With Kingpin's appearance in Hawkeye, I knew it was finally time to cover the greatest television show that the MCU has ever produced. Actually, I don't think that even sums it up. Daredevil ranks among some of the best superhero movies and TV period.
The first season of Daredevil is pretty much a standard origin story in a lot of ways, for both the titular character and major antagonist Kingpin. It's about blind lawyer Matt Murdock becoming the vigilante Daredevil, while Wilson Fisk becomes a crime lord to be reckoned with. Matt has to find a way to take down Fisk both as a lawyer and as Daredevil, which is tough given how Kingpin always seems like he's one step ahead of him. That's probably my favorite thing about this series, the titular character fails a lot, both in fight scenes and in general. But it's also not for a lack of trying either. I never get the impression that Matt is a bad lawyer or a bad fighter, it's just that Kingpin is such a difficult villain for him to take down. Both characters also have their own subplots that range a bit in quality. While watching Matt try to get his law career started is fun especially in the court scenes, his friends Karen Page and especially Foggy Nelson are two of the less interesting characters in the series. Karen gets better, but I don't think I ever end up finding Foggy interesting. Meanwhile, Kingpin gets a romantic subplot that does a great job of highlighting his softer and more human side, as we learn more about his pretty dark backstory throughout the season.
Where Daredevil really excels, however, is in its fantastic production. For starters, the cast is phenomenal. Charlie Cox makes for a great Matt Murdock, as he's able to play both the charismatic lawyer and angsty vigilante sides of the character. He does most of the fights himself, and it's obvious he put a lot of effort into making sure he plays a blind person respectfully and accurately. Then there's Vincent D'Onofrio as Kingpin, who rivals Ron Perlman's Hellboy, Heath Ledger's Joker, and JK Simmons' J Jonah Jameson as some of the best comic book casting ever. Kingpin is still as brutal and rage-filled as you'd expect, but D'Onofrio's performance imbues a sense of tragedy into the character. As much as he is a criminal mastermind, Fisk is also a pretty pitiful figure in this series and D'Onofrio does a great job of making him sympathetic while also making sure you hate his guts. And when Cox and D'Onofrio are on screen together, it's absolutely magnificent. Of course, Daredevil is also known for its amazing fight scenes. While the long-take in Episode 2 is rightfully the most praised one this season, the majority of Daredevil's fights are well-choreographed and nearly movie-quality.
While the whole season is great, there are definitely some noticeable highlights in Season 1 of Daredevil:
Cut Man: This one's a bit of a no-brainer. The hallway fight in this episode put Netflix's Daredevil on the map and ranks as one of the best fight scenes in the series. It's brilliant in how exhausting it is, putting you in Matt's shoes as he slowly gets more and more worn down by the nearly endless wave of mooks. But this episode is more than the fight. It feels like a standalone Daredevil story, with great banter between Matt and recurring character Claire Temple, plenty of scenes outlining Matt's backstory, and a simple plot of Matt trying to save a young boy.
Condemned: After the previous episode ended with city-wide bombings and Matt getting caught by the police, Condemned is an intense outing about pretty much the entire cast having to survive the whole affair. It's an exhausting and relentless episode that all builds up to the incredible first interaction between Matt and Fisk.
Speak Of The Devil: The In Medias Res trick works really well for this episode, as much of the plot is intercut by a brutal and impressive fight between Daredevil and Nobu, one that perfectly encapsulates Daredevil's resilience in the face of repeatedly getting beat up. But the real highlight of the episode is Daredevil coming to blows with Kingpin only to predictably get beat nearly to death and come face to face with Foggy, who now knows his true identity. It's an episode that really kicks the final act of the season into gear.
Daredevil: Saving the best for last, Daredevil is a fantastic finale that finally gives the viewers what they wanted to see. Daredevil gets his iconic costume, and Kingpin is defeated multiple times. Not only is he defeated in court, not only are all of his workers arrested in a fantastic sequence, but we also get a lengthy and fun fight between Daredevil and Kingpin that uses both of their abilities to the fullest. Fisk is the highlight of the episode though, between his iconic monologue, his tragic goodbye to Vanessa, and his unbridled rage towards Daredevil.
Overall, Daredevil's first season is an incredibly well-crafted season of television with a great cast, well-done action, and a strong dynamic between its main hero and villain. It's probably my least favorite season due to still mostly being an origin story, but the fact that it only gets better from here is a testament to how great this series is.
4/5 Stars
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