Wonder Watchlist

It’s been 7 long years since fans said goodbye to Netflix’s Daredevil series after 3 seasons. Leading fans to undertake a successful hashtag campaign to bring The Man Without Fear back. Outside of a few cameos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021, and the Disney Plus series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law in 2022, Charlie Cox’s return as Matt Murdock has been hard fought. Daredevil Born Again follows Matt on a journey of repentance in what is the bloodiest entry into the MCU to date. There’s plenty of gritty action, but the show shines most when Matt is seeking justice whether in a courtroom or on the crime riddled streets of New York.

Daredevil Born Again finds familiar faces that we’ve grown to love back in the busy streets of New York. Matt is belly up at a new bar with Karen Page (Deborah Ann Wolf) and Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson). Spirits inside are high; there’s an air of celebration among the patrons, a moment that would last only for a fleeting time. Short-lived moments of happiness are a common occurrence throughout the first season of Daredevil Born Again, making Matt reconcile with his life as a vigilante and the guilt of those choices. Matt must face his past head-on, often reopening old wounds and creating new scars along the way.

There’s nothing quite like seeing Cox in the role of Matt Murdock, especially when he’s working in a courtroom protecting the marginalized members of society. Using his advanced hearing to determine truth, meticulous detective work, and impassioned defense speeches, Cox explores the more lawful avenue of pursuing justice. His characterization in the show is through his faith; whether it’s in his Catholic teachings or his belief in the citizens of New York, he feels a deep-rooted anger that is hard to contain. He believes that there is a way to change the violence in the city through its people, starting with himself. His work as Daredevil pales in comparison to the impact he has as Matt Murdock, especially in the eyes of those who mean the most to him.

For fans of Frank Miller’s story of the same name, there’s not much resemblance, other than the name; this is not a total negative because Daredevil Born Again challenges Matt to evolve and adapt who his masked self is. Viewed through his tense relationship with Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio), they have both changed since they shared the screen together. Fisk was last aboard a plane back to New York after the events of Echo, where he recovered from near-death. Their reunion feels unexpected, but in all the right ways, it’s tense as ever, both not missing a beat as if their last run-in was days prior instead of years. Fisk plans to fix the city, and by doing so, he intends to become the Mayor of New York. Matt makes his thoughts on this known, painting a target not only on his back but on Daredevil’s as well.

Much like the return of Cox, D’Onofrio is a welcomed face, just as he was in Hawkeye and Echo. His portrayal of Fisk goes down as one of the best cast roles in this genre, and he slips back into it for Daredevil Born Again seemingly with ease. In a show filled with relationship drama, bone-cracking action, and blazing guns, his role brings the political intrigue in an attempt to balance the show’s many attractions. In true fashion, his work as Fisk is layered; outwardly, he fronts as a man changed by life-altering experiences, yet inside he’s still grappling with inner rage and paranoia for those around him. D’Onofrio is an incredible physical actor, giving Fisk quirks that show a man with ruthlessness bubbling under his surface with painful smiles and twitching eyes.

A lot is being done in plot of Daredevil Born Again; within the season’s first 9 episodes, some characters and plot lines are insufficiency explored, often at the leading to the detriment of its female characters. Their characterizations are often through the male leads: Vanessa through Fisk, and Karen along with Heather Glenn (Margarita Levieva), Matt’s new love interest, through Matt. Not to say they don’t have anything to do this season, as they are important pieces on the board, especially Vanessa, but they are rarely on screen without their male counterparts. On the other hand, secondary characters like Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal), who have limited screen time, still manage to make an impact on their own; his moments being personal standouts from the first season.

New additions to the Daredevil cast weave seamlessly with the returning cast, with performances that are consistent throughout the first season. Making his MCU debut is Daniel Blade (Michael Gandolfini), who plays the bright-eyed and ambitious campaigner for Wilson Fisk. He has a magnetic charm each time he’s on screen, stealing every scene he’s in. Another newcomer is Hector Ayala, aka White Tiger (Kamar de los Reyes), a vigilante whose path crosses with Matt in an unexpected way. Reyes’ role, although small, has an irreplaceable impact during the season. Sadly, Reyes passed away after a brief battle with cancer on Christmas Eve 2023.

The first season of Daredevil Born Again is more of a relaunch of the Netflix series; it takes the groundwork that familiarized audiences with these iconic characters and reintroduces them at a later stage in their lives. Showrunner and Executive Producer Dario Scardapane, who also worked on Netflix’s The Punisher, does an admirable job of honoring the three seasons prior while forging a new path for Daredevil. For fans of the seriousness of the Netflix series, this falls into similar tonal beats. With the tone of the show overall being gripping and tense, thanks to the writing between Fisk and Matt, this is where show hits its stride. This first season has a lot going on with Fisk, Matt, with old and new villains being introduced leading to character arcs feeling like ramp ups for next seasons that were shoe-horned in.

Visually, the Daredevil Born Again fails to reach the heights we’ve seen from Netflix, as the show loses some of its unique visual style that it once had. The moody lighting of Hell’s Kitchen created a personality for the crime-filled streets. Although this season has some interesting camera work when it implements documentary-like footage interviewing citizens of New York, overall, there’s a lack of depth felt in the show’s visuals. Paired with washed-out coloring, it doesn’t evoke any type of emotions. The action is where I found most of the enjoyment outside of the main story; scattered throughout the 9 episodes, I was shocked at how bloody and roughed-up each of these fights were. There’s no shortage of bone-cracking, throat-slashing, or even head shots that will impress even the most avid fan of the Netflix series.

Overall, Daredevil Born Again is a welcomed entry into the MCU. The story’s main theme of rebirth is felt from start to finish through the dedicated work of the talented cast. It’s not without its faults, losing some of the visual appeal it once had from its former network. It’s still worthy of checking out to see The Man Without Fear return once more.

Rating & Synopsis

8/10

Synopsis: “Matt Murdock finds himself on a collision course with Wilson Fisk when their past identities begin to emerge.”

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