And as a first case under the new partnership, Sharpe was Murdock to represent Mr. Hyde. At first, Murdock doesn’t want to do it, but after meeting with Hyde – Matt doesn’t think he killed the girl. The leads to Daredevil taking on Pyro and looking for clues at the warehouse – with the help of Misty Knight – which leads to a secret tunnel and a group of criminals called the Enforcers and their newest member the Eel – who captures our hero. The story ends when Daredevil escapes and captures the Eel and presents the Eel to the courtroom waiting for the trial of Mr. Hyde to start.
The year ends with two standalone stories that have a much different look and feel from the rest of the year. In the first, Daredevil takes on Mysterio who’s working on a super-hero insurance scam. This fun story will be our spotlight story for the week. In the second, we see a night of Daredevil fighting crime while Karen Page talks to people of New York about their thoughts on Daredevil (now that the Fantastic Four and Avengers are gone) during her late-night radio call in show.

This Week's Spotlight: Daredevil #358 November 1996 “Aftermath”

Recap

Why We Picked This Story

Daredevil Rapid Fire Questions

The Takeaway

Stick to what you are good at.

Questions or comments

We'd love to hear from you! Email us at questions@comicsovertime.com or find us on Twitter @comicsoftime.

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THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING CREATORS AND RESOURCES

Music: Our theme music is by the very talented Lesfm. You can find more about them and their music at https://pixabay.com/users/lesfm-22579021/.

The Grand Comics Database: Dan uses custom queries against a downloadable copy of the GCD to construct his publisher, title and creator charts.

Comichron: Our source for comic book sales data.

The American Comic Book Chronicles: Published by TwoMorrows, these volumes provide an excellent analysis of American comics through the years. Because these volumes break down comic history by year and decade they are a great place to get a basic orientation on what is happening across the comic industry at a particular point in time.