Skip to content

Please note that when you buy through our links, we may earn a commission. Thanks!

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Thanks!

Daredevil by Frank Miller Reading Order (with Elektra, of course!)

Young Frank Miller wasn’t working at Marvel for very long when he saw an opportunity to do a crime comic with Daredevil. After drawing two issues of Spectacular Spider-Man guest-starring Daredevil, he requested to work on the Daredevil title. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect, as artist Gene Colan wanted to leave Daredevil. While Miller hadn’t yet proven his ability to handle a regular commitment at this stage, as he remembers in The Comics Journal #70, Marvel took a gamble on him, and it paid off.

However, success didn’t arrive with his first Daredevil issue. Initially, Miller only drew the stories, with Roger McKenzie as the writer (and Klaus Janson as the inker). While both men didn’t always agree on everything, they worked well together and conspired to “steal away as many Spider-Man villains as we could.” But sales weren’t improving. Things turned around with the arrival of Denny O’Neil as editor on the title. Following a backup story written by Miller, O’Neil put the artist on writing duties, and the rest is history.

Influenced by Will Eisner, Gil Kane, Harvey Kurtzman, and film techniques, Miller made a name for himself through his care for research and his exploration of darker themes—violence being a major theme of his Daredevil run. He also decided to emphasize that Matt Murdock was a Catholic, as, for him, “only a Catholic could be a vigilante and an attorney at the same time.” (The Men Without Fear: Creating Daredevil, 2003 documentary). He took the time to clearly define the parameters of Daredevil’s powers to make them more believable. He added some martial arts to Daredevil’s fighting skills and introduced Elektra in Daredevil #168 in his first issue as main writer. As Klaus Janson put it, the arrival of Elektra was “the culmination of Frank’s intent to rebuild Daredevil and his supporting cast.”

Miller created Elektra to give Daredevil a female antagonist “like Sand Saref in The Spirit,” as he explained in The Comics Journal. He added that he “ripped off the first Sand Saref story to do the first Elektra story.” His goal was to introduce her as a character readers would sympathize with, and then gradually make her less sympathetic with each appearance. Miller also created Stick, Daredevil’s blind sensei, and an enemy of the Hand.

Over time, Frank Miller and Klaus Janson’s relationship evolved, with Miller relying more and more on Janson for the artwork, leading to one of the most iconic artistic teams. When their run concluded with issue #191 (February 1983), Daredevil had become one of Marvel’s most popular characters—and still is to this day. Issue #191 would not be the last time Miller wrote a story featuring the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen, as he came back to the character in 1986 for Born Again and in 1993 to retell his origins with the Man Without Fear. And of course, he wrote some Elektra stories in the middle of it!

So when it comes to Daredevil, reading Frank Miller’s run on the character is simply unmissable. For this reason, we chose today to explore this period in more detail with a Daredevil by Frank Miller reading order, including his work on Elektra!

Frank Miller’s Daredevil & Elektra Comics Order, an Issue by Issue Reading Guide

You can find all the single issues on digital here.

Daredevil Reading Order

when should I read Daredevil: The Man Without Fear? Let’s start with the most debatable point of this reading guide. This limited series retelling the origins of Daredevil was released in 1993, but is chronologically set before Miller’s run. When you choose to read it will be more a question of preferences. It would be recommended for people who are really into continuity to read it after the main run, as some elements could confuse. If you don’t care about that sort of thing, read it before or after, it doesn’t matter!

  • Daredevil: The Man Without Fear #1-5, written by Frank Miller and penciled by John Romita Jr.

Daredevil Reading Order

Frank Miller first drew Daredevil as a guest star in Spectacular Spider-Man before becoming the penciler on Daredevil’s title. Klaus Janson had been working as an inker since issue #124, while Roger McKenzie’s run on the character started with issue #151. While the issues only drawn by Miller are sometimes considered optional, they are a nice way to get into the mood and serve as a good reminder that McKenzie started bringing more darkness into the series. Rumor has it that Miller didn’t like McKenzie’s scripts, and as luck would have it, when Denny O’Neil became the book’s editor, he liked one of Miller’s backup stories and made him the main writer.

  • Spectacular Spider-Man  #27-28, written by Bill Mantlo and penciled by Frank Miller
  • Daredevil #158-161, written by Roger Mckenzie and penciled by Frank Miller

Daredevil #162 is not part of Frank Miller’s run as the story was written by Michael Fleisher and penciled by Steve Ditko.

  • Daredevil 163-166, written by Roger Mckenzie and penciled by Frank Miller
  • Daredevil 167, written by David Michelinie and penciled by Frank Miller

Frank Miller’s run as the main writer on Daredevil Starts here!

  • Daredevil #168-184, written and penciled by Frank Miller
  • Daredevil #185-190, written by Frank Miller and penciled by Klaus Janson
  • Daredevil #191, written and penciled by Frank Miller

Bizarre Adventures #28 was released in October 1981 (around DD #179) and is Elektra’s first solo story and 5th appearance. Miller presents this issue as a storytelling exercise for him, a way “to make use of techniques I’d absorbed while going over Japanese samurai Comics.” This has no impact noticeable on the main narrative, though it can be interested to read it following the publication order.

  • Bizarre Adventures #28, written and penciled by Frank Miller

What If? Matt Murdock was an Agent of… S.H.I.E.L.D? This non-canon story was published after #173 but is inconsequential and can be read at any time. On the other hand, the What If? #35 is a non-canon story with ties to Miller’s run and must be read after the conclusion (or it would be a little spoiler-y).

  • What If? #28, written by Mike W. Barr and Frank Miller and penciled by Frank Miller
  • What If? #35, written and penciled by Frank Miller

Daredevil Reading Order

Frank Miller’s main run on DD concluded with issue #191 (October 1982).  His first issue post-run was a stand-alone story in the vein of a Western type of story in which Matt Murdock doesn’t appear as DD and does not speak.

  • Daredevil #219, written by Frank Miller and penciled by John Buscema.

While released after Born Again, Daredevil: Love and War (Dec. 1986) is set before. It is primarily a Kingpin story and Vincent D’Onofrio’s source of inspiration for his interpretation of the character in the series. The events taking place also explained Fisk’s action in Born Again, which serves as a basis for season 3 of the Netflix show.

Born Again is one of the most celebrated Daredevil stories and part of the 25 Best Marvel Comic Books to Read.

  • Daredevil: Love and War, graphic novel written by Frank Miller and penciled by Bill Sienkiewicz
  • Daredevil #226-233 (Born Again), written by Frank Miller and penciled by David Mazzucchelli

Daredevil Reading Order

Elektra Time! Sometimes, a prequel must be read later, and this is the case of Elektra: Assassin. Released in 1986-1987, the story is set before Elektra’s first appearance in Daredevil #168. It would make a bad introduction for the character, so we recommend reading this story after the main run.

  • Elektra: Assassin #1-8, written by Frank Miller and penciled by Bill Sienkiewicz

Ending Point! Elektra Lives Again (1996) is Frank Miller’s last story with Elektra and Daredevil, another non-canon story featuring Matt Murdock having nightmares about his dead love, Elektra. And the perfect ending point to his run.

  • Elektra Lives Again, Graphic Novel written and penciled by Frank Miller

Frank Miller’s Daredevil & Elektra Collected Editions

This run has been collected on several occasions, though it has not yet been reprinted in the Epic Collection.

Frank Miller’s Daredevil & Elektra Omnibus

At this moment, there is no better way to collect Frank Miller’s run on Daredevil (and Elektra) than the Omnibus Format.

Frank Miller’s Daredevil in Marvel Masterworks

For those who collect their stories in the Marvel Masterworks collection, this period was reprinted in volume 15 through 17.

Classic Paperback

Don’t want a big omnibus, don’t want to break the bank with the Marvel Masterworks collection? You can also go the classic paperback route.

After the end of his run, Frank Miller came back to DD and Elektra with:

Most of those stories were also collected in older collections at the end of the 1980s/beginning of the 1990s, in Daredevil Visionaries or Daredevil Legends. These collections can often be found secondhand.

Special Edition

Following are a few DD stories have been collected in a premium oversized hardcover version showcasing the art.

Daredevil Reading Order

To read more adventures with The Devil of Hell’s Kitchen and Elektra Natchios, we invite you to check out our Complete Daredevil Reading Order, and our Elektra Reading Order Guide.

Pin
Tags: