Daredevil#168

Daredevil #168

Jan 1981 · Marvel

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About this Issue

Daredevil #168 marks the debut of Elektra Natchios, one of the most consequential characters Frank Miller ever created and one of Marvel's most enduring morally complex figures. Her introduction — as Matt Murdock's lost college love turned lethal assassin — injected a tragic romantic tension into the series that redefined Daredevil as a street-level noir book rather than a conventional superhero title. The issue simultaneously served as Miller's first solo writing credit on the series, a creative milestone that triggered a dramatic sales turnaround: Daredevil went from a bimonthly book on the verge of cancellation to a monthly must-read within three issues. Elektra's arc across Miller's run — from debut to death to resurrection — also helped establish the moral ambiguity that would characterize superhero comics throughout the 1980s, influencing everything from Miller's own Dark Knight Returns to countless creator runs that followed.

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (Fine) $92

CGC 9.8 $2,820

CGC 9.6 $703

CGC 9.4 $347*

CGC 9.2 $347

CGC 9.0 $294

CGC 8.5 $228

Show all 22 grades ▾

CGC 8.0 $178

CGC 7.5 $178

CGC 7.0 $163

CGC 6.5 $163

CGC 6.0 $163*

CGC 5.5 $108*

CGC 5.0 $108

CGC 4.5 $85*

CGC 4.0 $80*

CGC 3.5 $64*

CGC 3.0 $59*

CGC 2.5 $43*

CGC 2.0 $37*

CGC 1.5 $34*

CGC 1.0 $34*

CGC 0.5 $20*

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

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History

By the time issue #168 reached stands, Daredevil had been a struggling, bimonthly title whose cancellation Marvel's editorial staff had seriously discussed; Frank Miller had joined as penciller in 1979 under writer Roger McKenzie, but grew frustrated with the scripts to the point of considering quitting. Editor Denny O'Neil resolved the tension by moving McKenzie to another project and giving Miller full writer-artist control, with #168 as his first solo scripted issue. Miller later acknowledged that he conceived Elektra essentially as a one-off filler character — a former college flame for Murdock — with no expectation she would outlast the issue, and he based her physical appearance partly on female bodybuilder Lisa Lyon and partly on actress Bo Derek. The creative freedom Miller and inker Klaus Janson enjoyed stemmed directly from the book's low status: as Janson recalled, because the title was nearly cancelled, editorial placed almost no restrictions on what the team could attempt.

Trivia · 10 facts

First full appearance and origin of Elektra Natchios (Elektra), created by Frank Miller; cover-dated January 1981, on sale December 1980.
Elektra's name is misspelled as 'Elecktra' on the cover — a production error that has become one of the issue's most noted trivia points.
This was Frank Miller's first solo writing credit on Daredevil; he had shared co-plotter credit beginning with issue #165, but #168 is the first issue he scripted alone.
Elektra's first appearance in print was actually on Miller's cover to The Comics Journal #58, approximately four months before this issue went on sale — making #168 her first full story (and in-continuity) appearance.
The issue establishes Elektra's core backstory: she and Matt Murdock were college lovers; after the assassination of her father, Greek envoy Hugo Natchios, she turned to the Hand and became a sai-wielding assassin for hire.
Also features the first appearance of crime boss Alarich Wallenquist and several other minor underworld characters (Bilge, Brutus, Grotto, Mickey, Charles), per the Marvel Database.
The colorist is credited under the pseudonym 'Dr. Martin,' identified as an unknown stand-in for at least two uncredited colorists — a not-uncommon Bronze Age practice.
The issue has been reprinted in multiple collected editions, most notably Daredevil Visionaries: Frank Miller Vol. 2 (Marvel, 2001), which collects issues #168–182, as well as the Daredevil: Frank Miller & Klaus Janson omnibus and the 2005 Elektra: The Movie tie-in collection.
Elektra has since been portrayed in live-action by Jennifer Garner (Daredevil 2003, Elektra 2005, Deadpool & Wolverine 2024) and Élodie Yung (Netflix's Daredevil 2016, The Defenders 2017), and is set to return in a future Daredevil: Born Again season.
The cover art by Miller and Klaus Janson was homaged in Mighty Avengers #16.