We are now up to episode seven of the new Daredevil series on Disney+, and with each episode, I am more impressed. Though received well by viewers, some are questioning how the show is continuing, especially episode five. I have found that the show has successfully maintained the feel of the original series, while still showing that Murdock is now in the same universe as other known characters—though it is worth mentioning that in the original series, we had some similar indications.
Episode four was one of the most significant and emotional episodes of the series thus far, as we’re reintroduced to Frank Castle aka the Punisher, on the anniversary of his first appearance in the original series. The chemistry between the two characters remains with feelings of anger and immediate disagreements, which is a crucial element in how the two interact. We also begin to see the downfall of Fisk as mayor, as he starts to feel a lack of power compared to before.
Episode five was a bottle episode, meaning the plot of this episode was separate and disconnected from the rest of the series. It seems this episode garnered the most mixed reviews, as many thought the Disney production was showing. While I agree that it wasn’t the strongest episode of the series, it wasn’t bad. There were some very memorable moments in this episode. We saw the series connect with the Marvel Cinematic Universe at large, with mentions of Ms. Marvel as Matt Murdock worked with her dad to survive a bank heist. Having watched episode seven, this filler episode could have been utilized to continue the main story more, as it’s feeling a bit rushed.
By episode six, there’s a release of the build up from the previous episodes. We’re finally seeing Fisk and Murdock show their true nature. We saw a key point from the original series, which is an equivalency between Fisk and Daredevil, bringing into question how different they are. Additionally, the focus is put on Muse, a serial killer who’s terrorizing the city. I will note that the buildup to this character was a bit strange, as people have supposedly been going missing for a while by this point, though we didn’t hear much about it. There were ample opportunities to slip in foreshadowing about a growing threat building in the absence of Daredevil that were missing from the beginning episodes.
I will say that Angela, the niece of Hector Ayala (the White Tiger), was an interesting character when she was first introduced, but I was deeply annoyed with her by the sixth episode. It felt unrealistic that she would go to a blind lawyer and request that he do something about a serial killer he has no connection to, without assistance from the police. Her solution to him rightfully stating that there’s nothing he could do was to go down into the abandoned train station where people are going missing, alone and with nothing but a cellphone flashlight. While her stupidity was annoying, it did ultimately lead to the return of Daredevil, which of course is a positive.
I’m curious to see where they will connect Fisk into this story, seeing as the main bad guy has been Muse, who Fisk and Daredevil are working to take down. We’re seeing another classic Daredevil problem, in which the police are compromised, in this instance by Fisk. However, Fisk is disconnected from the criminal world he had previously been king of. While they are showing indications of his violence and willingness to commit crimes, they have not built up anything on this end, making it difficult for me to conceive how they’d include it. It seems instead they’ll focus on Fisk’s power of word as mayor, putting Matt’s secret at risk of being revealed, and punished by the law, over which Fisk has more direct control over.
SPOILERS FOR EPISODE SEVEN
The seventh episode is the first one to make me question where this story is going. It feels very disconnected in terms of what Fisk’s motivations are, and who will become the new bad guy after Muse’s demise. I don’t want to preemptively judge, but currently I’m struggling to see where they’re going. There are certainly ways they can go with this story that put Matt in difficult situations, but as they haven’t built anything up at this point, it’s difficult to know where they’re aiming to go.
I’m not feeling intimidated or on edge regarding Fisk and the police plot line, which is odd because it doesn’t reflect the mood of the original series. I want to question how Matt will escape the situation like I did during the original series. I’m not feeling the stress and excitement of a complex, seemingly unsolvablen situation dealing with multiple people important to Matt.
At points, the show feels disconnected, seemingly forgetting about certain plot points and characters previously mentioned and then bringing them in again when it’s convenient. Though this may very well be due to the reshoots and rewrites that were necessary throughout the creation of the show. Additionally, some of the plot lines that would typically cause tension, like interactions with the cops, are falling flat and feeling very surface level. In the future of this season, I hope to see more development of the new characters, and more difficult situations. I also hope to see more delving into Matt as a complex character.