Cover: Frank Miller & Klaus Janson

Daredevil #163

Mar 1980 · Marvel · 0.40 USD

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“Blind Alley”

★ 1st appearance — Doris Urich

About this Issue

Daredevil #163 is the payoff issue of a slow-burn subplot that writer Roger McKenzie had been building since issue #153: Daily Bugle reporter Ben Urich finally assembles the last piece of evidence he needs to confirm that Matt Murdock is Daredevil, after Heather Glenn inadvertently calls out 'Matt' while watching the costumed hero fight the Hulk in the street. The issue is equally significant for marking the first crossover appearance of the Hulk in the pages of Daredevil, giving Frank Miller — still only the penciler at this point — an early canvas for the character-defining idea that Daredevil simply refuses to surrender even against an opponent who can destroy him in a single blow. Together with the direct follow-up in #164, it plants the seeds of the Urich-Murdock alliance that would underpin Miller's entire subsequent writer-penciler run and remain one of the defining journalist–superhero relationships in Marvel history.

In "Blind Alley," Daredevil takes a dangerous stand when he intervenes to help Bruce Banner, only to find himself overwhelmed by the Hulk’s rage. As the fight unfolds, a fleeting moment reveals a surprising connection when Ben hears Heather call the masked hero by his real name—Matt—during the chaos. Written by Roger McKenzie and brought to life with sharp, dynamic art by Frank Miller, inks by Klaus Janson and Josef Rubinstein, and vivid colors by Glynis Wein, this 1980 issue features a cover by Frank Miller and Klaus Janson that captures the intensity of the moment.

writer Roger McKenzie · artist Frank Miller · inker Klaus Janson · inker Josef Rubinstein · colorist Glynis Wein · letterer Jim Novak · cover Frank Miller, Klaus Janson

ComicBooks.com Value

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Raw (Fine) $18

CGC 9.8 · 30 in census $1,190

CGC 9.6 · 103 in census $207

CGC 9.4 · 114 in census $156

CGC 9.2 · 96 in census $156

CGC 9.0 · 54 in census $156*

CGC 8.5 · 58 in census $89

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CGC 8.0 · 41 in census $50

CGC 7.5 · 30 in census $50

CGC 7.0 · 24 in census $44

CGC 6.5 · 14 in census $44

CGC 6.0 · 13 in census $44*

CGC 5.5 · 7 in census $35*

CGC 5.0 · 5 in census $33

CGC 4.5 · 3 in census $31*

CGC 4.0 · 3 in census $29*

CGC 3.5 none in existence

CGC 3.0 · 1 in census $21*

CGC 2.5 none in existence

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CGC 1.5 none in existence

CGC 1.0 none in existence

CGC 0.5 · 1 in census $20*

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More listings for this title

VG $10 VF $12.94 GD $17.5 FN+ $18.42 VG $19.99 VG $23 FN+ · Variant $23.74 Newsstand $24.99

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History

The issue was written by Roger McKenzie, whose run on the title beginning with #151 had deliberately darkened the series' tone — a direction informed by his background in horror comics — and had introduced Ben Urich as a slowly-developing investigative subplot across a span of ten issues. Frank Miller, who had joined the book as penciler with #158 after a brief Daredevil tryout in Spectacular Spider-Man #27, provided both interior pencils and the cover for #163; interior inking was split between Klaus Janson (pages 1–2) and Joe Rubinstein (pages 3–18), with colors by Glynis Wein and letters by Jim Novak; editors were Mary Jo Duffy and Denny O'Neil, with Jim Shooter as editor-in-chief. According to a note preserved in the Grand Comics Database, the concept of pitting Daredevil against the Hulk was Miller's own suggestion, and when he pitched it the editor's skeptical response was essentially 'So what happens in the second panel?' — a quip that gestured at the obvious power mismatch Miller then made central to the story's drama. The issue was available on newsstands in March 1980.

Trivia · 8 facts

Title: 'Blind Alley' — published March 1980 by Marvel Comics (on-sale date December 4, 1979).
Creative team: script by Roger McKenzie; pencils and cover by Frank Miller; inks by Klaus Janson (pp. 1–2) and Joe Rubinstein (pp. 3–18); colors by Glynis Wein; letters by Jim Novak; editors Mary Jo Duffy and Denny O'Neil.
First appearance of the Hulk (Bruce Banner) in a Daredevil comic — the Hulk's only role here is as an uncontrolled force of nature rather than a villain, emphasizing the extreme power disparity between the two characters.
Ben Urich completes his multi-issue deduction arc (running from #153 through #163): after Heather Glenn shouts 'Matt' during the street battle, Urich finishes writing the story confirming Daredevil's secret identity — a thread that pays off in #164.
Issue contains cameo appearances by Tony Stark (Iron Man) and J. Jonah Jameson at a re-election fundraiser for District Attorney Blake Tower; editorial notes also suggest a poorly colored Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson may be present at the same party.
Doris Urich — Ben Urich's wife — makes what the Grand Comics Database records as her first appearance in this issue.
Exists in at least three contemporary print editions: Direct Edition, Newsstand Edition, and a Mark Jewelers Advertisement Insert variant (distributed to U.S. military outlets overseas), as well as a UK edition with a 12p cover price.
The story has been reprinted multiple times, including: Spider-Man and Hulk Weekly #412 (Marvel UK, 1981); the Daredevil: Marked for Death trade paperback (Marvel, 1990); Daredevil Visionaries: Frank Miller Vol. 1 (Graphitti Designs, 2000); and the Daredevil Omnibus: Frank Miller & Klaus Janson (Marvel, oversized hardcover).