Editor’s note: This review contains spoilers.
Matthew Murdock, also known as Daredevil, has his work cut out in Disney+’s “Daredevil: Born Again” as old friends, new enemies, familiar personalities and more tragedies appear.
Yet, there are some hints of hope to set apart the doom and gloom of episodes three through six.
Episode 3, “The Hollow of His Hand,” starts with Murdock meeting with Hector Ayala, the vigilante White Tiger, and saying he will be proven innocent after his trial. The trial does not go in Murdock’s favor, as the witness refuses to clarify that he was there, seeing Ayala save him from two police officers. Murdock feels he has no choice but to reveal to everyone in the court that Ayala is White Tiger.
Ayala’s trial is fascinating as it takes the concept of doing good and bad actions front and center. Murdock and prosecutor Benjamin Hochberg make convincing arguments on how actions shape someone, with Murdock saying, “the mask doesn’t make the man,” while Hochberg argues, “Good people can do bad things.” Then again, Murdock should have talked with Ayala before revealing his identity.
The jury came to a decision where they found Ayala, thankfully, not guilty of killing police officer Shanahan. This comes at a price though as the officers at the trial now know who Ayala is and how to punish him.
Episode 4, “Sic Semper Systema,” shows that White Tiger was shot, with his niece Angela Del Toro upset at Murdock for letting it happen. Murdock, after dealing with a case about petty theft, finds a bullet with a custom-made skull symbol on it. There’s only one person who adorns his bullets in skulls, and his name is Frank Castle.
After appearing in his Netflix show, Castle returns gruffer and dependent on pills. Murdock talks to him about the bullet, and the two men argue. Castle insists that Murdock needs his permission to kill, to let all the pent-up anger loose in a violent tendency.
Near the end of the episode, three scenes are featured. Murdock trains on a rooftop with his billy club, Fisk has chained his wife’s partner, Adam, in a dungeon and the serial killer Muse abducts a man so he can use his blood to act as paint for his murals.
Episode 5, “With Interest,” is set on St. Patrick’s Day with the police force spread out every which way, dealing with partiers. This makes it a prime time for Devlin and his crew, who work for Luca, a member of a crime family Fisk controls, to steal $1.8 million from a bank.
The bank in question is the same bank that Murdock goes to for a loan application, as he’s met by the assistant bank manager, Yusuf Khan, last seen in “The Marvels.” He is the father of the upcoming superhero, Kamala Khan, better known as Ms. Marvel. He’s a breath of fresh air as he provides some comic relief and is an overall kind figure.
Devlin and his crew enter the bank and force Khan to open the vault. Murdock intervenes but tries to keep the violence on a level where the enemy isn’t dead. At the same time, a call is made to a section of the police to act as negotiators.
The vault is opened, revealing that what Devlin was after was a diamond. The police storm in and take care of Devlin’s crew while Murdock dons a red mask and goes after Devlin, disguised as a police officer. After breaking Devlin’s leg and some misdirection, he sneakily hides the diamond in Khan’s candy bowl.
The episode invigorates Murdock’s desire to be a hero again and shows a day in Murdock’s life. The episode might prepare viewers for a Young Avengers title as Ms. Marvel was brought up and Murdock was invited to a dinner with the Khans.
Episode 6, “Excessive Force,” lives up to the namesake as violence is prominent in both Murdock and Fisk. Both men are going back to their old ways of violence, with Murdock stepping back into his “Daredevil” persona and Fisk having a gung-ho mentality to get rid of vigilantes by recruiting an anti-vigilante task force made up of police officers.
Across the episodes, murals have been popping up, all done by Muse. He was seen in earlier episodes, but Episode 6 is where he has the spotlight, making him feel like a horror movie villain. The viewer never sees what Muse does to his victims other than draining blood, leaving their corpses with gouged-out eyes.
After ridiculing Murdock for not doing anything to protect the city that police officers aren’t doing, Del Toro is kidnapped by Muse. Murdock decides that is when he should let Daredevil come back. The shot of the hero leaving the rooftop has such “back in action” energy.
The episodes that will follow will explore how both Daredevil and Fisk deal with Muse, as he’s a bigger threat with more abductions. With Daredevil back in red, viewers can expect more action from the devil of Hell’s Kitchen.
