Random Happenstance

The cover proclaims "The final triumph of Typhoid Mary!" but she wasn't done yet. Although you can see how you might think that...From 1988, Daredevil #260, "Vital Signs" Written by Ann Nocenti, pencils by John Romita Jr, inks by Al Williamson.

I misremembered a little from this one: it opens with Matt and Karen, blissfully happy together. Matt wonders how he even could have been tempted by Mary Walker, the demure, sweet, alter-ego of Typhoid Mary. And I may have to dig up some back issues, since I'm not sure how far Matt's relationship with Mary went...certainly, far enough to cause problems later. But this issue begins with a cheerful, upbeat Daredevil; on his way to a Fourth of July anti-nuke counter-protest, who then proceeds to catch beating after beating for the rest of this issue.

Nocenti largely avoided traditional DD villains, although this campaign was funded by the Kingpin, and uses her and JRJR's creations Bullet, Bushwacker, Ammo, and the Wildboys. (Bushwacker was co-created with Rick Leonardi; and I had completely forgotten Ammo: he was from DD #252, another double-sized issue that was really good, and another X-book tie-in; DD would have another shortly...) It's a gauntlet intended to wear DD down, but facing them one at a time (two in the case of those Wildboys losers) he still probably could take them, if not for one misstep: jumping off a roof to avoid getting shot by Bushwacker, DD lands on a rather elaborate parade balloon, which Bushwacker then blows up. I have never lived anywhere big enough for a proper parade, but are those pressurized to the point that it would explode like popping a balloon? Bushwacker is using high-end bullets, sure, but I feel like it would probably just shoot a hole straight through it, not the massive "B-TOOM!" that happens. Did they use hydrogen by mistake again?

Even so, the explosion and resulting fall do not do Daredevil any good: his enhanced senses are shot, and he's probably concussed at the very least. DD accosts a wheelchair-bound blind man, thinking he's Bushwacker; but is stopped--and lectured--by a young woman, who quite rightly suggests maybe he should go to the hospital. Instead, wandering off, he's an easy target for Ammo; a Vietnam vet in an inexplicable outfit...back-of-the-envelope math, but Ammo would've had to be at least 35 at the time. Ammo kicks Daredevil's ass into the anti-war protest, which was about to cross paths with the more conservative Fourth parade; no one in either helps the unconscious DD in the slightest. Neither does the passing Human Torch, setting up the next issue.

Now internally injured, Matt crawls into an alley, where he's visited by the flashbacks of Christmas past: his dad, Battlin' Jack Murdock; a ghost of himself; then classic villains Bullseye, Gladiator, Elektra, Typhoid, and Kingpin. (Typhoid is a bit of a cheat, since she was still on-deck.) The Wildboys give DD a thrashing, and a trashing: disappointed he's not fighting back, they throw him in the garbage, then get mad when he throws some back on them, and take him to drop off a bridge. Typhoid saves Daredevil...saves him for herself. Giving him a final kiss, she drops him, shedding a single tear over his body in a ravine. (I don't know if that bridge is still there, but I would bet it's based off a real location. Couldn't find it, though.)

Daredevil still isn't quite to rock-bottom yet, if you can believe it: I feel like that would come a little later when Karen goes to see him in the hospital and finds Mary already there. Traditionally, the hero would have to dig deep, and bootstrap himself back up to get back at his assailants...and it would be a long time before any of that would happen! This wasn't the usual situation, where the hero might have to get back in there to stop the villain from doing something terrible--or more terrible--they just wanted to wreck up Daredevil. Mission accomplished. DD would have a rematch with Bullet in #267, but that may have been merely in passing to him leaving town. (In fact, I was thinking of #291, Ann Nocenti's last issue on the book, which says "Rematch! DD versus Bullet!" right on it.) It wouldn't be until #297 that he would bring down Typhoid, and he may have fought dirty there; but that was incidental to bringing down the Kingpin.