Really more 3.5 stars but a good conclusion to the amazing Bendis/Maleev run on Daredevil

This is a tough one for me to rate because I loved two of the arcs and didn't particularly care for the other two. Book 3 consists of three main new plotlines (Golden Age, Decalogues and The Murdock Papers) and ends with a Karen Page What If story and a team-up(ish) between Daredevil, Punisher and Spider-man.

Golden Age



This is one of the stronger stories in this collection. Golden Age brings back in an old mobster, Art Bont, that Daredevil sent to prison early on in his career. Bont has absolutely no intention of starting over when he gets out and has a helluva score to settle with DD. I liked the way it integrated some of the other earlier DD chapters in a way that felt grim and yet ultimately very satisfying.

Decalogues



This felt like a story that belonged in Constantine and was just fucking crazy to have in the middle of an otherwise serious, grounded Daredevil volume. Basically, Daredevil has to deal with the consequences of a second or third rate criminal who gets in over his head. The Jester, a man who literally dresses up as a medieval jester and throws homemade Jester-themed weapons, ends up involved in dark magic beyond his control and DD has to step in. The majority of the story is told by a group of people who have interacted with either Daredevil or The Jester or both and are in a some kind of a support group meeting in a church. It could have been an interesting way to tell the story but it just felt way too out there for a Daredevil story. Again, it would be right up Constantine's alley but not so much Daredevil's.
It was bizarre to have a dark ninja magic baby demon that possesses people (in some attempt to hurt them I guess?) amidst the realistic portrayal of Daredevil's struggle to maintain both his dual lives as Daredevil and Matt Murdock.



It's just really fucking weird.

The Murdock Papers



This is the conclusion to the Bendis/Maleev run on Daredevil and while not quite my favorite, it's still great just for how crazy it feels. Kingpin decides that he's sick playing the waiting game as the FBI holds him in jail until they inevitably are forced to release him due to lack of evidence. So he reveals to the FBI that he's got definitive proof that Matt Murdock is Daredevil, some papers in his collection that he'll reveal the location to if they make a deal that exonerates him. It turns into a race to the papers and doesn't slow down until it hits a crazy ending. Needless to say, I have to know where Brubaker is gonna take this.

Karen Page What If and Marvel Team-Up

Not gonna lie, I didn't find either of these stories particularly interesting.

The Karen Page What If story explores what might have happened if Karen Page had lived. It still ends up all fucked up because goddamn does no writer want Daredevil to be happy. It's not a bad story so much as incredibly depressing and since I knew nothing about her before reading it, I wasn't particularly emotionally involved.

The team-up has Daredevil running into Punisher after the latter escapes from prison to wrap up his plan of vengeance for the death of his family. Spiderman basically blunders into the way and is mildly funny but seen as more of a nuisance than I'm used to. It's not a strong story and I honestly think you could skip it. It's not as bad as that bullshit at the end of Book 2 but still not anything I found interesting.

Overall, this is a strong finish to an incredible run on Daredevil. The art remains gorgeous and the writing is (mostly) very good. Well worth picking up to see how Bendis/Maleev end their run!

Full series review here