by The Cowl Editor on November 8, 2018
Arts & Entertainment
by: Julia Vaccarella ’20 A&E Staff
Despite Netflix’s recent announcement to cancel two series grounded in the characters of the Marvel Universe, [Luke Cage and Iron Fist], the streaming platform has released a third season of Marvel’s Daredevil that runs 13 episodes long. This came as a surprise to many, considering that just a few years ago, the reciprocity between Netflix subscribers and Marvel fans was growing extensively. In a review of the new season, Alin Sepinwall of Rolling Stone asserts that, “Canceling Fist and Cage on consecutive Fridays, coupled with the diminished buzz and praise for the whole franchise after Cage Season One, suggested the whole thing could go away without too many people objecting. But fans want to like these shows, if only they would be offered enough reason to beyond the characters themselves.”
In fact, much of the appeal for Marvel shows is based in the characters themselves, heroes and villains alike. The show stars Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock/Daredevil. The character is a blind lawyer who was presumed to be dead at the conclusion of the crossover series, The Defenders, but was subsequently found alive.
The premise of the new season returns its focus to Wilson Fisk, the primary villain from Season 1 who was largely absent from the plot of the show during the second season. Additionally, there are multiple subplots, from characters’ backstories to a second villain, that ultimately come together in this season.
The depth of the characters is reflected in their attachment to the city in which the show takes place: New York. Daredevil provides the most apparent display of this attachment, because his desire to rid the city of people like Wilson Fisk is the entire plot of the show itself.
However, this sentiment is also reflected in characters like Karen Page, who is a journalist for a newspaper in New York, and is dedicated to exposing the truth, even if it means risking her own life at times. The newest antagonist of Daredevil, Ben Poindexter, also convinces himself that his actions are justified, branding himself as an FBI agent intending to bring about justice, rather than accepting the killer that he comes to be.
Daredevil also provides an adequate balance between action and heartfelt emotion. Season 3 has received positive reception from fans regarding the final fight scene between Murdock, Fisk, and Poindexter. At the same time though, Murdock and Karen Page’s family issues from the past are incorporated into this season and undoubtedly influence their actions. Murdock’s former law partner, Foggy Nelson, also faces a dilemma that will affect his family, and such interactions make the show more realistic.
With Disney in the process of creating its own streaming service, the future of Marvel shows on Netflix remains unclear, but Daredevil certainly provides something for fans in the meantime.