Warning: The following article contains major spoilers for Daredevil Annual #1, by Chip Zdarsky, Manuel Garcia, Le Beau Underwood, Chris Mooneyham, Rachelle Rosenberg and VC's Clayton Cowles, on sale now.
Daredevil is usually one of the more grounded, street-level Marvel superheroes. From gritty crime tales to courtroom dramas, Matt Murdock's saga is typically very down to Earth.
Still, the Man Without Fear's history is also rich with some rather zany components. Chief among Daredevil's wilder ideas: Matt's twin brother, Mike Murdock.
The concept of Matt's twin brother was introduced in Daredevil #25, by Stan Lee and Gene Colan. During this era, Murdock had to work very hard to conceal his secret identity, particularly when it came to his law partner Foggy Nelson and secretary/love interest Karen Page. Working in such close proximity, it was only a matter of time before Matt's friends found out that he was Daredevil. Thus, the third identity of Mike Murdock was born.
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Murdock developed this persona into a fun-loving twin brother who appeared on occasion, dressing in colorful outfits and taking on a carefree personality. Mike also proudly boasted that he was, in fact, Daredevil, drawing any attention away from Matt. While the persona of Mike Murdock allowed Matt to have some fun, eventually, Mike had to disappear. Overwhelmed by the complications of three separate identities, Matt decided to retire Mike Murdock permanently, faking his twin brother's death.
Matt may have retired his third identity, but eventually, Mike became more real than Murdock ever dreamed. In Daredevil #606, by Charles Soule and Phil Noto, Matt's twin brother came to life, emerging as a separate entity from the blind lawyer. When Daredevil recruited the Inhuman named Reader to help him take down Mayor Wilson Fisk, Reader accidentally used his powers to create Mike Murdock. Since Reader is able to physically produce anything he reads, the Inhuman manifested Matt's twin brother while researching Mike Murdock.
Indeed, Mike became a real person, truly believing himself to be Matt's twin. When Matt tried to erase Mike, his twin fled, causing even more trouble by taking Foggy Nelson hostage. After arranging a meeting to free Foggy, Matt decided that he couldn't erase Mike, instead letting him go free. Out of desperation, Mike later went to Wilson Fisk for help finding work. Fisk complied, sending Mike to work for the super-criminal known as the Hood.
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In the recent Daredevil Annual #1, by Chip Zdarsky and Manuel Garcia, Mike returns, still under the Hood's employ. Still, Mike feels as though he is missing something, as though there are fragments of his life which he can't remember. The Hood then shows Mike a Norn Stone, a mystical Asgardian artifact that can rewrite reality. Tempted by the idea, Mike borrows this stone, later contacting the Black Cat to steal a book on spellcasting for him. Mike then returns to his apartment and casts a spell to rewrite history, reliving his entire life from birth until the present day.
This new history intertwines with Matt Murdock's life, playing out alongside key events such as Matt's blinding and their father's final boxing match. After experiencing his new life, Mike returns to Fogwell's Gym, where he is confronted by Daredevil. Unaware of his brother's secret identity, Mike tells the Man Without Fear that he isn't going anywhere before kicking Daredevil out of the gym. Mike then enjoys a reunion with his childhood friend, Butch, joining forces for new and mysterious purposes. Butch then reveals his father's identity: The Kingpin of Crime himself, Wilson Fisk.
Mike Murdock may be one of the more bizarre aspects of the Daredevil mythos, yet it appears that he will soon play an important role in his twin brother's life.
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