WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Daredevil #35, on sale now from Marvel Comics.
While Daredevil isn't known for having a particularly easy time in his commitment to crimefighting in the Marvel Universe, things have been even more grueling than usual for Matt Murdock. The Man Without Fear accepted a plea deal for accidental manslaughter that resulted in his incarceration in a maximum security prison only to discover that the warden was involved in an illegal drug smuggling ring and dosing the inmates to make them more violent. While Matt managed to break out of prison after exposing the widespread corruption, his self-imposed early release from prison directly sets up the events of Marvel's next major crossover event, Devil's Reign.
Officially kicking off in December, Devil's Reign has the Kingpin exercising his powers as Mayor to outlaw all superhero activity in New York City. Directly impacting local superheroes like Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four, the event is poised to tilt the legal balance between heroes and villains as Wilson Fisk calls in plenty of supervillains and antiheroes to make good on his sweeping agenda and enforce the new law of the land. The fuse that lights this explosive showdown can be traced directly to Matt Murdock's decision to break out of prison in order to defeat his longtime nemesis Bullseye in a violent confrontation within the heart of Manhattan's Times Square in Daredevil #35 (by Chip Zdarsky, Stefano Landini, Francesco Mobili, Marcio Menyz and VC's Clayton Cowles).
While Matt was intent on remaining in prison to serve out his full sentence, even after exposing the corrupt warden and his insidious drug-running, he broke out of prison when he learned that Bullseye had launched a terrifying killing spree across Manhattan. Matt arrived on the scene just in time to take down his nemesis and stop the carnage he had inflicted upon the city. However, the New York Police Department were still determined to arrest Matt for breaking out of prison, despite Daredevil stopping the sadistic supervillain and exposing prison corruption on behalf of the FBI.
Matt appears to have no interest in returning to prison this time, with his senses cleared of the drugs the warden was pumping into him, and the superheroes present on the scene "encourage" the police to stand down from their attempt to bring Matt back into custody. This could play right into Wilson Fisk's plans as the once and future Kingpin has contemplated using his mayoral powers to make life hell for Daredevil in the past. With an entire network of superheroes now standing in his way, Fisk may declare war on those disrupting that agenda, with the legal power of New York City currently on his side.
Matt Murdock's latest prison saga was one that explored just how deeply his sense of guilt and self-punishment ran, with him entering a guilty plea rather than even attempting to legally fight the charges against him. Having run this crucible for months, Matt appears to be a stronger hero and more confident in his abilities than ever.
However, the cost for freedom is never cheap -- even if Matt has demonstrated some strong cases of heroism as the Devil inside and outside of Cell Block D -- and it may come at a cost that Marvel's entire superhero community will have to pay.
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