End On The Anticlimax: "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" Is More Foreshadowing Than Satisfying!

The Good: Good character moments, A lot of plot seeding, Moments of performance
The Bad: Light on resolutions, Details, Mundane mood accents the less-developed plot
The Basics: Daredevil ends its second season on "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen," which might be a good tie-in to future episodes, but is more lackluster than fans of the show (and comic) might want.


It is very easy to think that Daredevil shot its creative wad in its first season. Daredevil appeared on Netflix with a season that utilized its most iconic villain (which is par for the Marvel Cinematic Universe course) and killed off a shocking number of its essential support characters. When the second season of Daredevil was first announced fans might have had the reasonable concern that what was left of the franchise was nearing its creative end; with Elektra and The Punisher popping up now, only Typhoid Mary and Bullseye remain from the core of essential Daredevil villains. Both Typhoid Mary and Bullseye would have trouble with fitting into the Marvel Cinematic Universe and (even together) sustaining a full-season arc for the show. The second season finale of Daredevil is built almost entirely on the promise of future seasons of Daredevil. "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" does a faux-conclusion for Elektra's storyline - faux- because only those ignorant of every other Marvel Cinematic property would not see the episode's final scene and what it promises coming.

"A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" follows upon the threat made at the climax of "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" (reviewed here!), when Nobu set The Hand upon the task of killing Daredevil. The episode has Elektra in her full, honest, form and manages to not completely neglect the core characters of Daredevil while justifying her appearance on the show. Some of the best moments of "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" are allusions to Jessica Jones and set-ups for future episodes of Daredevil (which are fairly well-telegraphed for anyone who has read Shadowland).

The mysterious object that Nobu has been protecting is shown to still be in Nobu's possession when Nobu tasks one of his assistants with capturing twenty targets in New York City for his own purpose. Daredevil patches Stick up while the two debate the Black Sky, which Murdock refuses to believe in. Elektra, continues to struggle with understanding her true nature and Murdock tries to convince her of her humanity and they resolve to try to stop Nobu and The Hand. While Foggy Nelson meets with Jeri Hogarth for a job at her firm, Elektra and Daredevil visit Melvin Potter, who outfits Elektra with a costume and gives Matt his unique billyclub. Nelson calls Murdock to reveal that Mahoney has been roughed up and the people who assaulted the police detective took the records of all the people Daredevil saved.

The abductors are Nobu's forces and they capture Page and Turk, among others, which leads Daredevil on a chase across Hell's Kitchen to try to rescue them. Turk being among the captives becomes advantageous as he is under house arrest and Page convinces him to re-activate his ankle monitor to alert the police to their location. Murdock correctly deduces that the capture of the people he once rescued is a trap designed to draw him out and to save Karen and the others, he willingly runs into the trap . . . though he has back-up from Elektra and someone he never expected.

The promotions for the second season of Daredevil - one featuring The Punisher, another featuring Elektra - allowed attentive viewers (like me) to pretty easily predict the basic plotting of the larger second season arc. Despite that, "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" is entertaining and it creates an effective emotional investment for viewers. The faux-resolution for the Elektra arc is a deposit into the emotional bank for viewers; will it pay off? The answer seems to depend almost entirely upon how far ahead the executive producers of Daredevil have plotted the series and the rest of Marvel's "street level" universe on Netflix. Given the quality of Daredevil so far, it is hard not to bank on the investment paying off.

After the revelation in "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel," seeing Elektra react with considering suicide is actually refreshing on television. Elektra has had a core of evil within her, which Stick has tried to redirect and use for his good cause. So, Elektra's sense of violence perfectly fits within her character to have her consider self-violence and that sense of realism is well-constructed. Director Peter Hoar and writers Douglas Petrie and Marco Ramirez wisely put Elektra on a ledge for her first solo scene following her truth being revealed to herself. Murdock's faith in Elektra is not wasted, which is refreshing. When Page is captured, Elektra calms Murdock and exhibits an affection for him that is very human.

Fans of Daredevil, both the show and especially the comic, and the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe will have a lot to squeal about from "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen." Jeri Hogarth's appearance leaves viewers with the promise of a potential crossover of Nelson to any potential second season of Jessica Jones - or any other trips to Hogarth's law firm within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Daredevil getting his iconic billyclub is more of a geek-out moment for the fans of the man without fear than seeing Frank Castle in his full Punisher armor. And geeks cannot help but delight by some of the background details - like a poster for The Gladiator in the background at Melvin Potter's workshop. Given that level of detail, it's virtually impossible to believe that the "Wanted For Robbery" poster over Nelson's shoulder when he calls Matt is random!

Oddly, for a show (and episode) that is so detail oriented, it seems odd what details the episode gets wrong. For sure, Jeri Hogarth has a ton of money for things like reconstructive surgery, but the seemingly compressed timeframe of the second season of Daredevil and the lack of a significant gap between it and Jessica Jones (Claire Temple's first appearance in the second season is within the month window after the finale of the first season of Jessica Jones, though there seems to be an incredibly poor transition between the hot summer at the beginning of this season and the finale ending at Christmastime) make it somewhat unrealistic that Hogarth has no visible scars whatsoever. Within the episode, Detective Mahoney requests lights up on three different locations to illuminate the rooftop for the final battle, but those lights never materialize (despite the long stairwell scene before that confrontation.

"A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" illustrates one of the problems with a show that features a lot of physical fights; the final battle in the episode might be a decent-enough fight sequence, but it is poorly lit and much of it is resolved without being focused on. It is like the executive producers, like the viewers, were feeling fight fatigue and didn't know how to top previous fights and just didn't care to try. Fortunately, the episode does not bank everything on the fight sequence. Instead, the episode's big moments are appropriately focused on Matt Murdock.

Murdock declares his love for Elektra in a fairly convincing way in "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" and her observations tie well to the confession Murdock ultimately makes. Season three has an important character aspect to follow up on - Daredevil does not kill, so how Murdock's feelings of guilt play out in the next season for what director Peter Hoar shot in a way that convincingly could be written off as an accident is fodder for fan speculation until it airs. Stick and Murdock's relationship deepens in "A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" (though how Stick got out of the chair remains a mystery) and their final scene makes Murdock's final scene make perfect sense (especially tied with the stairwell scene between Daredevil and Elektra).

The acting front is dominated by Geoffrey Cantor. Cantor has the supporting role of The New York Bulletin's Mitchell Ellison, who is now Karen Page's boss. Cantor takes a fairly small supporting role and performs the hell out of it. There is not a millisecond of his portrayal of Cantor in his final scene of the season that he is not absolutely convincing as an editor. His final scene, which is part of the season's long denouement after all the action is over, is one of the most interesting, even through it is mostly just a guy lecturing to his employee. Deborah Ann Woll's responsive monologue is well-delivered, even if it feels a bit gushy for the oppressively dark Daredevil. On-screen, Woll nails her final moment of the episode, which relies entirely upon her reaction.

"A Cold Day In Hell's Kitchen" is enjoyable, but not actually extraordinary. While it affords some level of closure to the season, the episode is belaboring the foreshadowing to future Daredevil, seeming to bank on the future as opposed to creating something great in and of itself.

For other climactic season finales, be sure to check out my reviews of:
"AKA Smile" - Jessica Jones
"Fast Enough" - The Flash
"S.O.S. Part 2" - Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

5/10

For other television episode and movie reviews, please visit my Movie Review Index Page!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Unadulterated Elektra Backstory Comes Through "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel!"

The Good: Good performances, Character revelations and direction
The Bad: Physical darkness of the episode, Medical science, Predictable plot
The Basics: Stick and Elektra's backstories are made explicit in the Daredevil episode "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" when Stick is captured by The Hand.


When the second season of Daredevil was first teased, I - like many fans - was super-excited about the addition of Elektra to the cast and the narrative. I had a lot of trepidation about the addition of The Punisher to the second season of Daredevil, as he was a character that never actually interested and I was unsure how he would fit into the narrative without overwhelming it. Perhaps the irony of my initial concerns was that the execution proved to be opposite in terms of the quality of the storylines and characters. The Frank Castle (Punisher) storyline was used to draw out further character traits for Karen Page and it became a pivotal aspect of the relationship between Foggy Nelson and Matt Murdock . . . and Jon Bernthal gave a shockingly deep performance as Castle. On the other side of the storyline, Elektra has been surprisingly underwhelming in Daredevil and she seems to be serving the larger plot by foreshadowing to elements for the eventual Shadowland plot being used on Daredevil, while distracting Matt Murdock from his daytime responsibilities. With the Frank Castle plotline being virtually ended by ".380," the penultimate episode and the final episode put the onus on the Elektra plotline to bring home a strong finish to the sophomore season.

"The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" picks up in the final minute of ".380" (reviewed here!) and one cannot discuss the new episode without revealing where the prior episode ended. Given that Elektra and Stick were squaring off at the end of ".380," "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" opens in an exciting place and the penultimate episode finally makes explicit the backstory of Elektra. Matt Murdock's conflict with Elektra on-screen came from the revelation earlier in the season that Elektra knew his old master, Stick, and their history ten years prior was artificially generated . . . and that Elektra is a trained assassin who completely lacks his moral compass. "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" explains Elektra's perspective without Matt Murdock's judgmental nature.

Opening with Elektra as a young girl, training at Stick's remote compound, Elektra holds her own against the older boys she it pitted against. Elektra is observant, but she is undisciplined; still, she learns fast. Stick pulls her off before she can kill her training partner and tries to advise her on how to be an effective weapon in his ancient war. Back in the present, Stick and Elektra fight because Stick attempted to have Elektra killed. Daredevil arrives and intervenes to save Stick. They are distracted enough that The Hand's ninjas are able to abduct Stick. While Karen Page looks for closure at the pier where it appears Frank Castle was killed the night before, Foggy Nelson says goodbye to Matt Murdock and they agree to shutter Nelson & Murdock.

Tipped off by Nelson to old bootlegger tunnels below Hell's Kitchen, Daredevil goes looking for The Hand's lair to rescue Stick. Karen Page is pushed by Ellison to complete her expose on the Punisher, so she visits the only person she knows who respected Frank Castle, Colonel Schoonover. After a charming conversation with Schoonover, Page finds her life in danger from The Blacksmith. While Daredevil fights for his life against ninjas who make no sound and Stick struggles to remain alive through The Hand's torture, Page confronts The Blacksmith.

"The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" suffers from a narrative problem that observant fans - the only ones who would truly care about Elektra's backstory - will catch almost instantly. When Elektra revealed her true nature to Matt Murdock, she reveals that she was a child when she first killed and that she did it just because she could. The first flashback scene has Elektra at the right age, so astute viewers will pretty much immediately figure out that the purpose of the episode is to illustrate on-screen how Elektra made her first kill. The story of her first kill is set off against her promise to kill Stick if she gets to him first and the set-up does not disappoint fans . . . but, because we know what is coming, it also does not thrill them. The episode feels largely inevitable instead of exciting, at least on the Elektra front.

Similar foreshadowing was done in the Punisher plotline in ".380." Astute viewers will note that The Punisher only starts taunting the man on the boat after he sees the face of the boat's primary guard in ".380." That and the explicit remark from one of the final cadre of killers set against Frank illustrates a connection between Frank Castle and the drug kingpin known as The Blacksmith. "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" resolves the story with the hidden villain of the season by revealing The Blacksmith and while it might not be the biggest surprise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it is enjoyable to watch and frees up The Punisher for his own adventures unencumbered by any mysteries from his own origin story.

"The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" offers viewers subtle characterization for Karen Page. Page's backstory in Daredevil has only been obliquely alluded to - including a headline in a newspaper this season from Ben Urich's file on her. Page is motivated by her backstory elements and her fears about who she might become having killed Wesley in the first season. Ellison pushes her to complete her story on Frank Castle not knowing what truly pushes her . . . and it puts her in danger. It also explains her desperation to humanize the man behind The Punisher. Page has also made the transition in "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" from legal assistant to professional reporter.

The return of Clancy Brown to Daredevil allows him to deepen his bit role within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Brown is one of the few men who has a screen presence that is able to credibly pull off a role that could believably command Bernthal's Castle. Schoonover is an interesting part for Brown and he is absolutely credible as Bernthal's former commanding officer. Brown's role in "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" is satisfying enough to allow viewers to forgive the old trope that the Marvel Cinematic Universe uses pretty much constantly; if a character's death is not shown graphically on-screen, odds are they are coming back. To date, there are ridiculously few characters in the Marvel Cinematic Universe who are actually 100% dead - The Clairvoyant and Tripp on Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Odin are the only ones who come instantly to mind. So, viewers are not at all surprised when Frank Castle shows up again.

"The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" excitingly makes Elektra's backstory layered and deep while confirming Stick's version of the story of the conflict between The Hand and The Chaste. Elektra is hard to see as heroic - she is not given an episode with perspective that humanizes her like Kilgrave was given in the Jessica Jones episode "AKA WWJD?" (reviewed here!) - as she is a trained assassin who seems to enjoy the act of killing. "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" fleshes out Elektra's backstory in a way that makes her almost the anti-Kilgrave; Elektra had to tame her inner demons and channel them into her work, but her life was surprisingly carefully constructed by Stick. The episode's emotional climax comes from Daredevil and Elektra facing one another and Murdock appealing to Elektra's humanity and it is surprisingly satisfying to see someone who is not a slave to their instincts act like they want to. By comparison, the resolution of The Punisher plotline allows the anti-hero (he does the wrong things for the right reason) to get closure in a way that seems to leave very little potential for the future of the character.

The acting in "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" is shockingly good. From Brown to Elodie Yung (Elektra) and Scott Glenn (Stick), the performances are very layered throughout the episode. Deborah Ann Woll exhibits wonderful range as Karen Page and Elodie Yung similarly shows off a decent number of facets. Only Peter Shinkoda is given a monolithic role to play as Nobu runs The Hand with remarkably little depth to his performance - the role doesn't give him much to play with, so it's not his fault.

The science in "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" is hard to buy given how rooted much of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is in the real world when it is not exploring its heroes and their devices/abilities. The Hand's ninjas have to breathe, but they are able to entirely repress their own heartbeats. Just like the basic biology relying on a conceit that feels a bit off (our hearts beat more per minute than we breathe), the direction is somewhat problematic. Euros Lyn lights so much of the episode so darkly that it cannot be seen well. The episode reiterates the problem in so much modern television and movies; if the effects cannot be seen, it is hard to call them truly special and/or appreciate them.

From a larger storytelling perspective, "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" introduces an idea that none of the characters follow up upon. In the first season of Daredevil when Murdock's mentor is introduced in "Stick" (reviewed here!), he is in Hell's Kitchen to kill the child who the Hand has identified as The Black Sky. "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel" introduces the idea that there is more than one Black Sky, but that idea is not satisfactorily explored or even acknowledged by any of the characters. Indeed, given where the series goes in the final moments of its finale, the failure of that new information to be acknowledged is made even more troubling; it begs the question of how Stick disposed of the Black Sky child in the prior season so its corpse could not be used by The Hand!

Within "The Dark At The End Of The Tunnel," Elektra manages to reach her potential for fans and those who simply have been watching Daredevil. Elektra becomes more deep and intriguing than she has been for the rest of the season, making her suddenly vital to the presence and future of the show.

For other big penultimate episodes, be sure to check out my reviews of:
"Graduation Day, Part 1" - Buffy The Vampire Slayer
"In The Cards" - Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
"S.O.S. Part 1" - Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

7/10

For other television episode and movie reviews from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, please visit my Marvel Cinematic Universe Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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End The Arc: The Punisher Is Resolved In ".380"

The Good: Wonderful acting, Good dialogue, Decent direction
The Bad: Obvious issue with the ending, Light on character development
The Basics: Hero and anti-hero clash one last time when Daredevil and The Punisher independently hunt The Blacksmith in ".380."


One of the more interesting facets of well-structured serialized television that has multiple seasons to develop is how a show seeds elements and foreshadows. That can make television that is magnificent by the season or the series, but have episodes that hold up less well on their own. In the second season of Daredevil, the later in the season, the more the episodes run together, telling a strong overall narrative, but having less plot distinction within the episodes. "The Man In The Box" was filled with exposition, but the episode was mostly explanation of prior events than it was a story that told a new series of events. ".380" is similar, as it continues the menace left at the climax of "The Man In The Box" and barely moves the pieces (characters) forward. In fact, the most significant character moments come from Claire Temple; her life changes drastically, while the other characters continue on in pretty much the directions they had been going in.

".380" picks up in the final seconds of "The Man In The Box" (reviewed here!) with the Hand's ninjas scaling Metro General Hospital and the five young people Daredevil rescued from weird experimentation and exsanguination staring like zombies, together, waiting for them. Like most episodes that are part of a tight serialized narrative, little is actually resolved within ".380," though the journey is certainly engaging enough to keep the viewer glued.

The Hand's ninjas scale Metro General Hospital, there to recover the five children Daredevil previously rescued. Nobu's lackeys are efficient and manage to get the kids away, arguably because they want to be returned to The Farm, though the hospital's staff is shaken by the appearance of the ninjas and the casualties that result. While Claire tapes herself up, Murdock tries to explain The Hand to her. After Karen Page lies to the police about Castle's involvement in the shooting at her apartment, she and Murdock meet up, where she tells her former employer that she is convinced Frank did not kill Reyes. In the hospital, Nelson is visited by Marci Stahl, who offers him a meeting at her current law firm. Temple manages to survive an investigation into the children being admitted and the ninjas who broke into the hospital, but the autopsy on one of the Hand's ninjas suggest that he was dead before.

After Daredevil interrogates A.D.A. Tower, he heads to Chinatown to confront Madame Gao, who might be the primary competition to The Blacksmith. The same night, Page and Castle have coffee out and when Castle recognizes a car circling the block, he gets the civilians to the back of the diner while he takes out the assassins sent by The Blacksmith to kill him. Castle is given a lead, which puts him on a collision course with the core of The Blacksmith's forces and the firefight on the pier where Castle confronts them is a climactic battle for The Punisher.

Foggy Nelson is barely in ".380," but his scene with Marci is surprisingly charming. While viewers might want to root for Nelson and Page having a relationship, Marci Stahl has proven to be more than what she initially appeared to be and she's surprisingly fun to watch opposite Nelson. The brief scene of Stahl offering Nelson hope for his future is the mirror image of Claire Temple's. Temple takes a moral stand against the cover up and the hospital's profiteering and her strength of character is a nice foil to Stahl's more flirtatious approach with Foggy. Temple and Nelson sharing a scene at the end of ".380" is instantly evocative of Temple and Malcolm in Jessica Jones.

The return of Madame Gao is enjoyable for those who are detail-oriented and have an idea what is being foreshadowed by the mystical, Japan-based elements throughout the second season of Daredevil. When Gao left the narrative in the first season, the implication in her lines was that she was not actually human (in the books, Daredevil villains tread toward the supernatural as opposed to the science fiction - mystical forces as opposed to aliens) and her return in an episode that is laced with mysteries from The Hand, makes her understated scenes seem more otherworldly than the content they contain. Madame Gao ignores any aspect of Nobu's return and discusses with Daredevil the intricacies of the New York City drug trade. Gao is a pragmatist in ".380" and she acts for the episode as an unlikely ally to Daredevil.

On the Punisher front, ".380" illustrates a weird directing weakness from the early part of the second season of Daredevil. The Punisher's mantra is "one bullet, one kill," yet when Finn encountered Frank Castle in "Penny And Dime" (reviewed here!), he notes Castle's prowess with an AK (AK-47), an automatic weapon. Spray firing is not the m.o. of a sniper and it fits the specific needs of The Blacksmith. In ".380," Karen Page advocates for Frank Castle because she has survived two incidents of spray firing in the prior episode. The early crime scenes with The Punisher's victims - including the on-screen killing of the Kitchen Irish in the season premiere - are more like the methods of The Blacksmith than The Punisher, which is unfortunate for convincing the viewer that Page is right about Frank Castle being innocent of killing Reyes, the medical examiner, and trying to kill her. In other words, it would be easier to sell the idea of Castle's innocence to the viewer in ".380" if the crime scenes from "The Man In The Box" did not look so much like the early scenes of slaughter in the second season of Daredevil.

Director Stephen Surjik, however, gets the Punisher's violence right in ".380." Rewatching the episode, viewers are likely to catch important moments that foreshadow the nature of The Blacksmith. At the pier, Frank Castle does not start taunting his adversary until he sees the face - and lingers on it - of one of The Blacksmith's most trusted guards. Surjik makes sure that Castle lives much closer to the "one bullet, one kill" rule than the spray firing from the prior episode.

Surjik gets a great performance out of Jon Bernthal. The diner scene allows Bernthal and Woll to play off one another one last time for the season and it is infused with an intriguing amount of chemistry. While there has been a "will they or won't they" vibe between Murdock and Page for most of the second season, the idea of Castle and Page seems almost viable in ".380." Bernthal sells both the chemistry and the idea that Castle is perceptive enough to figure out how Page feels for Murdock, which is a surprisingly subtle line for an actor to be able to walk.

The climax of ".380" is very much a Marvel movie ending for The Punisher storyline and given how grounded and serious the rest of the episode (in fact, most of the season) is, it is hard to buy the conceit. ".380" resorts to the old science fiction conceit that is played out in comic books as well that begs viewers to accept the death of a major character without seeing it.

Fortunately, the absurd conceit is not the end of ".380." As the Punisher arc (more or less) resolves, Stick and Elektra return to the narrative. The frustrating aspect of their return is that it forces viewers to believe that Elektra and Matt Murdock are, far and away, the very best Stick ever trained. Any future adversaries in Daredevil who rival the powers and abilites of either Elektra or Daredevil and were trained by Stick will need a convincing in-universe excuse to not be at Stick's side in ".380." Stick tried to have Elektra killed and fearing for his life, the few people he might keep around him should be his very best. In ".380" they hardly seem to be better than the hospital security guards.

Ultimately, ".380" is a series of endings and it refocuses the show - going into the penultimate episode of the season - on the Elektra plotline. While that has been a weaker aspect of the second season, ".380" turns to that plot for its final act with enough of a sense of urgency (and weirdness for the scenes with The Hand) to make it seem vital.

For other works with Deborah Ann Woll, visit my reviews of:
Daredevil - Season 1
True Blood
Highland Park

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

6.5/10

For other television episode and season reviews, please visit my Television Review Index Page!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Intelligence Devolves To Action: "The Man In The Box."

The Good: Very smart characters, Performances, Character development
The Bad: Very expository, Works better for its serialized elements than on its own
The Basics: Daredevil reasserts itself as entertainment packed with intelligent characters before it devolves into horiffic moments in "The Man In The Box."


As the second season of Daredevil progressed, it became increasingly more esoteric and was devoted to laying the framework for plotlines in future seasons, as opposed to providing satisfying answers for viewers within the episodes. While some of that is natural for television in general and works within the Marvel Cinematic Universe - Jessica Jones (reviewed here!), for example, began to infuse hints as to a storyline surrounding the origins of Jessica Jones's powers within the last two episodes of the first season - the extreme weirdness of the elements seeded from the midpoint on of Daredevil season two are mind boggling. Giant urns with Japanese characters on them that are connected to people who are being exsanguinated is far more obscure and specific than a corporation that is experimenting on humans to make supersoldiers.

"The Man In The Box" follows up on "Seven Minutes In Heaven" (reviewed here!) and because it deals with ramifications of the events of the prior episode, it is impossible to discuss without some references to the prior episode. Because "Seven Minutes In Heaven" added new, horiffic elements to the Daredevil storyline, introduced the idea of the drug cartel led by The Blacksmith and put The Punisher back on the streets, it is hard to pick up "The Man In The Box" and not feel immediately lost. That said, the context clues within "The Man In The Box" give viewers about as much information as the prior episode, so if one skips the carnage of the previous episode, it is possible to not actually be missing much.

Having liberated five young people from being exsanguinated by Nobu, Daredevil enlists Mahoney and Temple to see to their care. Murdock visits Claire Temple, who has admitted the rescuees to a secure area of the hospital and informs her that Nobu is alive and likely to send killers to the hospital. Murdock learns that The Punisher has escaped and the next morning, Nelson, Page, and Murdock are called to Reyes's office, as suspects in Castle's escape. When Nelson mentions Castle was sent to cell block D, Murdock realizes that Castle was sent to the same prison and block as Wilson Fisk.

Reyes comes clean to Nelson and Murdock, about her attempt to bring down The Blacksmith and the sting that went horribly wrong, before shots are fired on city hall. Foggy Nelson is wounded and Murdock's desire to hunt Castle infuriates Page and Nelson. Tower uses the opportunity to get out of Hell's Kitchen, while Murdock visits Fisk in prison for some answers. Page returns to the New York Bulletin where Ellison helps her figure out that Castle will likely target the medical examiner next and the two head to his motel to try to save his life. That same night, Elektra prepares to leave Hell's Kitchen when she runs into an assassin sent for her and Ellison rectifies his past mistakes by getting Page a police escort. When Temple tells Murdock about the toxicology reports on the rescued kids, the situation suddenly devolves as Nobu's ninjas descend upon Metro General Hospital!

One of the real joys of "The Man In The Box" is seeing Charlie Cox and Rosario Dawson working together again. Cox plays being blind perfectly and Dawson portrays empathy so perfectly viewers are instantly convinced she is a nurse. Dawson makes the bit role of Claire Temple captivating to watch and the chemistry between her and Cox on-screen is palpable and instantly re-established in "The Man In The Box." Dawson is a powerhouse who makes the most of a comparatively minor role.

Just as seeing Dawson and Cox together, there is a lot for viewers to delight in with Vincent D'Onofrio and Charlie Cox sharing a scene again. For most of their time on screen, they simply talk with one another again and Cox and D'Onofrio make the mostly-expository scene good television. D'Onofrio once again plays Fisk as an intelligent man who knows how to scheme and get under Murdock's skin. D'Onofrio easily slips into Fisk's anger and he makes the transition look effortless. Cox plays Murdock cold and the contrast in physical presence makes him seem as big as D'Onofrio for the climax of the scene. Their shared scene is packed with foreshadowing and it gives viewers the promise that Wilson Fisk and Vincent D'Onofrio have more Daredevil to come!

"The Man In The Box" is the pay-off to almost all of the Punisher's backstory plotline. In the episode, Reyes and Tower detail the entire sting operation that they used to attempted to use to draw out The Blacksmith. The episode is the culmination of Reyes's arc and it is refeshing to see Tower is smart enough to get out of Hell's Kitchen before he's next. "The Man In The Box" is refreshing for how smart the characters in it are. Matt Murdock instantly figures out the Wilson Fisk connection to Castle's escape; Fisk's lawyer has strict terms for Murdock's visit, and the final shot of Wilson Fisk is so well performed that it makes an implication that Fisk getting wounded by Murdock clues him into the truth about Murdock's dual nature. Daredevil is smart, adult television and it is refreshing to have a show where there is some subtlety and inference, as opposed to having everything spoon-fed to the audience.

Elektra's return to the narrative is unremarkable in "The Man In The Box," but it follow's the episode's decent portrayal of its characters are generally smart people. Having been on the other end of a seduction by the Chaste, Elektra takes virtually no time in recognizing what she is up against and dispatching her would-be assassin.

Karen Page's role in "The Man In The Box" is to move her away from Nelson And Murdock and further into working with Ellison as an investigative reporter. Ellison has one of the biggest "awwww!" (sweetness) moments of "The Man In The Box" and it is refreshing to see that the death of Ben Urich's death still resonates with him. Ellison is likable and Geoffrey Cantor plays off Deborah Ann Woll with a protective quality that he manages to not feel at all patronizing.

Like many episodes of Daredevil, at least in its second season, "The Man In The Box" progresses along in one direction before taking an abrupt right turn. When Frank Castle appears on-screen, he is instantly convincing and the truth is refeshingly as it appears. The supernatural aspect in "The Man In The Box" is a significant component to the right turn the episode's climax takes, but the revelation to Elektra is hardly as surprising as it was probably intended.

The result is a smart episode of Daredevil that lacks larger themes, but is pretty essential for all of the major plotlines and character arcs.

For other works with Rosario Dawson, be sure to check out my reviews of:
"New York's Finest" - Daredevil
"AKA Smile" - Jessica Jones
Daredevil - Season 1
Seven Pounds
Clerks II
Rent
25th Hour
Men In Black II

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

6/10

For other reviews of pieces of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, please visit my Marvel Cinematic Universe Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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"Red Wedding" On Daredevil: "Seven Minutes In Heaven"

The Good: Well-written, Well-directed, Well-performed
The Bad: Light on character development, Disturbingly violent and graphic . . . even for adults
The Basics: Daredevil steps up its game as adult's only entertainment in "Seven Minutes In Heaven," which returns multiple adversaries to the series.


I am not, as a general rule, a huge fan of spoilers. Spoilers, however, are entirely time-based. Last year, when The Walking Dead had an episode that led to the apparent death of Glenn and viewers freaked out for a week as people went online to discuss it. During that period, I used my social media accounts to illustrate that everything that was once a spoiler eventually became common knowledge - things like "Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker's father," "Bruce Willis's character in The Sixth Sense is dead," and "Don't get too attached to Sean Bean's character in [insert name of movie/show here]!" The second season of Daredevil had a huge, incredible spoiler that managed to be unspoiled by reviewers because reviewers were only given the episodes before the spoiler event occurred.

"Seven Minutes In Heaven" is the first episode of Daredevil after the huge spoilerific event. The episode follows up on a revelation in the last moment of "Guilty As Sin" (reviewed here!) and while it is easy not to spoil that moment in "Guilty As Sin," the very nature of "Seven Minutes In Heaven" makes it absolutely impossible to discuss the episode without revealing the climactic moment of "Guilty As Sin." In "Seven Minutes In Heaven," the second season of Daredevil takes an abrupt right turn that ties it to the first season and that turn is enough to make fans of the first season squeal with delight, especially given how unexpected it is.

Opening with the convicted Wilson Fisk arriving at prison, Fisk is approached by Dutton, an inmate who declares himself to be the kingpin of the prison. Fisk is also approached by Stewart Finney, a white collar criminal, who bonds with Fisk. Fisk immediately begins assembling information on inmates and using his lawyer to arrange favors for his new crew. Fisk is looking for a way to get into cell block A and he sees The Punisher as a way to get to Dutton in block A. His information points to the idea that Dutton's heroin trade might have been involved in the incident that resulted in Frank Castle's family being killed.

At Matt Murdock's apartment, Matt is rescued by Elektra, who has used her allies to clean up his apartment in the wake of her killing a ninja in self-defense. Murdock pushes Elektra away and later Foggy Nelson visits and suggests it is time to shut down their law practice. Much to Nelson's chagrin, Murdock agrees and does not fight for their business. Heartbroken, Nelson returns to the office where Page has made an important discovery about the Castle case. Page discovers that there was another civilian body at the shootout the day Castle's family was killed and she convinces Nelson to visit the medical examiner with her. Daredevil gets confirmation from the Yakuza accountant that The Hand exists and he learns that the accountant's son, Daniel, is a prisoner of The Hand. While Frank Castle dispatches of his and Fisk's mutual enemies, Daredevil attempts to rescue civilians from a horrifying facility run by The Hand.

"Seven Minutes In Heaven" expertly ties the first and second seasons of Daredevil together. Wilson Fisk is not out of the Marvel Cinematic Universe; he is rebuilding his organization from the inside of the prison. Similarly, the return of Nobu only makes sense to those who were invested in the first season of Daredevil (reviewed here!), but his return is the first real confirmation for Matt Murdock that Stick was telling him the truth in "Guilty As Sin."

Fans of the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe are likely to wonder how it is that Wilson Fisk and Frank Castle did not end up at the Supermax prison from the Jessica Jones episode "AKA Top Shelf Perverts" (reviewed here!). That said, the rest of the continuity in the Marvel Cinematic Universe works well.

"Seven Minutes In Heaven" features long scenes between Frank Castle and Wilson Fisk simply talking. The scene, which includes a lot of exposition and subtext, is a chance for Jon Bernthal and Vincent D'Onofrio to growl at one another for more than ten continuous minutes and it is a pleasure to watch such dramatic heavyweights verbally box. Bernthal holds his own with presence and vocal force opposite the established, recognizable, greatness of Vincent D'Onofrio. The performances and characters are a thrill to watch for a scene where two people are just calmly speaking to one another. The final scene between D'Onofrio and Bernthal reminds viewers what an undeniable presence D'Onofrio has as Fisk. Seeing Fisk and Castle go toe to toe is one of the high points of the series so far.

But "Seven Minutes In Heaven" is not all talk. After the single, very graphic on-screen murder at the end of "Guilty As Sin," "Seven Minutes In Heaven" features a bloody scene on par with the Red Wedding from the third season of Game Of Thrones (reviewed here!); it is not for the feint of heart or the weak of stomach. Those who want the Marvel Cinematic Universe to be kid-friendly have to accept that Daredevil is adult, R-rated television and "Seven Minutes In Heaven" features the most graphic moment of the franchise yet. Director Stephen Surjik presents the violence in a way that is exceptionally difficult to watch.

"Seven Minutes In Heaven" is a weird mix of cerebral, procedural conspiracy drama - Karen Page is all investigative reporter, Fisk and Castle conspire to cut a lead in the case of the shootout between three rival drug gangs, and Foggy Nelson talks shop entirely in his time on screen - and a horror film (Daredevil's trip to "the farm" the Hand has established is nightmarish). Surjik backloads the episode; the first half hour is visually tame, the last half includes throat-slitting, exsanguination and other grisly, on-screen murders.

The conspiracy in the second season of Daredevil is almost entirely detailed in "Seven Minutes In Heaven." Dutton speaks the first reference to The Blacksmith, a drug supplier with pure heroin who orchestrated the meeting of three rival gangs in the park near the carousel that went south. Like all well-crafted conspiracy stories, there are layers and Page and Ellison (the editor of the New York Bulletin) learn key facts about the conspiracy before Castle gets some of the information. The Blacksmith is a newly-discovered player in that conspiracy and it will guide Daredevil's Punisher arc through the end of the season.

Not all of "Seven Minutes In Heaven" is oppressive, cerebral or visually unpleasant. Karen Page is given Ben Urich's old office to work out of and the emotionalism of that moment is enough to root fans of the show in something more real. Sadly, it is sandwiched in between two scenes that are so graphic that they turn the viewer's stomach. Despite the episode's graphicness, "Seven Minutes In Heaven" is packed with information those who are fans of Daredevil that is essential for understanding both the Punisher and Elektra plots. This episode lays the framework for future Wilson Fisk plotlines, as well as the core concepts for the eventual television incarnation of Shadowland.

The result is an episode of television that is not always enjoyable to watch and might not have larger themes, but is essential Daredevil.

For other works with Bill Walters, please check out my reviews of:
Annie
Birdman (Or The Unexpected Virtue Of Ignorance)
Man On A Ledge

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

7/10

For other television episode and movie reviews, please visit my Movie Review Index Page!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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The Trial Of Frank Castle Concludes: "Guilty As Sin"

The Good: Wonderful reversals, Effective exposition, Good balance between a- and b-plots, Performances
The Bad: Lighter on character
The Basics: Daredevil takes a series of left turns when "Guilty As Sin" shakes up both the trial of Frank Castle and the Elektra plot when Stick returns to Hell's Kitchen.


As someone who reviews a lot of television and movies, it is always nice to be pleasantly surprised by a work I enjoy. The second season of Daredevil was proceeding with mixed highs and lows for the show when it took an abrupt left turn at the end of "Guilty As Sin." "Guilty As Sin" manages to prove that even in today's over-spoiled entertainment industry, there is not only room for surprises, but merit in surprising an audience with something truly audacious. As well, "Guilty As Sin" helps to illustrate how truly wonderful serialized television has episodes that more or less blend together; when the trial of Frank Castle began, I only recalled it ending with the end to "Guilty As Sin" - not "Semper Fidelis."

"Guilty As Sin" opens in the seconds following "Semper Fidelis" (reviewed here!) and it is obvious why early reviewers were only given the first seven episodes to review. "Guilty As Sin," the eighth episode, climaxes with a moment virtually impossible to not spoil (I won't in this review, though!). "Guilty As Sin" finally reveals Elektra's true nature and it returns Stick to the Daredevil narrative.

Opening with Daredevil and Elektra standing over the pit they discovered in Hell's Kitchen, Daredevil realizes that the pit is more than forty stories deep. They are immediately attacked by Yakuza ninjas who gave managed to perfectly mask their sound, but the pair manages to escape with the sudden intervention of Stick - though Elektra is severely wounded. Arriving back at Murdock's apartment, Stick makes a poultice that neutralizes the poison the Yakuza had on their blade when they sliced Elektra, saving her life. The next day, Foggy is shaken when Murdock does not appear for the Castle trial. Despite that, Nelson effectively uses Castle's former commanding officer, Colonel Schoonover, as an impressive character witness.

After Stick finally details the nature of the war he alluded to before, a doctor at the Castle trial explains exactly what the shot to Castle's head did to him. Dr. Lee describes the way Frank Castle lives in the moment of his family's murder due to the gunshot wound he took to the head moments after and the case seems to be going Castle's way, until a courtroom outburst shakes the jury. Page convinces Castle to take the stand and she visits Murdock's apartment - seeing Stick and Elektra there - to get Murdock to return to the trial the next day. But when Frank Castle takes the stand, his testimony does not go as planned. Returning home battered and disappointed, Matt Murdock is attacked and Elektra's true nature is exposed to him.

"Guilty As Sin" is the explicit pay-off to Elektra's opening line in her first true scene in "Kinbaku" (reviewed here!). Attentive fans would easily note that Elektra's first line mirror's Stick's evaluation of German beer from the first season episode "Stick" (reviewed here!). Stick's return in "Guilty As Sin" comes with the explicit exposition that Stick once trained Elektra, which shocks Matt.

Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe might find that "Guilty As Sin" is a tipping point for them. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has gone to great lengths to mirror - as much as possible - the real world. The world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is so rooted in reality that Thor has declared that magic is just another form of science and the introduction of the Scarlet Witch included a vast number of disclaimers as to how her abilities actually work. But Stick's story of the war, the founding of the villainous group The Hand, and the rise of The Chaste (the good guys who have been fighting the Hand for centuries) has no real-world counterpart. The Hand is said to have members who have been resurrected from the dead and "Guilty As Sin" lays the groundwork for the return of a character viewers have seen killed.

"Guilty As Sin" introduces Colonel Schoonover and places Clancy Brown within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Brown had recently done time in the DC Television Universe as General Eiling on The Flash, but he appears in "Guilty As Sin" without even a hint of the menace he infused into Eiling. Schoonover might be a bit role for Brown, but he dominates his scene with the part.

The reversal at the climax of the episode will only make those who appreciated the first season of Daredevil squeal and the Elektra moment at the episode's end is more a revelation than a reversal. Rewatching "Guilty As Sin" becomes a joy of anticipation, watching the rising action that is more deliberate and well-paced than it originally appears (especially if one watches "Semper Fidelis" immediately before).

"Guilty As Sin" is a bit light on character development. Despite the final-moment reversal, the characters remain largely static in the episode, save Matt Murdock. Murdock learning the truth about Elektra and Stick shakes him to his core. Murdock comes to understand that his entire relationship with Elektra ten years prior was part of the machinations of Stick and it leaves him severely rattled. Murdock is not shaken enough to adopt Stick's methods; he refuses to kill, even for Stick's war. Murdock has a moral core and that moral core was unshaken ten years ago when Elektra gave him the chance to kill Rosco Sweeney; he did not go over to the dark side then and he shows no signs of doing it now, though he is upset. The only in-episode justification for Murdock not asking Castle what the police officer said to him (and what he meant by it) is that he is shaken by the events the night before.

Foggy Nelson continues to exert more professional acumen than we've seen from him before and his role in "Guilty As Sin" is to play the powerful, smart, strategic-thinking defense attorney. Karen Page is relegated to being a supporting character and D.A. Reyes takes the part of a pretty generic adversary in "Guilty As Sin."

Charlie Cox and Jon Bernthal rule the performances in "Guilty As Sin." Bernthal has played angry in many of his prior roles, but he manages to have an angry outburst as Frank Castle in "Guilty As Sin." Bernthal is able to make the character feel distinct and angry, which takes real acting talent. Cox plays shocked and between Cox and Scott Glenn, viewers are reminded in "Guilty As Sin" that portraying a blind person does not mean reducing the emotional range the actor uses for their facial expressions.

It is hard for fans of Daredevil not to feel like the season might not have any surprises left after "Guilty As Sin," especially given how Elektra's training and brutality are made explicit in the episode. Fortunately, for those fans who might feel that Elektra being outed in the show as a trained assassin was the end of the surprises, "Guilty As Sin" manages to come up with one more, huge, surprise that propels viewers into the next episode.

For other works Drew Goddard is involved in, check out my reviews of:
The Martian
Daredevil - Season 1
World War Z
The Cabin In The Woods
Lost
Alias
Angel - Season 5
Buffy The Vampire Slayer - Season 7

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

8.5/10

For other television episode and season reviews, please visit my Television Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Tear Apart All You've Built: Nelson & Murdock Fractures In "Semper Fidelis!"

The Good: Acting, Direction, Plot development, Moments of character, Twists.
The Bad: Lighter on character development than it could be; The best moments are set-ups without resolution.
The Basics: Daredevil does a courtroom drama that puts Foggy Nelson on his own while Daredevil goes after the Yakuza in "Semper Fidelis."


Serialized television has a tough tightrope to walk. Episodes have to find a balance between telling a story of their own and fitting into the larger narrative. Daredevil occasionally managed to strike an impressive balance between the micro- and macro-stories. "Semper Fidelis" is an episode that manages to do that exceptionally well. While the micro story that is mostly encapsulated within "Semper Fidelis" puts Foggy Nelson in the driver's seat of the trial of Frank Castle, Matt Murdock's plotline lays another, incredibly brick on the long road to a television incarnation of the Shadowland storyline from the (comparatively) recent Daredevil books. While the one plotline is chock full of new information and exposition, the other plotline has little new information, but a lot of allusions to first season episodes of Daredevil.

"Semper Fidelis" opens about a week after "Regrets Only" (reviewed here!), with the trial of Frank Castle set to begin. The idea of a trial for The Punisher put Nelson & Murdock in the odd position of coming to the defense of a man that most of the characters deplore and put the audience in the uncomfortable position of wondering how the second season of Daredevil could possibly proceed. While Frank Castle was apprehended surprisingly early in the second season, the role of Elektra in the prior two episodes has hardly been substantive enough to make viewers believe that the show would maintain focus on Daredevil and Elektra. Given the relative speed and progress of the Castle trial in "Semper Fidelis," viewers have to latch onto the hope that the Elektra plotline progressed in this episode would advance in a satisfying way.

Opening with jury selection for Frank Castle's case, public opinion is seriously divided on the nature of the Punisher vigilante. D.A. Reyes and Foggy Nelson manage to approve of a jury to empanel and the trial of Frank Castle begins. The day before the trial begins, while Foggy Nelson is struggling with an opening statement, Page visits Castle in jail. Castle is belligerent with Page about discovering the truth about who killed his family, but he provides Page with a character witness: his commanding officer from his Marine days. Murdock is sidetracked by Elektra, who has found a translator for the encoded page from the Yakusa ledger. That night, Daredevil and Elektra visit the professor who encoded the ledger for the Yakuza.

When Page realizes that the medical report from the examiner who did the autopsy on Frank Castle's family was probably altered, Nelson sees an opening. When a trip to the trainyard raises more questions than it answers and leaves Daredevil and Elektra ambushed, it keeps Matt Murdock up for the night and allows him and Natchios to bond once again. As a result, Murdock is late to the opening of the Castle trial and Nelson must make the opening remarks. When the medical examiner is called to the stand, he cracks completely, leading Matt to realize what a liability Elektra is to the professional half of his life. When Daredevil confronts Elektra over one of the properties that Fisk secured, the pair makes a shocking discovery.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has not seen anything even remotely like a courtroom drama, so Daredevil is plumbing new depths with "Semper Fidelis." To balance the newness with the familiar for those more inclined toward comic books and their sensibilities, "Semper Fidelis" includes the plotline with Elektra and the battle that Daredevil and Elektra have against the Yakuza. Amid legal arguments and depositions that would be out of place for characters like Thor and Ant-Man, Daredevil and Elektra discover a mysterious hole in Hell's Kitchen and beat people up for information.

The thrill in "Semper Fidelis" does not come from the Daredevil and Elektra b-plot, but rather from seeing intelligent characters acting smartly. Foggy Nelson does amazing work on the Castle trial and Page shows a real knack for investigative work in "Semper Fidelis." The characterization of Elektra proceeds in a surprisingly subtle way; the sheer volume of Yakuza ninjas she takes on without aid implies far more training and ability than she has thus-far exhibited or admitted to. "Semper Fidelis" starts to imply a lot about Elektra's backstory before the final revealing moment in a subsequent episode that allows fans of Elektra to cheer (and horrify the rest of us!).

Deborah Ann Woll earns her entire season's paycheck for her key monologue in "Semper Fidelis." It is a rare thing - especially in works based upon comic book source material - for an actor to be able to deliver a strong, convincing monologue. Woll does so when she tries to consider Frank Castle's perspective and the result is a passionately-delivered set of lines that is one of the best few minutes Woll has ever put on screen.

Elden Henson continues to make waves in the Marvel Universe as Foggy Nelson. Nelson is almost always treated as a third-string sidekick, but in Daredevil, he is an immensely likable right hand to Matt Murdock. In "Semper Fidelis," the character is forced to break out of his own shell and Henson makes him into a break-out character who is far more engrossing to watch than Elektra. Henson perfectly projects to make the theatrical opening statement in the Castle trial seem both realistic and plausible . . . and in character. The interplay between Henson and Cox when Murdock comes out to him about Elektra's presence in his life allows Foggy to explode with moralization and Henson to infuse the angry scene with a relatable amount of caring.

"Semper Fidelis" is delightful for the sheer volume of surprises it possesses and the episode manages to hold up remarkably well over multiple viewings. The prep work for Tepper - the medical examiner - taking the stand acts as a wonderful chance for Murdock and Page to bond. It also works to set up a traditional reversal; Murdock comes up with an elaborate strategy to slip up Tepper, but Tepper cracks pretty much the moment the cross examination begins.

Not all of the work that is done in "Semper Fidelis" is paid off in the episode. Page and Murdock have a legitimate philosophical argument that forces them to cool off for a night, which puts off their romantic relationship for yet another night. It is a critical component in reinforcing Matt Murdock's sense of ethics and, in "Semper Fidelis," establishing an in-episode bedrock for the horror he will feel when Elektra's true nature is revealed. Unfortunately, in "Semper Fidelis," her nature remains only implied and that work plays to a critical moment in the next episode.

"Semper Fidelis" finds an incredible balance between the larger Daredevil narrative and being a satisfying bridge episode. The allusions to Fisk and Nobu help progress the Elektra plot, while the medical examiner's corruption becomes a key component in the Reyes conspiracy plotline that is unfolding at the Castle trial. The result is a surprisingly substantive episode that is, objectively, a middle act.

For other works with Elodie Yung, be sure to check out my review of:
G.I. Joe: Retaliation

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

7/10

For other elements of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, please visit my Marvel Cinematic Universe Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Daredevil Season Two Does Not Build "Regrets Only" When It Elaborates The Punisher Conspiracy!

The Good: Performances, B-plot, Moments of character
The Bad: Elektra fails to wow, A-plot involving Elektra
The Basics: Daredevil enters a new formula with juggling plotlines involving Frank Castle and Elektra as "Regrets Only" pulls Nelson and Murdock apart!


As the second season of Daredevil progressed, I - for one - was concerned that it might end up being a terribly erratic season. After hitting a series high (so far) with the third episode, the introduction of Elektra in "Kinbaku" (reviewed here!) hit a season low point at just the fifth episode of the season. Fortunately, with the sixth episode, "Regrets Only," Daredevil bounces back. From this point on, the second season of Daredevil is very engrossing, often surprising, and well-presented (despite some physical darkness that undermines some of the direction and performances).

"Regrets Only" feels in some ways like a new beginning for the second season of Daredevil and it firmly establishes a new paradigm for the season. "Regrets Only" has Matt Murdock engaged with an Elektra plot, while Nelson and Page struggle to unravel the conspiracy surrounding Frank Castle's past and expose District Attorney Reyes and her corrupt machinations. Despite the fact that "Regrets Only" picks up just moments after "Kinbaku," there is remarkably little from the prior episode that is essential and the viewer cannot pick up from context clues in the new episode.

A Yakuza motorcycle gang arrives at the flat Elektra has taken as her own and she and Daredevil incapacitate all of them. Murdock and Natchios go out to breakfast where Elektra reveals that she has been honest about her desire to divest from Roxxon's influence over her fortune. Murdock tentatively agrees so long as there is no murdering involved. At the offices of Nelson & Murdock, Page is given a statement by the district attorney's office (via a shill) to sign. Page refuses, based on the statement being pretty much false and when the public defender reveals that Reyes is pursuing the death penalty against Frank Castle, Murdock decides to get involved.

Arriving at the hospital, the Nelson & Murdock legal team is advised by Mahoney (who has been promoted for bringing down the Punisher) to leave the case alone. Despite the warning, Nelson, Page and Murdock manage to convince Frank Castle to appoint them his counsel and, when they prove to him that Reyes has an agenda that would see Castle buried, the Punisher agrees. When Murdock is sidetracked by a mission with Elektra to secure proof of Roxxon's shady dealings, Nelson and Page meet with Castle to try to construct his defense.

What is immediately striking in "Regrets Only" is how immature Elektra Natchios is. Elektra is impulsive and surprisingly careless, which is very much the opposite of Matt Murdock. While sometimes opposites attract, the chemistry is not there between Murdock and Natchios, at least at the outset of "Regrets Only." Elektra does not develop in the episode; showing no regard for what is going on in Murdock's life, Natchios snatches up her partner without having an actual plan to bringing down Roxxon and the Yakuza. Murdock going along with Natchios as much as he does only works because of Murdock's constant refrain that him helping Elektra is a "one and done" mission.

Elektra's immaturity is offset by serious scenes at Nelson and Murdock where adults seriously debate the ethics of letting Reyes have her way. Reyes is attempting to use a legal loophole that would allow Castle to be tried in Delaware, a state with the death penalty. Murdock is against the death penalty and, despite the business implications of defending Frank Castle, Foggy Nelson feels ethically bound to not let the District Attorney steamroller the law or Frank Castle.

In a season where the overt adversary is The Punisher, by "Regrets Only," it is clear that Frank Castle is only a temporary or partial antagonist. District Attorney Reyes makes for a clear and intriguing nemesis which helps Daredevil explore the non-super hero aspect of the popular comic book hero. One of the strengths of the Daredevil book is that, at its best, it finds a balance between the vigilante hero story and the legal thriller story. Unlike Batman, where the billionaire aspect of Bruce Wayne can be neglected after explaining how Batman has the resources to afford all of his gadgets in a real world setting, Daredevil needs a consistent grounding aspect for viewers to accept the extraordinary aspects. Matt Murdock has friends and a job and Daredevil keeps both aspects of Murdock's life alive and busy in a credible way. In "Regrets Only," Page and Nelson pick up the slack of addressing the Frank Castle plotline and the legal thriller/conspiracy aspect of the show is very engaging, despite it featuring a lot of exposition.

"Regrets Only" has a few moments that may make viewers question their suspension of disbelief. When Frank Castle wakes up in the hospital, he hears Matt Murdock's voice and given that one of the most recent things in his life was slipping unconscious to Matt Murdock's voice, it seems inconceivable that he does not realize that Murdock is Daredevil or let on that he knows. Similarly, Elodie Yung uses facial expressions a lot to emote. The glance of satisfaction Elektra shoots Matt Murdock after he spills wine on the Roxxon accountant at the party to get him alone is something even Daredevil's radar sense would have trouble "seeing."

Jon Bernthal humanizes the wounded Frank Castle wonderfully in "Regrets Only." Bernthal and Deborah Ann Woll play off one another beautifully in the episode. Woll uses her eyes and body language to have Page go from incredibly guarded to softening up to The Punisher and the transition takes a realistic amount of time. Woll does not rush the process and while Bernthal infuses Frank Castle with some articulation and charm, he does not force it in a way that makes viewers forget that Castle recently murdered thirty-eight people (that we know of - how many pawn shop owners did Castle kill using a different modus operandi without getting tied back to The Punisher?!).

Bernthal and Woll's scenes are intercut to break up the party scenes with Elektra and Matt Murdock. While Elektra is presented immediately as an immature dilettante with a surprising amount of martial arts training, Elodie Yung plays the part well enough to be believable. One of the episode's most understated moments for Yung is simply a transition shot of Elektra striding in a hallway between the party and her mission inside the secure area at the Roxxon. Yung carries herself with a determination and focus that makes viewers believe that Elektra Natchios is not at all as simple and straightforward as she initially appears.

"Regrets Only" paints Elektra Natchios entirely as a user and it is unsatisfying to watch Matt Murdock be her dupe. Natchios needs Murdock more than the other way around in "Regrets Only" in her mission to find the Roxxon ledger. The two are remarkably sloppy in their exit strategy and while director Andy Goddard does not belabor the late-episode fight scene, he also does not have the otherwise smart characters do important things like close a drawer in the secret room into which they broke. The result is the understated Page/Nelson/Castle plot shines against the more flashy Murdock/Natchios plotline.

For other works in which Elden Henson appears, visit my reviews of:
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2
Daredevil - Season 1
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1
Under The Tuscan Sun
O

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
Thanks!]

6/10

For other television episode and season reviews, please visit my Television Review Index Page!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Enter Elektra! "Kinbaku" Redirects The Second Season Of Daredevil!

The Good: Serialized plot elements, Allusions
The Bad: Mediocre plot, Raises far more questions than it answers, Nothing exceptional on the acting front
The Basics: Elektra is introduced to Daredevil in an unremarkable way in "Kinbaku."


Entering the second season of Daredevil many fans of the franchise were thrilled that the show was adding the character of Elektra to the mix. Elektra's introduction to the Marvel Cinematic Universe was a big deal (although the MCU has recast significant characters before), so the casting of Elodie Yung as Elektra Natchios made the entertainment news long before the second season of Daredevil premiered. The appearance of Elektra in the Marvel Cinematic Universe leads to the potential that the second season of Daredevil might undo the negative impression of the prior cinematic incarnation ofDaredevil (reviewed here!).

Unfortunately for the writers and producers of Daredevil adding a popular character like Elektra to the mix comes with inherent issues. Elektra has a huge fanbase of her own - not because of the film Elektra (reviewed here!) either! - who know who and what Elektra Natchios is. For the bulk of her tenure in Marvel Comics, Elektra Natchios has been a ruthless assassin and, at her inception, that was who she was. The problem with adding her into the Netflix series Daredevil is reconciling who she is known to be (which is something fans pretty much demand of their Marvel characters when they hit the theaters and television screens) with the characters who are already established. Given the high level of moralization at the outset of the second season of Daredevil, adding a trained assassin to the mix would go very obviously against Matt Murdock's character.

"Kinbaku" is the first proper episode of Daredevil that features Elektra. Elektra might have appeared for the final moments of "Penny And Dime" (reviewed here!), but "Kinbaku" is the first episode that includes her in a substantive way. From very early on in "Kinbaku," the plan of the executive producers of Daredevil is surprisingly clear: Matt Murdock does not know Elektra's true nature. As a result, "Kinbaku" has the potential to allow newbies to fall in love with Elektra through the slow reveal and established fans to recall what they initially liked about Elektra in the first place. "Kinbaku" makes it clear from its outset that the episode is going to be a proper introduction to Elektra and that she and Matt Murdock have an extensive history.

Ten years ago, Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson are crashing a high society party when Murdock is caught. Before security can eject him from the party, he is rescued by Elektra, who vouches for his presence there. In the present, Elektra reveals that she is back in Hell's Kitchen to try to divest her portfolio of Roxxon stock; she wants her massive wealth to not include the sinister energy company and she wants Murdock to help her negotiate the deal. Murdock rejects Elektra, though when the next morning he discovers that Nelson & Murdock is virtually bankrupt, he has some trepidation about turning away Elektra's money. Karen Page arrives at the office with information about how the media is reporting the Frank Castle case and she reveals that she broke into Castle's house to her employers. Nelson is thrilled to learn there is suddenly money in the bank and Murdock asks him not to spend it, claiming it is from a client who he doesn't think will pan out.

Flashing back to the party, Matt Murdock engages in a witty banter with Elektra and the two have palpable chemistry. Elektra takes Matt out in a stolen car, illustrating how the beautiful woman is able to get Murdock to go against his usualy moral character. When ADA Tower visits Nelson & Murdock, he asks Foggy Nelson for all the documents pertaining to the Grotto case, but Nelson refuses to turn them over without a subpoena. Murdock realizes that he cannot even get into the building that Elektra's meeting is at, so he surveils it from a nearby building. At the meeting, Elektra disables Roxxon's servers. After a rough day of tying together leads in the murder of Frank Castle's family, Karen Page has a date with Matt Murdock.

"Kinbaku" is a character study and the introduction and exploration of Elektra is little more than that. Fans of the source material will appreciate how Elektra is characterized immediately in "Kinbaku" as a woman who gets Matt Murdock to go against his character; she excites Murdock in a visceral way that overrides his usual rationality and morality. "Kinbaku" shows that well without making it explicit within the episode. Fans of the Daredevil television show will be able to find the clues that reveal Elektra's true nature long before it is revealed. In "Kinbaku," viewers get Elektra's backstory from Murdock's perspective - a history of their brief, passionate, time together ten years before; we do not get her history. That said, attentive viewers will catch the giant clue thrust in their faces when Elektra first appears after the opening credits (her line about German beer is identical to one delivered in the prior season and is a massive clue to her backstory).

While most of "Kinbaku" introduces Elektra - past and present - to Daredevil, the narrative of Frank Castle does not abruptly end (as one might expect). Instead, throughout the episode there is a thread involving Karen Page investigating Frank Castle's past. That brings Page to the New York Bulletin, where she confronts Ellison, the editor of the newspaper. The references to Ben Urich in Page's storyline help tie "Kinbaku" to the prior season and redirect Karen Page's character in a new and intriguing direction.

"Kinbaku" is also flush with allusions to other aspects of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Should Jessica Jones get a second season, it would have a difficult time not making explicit that the organization that created Jones and Simmons is a subsidiary of Roxxon, based on a single line in "Kinbaku." Ellison references "the incident' and Marci Stahl drops back into the narrative with an oblique reference to Hogarth's law firm from Jessica Jones! Easter eggs aside, the return of Stahl and Karen Page digging through piles of newspapers keeps viewers engaged through the otherwise mediocre introduction of Elektra.

The dominance of the Elektra storyline makes it easy to overlook the odd lapses in continuity in "Kinbaku." Matt Murdock in the flashbacks does entirely uncharacteristic things and from her outset, the only way Elektra makes sense as a character is if she is either wrapped up with the worst sort of people or such a liar that she believes her own lies. In the past, Elektra gives Matt Murdock the chance to get his vengeance on the man who killed Murdock's father. Either Natchios's father was wrapped up with organized and corporate crime or Elektra is able to lie to Murdock's face without him detecting any change in her heartbeat.

Director Floria Sigismondi takes a lackluster script and at least makes it look good. Charlie Cox is appropriately de-aged for the flashback scenes and the sex scene with Elektra is shot very artfully. The second date location for Murdock and Page is beautifully shot and amid the spectacle, the passion in the post-date scene is well-presented - both physically and from a performance standpoint.

But "Kinbaku" is a bridge episode and it is a thoroughly unremarkable episode in its own right. Daredevil is at an awkward transition between The Punisher and Elektra as primary antagonists for the second season and the build-up to the Sweeney flashback makes the opening more unfathomable. "Kinbaku" is the beginning and end of the relationship between Matt Murdock and Elektra and it reveals enough about Elektra's character to make Matt Murdock permanently repulsed by her. As a result, Murdock's low-key reaction to Elektra popping back up into his life becomes something of a parody of understatement.

Outside Karen Page starting an investigation at the Bulletin, "Kinbaku" is utterly forgettable and fits poorly into the narrative of the second season of Daredevil. Viewers are almost better served by skipping the episode and getting Elektra's backstory from her perspective in one of the later episodes. Indeed, skipping "Kinbaku" and leaping into the next episode eliminates the mediocre. As it stands, "Kinbaku" might well be the low point of the second season of Daredevil.

For other works with Geoffrey Cantor, be sure to check out my reviews of:
Bert And Arnie's Guide To Friendship
Men In Black 3
Man On A Ledge
When In Rome
Public Enemies

[Knowing that single episodes are an inefficient way to get episodes, it's worth looking into Daredevil - The Complete Second Season on DVD or Blu-Ray, which is also a better economical choice than buying individual episodes. Read my review of the sophomore season of the blind vigilante here!
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