‘Daredevil’ Season 3 Review: The Marvel Netflix Series Goes Back To The Basics
By Chris Evangelista/Oct. 12, 2018 7:00 am EST
The new season of Daredevil picks up after the events of The Defenders, and finds Matt Murdock in the midst of a spiritual and emotional crisis. The results are mixed. Can the Marvel Netflix show continue to thrive, or is it time to exorcise this series for good? Read our Daredevil season 3 review below.
What’s Going On In Daredevil Season 3?
Daredevil is back for an all-new season of Catholic guilt, hallway fights, and Vincent D’Onofrio stealing every scene he’s in. Daredevil season 3 serves as something of a soft-reboot – Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) was left for dead at the end of spin-off series The Defenders, and a good chunk of season 3 involves the character slowly working his way into being the Man Without Fear yet again.Matt has also distanced himself from his friends Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson) and Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll), realizing he can no longer keep them safe. As long as he’s Daredevil, their lives are in danger, so it’s better not to have friends at all.Meanwhile, Wilson Fisk (D’Onofrio), AKA the Kingpin, has plans of his own. He’s been incarcerated since the end of season 1, and he’s come up with an elaborate plan to rat out his criminal associates in exchange for some form of freedom. He strikes a deal with easily fooled agent Rahul “Ray” Nadeem (Jay Ali), and is removed from prison and placed into a fancy hotel.But Fisk has more up his white suit jacket sleeve than meets the eye. He’s personally coming after Matt Murdock, and to do so, he’s found a new recruit: FBI Agent Dex Poindexter (Wilson Bethel), a sociopath who has a knack for hitting every target he aims at (in other words, he’s the show’s version of Daredevil nemesis Bullseye). Fisk using Bullseye to target Daredevil and destroy his life is, in part, lifted straight from the ’80s Daredevil comic arc “Born Again”, written by Frank Miller, and drawn by David Mazzucchelli – but don’t expect an entirely faithful adaptation here.
Does Daredevil Season 3 Feature Appearances From Other Marvel Netflix Heroes?
It does not. Daredevil season 3 is the rare standalone season. So don’t expect Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist or even The Punisher to show up anytime soon. Regarding the possibility for crossovers in this season, new showrunner Erik Oleson said:
I wanted it to be standalone, I did not do crossovers this season. I wanted to really get back to these core characters and use the real estate to focus on who they are and really fleshed them out before I introduced external and other elements of the MCU, at least on the Netflix/Marvel side – I really wanted to get back to the core characters and tell a character-driven season. Is this a problem? I personally would’ve liked to see Frank Castle pop-in for a bit, because the character worked so well in Daredevil season 2. But it’s also nice to have a season of one of these shows try to stand on its own without worrying too much about which familiar face might pop up.
‘Daredevil’ Season 3 Review: The Marvel Netflix Series Goes Back To The Basics
By Chris Evangelista/Oct. 12, 2018 7:00 am EST
The new season of Daredevil picks up after the events of The Defenders, and finds Matt Murdock in the midst of a spiritual and emotional crisis. The results are mixed. Can the Marvel Netflix show continue to thrive, or is it time to exorcise this series for good? Read our Daredevil season 3 review below.
What’s Going On In Daredevil Season 3?
Daredevil is back for an all-new season of Catholic guilt, hallway fights, and Vincent D’Onofrio stealing every scene he’s in. Daredevil season 3 serves as something of a soft-reboot – Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) was left for dead at the end of spin-off series The Defenders, and a good chunk of season 3 involves the character slowly working his way into being the Man Without Fear yet again.Matt has also distanced himself from his friends Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson) and Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll), realizing he can no longer keep them safe. As long as he’s Daredevil, their lives are in danger, so it’s better not to have friends at all.Meanwhile, Wilson Fisk (D’Onofrio), AKA the Kingpin, has plans of his own. He’s been incarcerated since the end of season 1, and he’s come up with an elaborate plan to rat out his criminal associates in exchange for some form of freedom. He strikes a deal with easily fooled agent Rahul “Ray” Nadeem (Jay Ali), and is removed from prison and placed into a fancy hotel.But Fisk has more up his white suit jacket sleeve than meets the eye. He’s personally coming after Matt Murdock, and to do so, he’s found a new recruit: FBI Agent Dex Poindexter (Wilson Bethel), a sociopath who has a knack for hitting every target he aims at (in other words, he’s the show’s version of Daredevil nemesis Bullseye). Fisk using Bullseye to target Daredevil and destroy his life is, in part, lifted straight from the ’80s Daredevil comic arc “Born Again”, written by Frank Miller, and drawn by David Mazzucchelli – but don’t expect an entirely faithful adaptation here.
Does Daredevil Season 3 Feature Appearances From Other Marvel Netflix Heroes?
It does not. Daredevil season 3 is the rare standalone season. So don’t expect Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist or even The Punisher to show up anytime soon. Regarding the possibility for crossovers in this season, new showrunner Erik Oleson said:
I wanted it to be standalone, I did not do crossovers this season. I wanted to really get back to these core characters and use the real estate to focus on who they are and really fleshed them out before I introduced external and other elements of the MCU, at least on the Netflix/Marvel side – I really wanted to get back to the core characters and tell a character-driven season. Is this a problem? I personally would’ve liked to see Frank Castle pop-in for a bit, because the character worked so well in Daredevil season 2. But it’s also nice to have a season of one of these shows try to stand on its own without worrying too much about which familiar face might pop up.
Is this a problem? I personally would’ve liked to see Frank Castle pop-in for a bit, because the character worked so well in Daredevil season 2. But it’s also nice to have a season of one of these shows try to stand on its own without worrying too much about which familiar face might pop up.
