DAREDEVIL #4: Purple Power, Girl Power And The Power Suit

Published: October, 1964

I started writing this as a “Meanwhile…” post, but ended up having a lot to say, so here’s Daredevil, once again in the spotlight. Which is sort of ironic, because last time, I was just about ready to give up on this title. Not so fast, my friend! I’m beginning to see that Daredevil might yet have some hidden gems. In fact, my main complaint was that the hero took such great pains to narrate his own amazing exploits in such painstaking detail. He’s toned that down quite a bit this time, leaving more opportunity to sit back and enjoy the story.

And what is the story? Well, since I was originally going to post this as a “Meanwhile…” I wrote what I consider to be a marvelous synopsis, which I would hate to trash, so I’m just going to use it. And not even worry that it’s 111 words, rather than the usual 100 or less.

In a nutshell, here’s what happens:

Purple Man Killgrave uses his chemically-induced power of persuasion to rob a bank. When attorney Matt Murdock visits him in jail, Killgrave easily escapes, taking Karen Page as his assistant/hostage. Purple Man is astonished when Daredevil does not fall prey to his charms. He instructs the toughs from a local gym to serve as his bodyguards, and they take over the penthouse suite of the Ritz Hotel. Daredevil bursts in, fights the bodyguards, and tricks Purple Man into making a full confession on a hidden tape recorder. DD rescues Karen and envelopes Killgrave in a plastic cover, disabling his superpower long enough for the cops to cart him off to jail.

Now that we’ve set the scene, here’s what most jumped out at me.

PURPLE POWER

We have a new villain, the Purple Man, who possesses a potent and frightening superpower. No, it’s not his purple skin – which bypassers put down to “probably some new kind of beatnik.” He can control people by bending their will, but at this point, he’s only testing the waters, so he starts small with a bank robbery. No doubt, however—if this superpower is not permanently disabled, the Marvel Universe is in for all kinds of trouble.

Scary, right? Except for two things:

• The power only works when Killgrave is in close proximity; he can control the room, but not the world, and even then, only until he has to make a visit to the restroom, or catch some Zzz’s.
• Apparently, the reason Daredevil is not affected by Killgrave’s commands is because he can’t see the purple skin. If that’s the case, wouldn’t all blind people be immune? And what if sighted people simply closed their eyes when they saw him coming?

Daredevil neutralizes the Purple Man with a plastic tarp. Sure it’s temporary, but effective. Maybe the cops can rehabilitate him with a quick and easy DIY project involving a bucket of paint…in any color other than purple??

GIRL POWER

At the end of the story, Karen muses that for some strange reason, she feels her blind boss “sees more than ANY of us!” But she immediately follows this insightful comment with a self-deprecating “I guess I’m just a silly female.”

At first glance, my feathers are ruffled. But then I remember: Oh yeah…It’s 1964, and blatant sexism regarding “silly females” is the order of the day.

But let’s peel off another layer. Is Karen really a “silly female”? Not at all! Already she’s subconsciously aware (call it woman’s intuition?) that something about her handsome ginger-headed boss is not quite what it seems. Already she’s nearly figured out an important secret that Foggy, after years and years as Murdock’s best friend, hasn’t even begun to suspect.

So what Stan’s saying here is NOT that Karen is silly or stupid, but that in fact, she’s just the opposite.

But here’s where the 1960’s rears its ugly head again. Karen is such a prisoner of her times, she buys right into the “silly female” myth that society has been force-feeding her since birth. There’s no “Girl Power” in 1964, there’s barely even Women’s Lib! When the world doesn’t make sense, it’s easier for her to believe the defect lies somewhere within her silly female psyche, rather than in the circumstances. And being blonde in a world where “Blondes have more fun,” but are the butt of too many jokes, probably only intensifies her self-doubt.

THE POWER SUIT

We’ve barely met Matt Murdock, but already we know a number of things about him. In addition to all the wonderful ways he’s superior to ordinary humans, the man has firmly established himself as a Problem Solver. I love Problem Solvers. In general, they make the world a better place. No doubt Daredevil’s crime-fighting makes his world a better place, but that’s not what I’m here to talk about.

Instead, I’m most impressed with the way our hero deals with a wardrobe dilemma demanding a succinct solution. In Daredevil #3, Murdock decided the best place to stash his street clothes was in a red hood attached to the neck of his superhero costume. Our lawyer doesn’t have access to Pym technology that shrinks and expands fabric, so the red hood seemed a reasonable solution at the time.

Of course that begs the question of how in the world Murdock fits a coat, tie, shirt, pants and SHOES into such a small space, but…let’s not quibble. The red hood is now a thing of the past. While swinging around in the crowd, someone grabs at Daredevil and nearly busts open the neat little red hood. Immediately Daredevil questions his solution —not because the red hood weighs too much and may impede his movements, but the discovery of his street clothes could jeopardize his secret identity. And if there’s one thing a superhero (well…most superheroes) can’t have, it’s people discovering who they really are.

BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
Murdock thought he had this all figured out, but guess what? These events send him back to the drawing board. We don’t know how he’ll solve his dilemma, and I have no idea if it will even be addressed again. I certainly hope so, after I’ve made such a big deal about him being a great Problem Solver. I’ll be disappointed if Stan Lee simply sweeps this whole mess under the proverbial rug.

But speaking of Stan, I’m also impressed by his willingness to attempt a solution, then willingly admit it doesn’t fly. Murdock’s problems are Stan’s problems, they’re trying to work this out together. Stan gave Daredevil a red hood for his street clothes, then decided…nah. He gave Iron Man a clunky silver suit of armor, then over time, streamlined the design. Thing started out wearing pants, now he’s in shorts. Pepper Potts got a makeover to doll her up a bit, and let’s not even start talking about the changes in Hulk!

The Marvel Universe is constantly evolving, constantly improving. The publishers did not wait until they had all the details just so before putting the first issue on the stands. They published, warts and all, and addressed the problems as they arose. They built up, knocked down, and built again. It’s an ongoing process, and they were not afraid to try something new and different. Thank goodness! Because if they had been afraid to experiment, I seriously wonder if the Marvel Universe would exist at all.

The Marvel Universe is awash in irony. Although Murdock’s suit, tie and shiny lace-up shoes are what we in the “real world” generally refer to as a “power suit,” he’s most powerful when he puts on the yellow and black tights. Ironically, Karen’s silliest female trait is that she doesn’t trust her gut. And the frightening superpower of this issue’s villain can be neutralized….simply by closing your eyes.

But don’t close your eyes! Because you can’t read Marvel Comics with your eyes closed.*

*Unless you’re Daredevil.