TITLE: Daredevil: The Man Without Fear vol. 1, issue #20
YEAR: September 1966
COMPANY: Marvel Comics
Written by Stan Lee
PENCILLING: John Romita
ART: Gene Colan
INKS: Irving Forbush
LETTERING: Artie Simek
With issue #20 of “Daredevil: The Man Without Fear”, we have the return of a Marvel Comics nemesis of the ’60s…. The Owl.
Spider-Man had Green Goblin, Captain America had Red Skull, and for Daredevil, his primary nemesis during the earlier years was The Owl, who made his first debut in issue #3 and had becoming his recurring foe for years.
Leland Owsley is a crooked, yet successful financier and financial investor who used his money into research ways to become superhuman and his case, he found ways to fly.
And for issue #20, The Owl has planned for the kidnapping of Matt Murdock. Matt knows something is awry but goes with the plan and has his Daredevil outfit underneath his suit just in case (makes you wonder, how uncomfortable and hot it would have been to really sport the costume and suit together).
Anyway, once Matt arrives he goes along with the plans and finds out that the Owl has created his own courtroom and he’s the judge. Matt would defend the actual Judge Lewis who has been kidnapped. The Owl declares it illegal to sentence the Owl to prison and the punishment for that crime is death.
Fearing for Judge Lewis’ safety, Matt said he has a witness that can save the Judge, which the Owl allows for him to leave the premises to find his witness, expecting that Matt will fail because he’s blind.
Will Matt changes into the Daredevil and returns to take on the Owl and his thugs.
But without spoiling the storyline, let’s just say that things don’t go as expected.
For the most part, it’s an OK storyline. Personally, I am not the biggest fan of The Owl and I think he has been an irritating villain and thought it was best when the Kingpin became the crime boss of New York’s underworld.
But given the era and giving The Owl the benefit of doubt, it works for this period of time and to Matt/Daredevil’s chagrin, for this issue, let’s just say round 1 goes to The Owl.