Daredevil: A Binge-Watcher’s Guide

After a first episode involving quite a bit of set-up, the second episode ups the stakes and the action. There’s an interesting thing going on here with the fights: Daredevil is basically superhuman in his skills, no question, but the fights so far have more blood and sweat than we typically see in superhero punch-ups. Even if he is blind guy able to take down half a dozen dudes at a time, they show him working at it. It’s not a Batman fight, where the bad guys never really stand a chance. That’s clear in the beginning, which finds Matt near-death in a dumpster following a fight we haven’t yet seen, and at the end.
Which has one of the BEST FIGHTS I’VE EVER SEEN ON TV. It’s brilliantly choreographed, one-take battle with a bunch of Russians that is simultaneously exhilarating and totally ridonk. I’m loving the characters, particularly Rosario Dawson’s Claire, but that fight managed to almost-kinda seem like something that could actually happen, and it might have sold me on the show.
Easter Eggs: In the comics, Claire Temple is a Luke Cage: Hero for Hire protagonist created by Archie Goodwin in 1972. Given that there’s a Luke Cage TV show on the way, this might not be entirely coincidence. The fall of Battlin’ Jack Murdoch comes straight out of Frank Miller and John Romita, Jr.’s Daredevil: The Man Without Fear book (sort of a Daredevil: Year One origin thing), and a later Zeb Wells series filled in a few extra details. Crusher Creel, mentioned but not seen here, is an earlier version of the same bad guy who we’ve seen in season two of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (in the comics, he’s Absorbing Man).
Episode Three: Rabbit in a Snowstorm
“You still think this is about you?”
OMG HE JUST BEAT THAT GUY TO DEATH WITH A BOWLING BALL. This show keeps surprising me with the violence. We’re almost talking HBO-level here.
The courtroom stuff here is pretty effective. It’s a TV court case, but it touches on the ways in which Matt will manipulate the justice system for what he sees as the greater good. He takes on the case of John Healy, the guy with the bowling ball, in order to get information about the mysterious crime boss. Upon acquittal, Daredevil smacks the guy around in order to make him name Wilson Fisk. I like that they’re already starting to play with the morality and consequences of Matt’s dual roles as a part of the justice system and as a vigilante. That’s promising territory, especially since I suspect that it’ll get DD into trouble one day soon.
Outstanding Question: It can’t possibly be that easy to impale yourself through the head, right? Because I’m super clumsy, and I feel like I would have done it already.
Easter Eggs: Karen’s reporter pal Ben Urich was created by Roger McKenzie and Gene Colan in 1978. Under Frank Miller’s legendary run, he became a major player in both Daredevil and Spider-Man, and has been ever since.
Episode Four: In the Blood
“You ever heard the name…Wilson Fisk?”

With the first three episodes having put the major pieces on the board, at least as far as Matt’s concerned, this one shifts focus to New York’s would-be crime kingpin. We’ve heard mostly whispers about Wilson Fisk so far, and I love the way that Vincent D’Onofrio plays him. He’s quiet (at least until angered) and creepily awkward. The shadowy movements and secrecy seem to be as much about an almost crippling shyness as they are about shielding his organization from the police.
The big scene here is a date with the art gallery proprietor. The show’s been smart so far in taking its time with certain elements, and I suspect that establishing Fisk as a human being here will pay off in the future. Especially since…
OMG HE JUST SMOOSHED THAT GUY’S HEAD IN A CAR DOOR OVER AND OVER FOR LIKE FIVE MINUTES.
OK, so I thought that bowling-ball thing was going to be the apex of violence for the show. We’re now well past any type of traditionally comic-book violence. We’ve ranged deep into Sopranos territory, true believers. It’s a dangerous landscape where brains aren’t guaranteed to stay in heads, and heads don’t necessarily stay on bodies. I’m not sure that I expected a comic book show to remind me so much of an HBO show. We’re not quite at Game of Thrones, only because no one is having sex (yet?).
Easter Eggs: Wilson Fisk (aka “The Kingpin of Crime”) is a long-time Daredevil/Spider-Man/Punisher nemesis created by Stan Lee and John Romita, Sr. in 1967. He was played by Michael Clarke Duncan in the Affleck movie, and by John Rhys-Davies in the sorta awful/sorta amazing The Trial of the Incredible Hulk (guest-starring Daredevil) from 1989.
Episode Five: World on Fire
“Never seen sharks feed up close before.”
After the last episode’s lengthy head smashing, the focus shifts to Foggy and Karen. At first I wasn’t sure how well Foggy’s comic-relief was working with the rest of the show’s SUPER DARK ALL THE TIME thing. But I love the chemistry between Elden Henson’s character and Deborah Ann Woll’s Karen Page. These two throw a little bit of light on Daredevil’s world, even when they’re being put through the wringer. I’ve been least interested in the looming gang war so far, but Fisk’s manipulations are starting to get interesting, as is his weird romance with Vanessa. And, by the end, we’re already blowing up big chunks of New York City. For a series that’s taking its time with some of the character beats, they’re moving the bigger story along pretty speedily.
Easter Eggs: The Vanessa Mariana character has been a love interest (and more) for Wilson Fisk going back to her creation in 1969.
Episode Six: Condemned
“I want everyone in hell’s kitchen to see what’s happening.”

There’s a moment that’s almost inevitable in any vigilante superhero story: it’s that bit where the people and the police turn on the hero, often with the help of a manipulative bad guy. I tend to dread the moment, because the beats tend to be so predictable. I’m not sure that Daredevil escapes that figurative trap, but I still liked this episode, even if the “Superhero Framed!” set-up had me worried. The discussions between Matt and Vladimir about how far Daredevil will go, as earlier with Matt and Claire, shed a little light on something that hasn’t really been made clear yet. DD hasn’t overtly and purposely killed anyone yet, but he’s come close. Dropping that guy off the roof a couple of episodes ago could have easily led to a death. How far will he go? And is all of this violence in his nature, or just something that he feels is necessary?
Easter Eggs: Vladimir names Leland Owlsley as Fisk’s financier at the end of the episode. Owlsley was one of DD’s very first antagonists from Daredevil #3 in 1964. I’m pretty sure that you can guess his super-villain name…
Episode Seven: Stick
“Show me I’m not wasting my time.”

The show takes a right turn by introducing some more overtly comic-book elements. Granted, we were pretty well there with the blind-guy-with-magical-senses thing, but the organized crime stuff so far has lent a touch of versimilitude. Scott Glenn jumps into the role of martial-arts master Stick, the man who trained Matt as a child and now returns to recruit him in his war against…something or other. At this moment he’s after “Black Sky,” which turns out to be a little kid. It’s never clear why Stick has to kill this kid, though we’re meant to believe that the boy is some sort of weapon. It’s all fine, and we get to see more of Matt’s backstory, but this one feels like a diversion. Glenn is great as an antagonist, but I’m more interested in Wilson Fisk.
Easter Eggs: Like much of this series, the Stick character comes from Frank Miller’s seminal run(s) on Daredevil. When last we saw Stick, he was played by Terence Stamp (General Zod himself) in the not-so-great 2005 Elektra movie.
Episode Eight: Shadows in the Glass
“I’m not a killer. I keep telling people that.”
Last episode filled in Matt’s backstory, so this one gives us Fisk’s. I’m more and more taken with this effete, anxious Kingpin, especially as we see the moment in his childhood where he decided that violence could be his way forward. The parallels with Matt’s character are smart, as they both employ extreme violence to ends that each believes to be noble. It’s dense stuff for a comic book show. In the present-day bits, things are spiraling out of control for Fisk, until Vanessa pushes him into the light. Is she manipulating the big guy, or is she merely helping him to move past his childhood trauma? Either way, he was a formidable opponent even when he wasn’t living his best life, so this is all bad news for Daredevil. It’s easy to imagine a crime drama with Fisk as the protagonist better than the bad guy. Did I mention that I’m loving this character?
Stray Observation: Matt needs to stop angrily smashing his stuff. We’ve established that he has no money.
Easter Eggs: In the comics, Vanessa has frequently worked to put the brakes on Fisk’s criminal doings. Doesn’t seem to be the case here. Fisk’s ill-fated father is played by Domenick Lombardozzi, Herc from The Wire.
Episode Nine: Speak of the Devil
“Do you believe in the devil, father?”

A lot comes together in this one. Matt seeks out Vanessa in order to feel her out over Fisk, and winds up meeting the big man himself. This is all framed by a nasty, brutal, and final fight with Nobu that leaves Matt near death (again). It clearly doesn’t pay to be an incredible ninja in this type of show, because everyone that you have to deal with will be a ninja of equal or better skill. I mean, ninjas…amirite? By the end of this one, Matt has faced Fisk, as has Daredevil. If this show were taking a break, this would be the mid-season finale point. Fisk is clearly in the ascendant, while Matt is a bloody pulp.
Easter Eggs: Nobu seems to be a pretty clear nod toward The Hand, an organization of mystical ninjas that have been long-time adversaries for Daredevil in the comics.
Episode Ten: Nelson v. Murdoch
“A blind old man taught you the ancient art of Kung Fu?”
I haven’t spoken much about Vondie Curtis-Hall’s Ben Urich, but it’s yet another instance in this show of smart casting. Curtis-Hall brings a believable world-weariness to the character, and it makes the moments in this episode where we learn about his wife’s illness all the more poignant. There’s more backstory here, and I like the scenes with the Nelson & Murdoch boys in college. It doesn’t look as though Matt was ever all that much fun, but at least we’re lightening things up a bit. Even though they’re falling apart in the present, with Foggy learning Matt’s secret identity. Are there any secret identities in the so-called Marvel Cinematic Universe? It doesn’t bother me much that everybody knows who everybody is, but it’s such a comic-book trope that it’s a little weird that we seem to have moved past it.
Episode Eleven: The Path of the Righteous
“Who will pay?”
After last episode’s cliffhanger, Vanessa’s in the hospital. The real movement, though, is with Karen Page. After all of the back and forth over the last few episodes about whether or not Daredevil is or should be a killer, it’s Ms. Page who makes the ultimate move. I’ll kinda miss Wesley, but he never should have let Karen get her hands on that gun. She’s much tougher than she looks.
Easter Eggs: Melvin Potter (as Gladiator) was one of Daredevil’s earliest adversaries in the comics. Like in the show, they eventually became friends.
Episode Twelve: The Ones We Leave Behind
“…moving on to the hard stuff.”

Oh, man. I liked Ben a way whole lot. I knew that there’d be balance for the death of Wesley, but still. We’re in the home stretch, and the stuff’s getting real. We find out why everyone is so afraid of Madame Gao, or at least we learn that there’s a reason to be afraid, even if we still don’t exactly know her deal.
Easter Eggs: A close look at Ben’s clippings reveals that he was a key reporter during the Chitauri invasion of Manhattan.
Episode Thirteen: Daredevil
“Take your shot!”
We don’t get complete closure here, but it’s a deeply satisfying season finale. Daredevil is revealed in full and the house of Fisk falls (for now, at least). The surprises have been mostly in the lead-up to this one, but the fact that things play out in a way that makes perfect sense isn’t a downside at all. This has been a surprising series. Some odd beats (the mystical ninjas never quite fit in), but ultimately some depth to the character work that I hadn’t expected. I never lost interest in any of the major players, and that speaks toward really impressive writing and casting. And those fights! I mean…
No word on when we’ll see more Daredevil, but I’ll be surprised if we don’t. I’ll be looking forward to A.K.A. Jessica Jones later in 2015, followed by Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Defenders. Netflix has set a pretty high bar with this one.
What did you think of Daredevil?