Daredevil - Final Thoughts on Season 1
Saturday, April 25, 2015 at 9:00PM Previously on Daredevil. It felt lonely reviewing each of the first seven episodes since there wasn't much discussion here. Presumably those of you who were interested have now finished this series so here are much quicker thoughts on the last half of the season as well as some overall takeaways and dreams for Season 2.
1.8 "Shadows in the Glass"
We might safely call this episode "Daredevil Origins: Kingpin" but it is admirable how deeply invested the show wants you to be in its characters, even the villains. We begin with a shoutout to "Rabbit in a Snowstorm" and we spend the entire pre-title prologue in the silent company of Wilson Fisk who sees his younger damned self in the mirror. That's before we segueway into his backstory but structurally it's a very smart episode as we see Vanessa disrupting his routines... but in a way that's good for him. Daredevil decides to trust Ben Ulrich but Fisk throws them all for a loop when he comes out publicly as the city's secret philanthropist. B+
final episodes and hopes for season 2 after the jump...
1.9 "Speak of the Devil"
As much as I despise the ubiquitous-for-years-now TV convention of starting at the end of an episode and then backtracking to how we got there -- I curse whoever did it first, curse them to endless reruns of terribly formulaic television -- this is a strong exciting hour, starting with one of the scariest battles you've ever seen a superhero in (seriously so many fights in movies and television are going to feel weightless and stakes-free after Daredevil who is always getting such a pummelling). It then snakes through lots of tense character scenes with Murdoch visiting the priest, Murdoch and his friends grieving a murdered client, Murdoch spying on Vanessa and coming face-to-face with his nemesis (who doesn't know that they're enemies!) in lawyer drag and then in costume. And it's filled with (good) surprises. And then an unmasking by his best friend Foggy. Every scene is exciting in its own unique way. By far the best episode of Season 1 with Cox doing just excellent character work throughout as the guilt-ridden angry hero -- his line readings are so strong you don't even need to see his eyes which are usually hidden -- though it lacks any one sequence as bravura as the series action highlight thus far from episode 2. A
1.10 "Nelson vs. Murdock"
Breaking up is hard to do. This one's a sad slow spiral for the Foggy & Matt friendship as Foggy understandably feels like their whole relationship has been a lie. Another fine Emmy-submission reel for Charlie Cox if he wants it -- not that Emmy would nominate a superhero for Best Actor but just saying. With Matt bed ridden, the drama falls to Karen & Ben's investigation which leads them to Fisk's mother hidden away in a nursing home upstate. Short on thrills, apart from the increasingly interesting appearance from the mysterious Madame Gao (Wai Ching Ho) and a cliffhanger attempt on Vanessa's life. B
1.11 "The Path of the Righteous"
After the everything comes together kaboom of episode 9, the first season experiences something of a deflation. Fisk is out of comission since Vanessa is hospitalized. Murdock is also out of commission from episode 9 but he makes an important comission: a new costume from the same childlike henchmen who provides Fisk with his under suit body armor. It's not hard to bet that it will be red with horns! Overall kind of a dull episode but for the total surprising whammy of the last 10 minutes when Karen is kidnapped and in which it slowly dawns on us that Toby Leonard Moore has been doing superb work all season as Wesley, Fisk's soft-spoken right hand man. You don't know what you got til it's gone. B-
1.12 "The Ones We Leave Behind"
Things pick back up again and happen fast. The bodies of main characters are increasingly dropping or they're just dropping out of the narrative (Madame Gao disappears... on purpose) and Fisk feels his plans unravelling as allies fall. "the wind blows hardest when you're close to the mountain top". In the most exciting sequence Daredevil discovers Madame Gao's factory of blinded workers just before it all goes up in smoke. B
1.13 "Daredevil"
The final episode of the season starts very talky in several scenes and with a long funeral -- that's how many we've been to this season? -- but half hour in it seems to realize that it's the season finale and then things happen too quickly. There's a whole hour of plot just in the last half hour. There is something off about the pacing of the final four episodes truth be told. Perhaps they only had enough material for 3 or dawdled too much with material from material in the first 9 episodes and had to make up time? What happens: Fisk and Vanessa are torn apart, Fisk is captured, and we finally see Daredevil in his traditional costume and getting his name. I have to admit that it's kind of a let down. Cox seems more restricted in his movements with more superhero posing and less athleticism. I was excited to see it but I'd really grown to love the eyeless ninja mask which was spooky in a mundane kind of way and if this new suit protects him from all harm, Daredevil as a series will lose the one really unusual thing about itself: the hero actually gets hurt! B
TAKEAWAYS...
Overall this was a solid "B". An entertaining generally addictive and extremely stylish first season that felt sure of its identity right away. It's strength lies in its careful direction of often thrilling action sequences and its characterizations and casting, which are (broadly speaking) on point with some very happy results: Charlie Cox is perfect as the Man Without Fear and the bulk of the supporting characters feel like promising starts.
Areas of improvement? It's safe to say that its another superhero narrative this isn't quite sure what to do about 51% of the human race. While all of Daredevil's female characters (Karen, Claire, Madame Gao, Vanessa) were intriguing in their own ways and given good scenes to play, apart from the foregrounded Karen, they were infrequently seen or if they were were mostly defined by their relationship to men and their separation from each other - sorry Bechdel Test! Claire was the most egregiously underused which is odd since Rosario Dawson has such sexy chemistry with Charlie Cox. And though the action scenes are strong, we know what they're capable of (S1S2) so we should get one of those bravura pieces more often.
Hopes for Season 2: That they don't move into Elektra and Bullseye and The Hand and The Owl too quickly. Or that Kingpin doesn't escape Prison right away (repeating Big Bads isn't often wise). Marvel was dropping lots of easter eggs about famous Daredevil characters in this season but the debut season was modest enough in ambition that it was mostly a great success at what it was trying to do and when you develop characters well you don't need a million A plots competing with each other. Elektra deserves as much of her own season as Kingpin got, for example, but I'd prefer it if we didn't rush into and through that great great character and instead develop Claire and Karen and Stick and Foggy a little more before she turns everything upside down.
FINALLY...
Find a way to improve his new red helmet like mask so it's as sexy as the black stocking. Accentuate the positive. The positive being those lips and the ability to actually see his jawline. (He's just buried in that new mask)
Charlie Cox, Daredevil, Emmy, Netflix, Rosario Dawson, TV, superheroes
Reader Comments (7)
I liked the first one, but couldn't get jazzed enough to watch the second. Is that common? I wonder if there's only so much superhero/alterego/savant-type stuff I want to watch.
I watch tOo much tv now and just had to draw the line, regardless of how much I like Charlie Cox.
Henry -- i get that. now when i hear people say they're too busy for something (in any conversation about anything) i no longer believe them. It just means they have too many shows they're binge watching :)
marsha -- well we'll soon see how much of it the market can bear. I think it's 2018 that has a new superhero movie opening for several consecutive weeks in the current calendar.
I really liked this show, apart from having to fast forward through the gory stuff. I agree that I liked the black outfit much better than the red costume. I really liked Charlie Cox, the atmosphere of the show, the discussions of religion and morality between Matt and the priest, and I liked both Karen and Claire being presented as strong, smart, and capable. That scene with Karen and Wesley was so awesome. The only thing that didn't really work for me was Foggy later in the season. I liked him in the first part of the season, but by Nelson vs. Murdock I found him annoying. Thanks for doing the recaps. I am excited the show was renewed.
Ay where ur oscar predictions at fam? u feel me?
Apologies for the lack if comments here. I was watching along with you as you posted about each episode, but then people started posting spoilers about the end of the season, and so I avoided reading the comments.
Just read an interview with Steven DeKnight and apparently the new costume is built like this so as to make his face believably unrecognizable. I kind of appreciate that touch of realism even though we are deprived of some sexiness.