Warning! Spoilers ahead forDaredevil: A Cold Day in Hell#3!Daredevilhas a new nickname in Marvel lore: the Manhattan Flyer. Marvel’s latest gritty look at the possible last days of the Man Without Fearmight have ended in tragedy, but before Matt Murdoch died a hero, he was reborn with a new identity. No longer remembered as Daredevil, he went out as the Flyer.
Daredevil: A Cold Day in Hell#3, by the creative team of Charles Soule and Steve McNiven, concludes the three-issue limited series by pitting Matt Murdoch against his most ruthless enemy, Bullseye, one final time.
Prior to their final confrontation, Matt wows dystopian Manhattan one last time with his death-defying students, earning the “Manhattan Flyer” moniker in the process.
Marvel Rebrands Daredevil As “The Manhattan Flyer,” As He Offers A Glimpse Of Hope In A Dark Future
Cold Day in Hellis a classic “superhero comes out of retirement” story, very much in the vein ofDC’sDark Knight Returns. In the first issue, New York City, and seemingly the Marvel Universe at large, has fallen to ruins and Matt Murdoch has long since forsaken the cowl as a costumed vigilante.
By the second issue, he returns to action, and in the climactic third installment,Daredevil and Bullseye have their final, fatal fight. However, while Matt Murdoch might return to costumed heroics, the name Daredevil doesn’t necessarily make a comeback. Instead, Murdoch is dubbed the Manhattan Flyer by New Yorkers, as a radio broadcast inCold Day in Hell#3 reveals.
As Daredevil, Murdoch inspired fear in the criminals of his neighborhood, Hell’s Kitchen, and beyond, but in this far-flung future,as the Manhattan Flyer, he inspires NYC’s beleaguered citizens to have something approaching hope.“We’ve all been keeping our eyes on the ground for so long,” a “humble broadcaster” narrates, “maybe this mystery man is saying its time to look up”
“Cold Day In Hell” Is A Reminder That Daredevil Doesn’t Have To Be Marvel’s Darkest Hero
Perhaps more than any other Marvel hero, the character ofDaredevil has become overburdened with darkness. He embodies the idea of the “gritty” protagonist, a hero who struggles against his own inner demons, and is willing to go to dark places to fight the external darkness of the world, from brawling with street-level criminals to, occasionally, battling literal demons.
Cold Day in Hellis no exception to this grittiness, yet it contains this curious hopeful note. Itfrees Daredevil from that legacy of darkness, at least for a few precious moments as he “flies” over the city skyline. Though his story ends in an over-the-top brutal fight with Bullseye, the legacy he leaves is the Flyer’s, not the Man Without Fear’s.
Cold Day in Helloffers a novel twist on the “final” superhero story trope, as the final beats of the book seem to suggest that this bleak, gritty future doesn’t have to beDaredevil’sultimate legacy, if Marvel and its creator can look beyond his darkness to find what truly makes the character great.
Daredevil: A Cold Day in Hell#3is available now from Marvel Comics.
