Daredevils #2

"An Englishman's Home..."
Published: February 1983
Writer: Alan Moore
Penciller: Alan Davis
Inker: Alan Davis

What's Going On?
Having survived (he thinks) his ordeal on the alternate Earth, Captain Britain returns home to the ruins of Braddock Manor, which was destroyed some time ago during a team-up with Captain America (Captain Britain Vol. 1 #18).  Or was it?  While the average Joe sees nothing but rubble, CapBrit sees the mansion unblemished.  He enters and is greeted briefly by his family's housemaid, and then by scenes from his past; the kicker seems to be the skeletons of his parents asking him to join them in death.  All he has to do is allow his old enemy, Mastermind, to kill him.  That's when CapBrit remembers that Mastermind is a hologram controlled by the computers in Braddock Manor's basement --- and holograms would explain all the crazy things he has seen since returning home!  The Captain then figures out how to shut down the computer (which is basically sentient and has developed a way to self-replicate and grow vast enough to cover an entire cavern), thus saving the day.

Sub-plots, oh the Sub-plots!
- There was an offhanded remark by Merlin last issue, where he mentioned that he might not have put Captain Britain's mind back together in the right order; the Captain may very well be insane.  As Merlin and Roma observe the Captain's actions from afar, he once again mentions the possibility of insanity.  I'm guessing that this issue marks the end of this brief subplot, since it acts as a red herring for the true villain.

- Apparently, the Fury is not satisfied with killing Captain Britain.  Despite seeing the smoldering husk of the Captain at its feet, the Fury's animal instinct tells it that the Captain has survived.  That might be a problem later.

- A mysterious woman with super-strength has a panic attack that roughly coincides with Captain Britain's death.  While she isn't mentioned by name, she seems to have felt the Captain's death and is afraid something (the Fury?) will come after her soon.

- CapBrit is the only person able to see through the hologram of Braddock Manor as rubble, and he is able to "sense" where the computer's core is.  His reaction is "It's almost as if my senses have been enhanced somehow.  But by who?"  That would be Merlin and Roma, sir.

- Captain Britain has a ridiculously futuristic supercomputer in his basement that has murdered his parents and tried to kill him.  Naturally, he knows enough about computers to reprogram this nearly sentient device so he can "put it to work for [him]."  That seems like a good idea.

Writing!
It was an interesting choice for Alan Moore to retcon the destruction of Braddock Manor.  At that point, the mansion had been destroyed for about six years; reestablishing it as Captain Britain's base of operations feels like a step back.  I suppose you can describe it as back-to-basics, but that's never been Alan Moore's thing.

Art!
This is basically a psychological drama issue, so there's not a lot of action inherent in the plot.  Luckily, Alan Davis can tell a story that doesn't require uppercuts.  Honestly, I think his strength is in facial expressions.  A personal favorite moment is when he pulls out his "I'm under mind control" googly eyes.

I'm not quite sure if I like Davis inking his own work, though.  There is a sketchiness to the finished product here that doesn't do his work justice.

Retrospectively Funny:
- As a reader of the X-titles, I knew that there were several villains named Mastermind.  I did not, however, know that Marvel UK had one, too.  This prompted me to do a bit of quick research; there are apparently five Masterminds in the Marvel Universe, none of whom has been particularly threatening since the Dark Phoenix Saga.

-  According to this issue, no one knows that Braddock Manor is still standing.  And yet, it has electricity and phone service.  I don't think the Mastermind computer can control minds outside of the house, so...I guess we're left to believe that Brian Braddock pays his bills several years in advance?