Spider-Man: Far From Home's Mysterio Once Drove Daredevil Mad

Warning: This article contains spoilers for the Daredevil arc "Guardian Devil."

If you're familiar at all with longtime Spider-Man villain Mysterio, set to be played by Jake Gyllenhaal in this summer's Spider-Man: Far From Home, you might be wondering why the heck he got chosen to be in a big summer blockbuster. After all, Mysterio's plans tend to be simple and silly, right?

Well, not necessarily. If there's one thing decades of superhero comics can prove, it's that even the silliest villains can hatch expert plans with devastating consequences. And Mysterio proved that in the 1998 Daredevil storyline "Guardian Devil," which saw the master illusionist drive the Man Without Fear to the brink of insanity. He even killed Daredevil's true love.

The End of Days... Or is It?

"Guardian Devil," written by Kevin Smith (in his Big Two comics debut after penning several comics starring his movie characters), was the first story arc of a relaunched Daredevil in November 1998. Serving as the flagship title for Marvel Knights (over which Quesada and Palmiotti had been given complete creative control), it opens on a shocking note: Karen Page has broken up with Matt Murdock, this time to take a radio job in Los Angeles and figure out if she actually loves him, or if they thought it was love based on having survived everything detailed in the last several decades of Daredevil comics.

Still reeling six months later, Matt, ever the lapsed Catholic, decides going to confession might help. But he flees after his super-hearing detects a teenage girl and a baby about to be hit by a car, which he prevents. The girl, named Gwyneth, shows up at Matt and Foggy Nelson's office and claims her baby was not only born via immaculate conception, but that an angel told her Matt was Daredevil and that he's to look after the baby temporarily because the child is the reincarnation of Jesus.

Mystified, Matt gets Black Widow to babysit the girl while he digs through hospital records to prove Gwyneth is real. He's then visited by a mysterious man calling himself Nicholas Macabes, who claims that the child is the Antichrist and gives Matt 48 hours to hand her over to his organization, Sheol, leaving Matt with a crucifix as his calling card.

As if things couldn't get any weirder, Karen shows up in tears after finding out her time as a porn star (as explained in the legendary "Born Again" storyline) left her HIV positive.

And Then It Gets Worse

His mind whirling, Daredevil attacks Black Widow and nearly throws the baby off a roof. Lost and confused, Daredevil heads to the church where his mother Maggie serves as a nun. Awaking after two days of sleep, and then confronting his mom over abandoning him as a kid, Matt then argues with Karen, who finds him at the church and explains that Macabes told her the child is responsible for her having AIDS, so they should just hand him the baby.

NEXT PAGE: Daredevil Wisely Gets Some Help (And It Kind Of Works?)

Admitting he needs help, Matt goes to see Doctor Strange, who explains that Matt was drugged via the crucifix Macabes gave him. Said drug, which Strange purges from Daredevil's system, is virtually undetectable, having attached itself to the associative-response region of Matt's brain, leading him to rage whenever someone suggested the child is innocent (hence his attacking Black Widow).

To confirm that the end isn't nigh, Strange summons Mephisto (blindfolding him so that he can't detect Daredevil) and asks what's going on. Mephisto simply points out that, in the Biblical book of Revelation, it's explicit that Jesus Christ won't come again as an infant to redeem mankind, but rather as a man to pass divine judgment. As Strange sends him back to Hell, Mephisto reveals that he knows Daredevil is there and that the church is under attack.

Daredevil rushes back, only to find that Macabes hired Bullseye to take back the baby, and that his greatest enemy has murdered nearly every nun and injured Maggie. A brutal fight ensues before Karen offers to give Bullseye the baby if he steps away from Daredevil.

The mercenary agrees, and is about to leave, but then throws Daredevil's club (which he took during the fight) back at him. Karen blocks it and the club goes straight through her heart. She dies in Matt's arms.

Where Fishbowl Head Fits In

Finding out where the baby is being held, Daredevil heads there and quickly figures out all the demonic trappings of the building are just props and costumes. This leads him to realize that Macabes is none other than Mysterio, who gleefully explains that everything -- Gwyneth, the baby, Karen having AIDS (not really) -- has all been a plan to drive Daredevil insane.

As to why, Mysterio explains that he was released from prison after being diagnosed with lung cancer and an inoperable brain tumor thanks to the deadly chemicals he used in his crimes for so many years. Wanting to go out with a bang, he opted to break Daredevil's spirit, as Spider-Man was in the middle of the Clone Saga at the time (seriously).

After listening to all this, Matt tears Mysterio down, saying his plan is nothing new and he's actually fine. Mysterio, bemused at this, admits the child is unharmed and then, wanting to maintain at least a little control, commits suicide.

Mysterio eventually came back, of course, but this story is still truly something. "Guardian Devil" is a bit overwritten, and Quesada's faces look off in spots, but, still, this is easily the most terrifying Mysterio has ever been and proof that a good villain doesn't always have to stay tied to the hero they came up fighting.