Daredevil #72
Published and © by Marvel, January 1971
Title: “Lo! The Lord of the Leopards!”
Synopsis: Daredevil comes into conflict with Tagak, the Leopard Lord – but all is not as it seems.
Writer: Gerry Conway
Artist: Gene Colan
Review: Pre-Frank-Miller Daredevils often read like subpar Spider-Man comics, but this issue is a particularly weak outing. This early Gerry Conway story is bogged down by heavy-handed soliloquies and a nearly incomprehensible plot. Is Tagak villain or ally? Cat-powered leopard lord or misunderstood interdimensional hero? Oh, and he’s blind. Really? How convenient! Worse, Tagak’s tale is almost completely crowded out by Daredevil’s incessant monologuing. Gene Colan’s art tries to rescue this one from mediocrity; his expressive anatomy is present, but the standard grid layout employed here lacks the creativity that gave his later work such flair.
Grade: C-
Cool factor: Umm … hmm … well, umm …
Not-so-cool factor: Yeah. Plenty of that here.
Notable: First appearance of Tagak.
Collector’s note: According to the Grand Comics Database, there is a 1/- British variant of this issue.
Character quotable: “So, don’t play cool tonight, pal – not when your every thought’s on someone who’d call you darling … if it weren’t for your blasted mask!” – Daredevil, Monologuer Without Fear
Editor’s note: This review was originally published by Comics Bronze Age on March 18, 2013.
