I can only imagine that with an episode titles "Speak of the Devil," we're about to get something special, and the beginning of a climaxing story that takes us full circle. I'm conflicted at this point, as I'm not sure I want this particular story to end. Will they continue it in the following Netflix/Marvel stories? Will they continue it in a second season?
I'm just not sure you can tell this in only five shows, but I'm getting ahead of myself.
Fisk is in power. He has a girlfriend that accepts both his thug-side, and his passion, and has him controlling his emotion. In doing so, Nobu, Gao and Owlsley will be calmed, for sure. Daredevil/Murdock, Ben Urich, Foggy Nelson and Karen Page are all left with nothing in their quest to unveil Fisk as the Kingpin.
How will they gain footing?
If this series is any indication, it won't take long to lead us down the path of righteousness. I'm starting to look forward to the red suit, I'm not going to lie.
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"Maybe he knows there's some roads you can't come back from."
If you weren't getting enough fight sequences with this series, we enter this episode with Daredevil going toe-to-toe with a red clad assassin that turns out to be Nobu, which we find our right before we head to opening credits. My contention from the start has been that Nobu wasn't in charge of the Yokuza, but instead, a famed Daredevil supervillain group called "The Hand."
This is the clincher.
'The Hand' is known for their red ninja outfits, and the first real give that this Japanese crime leader is a part of this organization is that he's clearly a skilled fighter, and he's wearing this red get-up. Coud we get "The Hand" in Season One?
I'm getting ahead of myself here though, as the opening sequence to this show is merely a "fast-forward," and I assumed it was to the final fight of this episode.
Boy was I wrong.
This show is ripe with fantastic confrontations.
Fisk and Nobu
We're back in real time after credits, and we see Fisk essentially send Nobu after Daredevil, while Fisk decides to help Nobu by clearing out the city block for his "organization." It's an interesting back-and-forth between a testy Nobu and Fisk, but one of mutual benefit. They never mention "The Hand" by name, but it is curious that Nobu needs this particular block. This scene sets things in motion.
Nobu has to take care of Daredevil, and Fisk has to take care of Mrs. Cardenas, who Nelson and Murdock helped out earlier in the series. When she walks into their offices right after this, then heads off to her apartment to get her neighbors to fight Fisk, well, we know where this is going.
Matt Murdock and Vanessa
Vanessa is a thread that Foggy, Matt, Ben and Karen look to pull after seeing her with Fisk in the press conference announcing his support for Hell's Kitchen. They immediately share an interesting connection, and we see how comforting Vanessa is, as Matt lies, telling her he's looking for art for his apartment for the ladies. For a brief moment, I thought that they might ultimately hook up.
My lord, a Kingpin/Murdock/Vanessa triangle could be special...but I digress.
The scene is brilliant. She points Matt to a painting that she describes as a mix between anger and love, and while he flirts with her, asking about the 'man in her life,' she responds by saying, "...you could always ask him yourself."
Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk
Murdock and Fisk literally come face-to-face.
Totally unexpected. Fisk sells Murdock on improving the Kitchen, and the tenuousness these two share with each other is clear. Well, it's clear for Murdock, but you can see Fisk fishing. This is a guy that doesn't buy coincidences.
Matt Murdock and the Priest
I'm not going to waltz down this too far, but Murdock is constantly asking himself the tough question: Does he have to kill Fisk?
This always brings him to the church, and twice in this episode. Finally, he just spells it out: "I know my soul is damned if I take his life, but if I let him consume the city, all the people that will suffer and die."
It's a real question here.
Will the righteous give in to sin?
These scenes are amazing. You can see this priest skirting the edges, but he always shows Matt that he's not supposed to cross the line. It's an internal struggle with Murdock/Daredevil, but they bring it out with these fantastic scenes in the church.
Daredevil and Nobu--Part 1
We flash forward once again to the fight between Daredevil and Nobu, but I have to mention that it's right before this that we find out Mrs. Cardenas is dead. Fisk's part it done.
Nobu is unmasked, and he declares Daredevil to be a worthy opponent. To be honest, Nobu is kicking his ass ass here, and pretty graphically. Nobu is utilizing a swinging knife/hook, and is literally slicing Daredevil up.
Things aren't looking good when we flash to the present once again.
Matt Murdock and Karen Page
In one of the most disappointing pieces to this show, the early relationships are clearly over, which is dumbfounding, to be honest. The relationship between Foggy and Karen is clearly on the backburner, and Claire Temple is almost out of the story altogether.
It's in this episode that we can clearly see a connection between Page and Murdock. Karen is attracted to him, and Matt finds someone that he trusts, and can talk to. It's here that a drinking Page pushes the Mask to take care of Fisk.
In their sadness for Mrs. Cardenas's death, we see Page and Murdock grow closer, as well as some shadows in Page's past perhaps.
Murdock is off to don the Mask, and he mows through a group of thugs and drugs to find the root of the drugs. He gets to the warehouse that we see DD fighting Nobu, and we can hear a calm heartbeat in the background. As it slightly picks up, DD says, "I didn't come here for you."
"But I am the one you have found..."
Daredevil vs. Nobu--Part 2
The fight scenes were awesome leading up to this real-time connection, but we do get some nice information here. We are treated to the start of the fight, and Nobu references the "Stick" episode, so we can see the bigger picture.
"The old fool has taught you in our ways."
There's a brief flash-away to a drunk Foggy and Karen that's almost not needed, but when we come back, we're finally at the point where that last flash-forward was. Nobu is dragging a cut up Daredevil across the floor by the hook.
It's gruesome, but DD manages a pretty swift dropkick that pushes Nobu into the wall, spilling gasoline, conveniently in barrels on the floor. Nobu knocks one of DD's new metal clubs out of his hand and into the light, causing sparks that catch Nobu on fire.
He continues to attack DD while on fire, but eventually dies.
End of story, right?
Daredevil "vs." Wilson Fisk
Enter Fisk, who used DD to kill Nobu for him. Talk about a Master of Puppets. He killed Cardenas to draw DD to Nobu, hoping they would kill each other.
They didn't.
Fisk absolutely decimates Daredevil, but before he can have Wesley kill him, Daredevil leaps out the window into the water.
Fisk clobbers Daredevil, but we know how weak DD was. There will no doubt be another meeting. I feel as though this episode gave us two extra meetings though.
Two very surprising meetings.
Daredevil/Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson
The show still isn't over.
Foggy shows up at Matt's, and he hears something crash inside. Foggy breaks in and finds the mask on the floor, near dead. Foggy dials 911, but ultimately changes his mind.
He unmasks the Mask, to find his friend, a blind guy, as the Devil of Hell's Kitchen.
So fabulous. Foggy is the one character that can't really stand the Devil, so this could get interesting. In an episode built on a fight scene, this show was so brilliantly constructed via these character relationships.
This is one of my favorites, and leads us to a really interesting Episode 10. Where the hell does this relationship go from here, and what about Murdock. Sheesh, he got his ass kicked again.
When has a Superhero ever been treated with such reality?
Onto the next.
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