Daredevil is one of Marvel’s most popular street-level heroes, and that’s in huge part because of his incredible mythos. Matt’s rise from traumatized young man to a budding lawyer, and then to legendary defender of Hell’s Kitchen and beyond. Of course, Matt’s journey all started when he was blinded by an oncoming truck while saving an old man, but the events that made him into Daredevil came much later. Obviously, the most important thing was his father’s murder, but one of the biggest things that set Matt down his path of heroism was when he met the love of his life, Elektra.
Daredevil #168 introduced Elektra, and she immediately became one of the greatest love interests in comics. This issue saw Daredevil meet the now-legendary assassin, and in doing so, remember their college-time love and the tragedy that tore them apart. Elektra was the first person Matt told about his special abilities, and when she was taken hostage alongside her father, he put them to use in his first rescue. Unfortunately, her father was killed, setting her on her dark path, and Matt more on his heroic one. This issue was jam-packed with their origin and modern confrontation.
Elektra is easily one of Matt’s most interesting and important side characters. She started with an immediate connection that nobody else in his cast had, being both a love interest and a villain with heavy connections to his backstory. Elektra wasn’t just someone Matt loved. She was his first love, and their connection has driven countless amazing stories. This issue was the perfect introduction to her character, and it covered an absolutely insane amount of ground, showing us her dynamic with Matt as both a friend and a villain.
As a villain, Elektra has constantly pushed and pulled Daredevil as nobody else could. She’s gone back and forth as both an enemy and an ally, but almost always operated outside the law. She was the greatest foil that Matt could ask for. She experienced a personal tragedy that forced her to look at the world in a new way, but unlike Matt, she let the anger consume her and drive her to be selfish instead of selfless. Even when she worked alongside Matt, she would cross lines and work towards her own agendas, showing exactly what Matt could become if he let himself stop caring as much as he does. They’re both victims of the world with insane rage, but only one used that positively.
Of course, all that changed when Elektra became Daredevil herself. She evolved as a character, more so than any of Matt’s other villains, fully becoming a hero in her own right. She took the plunge into heroism for her own selfish reasons, but came to understand why Matt does what he does. She’s her own Daredevil now, and in doing so, has come to embody the greatest aspect of Matt’s story: redemption. Matt has always struggled with the need to turn his anger into something constructive, his sins into something helpful. Elektra started as the one person who best showed how he could fail to do that, and became the best example of how Matt has changed the world for the better.
Elektra has been a villain, an anti-hero, a lover, and a superhero. Most of the time, she’s at least two of those things at once. No other character has broken off from Matt, only to find her way back to him and the chaotic, wonderful world he calls his own. She was a nuanced, important character from her very first appearance, and she’s only grown better today. She’s gone from assassin to hero, and that transition is one of Marvel’s greatest. Elektra is legitimately one of Marvel’s best heroes, and it’s all because of her incredible connection to the lessons that made Daredevil into who he is.
Daredevil #168 gave us Daredevil’s most impressive side character, but it did so much more. It started the greatest romance in Marvel. Matt and Elektra always find their way back to each other, and this comic started them on that journey. Now, thanks to the ComicBook Vending Machine, you can add this incredible debut to your own collection. The ComicBook team purchased this copy from a local shop, and it’s ready and waiting to find a brand-new home.
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