Mark Waid plumbs the depths of Matt Murdock's world in "Daredevil"

The super heroes of the Marvel Universe all have a strong devotion to the ideals of justice and equality. Daredevil's dedication to the principle of justice is so great, however, that when the costumes comes off, he continues to fight corruption and malfeasance in his civilian guise as attorney Matt Murdock

Murdock does his best to keep his two worlds separate, but the fact that his identity as Daredevil is semi-public knowledge means they often collide headlong, with explosive results. In the current arc of the "Daredevil" ongoing series by writer Mark Waid and artist Marcos Martin, Murdock's latest client put Daredevil on the trail of a dangerous conspiracy involving illicit high finance. CBR News spoke with Waid about the current arc and his upcoming plans for the series, not the least of which includes a two-part crossover with "Amazing Spider-Man."

CBR News: Mark, when you launched the new "Daredevil" series, you also gave Matt Murdock and his friend and law partner Foggy Nelson a new law specialty -- teaching others how to defend themselves in court. Where did the idea for Matt and Foggy's new focus come from?

EXCLUSIVE: Bruiser returns for round 2 with Daredevil in issue #6

Mark Waid: I always saw Matt as someone who was eager to help other people stand up to bullies -- part of why he chose the law as a profession -- but, again, the fact that his dual identity is semi-public knowledge makes it impossible for him to be a trial lawyer right now, until and unless the Daredevil-is-Murdock discussions ever fade away. I asked my friend, writer (and lawyer!) Marc Guggenheim if the consultancy angle worked and made sense, and not only did he give me a thumbs-up, he also guided me in terms of language and situations and the courtroom process. Anything I get wrong is on me, but anything I get right is on him.

Matt and Foggy's latest client has made Daredevil the target of a conspiracy involving high finance and the Marvel Universe's biggest terrorist and criminal conspiracies. Now, if I'm reading this correctly, it seems that what Daredevil has uncovered is a deal to turn the nation of Latveria into a place where mega-criminals can hide and launder their money. Is that accurate?

That's exactly what it means. It seems to me to be a perfect Daredevil-level threat in that if it goes through, it doesn't immediately mean world destruction or genocide; it means that groups like A.I.M. and Hydra and the Secret Empire, who already undoubtedly launder their finances through a complicated series of fronts and blinds, will have created an invulnerable information firewall that makes it virtually impossible to get to these organizations through their subsidiaries or hound them through the courts.

Midas Investments is the firm that's brokering this illicit deal, so they stand to make quite a bit of cash. In order to protect their potential earnings, they've sent a new character called Bruiser after Daredevil. What can you tell us about the danger Bruiser presents? His costume seems to be a mixture of a Mexican wrestler and a NASCAR driver -- are the patches on his uniform his sponsors?

Bruiser's pretty dangerous if you're a street-level fighter like Daredevil. He has a superpower that doesn't become apparent until the final Bruiser/DD match in issue six. And as to the "sponsor patches" -- they're not exactly that (why would the Secret Empire have a trademark logo?), but we'll let Bruiser explain their significance in issue six.

Bruiser took out Matt in their first match up in Daredevil #5, but as you mention, a rematch happens in issue #6. The solicits suggest that the issue will also feature a surprise revelation about the Marvel Universe. Are you able to hint or tease about the nature of that revelation?

All I can tell you is this: By the end of issue six, Matt Murdock has become the most dangerous man on Earth, and will be for a while. Fact.

Looking ever-forward, December's "Daredevil" #7, by you and artist Paolo Rivera, is a one-off issue that deals with some of the fallout from issue #6. Then, in #8, you and Paolo are back with another multi-part story, the first part of which actually kicks off in "Amazing Spider-Man" #667. How does it feel to return to Spidey's world?

EXCLUSIVE: Artist Marcos Martin depicts DD in danger, above and below the water

Dan and I were supposed to collaborate on the writing duties, but editor Steve Wacker wanted him to focus on the upcoming "Ends of the Earth" storyline in "Amazing Spider-Man." So Steve asked me to do both parts of the team-up. The downsides to that were (a) not working with my friend, Dan, and (b) more work. But the upside to it was that it made it easier to write the "Daredevil" half so as not to "punish" those who didn't also read Spidey -- we'd love you to read Spidey, but if you're just reading "Daredevil,"I promise, you won't feel lost for a moment.

That's good to know! Let's wrap things up by talking about some of the other things coming Daredevil's way in 2012. Greg Rucka recently told us that you've been discussing the relationship between the Punisher and Daredevil. So can we expect to feel Frank Castle's presence in this book some time in the near future?

We're still hammering something out, but it's definitely set for the near future. As is the reveal of who set the Klaw "echo" after Matt in our first arc. As is the Mole Man.