Daredevil: Born Again (Season 1)

 

Charlie Cox's Daredevil character is my favorite Marvel Defenders character and show. The original Netflix series has been one of my favorite Marvel series or movies in the entire MCU, actually. With that being said, I was super excited when Daredevil: Born Again was announced, complete with the entire cast of main characters, including Cox's Matt Murdock, Foggy, Karen, and Kingpin. The show got good reviews, and I've been looking forward to watching it since it was released about 6 months ago.

The season starts with Matt's friend and co-working lawyer Foggy being shot and killed by season 3 villain Bullseye. Fast forward one year, and Karen has left New York for San Francisco and Matt, devastated that he couldn't protect his friends, has left Daredevil behind. Meanwhile, longtime Daredevil nemesis Wilson Fisk, aka Kingpin, is elected mayor of NYC. Similar to how Matt has left Daredevil behind, Wilson is trying to leave Kingpin behind. Or at least he says he is trying. As predicted, things don't stay calm in NYC for long, as crime becomes rampant and Wilson vows to control the vigilantes. Wilson becomes increasingly unstable with his power as mayor, even introducing his own police force to deal with vigilantes, a force that doesn't necessarily have to play by the rules. Things boil over when Matt's client, who happens to be the masked vigilante the White Tiger, is killed by the police.

Overall, I enjoyed season 1 of Born Again. Anytime Charlie Cox or Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio) are on the screen, they demand your attention. They are both very good at playing their respective characters. I will admit, Fisk's rise to political power as a known criminal and his willingness to push the boundaries of his power and the police force hit a little too close to home for me in today's political climate. Fisk does become mayor in the comics, but I do not know if his actions are similar there, or if his character for the show was written to reflect the parlance of our times. Additionally, there were a few episodes in a row earlier in the season where Daredevil doesn't make an appearance at all. This was a bit of a disappointment, given that he is the main star of the show. All of this is done to set up a complex situation where Daredevil comes out of retirement to protect Hell's Kitchen and NYC again. I anticipate season 2 will be a bit more faster paced and avoid this issue. Muse is a villain that appears this season, but he and Fisk villain Adam are both under developed and not that interesting, honestly. This show is about Kingpin and Daredevil, and that is a good thing, given how good those characters and actors are. There were a couple of scenes featuring The Punisher as well, which I liked. When the season ended, the Punisher was locked in a cage but was in the process of escaping. The season overall was quite enjoyable, despite Daredevil missing in a couple of episodes. I anticipate season 2 will be even better, and thus am looking forward to it when it releases next spring.