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Rating: 
Summary: Lee, Romita and Colan at their Best!
Review: Daredevil Masterworks Volume 1 introduced the character as a unique hero with unusual abilities. Under the direction of Stan Lee and Wally Wood, Daredevil was defined as an urban-adventurer who also relied on his smarts as Matt Murdock, Attorney-at-Law. Wood gave the Daredevil strip a look reminiscent of 1940's detective films and Lee wrote imaginative scripts with pulp-fiction flare. Volume 2 gives us a different interpretation. With the introduction of Johnny Romita as artist, and his more streamlined, super-hero look, Stan Lee turned Daredevil into a swashbuckling adventure strip in the same mode as many of the Marvel books of the 1960's. Issues 12-14, which begin this volume, are so far removed from the original concept of Daredevil, that it must have been a shock for original readers. Ka-Zar, Lord of the hidden Savage Land is on hand for a tale complete with lost siblings, destructive weapons and pirates! Issue 15, featuring the Ox, returns Daredevil to the original concept and it's all the better for it. Romita's artwork is especially great on this classic Stan Lee tale of betrayal and redemption. Issues 16 and 17 are a super-hero slugfest as Daredevil vs. Spider-Man in their second meeting. The supporting cast plays a pivotal role as Lee creates a great sub-plot that ends much too soon. These are the issues that proved Romita was the right artist to succeed Steve Ditko on Spider-Man. Issue 18 introduces the Gladiator and once again returns to the original concept and continues the sub-plot from issues 16 and 17. Issue 19 is Romita's final issue and it's great. Stan merges the two styles of writing and creates a template for things to come. With issue 20 we're introduced to the definitive Daredevil artist of the 1960's, Gene Colan. Colan achieved the perfect balance to Wood and Romita's work. Part film noir and part super-hero faire, Daredevil was never in better hands. Hopefully Marvel will remain faithful to the original coloring as the previous volume was criticized by many for it's garish tones. Though expensive this really is the only version of Daredevil in print worth purchasing.
Rating: 
Summary: Classic, but--
Review: Great artwork. John Romita. Gene Colan. Stan Lee at the helm. 'Nuff said. But what's interesting is to compare these issues with the Lee/Ditko Spiderman issues of the same time period. Daredevil's personal problems are weak and insipid, especially in comparison: "Karen can't love me because I'm blind, etc." An ace lawyer with super hearing should be able to detect her pulse picking up when he's near. Then later, "I can't tell her I love her because Foggy loves her too." Some of it reads like a bad "Millie the Model" issue. I can only think that the early issues covering DD's personal storyline were hindered because the artists (though all great) kept changing. Even with some lousy thought-balloons and odd plot twists, it's still early DD. It's still Marvel when it was creating one of its most unique characters. It still ran circles around the DC issues of that day.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but could have been better...
Review: I see that some people criticsized the previous Daredevil Masterworks volume for the coloring -- i.e. coloring was too garish. Well, unfortunately that again is the case with this volume. The coloring is garish and simplistic. This really backfires on the Gene Colan issues since his rendering technique had a subtletly and style to it. That type of illustration really calls for a corresponding subtlety and style in the coloring. Unfornatunately that's not what we get with these reprints. And didn't Frank Giacoia ink issue #20? ...
Rating:
Summary: Gene Colan takes over as the artist for "Daredevil"
Review: The theme of this Volume 2 collection of "Daredevil" comics for the Marvel Masterworks series ends up being not about the character but rather who was going to be the definitive artist for the series. These ten issues of "Daredevil" start with John Romita (Sr.) doing the illustrations over Jack Kirby's layouts and then his own pencils, but then we have the first appearance of Gene Colan, who I always considered the definitive artist for the Man Without Fear. Yes, Frank Miller has few peers when it comes to creative layouts and he redefined the character when he was writing and drawing the comic book, but nobody draws better looking women in the Marvel Bullpen than Colan. Actually, "Daredevil" was not his best work, which appeared when he drew "Dr. Strange" and "Dracula," but this was the comic book where he established himself as a first rate artist. "Daredevil" was always one of my favorite comics, long before Miller gave it cult status. Part of it was Colan's distinctive artwork, but I also liked the character's secret identity of Matt Murdock, attorney for the downtrodden. I always thought this made DD the ideal Marvel character to have his own television series, which could involve equal parts courtroom drama and superhero action, but the movie pilot they did a few years back simply did not click. This particular collection of ten issues are dominated by a couple of team-ups between old hornhead and a pair of other Marvel heroes, Ka-Zar, Lord of the Jungle, and the Amazing Spider-Man (check out the classic cover on issue #16). I always liked the scene where Spidey figures out Daredevil's secret identity and tries to get Foggy Nelson to confess. In terms of villains there is a two-issue fight with the Gladiator (whose whirling circular saw blades on his gauntlets always struck me as a rather bad idea) and Colan's debut involves a two-part return engagement with DD's old nemesis the Owl. On the interpersonal level the love triangle between Matt, Foggy, and Karen Page hits a low point when Foggy dresses up like a rather frumpy Daredevil to impress Karen and has to be rescued by the real article. The Spider-Man issues are above-average but you will not really find any classic "Daredevil" tales here. What you do have is the stage being set for the first period of glory days in the history of the comic book, when Matt had to create his twin brother Mike and the Jester first showed up to cause headaches for old hornhead.
Rating:
Summary: Gene Colan takes over as the artist for "Daredevil"
Review: The theme of this Volume 2 collection of "Daredevil" comics for the Marvel Masterworks series ends up being not about the character but rather who was going to be the definitive artist for the series. These ten issues of "Daredevil" start with John Romita (Sr.) doing the illustrations over Jack Kirby's layouts and then his own pencils, but then we have the first appearance of Gene Colan, who I always considered the definitive artist for the Man Without Fear. Yes, Frank Miller has few peers when it comes to creative layouts and he redefined the character when he was writing and drawing the comic book, but nobody draws better looking women in the Marvel Bullpen than Colan. Actually, "Daredevil" was not his best work, which appeared when he drew "Dr. Strange" and "Dracula," but this was the comic book where he established himself as a first rate artist. "Daredevil" was always one of my favorite comics, long before Miller gave it cult status. Part of it was Colan's distinctive artwork, but I also liked the character's secret identity of Matt Murdock, attorney for the downtrodden. I always thought this made DD the ideal Marvel character to have his own television series, which could involve equal parts courtroom drama and superhero action, but the movie pilot they did a few years back simply did not click. This particular collection of ten issues are dominated by a couple of team-ups between old hornhead and a pair of other Marvel heroes, Ka-Zar, Lord of the Jungle, and the Amazing Spider-Man (check out the classic cover on issue #16). I always liked the scene where Spidey figures out Daredevil's secret identity and tries to get Foggy Nelson to confess. In terms of villains there is a two-issue fight with the Gladiator (whose whirling circular saw blades on his gauntlets always struck me as a rather bad idea) and Colan's debut involves a two-part return engagement with DD's old nemesis the Owl. On the interpersonal level the love triangle between Matt, Foggy, and Karen Page hits a low point when Foggy dresses up like a rather frumpy Daredevil to impress Karen and has to be rescued by the real article. The Spider-Man issues are above-average but you will not really find any classic "Daredevil" tales here. What you do have is the stage being set for the first period of glory days in the history of the comic book, when Matt had to create his twin brother Mike and the Jester first showed up to cause headaches for old hornhead.
Rating:
Summary: Definitive Collection of early Daredevil Comics 1-11 c.1964
Review: This is the best, though flawed, collection of the first 11 issues of Daredevil by Marvel Comics. Some recoloring of a few pages are funky, but readable. The artwork by the late Wally Wood is dramatic and inking/shading supurb. Of special note is the issue 7 guest star by Prince Namor, the Submariner. Stan Lee has referenced this as the definitive example of how a comic book should be written.
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