Artnewspress: The Kingpin recently named his successor upon his retirement, but his decision has been completely forgotten in Marvel Comics’ current continuity.
One of the latest Marvel Comics crossover events saw the retirement of Wilson Fisk and the rise of another Kingpin who Fisk hand-picked to take his place, but that development was recently completely ignored in the very next chapter involving New York City’s criminal underworld which is a major mistake on Marvel’s part.
In Devil’s Reign #6 by Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto, the Kingpin allows his obsession with finding and killing Daredevil to overwhelm him. Fisk completely abandons his plans to use Killgrave’s powers to become President of the United States and officially be rid of superheroes who reside in that country forever, just as he tried to do in New York. Instead, Kingpin goes after the man who is pretending to be Matt Murdock after finding out Daredevil’s secret identity, killing him in a fit of rage. When the real Matt finds out, he tracks down Fisk and fights him in an epic battle that concludes the event, leaving Fisk in police custody. However, because of his connections, Fisk quickly escaped his confinement and sailed off into the sunset with his wife, Typhoid Mary, leaving his entire criminal empire to his son, Butch.
In Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 6 #1 by Zeb Wells and John Romita Jr., the crime lords of New York, including the likes of Tombstone and Hammer Head, have gathered together to discuss territories following Kingpin’s retirement. One of the Kingpin’s sons, a criminal known as the Rose, wishes to lay claim to a portion of the city, though the other villains are making him earn his spot among them, giving Spider-Man more than enough trouble to keep him busy throughout the issue.The one shocking absence from the meeting of New York’s crime families is the true successor of Wilson Fisk’s Kingpin, his son Butch who became the new Kingpin at the end of Devil’s Reign. The fact that he wasn’t there is almost a slap in the face to Wilson Fisk’s story arc as it undermines his legacy by completely ignoring Butch and his efforts to gain the title of the Kingpin. Before Fisk left his empire to Butch, the prodigal son was on his own path to gaining power as shown in the series Daredevil by Chip Zdarsky and Marco Checchetto. Throughout that run, Butch aligned himself with powerful crime bosses, rose up in their ranks, and ultimately betrayed them, which perfectly showed his ruthlessness and proved his ability to be a worthy Kingpin. However, it seems all of that work was for nothing as Fisk’s final decision on who should replace him was forgotten.While the Rose, another of the Kingpin’s children, seems to be rising to the occasion to take his father’s place, that position has already been filled by his brother who is far more deserving of the title. Butch became the clear successor to Wilson Fisk not just because he’s his son, but because of everything he accomplished throughout Daredevil and Devil’s Reign, so by completely ignoring his newly earned title of Kingpin, Marvel is making a huge mistake, one that should be quickly rectified.
Spencer Connolly
