Warning: the following features spoilers for the first two episodes of Daredevil: Born Again...
Daredevil is back! Born Again, if you will. It's been almost seven years since season 3 of Netflix's original show, and Disney has been keen to prove to us that this isn't just Daredevil season 4. I was admittedly sceptical at first, but after the show's opening sequence, I'm convinced that this is actually something new.
Over the edge
Picking up where Daredevil season 3 left off, Daredevil: Born Again quickly delivers a gut-punch in the form of our favorite sidekick Foggy Nelson being brutally shot dead by Bullseye, a returning villain from season 3.
To say I was surprised would be a colossal understatement. A big deal was made about the "creative overhaul" of the show, which originally wasn't going to include Foggy, so I thought he'd be around for a lot of this new show. He's always been the friend that grounds Matt, even more so when he finds out about his Daredevil alter ego in season 1, and it's his death here that sends Matt over the edge. Well, he actually sends Bullseye over the edge, but metaphorically speaking it's Matt who's past the point of no return.
Daredevil's fight with Bullseye in Josie's bar gives us all an instant dose of what we loved about the original show. A brilliantly choreographed brutal brawl in which Matt is battered and bruised but ultimately comes out on top.
Maybe I just forgot how good of a fighter Matt is, but he seems especially viscous in this bout. His rage is fueling his fists after Foggy's shooting, and we haven't seen him this angry since his showdown with Kingpin at the end of the Netflix show. It took four seasons of television to get to that climactic fight which nearly made Matt break his no-kill rule, but Daredevil: Born Again does it in the first 15 minutes.
It took four seasons of television to get to that climactic fight which nearly made Matt break his no-kill rule, but Daredevil: Born Again does it in the first 15 minutes.
Matt manages to just barely keep in control despite Bullseye killing scores of innocent civilians while the pair fight, and eventually our hero restrains the villain on the edge of the bar's roof, but hesitates to finish him off. His near-superhuman hearing is picking up on the conversations below as police officer Cherry directs the first responders and clears people out of the bar, but a more subtle sound is also present: Foggy's fading heartbeat.
That steady heartbeat is the metronome that Matt has always kept in time with, and once it's gone, the empty void left behind by its comforting pulse disappearing is replaced with his agonized scream. He pulls Bullseye in close, pressing his forehead against his – it's almost an intimate scene. In a lot of other shows, this shot could be the start of an enemies to lovers arc where the two rivals kiss after an intense fight, but I see it as Matt embracing a monster, a killer, and letting the one that festers inside him out. He pushes Dex over the edge in a definite attempt to kill the man who just murdered his best friend.
A turning point
This is a huge turning point for Matt Murdock. Daredevil seasons 1 through to 3 and The Defenders all revolve around villains trying to prove he's no better than them, baiting him to commit the gravest sin of all: murder. As a devout Catholic, Matt was raised to believe in forgiveness and thinks God is the only one who should make that most final of judgements. He's struggled with his faith and superhero ways over the years, but he never broke that rule, until now.
What stands out to me is the way in which he pushes Dex. It's not a triumphant moment, he'd already won the fight. There's no glory or even catharsis in it, just a shove that barely seems to register in his body. It's the same way you'd casually and gently push someone aside as you walked past them in a crowded bar – it's almost an unconscious movement.
After Bullseye's body hits the street with a muted thud, Matt drops to his knees and takes off his Daredevil cowl, panting and crying, he doesn't even care that Cherry has come up to the roof and can see his real identity. This is an uncharted low for him. Dex's heartbeat replaces Foggy's, but, unlike the lawyer, Bullseye survives. Even though he lived, the damage is done. Matt lets the mask fall limply out of his hand and off the edge of the roof, symbolizing him giving up the mantle after realizing he tried to kill a man in cold blood.
Matt lets the mask fall limply out of his hand and off the edge of the roof, symbolizing him giving up the mantle after realizing he tried to kill a man in cold blood.
Rather than dealing with the fallout, the show skips ahead to Bullseye's murder trial. Matt has abandoned the Daredevil persona and Karen and started a successful law firm with a new partner. He's trying to bury his past, but the fact he keeps Cherry on as an investigator shows he hasn't given up on it completely, as he now has a new sidekick to keep his alter ego in check.
It's clear Matt wants to change, too. He begs two corrupt cops not to try and kill him, not because he's scared for his life, but because he's afraid of what he'll do to them. The ensuing fight is even more violent than his one with Dex, as he breaks bones and slams a guy into the floor head first. The fights this season show a new version of Daredevil, one who uses his ninja training with devastating efficiency, one who may no longer be fighting for the Lady Justice and the Lord but is instead out to kill and inflict as much damage as possible to his enemies.
I'm excited to see where his character ends up. Can he really be born again, or will he fall into the traps he used to avoid? Tune in next week to find out.
The Marvel Phase 5 show airs weekly worldwide on streaming service Disney Plus and you can ensure you never miss a beat with our Daredevil: Born Again release schedule.
Don't forget to check out our Daredevil: Born Again season 1 review for our spoiler free verdict on the entire season too.
