Editing Frank Miller (section)

===''Daredevil'' and the early 1980s===
[[File:Frank Miller.jpg|Miller at the 1982 [[San Diego Comic-Con International|Comic-Con]]|thumb|left|upright]]

''Daredevil'' #158 (May 1979), Miller's debut on that title, was the finale of an ongoing story written by [[Roger McKenzie (comics)|Roger McKenzie]] and [[inker|inked]] by [[Klaus Janson]]. After this issue, Miller became one of Marvel's rising stars.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sanderson |first=Peter |title=Marvel Chronicle A Year by Year History |editor=Gilbert, Laura |publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]] |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7566-4123-8 |location=London, United Kingdom |page=189 |chapter=1970s |quote=In this issue the great longtime ''Daredevil'' artist Gene Colan was succeeded by a new penciller who became a star himself: Frank Miller. |author-link=Peter Sanderson}}</ref> However, sales on ''Daredevil'' did not improve, Marvel's management continued to discuss cancellation, and Miller himself almost quit the series, as he disliked McKenzie's scripts.<ref name="jimshooterinterview" /> Miller's fortunes changed with the arrival of [[Denny O'Neil]] as editor. Realizing Miller's unhappiness with the series, and impressed by a backup story Miller had written, O'Neil moved McKenzie to another project so that Miller could try writing the series himself.<ref name="jimshooterinterview" /><ref name="O">{{Cite web |last=Mithra |first=Kuljit |date=February 1998 |title=Interview with Dennis O'Neil |url=http://www.manwithoutfear.com/daredevil-interviews/ONeil |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130321185605/http://www.manwithoutfear.com/daredevil-interviews/ONeil |archive-date=March 21, 2013 |access-date=May 10, 2013 |publisher=ManWithoutFear.com}}</ref> Miller and O'Neil maintained a friendly working relationship throughout his run on the series.<ref name="DAK2">{{Cite news |last1=Kraft, David Anthony |author-link=David Anthony Kraft |last2=Salicup, Jim |author-link2=Jim Salicrup |date=April 1983 |title=Frank Miller's Ronin |pages=7–21 |work=[[Comics Interview]] |publisher=[[Fictioneer Books]] |issue=2}}</ref> With issue #168 (Jan. 1981), Miller took over full duties as writer and penciller. Sales rose so swiftly that Marvel once again began publishing ''Daredevil'' monthly rather than bimonthly just three issues after Miller became its writer.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Khoury |first=George |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q26qDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA182 |title=Comic Book Fever: A Celebration of Comics: 1976-1986 |date=2016 |publisher=[[TwoMorrows Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-60549-063-2 |location=Raleigh, North Carolina |page=182 |author-link=George Khoury (author) |access-date=September 19, 2021 |archive-date=December 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231229012202/https://books.google.com/books?id=Q26qDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA182 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Issue #168 saw the first full appearance of the [[ninja]] [[mercenary]] [[Elektra (comics)|Elektra]]—who became a popular character and star in a 2005 motion picture—although her first cover appearance was four months earlier on Miller's cover of ''[[The Comics Journal]]'' #58.<ref>[[Tom DeFalco|DeFalco, Tom]] "1980s" in Gilbert (2008), p. 201: "Matt Murdock's college sweetheart first appeared in this issue [#168] by writer/artist Frank Miller."</ref> Miller later wrote and drew a solo Elektra story in ''Bizarre Adventures'' #28 (Oct. 1981). He added a [[martial arts]] aspect to Daredevil's fighting skills,<ref name="DAK2" /> and introduced previously unseen characters who had played a major part in the character's youth: [[Stick (comics)|Stick]], leader of the ninja clan the [[Chaste (Marvel Comics)|Chaste]], who had been Murdock's [[sensei]] after he was blinded<ref>DeFalco "1980s" in Gilbert (2008), p. 202: "Possibly modeled after Nantembo, a Zen master who reputedly disciplined his students by striking them with his nantin staff, Stick first appeared in this issue [#176] by Frank Miller."</ref> and a rival clan called the [[Hand (comics)|Hand]].<ref>DeFalco "1980s" in Gilbert (2008), p. 202: The Hand was a league of ninja assassins who employed dark magic...Introduced in ''Daredevil'' #174 by writer/artist Frank Miller, this group of deadly warriors had been hired by the Kingpin of Crime to exterminate Matt Murdock."</ref>
[[File:Daredevil cover - number 168.png|thumb|upright|''[[Daredevil (Marvel Comics series)|Daredevil]]'' #168 (Jan. 1981), [[Elektra (comics)|Elektra]]'s debut. Cover art by Miller and [[Klaus Janson]]]]
Unable to handle both writing and penciling ''Daredevil'' on the new monthly schedule, Miller began increasingly relying on Janson for the artwork, sending him looser and looser pencils beginning with #173.<ref name="Back21">{{Cite journal |last=Cordier |first=Philippe |date=April 2007 |title=Seeing Red: Dissecting Daredevil's Defining Years |journal=[[Back Issue!]] |location=Raleigh, North Carolina |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |issue=21 |pages=33–60}}</ref> By issue #185, Miller had virtually relinquished his role as Daredevil's artist, and he was providing only rough layouts for Janson to both pencil and ink, allowing Miller to focus on the writing.<ref name="Back21" />

Miller's work on Daredevil was characterized by darker themes and stories. This peaked when in #181 (April 1982) he had the [[assassination|assassin]] [[Bullseye (comics)|Bullseye]] kill Elektra,<ref>DeFalco "1980s" in Gilbert (2008), p. 207: "Frank Miller did the unthinkable when he killed off the popular Elektra in ''Daredevil'' #181."</ref> and Daredevil subsequently attempt to kill him. Miller finished his ''Daredevil'' run with issue #191 (February 1983), which he cited in a winter 1983 interview as the issue he is most proud of;<ref name="DAK2" /> by this time, he had transformed a second-tier character into one of Marvel's most popular. Additionally, Miller drew a short [[Batman]] Christmas story, "Wanted: Santa Claus – Dead or Alive", written by [[Dennis O'Neil]] for ''[[DC Special Series]]'' #21 (Spring 1980).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Manning |first=Matthew K. |title=Batman: A Visual History |editor=Dougall, Alastair |publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]] |year=2014 |isbn=978-1-4654-2456-3 |location=London, United Kingdom |page=136 |chapter=1980s |quote=One of the most important creators ever to work on Batman, writer/artist Frank Miller drew his first Batman story in this issue. While it featured five self-contained tales, the story 'Wanted: Santa Claus – Dead or Alive', written by Denny O'Neil and penciled by Miller was the standout.}}</ref> This was his first professional experience with a character with which, like Daredevil, he became closely associated. At Marvel, O'Neil and Miller collaborated on two issues of ''The Amazing Spider-Man Annual''. The 1980 Annual featured a team-up with [[Doctor Strange]]<ref>{{Cite book |last=Manning |first=Matthew K. |title=Spider-Man Chronicle Celebrating 50 Years of Web-Slinging |editor=Gilbert, Laura |publisher=[[Dorling Kindersley]] |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-7566-9236-0 |location=London, United Kingdom |page=114 |chapter=1980s |quote=Writer Denny O'Neil and artist Frank Miller...used their considerable talents in this rare collaboration that teamed two other legends – Dr. Strange and Spider-Man.}}</ref> while the 1981 Annual showcased a meeting with the [[Punisher]].<ref>Manning "1980s" in Gilbert (2012), p. 120: "Writer Denny O'Neil teamed with artist Frank Miller to concoct a Spider-Man annual that played to both their strengths. Miller and O'Neil seemed to flourish in the gritty world of street crime so tackling a Spider/Punisher fight was a natural choice."</ref>

As penciller and co-plotter, Miller, together with writer [[Chris Claremont]], produced the [[miniseries]] ''[[Wolverine (comic book)|Wolverine]]'' #1–4 (Sept.-Dec. 1982),<ref>DeFalco "1980s" in Gilbert (2008), p. 208: "The most popular member of the X-Men was finally featured in his first solo title, a four-issue limited series by writer Chris Claremont and writer/artist Frank Miller."</ref> inked by [[Josef Rubinstein]] and spinning off from the popular ''[[X-Men]]'' title. Miller used this miniseries to expand on Wolverine's character.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Goldstein |first=Hilary |date=May 19, 2006 |title=Wolverine TPB Review He's the best at what he does and so is Frank Miller. |url=http://comics.ign.com/articles/709/709496p1.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130411115926/http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/05/20/wolverine-tpb-review |archive-date=April 11, 2013 |access-date=November 25, 2011 |website=[[IGN]]}}</ref> The series was a critical success and further cemented Miller's place as an industry star. His first [[creator ownership|creator-owned]] title was DC Comics' six-issue miniseries ''[[Ronin (DC Comics)|Ronin]]'' (1983–1984).<ref>{{Cite book |last=Young |first=Paul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h7G7DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA236 |title=Frank Miller's Daredevil and the Ends of Heroism |date=2016 |publisher=[[Rutgers University Press]] |isbn=978-0-8135-6382-4 |location=New Brunswick, New Jersey |page=236 |access-date=September 19, 2021 |archive-date=December 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231229012147/https://books.google.com/books?id=h7G7DAAAQBAJ&pg=PA236#v=onepage&q&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref> In 1985, DC Comics named Miller as one of the honorees in the company's 50th-anniversary publication ''[[Fifty Who Made DC Great]]''.<ref>{{Cite comic |writer=Marx, Barry |cowriters=[[Joey Cavalieri|Cavalieri, Joey]] and Hill, Thomas |artist=Petruccio, Steven |editor=Marx, Barry |story=Frank Miller Experiment in Creative Autonomy |title=Fifty Who Made DC Great |date=1985 |publisher=DC Comics |page=50}}</ref>

Miller was involved in a few [[List of comics solicited but never published|unpublished projects]] in the early 1980s. A house advertisement for ''[[Doctor Strange]]'' appeared in Marvel Comics cover-dated February 1981. It stated "Watch for the new adventures of Earth's Sorcerer Supreme—as mystically conjured by [[Roger Stern]] and Frank Miller!". Miller's only contribution to the series was the cover for ''Doctor Strange'' #46 (April 1981). Other commitments prevented him from working on the series.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cronin |first=Brian |date=April 12, 2007 |title=Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #98 |url=http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2007/04/12/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-98 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731191721/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2007/04/12/comic-book-urban-legends-revealed-98/ |archive-date=July 31, 2013 |access-date=December 18, 2010 |website=[[Comic Book Resources]]}}</ref> Miller and [[Steve Gerber]] made a proposal to revamp DC's three biggest characters: [[Superman]], Batman, and [[Wonder Woman]], under a line called "Metropolis" and comics titled "Man of Steel" or "The Man of Steel", "Dark Knight" and "Amazon".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cronin, Brian |date=April 1, 2010 |title=Comic Book Legends Revealed #254 |url=http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2010/04/01/comic-book-legends-revealed-254 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111107200219/http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2010/04/01/comic-book-legends-revealed-254/ |archive-date=November 7, 2011 |access-date=November 6, 2011 |website=Comic Book Resources}}</ref> However, this proposal was not accepted.{{Citation needed|date=July 2023}}