I've said it before... Zdarsky'd again!
In my heart of hearts, I envision a fictional scene in which a surly and moustached newspaper publisher yells at Canuck comic-book artist and writer Chip Zdarsky.
“Zdarsky!” the publisher barks. “Get you mangy, bearded hipster ass in here.”
“What's the word, boss?”
“Tell me—are all you Canadian freaks into craft beers and indie music?”
“Not necessarily. It's a fairly wide demographic. The term 'hipster' can be applied a little broadly...”
“Alright, enough already. Get me a piece on horn-head, that freakish devil of Hell's Kitchen!”
“It's uncanny," Zdarsky replies with a quick tug of his beard. “I was just headin' down to the docks to get the word on D.D.'s whereabouts.”
“Well, head outta my office. And since when did we start calling him double-D? It's horn-head, for #$%&@#'s sake, not a bra size!”
“The devil, you say,” Zdarsky replies. “On it.” Zdarsky heads out, ducking pre-emptorily en route.
It's interesting to note that reader reaction thus far to Zdarsky writing Daredevil has been surprise at the dark tone for the most part. This makes sense, though. After all, he is better known for his offbeat humor, quirky art, which he himself undervalues, and zany concepts.
For Daredevil, however, Zdarsky nails the dark, gritty tone. Matt Murdock suffers, through his Catholicism, and otherwise. Matt's flawed and horny. He hits villains and obstacles a little too hard and must tussle with them, so there's great tension. The story arc also raises the question of what constitutes judicious use of violence. Zdarsky, to his credit and despite his comedic reputation, does not back down from answering that question, and developing Matt's reaction to a grave mistake. Accompanied by the often gritty pencils of Marco Checchetto, the book has a comic-book noir look, from New York architectural detail to exquisitely rendered facial expressions to bloodied square jaws.
In other words, the book's tone is in-line with the Netflix series, and touches on multiple landmark eras of the title, from horn-head's early days in the yellow costume on up to now.
Zdarsky knows how to draw on the well of established characters (see notes about liking canon) Foggy Nelson, Wilson Fisk (aka the Kingpin), not to mention other heroes (whom readers can delight at discovering for themselves) and, of course, the Catholic Church.
I'm not religious by any means, but make no mistake; the Netflix interpretation of Daredevil may have ended, but it made clear, as has the comic book, that Irish Catholicism constitutes a prominent character in the Daredevil universe. Matt Murdock's struggles with faith have always added layers to the title. Arguably, the protagonist has not wrestled with his beliefs since legendary Marvel writer/editor Ann Nocenti's late 1980's-to-early-1990's writing run on Daredevil. This is also Zdarsky's favourite Daredevil run (and, coincidentally, mine, aside from Frank Miller's influential Born Again story arc).
Now, getting back to Zdarsky. He possesses a startling set of talents; a singular riotous sense of humor, which pervades his work, and firm grasp of character, also ever-present. His one-shot character study issues earn him acclaim (such as the Eisner for Peter Parker: Spectacular Spider-Man #310). Before Spidey, the writer/artist cut his teeth on Howard The Duck, in which he gleefully lambasted the Marvel Universe. Around that time, he also established Jughead of Archie Comics as a groundbreaking openly assexual character. Zdarsky also draws the provocative and unexpectedly successful Sex Criminals (with writer Matt Fraction)— unexpectedly successful because the duo did not expect the book to run for more than a few issues. Sex Criminals' panels are crammed with Zdarsky's visual jokes, from storefront names to sex-toy products to character actions.
Zdarsky also does his own projects including the mind-bending space opera Kaptara, which I maintain should come with a warning label/disclaimer, as it detonates and undermines a fair number of precious sci-fi and space-opera tropes. Then there's Monster Cops, the title which won him the attention of the big houses. Haven't read it, but hey—every serious comic-book aficionado needs at least one remaining gem to hunt down.
Marco Checchetto's pencils bolster the book, complementing Zdarsky's script. His panels revere recognizable groundbreaking Frank Miller shots (most notably the influential Born Again storyline, arguably the best Daredevil arc), but also legendary John Romita Jr. who was the penciller on the book for several years (for much of the Ann Nocenti run, in fact). As Zdarsky recently said in a podcast (Steg-Man and his Amazing Friends), Checchetto cannot help but depict all his characters as beautiful. That's an accurate summation of Checchetto's style. A fascinating quirk, that.
In short, Chip Zdarsky is proving that he has the chops to write comic-book noir, the trials of Matt Murdock, drawing on pre-established mythos. I am keen to see where Zdarsky takes Matt Murdock and Daredevil next, with Marco Checchetto remaining his comic-book noir partner-in-crime.
In my heart of hearts, I envision a fictional scene in which a surly and moustached newspaper publisher yells at Canuck comic-book artist and writer Chip Zdarsky.
“Zdarsky!” the publisher barks. “Get you mangy, bearded hipster ass in here.”
“What's the word, boss?”
“Tell me—are all you Canadian freaks into craft beers and indie music?”
“Not necessarily. It's a fairly wide demographic. The term 'hipster' can be applied a little broadly...”
“Alright, enough already. Get me a piece on horn-head, that freakish devil of Hell's Kitchen!”
“It's uncanny," Zdarsky replies with a quick tug of his beard. “I was just headin' down to the docks to get the word on D.D.'s whereabouts.”
“Well, head outta my office. And since when did we start calling him double-D? It's horn-head, for #$%&@#'s sake, not a bra size!”
“The devil, you say,” Zdarsky replies. “On it.” Zdarsky heads out, ducking pre-emptorily en route.
And ooh boy, did our accomplished Toronto comic-book artist/writer
deliver. Daredevil Vol. One: Know Fear hits all the fan buttons, D.D. eras, and tributes John Romita Jr. and Frank Miller throughout.
Chip Zdarsky is very much passionate about the classical canon of Spider-Man, admittedly his favourite Marvel character and now, I see from Know Fear, Daredevil. Zdarsky's what I consider an (arguably) neoclassical writer in the same league as, say, Mark Waid, whom writer Greg Rucka has called the professor emeritus of comics. While Waid certainly has a more encyclopedic knowledge of superhero esoteria,
Chip Zdarsky is very much passionate about the classical canon of Spider-Man, admittedly his favourite Marvel character and now, I see from Know Fear, Daredevil. Zdarsky's what I consider an (arguably) neoclassical writer in the same league as, say, Mark Waid, whom writer Greg Rucka has called the professor emeritus of comics. While Waid certainly has a more encyclopedic knowledge of superhero esoteria,
Zdarsky is a fresher voice and likes to play with the action figures. That is, he plays with an established character but takes them in new and unexpected directions that still jive with continuity and the character's fairy considerable history.
It's interesting to note that reader reaction thus far to Zdarsky writing Daredevil has been surprise at the dark tone for the most part. This makes sense, though. After all, he is better known for his offbeat humor, quirky art, which he himself undervalues, and zany concepts.
For Daredevil, however, Zdarsky nails the dark, gritty tone. Matt Murdock suffers, through his Catholicism, and otherwise. Matt's flawed and horny. He hits villains and obstacles a little too hard and must tussle with them, so there's great tension. The story arc also raises the question of what constitutes judicious use of violence. Zdarsky, to his credit and despite his comedic reputation, does not back down from answering that question, and developing Matt's reaction to a grave mistake. Accompanied by the often gritty pencils of Marco Checchetto, the book has a comic-book noir look, from New York architectural detail to exquisitely rendered facial expressions to bloodied square jaws.
In other words, the book's tone is in-line with the Netflix series, and touches on multiple landmark eras of the title, from horn-head's early days in the yellow costume on up to now.
Zdarsky knows how to draw on the well of established characters (see notes about liking canon) Foggy Nelson, Wilson Fisk (aka the Kingpin), not to mention other heroes (whom readers can delight at discovering for themselves) and, of course, the Catholic Church.
I'm not religious by any means, but make no mistake; the Netflix interpretation of Daredevil may have ended, but it made clear, as has the comic book, that Irish Catholicism constitutes a prominent character in the Daredevil universe. Matt Murdock's struggles with faith have always added layers to the title. Arguably, the protagonist has not wrestled with his beliefs since legendary Marvel writer/editor Ann Nocenti's late 1980's-to-early-1990's writing run on Daredevil. This is also Zdarsky's favourite Daredevil run (and, coincidentally, mine, aside from Frank Miller's influential Born Again story arc).
Now, getting back to Zdarsky. He possesses a startling set of talents; a singular riotous sense of humor, which pervades his work, and firm grasp of character, also ever-present. His one-shot character study issues earn him acclaim (such as the Eisner for Peter Parker: Spectacular Spider-Man #310). Before Spidey, the writer/artist cut his teeth on Howard The Duck, in which he gleefully lambasted the Marvel Universe. Around that time, he also established Jughead of Archie Comics as a groundbreaking openly assexual character. Zdarsky also draws the provocative and unexpectedly successful Sex Criminals (with writer Matt Fraction)— unexpectedly successful because the duo did not expect the book to run for more than a few issues. Sex Criminals' panels are crammed with Zdarsky's visual jokes, from storefront names to sex-toy products to character actions.
Zdarsky also does his own projects including the mind-bending space opera Kaptara, which I maintain should come with a warning label/disclaimer, as it detonates and undermines a fair number of precious sci-fi and space-opera tropes. Then there's Monster Cops, the title which won him the attention of the big houses. Haven't read it, but hey—every serious comic-book aficionado needs at least one remaining gem to hunt down.
Marco Checchetto's pencils bolster the book, complementing Zdarsky's script. His panels revere recognizable groundbreaking Frank Miller shots (most notably the influential Born Again storyline, arguably the best Daredevil arc), but also legendary John Romita Jr. who was the penciller on the book for several years (for much of the Ann Nocenti run, in fact). As Zdarsky recently said in a podcast (Steg-Man and his Amazing Friends), Checchetto cannot help but depict all his characters as beautiful. That's an accurate summation of Checchetto's style. A fascinating quirk, that.
In short, Chip Zdarsky is proving that he has the chops to write comic-book noir, the trials of Matt Murdock, drawing on pre-established mythos. I am keen to see where Zdarsky takes Matt Murdock and Daredevil next, with Marco Checchetto remaining his comic-book noir partner-in-crime.
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| Geez—even the photo of the multitalented comic-book artist/writer looks Canadian. Check out the winterly backdrop. Looks cold and winterly. I keep wanting to tell him to put on a tuque. Photo from thirdeyecomics.com. |
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