Elektra Part 2: Daredevil #169 (March, 1981)

This is Elektra’s second appearance, and it isn’t very big. It’s ten panels long, but shows how their meeting in #168 affected her. I have this issue in the Daredevil Visionaries: Frank Miller Vol. 2 trade.


While Matt is busy dealing with Bullseye running around New York, Elektra sneaks into Matt’s brownstone. She soon realizes that she’s there not because she lost the bounty to Matt last issue, but because she still has feelings for him. She comes across a statue someone named Heather gave him as a gift and throws it at a mirror, which smashes. This wakes Heather up, and she comes sleepily into the living room thinking Matt’s home. Elektra leaps out of the window before Heather sees her, and is gone.

Notes of Interest:
1) Miller obviously has future plans for Elektra and writes her as a tormented soul, torn between what she is and what she wants, or at least thinks she wants.

2) It’s explained here that Matt is the only man Elektra ever loved. She is clearly jealous of Heather and upset that he moved on.

3) I feel it also important to note that she has brown eyes, which convinces me that anytime she’s given blue or green eyes is because she’s on some mission and is using tinted lenses damnit.

4) It’s also interesting to note that Elektra doesn’t say a single word in this sequence. This was Miller’s first writing job and his first original character, so that might have something to do it.

5) The fact that losing the bounty last issue is even mentioned furthers the belief that she cried last issue because of that and not because of Matt.

WTF? Moment: Where does Elektra get off being upset that Matt moved on? She left him, right? And don’t tell me that she hasn’t had relationships while becoming an assassin. Was she in love? Probably not. But she was in relationships. I’m sure of it.

WTF? Moment #2: My guess is Elektra left Matt’s place because she was embarrassed to be seen. Any assassin worth her salt knows not to go around smashing things. Especially ninja assassins.