Daredevil: Born Again Season Finale Review | Kingpin reborn

Brutal violence, characters reclaiming their true natures for good and evil, and an emotional return that shines a light on what was missing early in the season turn the Daredevil: Born Again Season Finale into a success, for the most part.

Daredevil: Born Again Season Finale Overview

Aaron Moorhead, Justin Benson, and writers Heather Bellson and Dario Scardapane follow up the shooting that closed out the fantastic penultimate episode with a finale that finds Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk rediscovering their true natures. In many ways, it feels like the shooting jars them both awake.

The story in the finale is simple. Fisk looks to capitalize on Benjamin Poindexter’s (Wilson Bethel) failed assassination attempt. Matt tries to recuperate at the hospital with Kirsten and Heather at his side. Matt makes the tragic mistake of saying Karen’s name, which doesn’t help convince either woman that Matt’s seeing things clearly when it comes to blaming Fisk.

Fisk’s form of thanks to Matt is to send Buck out to kill him under the guise of succumbing to wounds. Matt escapes to his apartment, where he and Frank Castle get ready to face Fisk’s anti-vigilante task force.

While the Netflix series is known for its brutality, Daredevil: Born Again Season Finale surpasses it. The fight sequence pitting Daredevil and Punisher against the force is fantastic. Benson and Moorhead’s choice to use slo-mo to emphasize Punisher’s brutality, then filming Daredevil at normal speed, is fantastic. Kingpin also deals a head-smashing blow that surpasses his car door decapitation from season 1 of Daredevil.

The season finale’s most tremendous success is in making Kingpin the king of New York and the return of Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll). Page knows Matt better than any living person. There’s a depth to their scenes that’s sadly lacking in the female supporting characters.

The main issue with the finale is the escalation to martial law, Kingpin being the ultimate villain and the reveal of Foggy’s secret is too much. While the creative team has righted the ship in many ways, there’s no denying the Fisk-Vanessa relationship changed dramatically. While Kingpin’s final blow does land solidly, a comic book wonkiness prevents Kingpin’s rise and the finale from being a knockout.

Daredevil: Born Again is streaming on Disney Plus.

Avocados at Law

Daredevil and Punisher defeat the initial wave of corrupt cops. However, an ill-timed grenade forces them to take a rough exit out of Matt’s destroyed apartment.

As the vigilantes squabble, a car pulls in the distance. Karen returns in Daredevil: Born Again Season Finale. She is the one who called Frank to assist. The trio forms an uneasy love triangle of sorts. Neither are great at sharing feelings. However, it’s clear Frank likes Karen. Karen likes Matt. The chemistry between Jon Bernthal, Charlie Cox and Woll is just tremendous.

Matt reveals Vanessa hired Poindexter to kill Foggy. Unlike Heather, Karen believes in Matt without hesitation, even with everything that’s happened. They head off to a storage unit.

Since Matt can’t see, Karen begins going through boxes. She comes across one full of mementos from their old office. One of the items is the old Avocados at Law nameplate. Matt reveals the phrase’s origin and discovers a connection between Vanessa and Foggy.

The port Fisk is looking to revamp is a free port, which means any illicit activity can take place there. Foggy’s defendant was caught in this area. He planned to use this information to get his client off.

Matt and Karen head to the port. Karen can talk Matt off of attacking as a one-man band. Matt concedes he needs an army of his own. After another pep talk from Karen, Matt summons a crew of cops and regular people ready to stand up to Fisk.

Safer Streets Initiative in Daredevil Born Again Season Finale

Following the assassination attempt, Fisk puts the pedal down on his Safer Streets Initiative. Through Daniel Blake (Michael Gandolfini), Fisk blackmails the city council to push the project forward. Gandolfini gives a glimpse of his father for the first time in the series.

After removing one opposing force, Fisk moves on to the people in his administration. He ordered Sheila to send every disloyal employee home. Gallo (Michael Gaston), one of Fisk’s only remaining threats, tries to appeal to Sheila for support. He wants to reveal all of Fisk’s activities to the Governor. Sheila tells the message to Fisk.

In a gruesome scene, Fisk squishes Gallo’s head like a watermelon and then almost smiles gleefully.

Fisk ends the episode with a speech to the people of New York. He’s laying down the law. Vigilantism is illegal, curfew in NYC is set for 8 p.m. and martial law is the rule of law under the guise of safety.

Wannabe Punishers

The streets are running with corrupt cops. To catch Murdock, Fisk orders the power cut to a portion of the city. In darkness, chaos begins. Some residents start riots and break into storefronts. However, cops can also use an anti-vigilante mindset to their advantage.

One cop shoots an unarmed young man. Another cop opposes him. The corrupt cop covers the dead young man’s face with his hat and calls him a vigilante. Fisk’s law gives corrupt cops the perfect opportunity to abuse their power.

After Matt and Karen leave, Frank decides to initiate a one-man assault on the port. He takes a few corrupt cops posing as Punisher out, but can’t overcome the superior numbers. Officer Powell admires Punisher’s brutality. Using his particular vernacular, Punisher calls them soft, poor imitations who couldn’t possibly understand what drives him. I don’t love Frank walking into an unwinnable scenario.

However, the season ultimately ends with Frank on top. Frank ends up captured in a cage under Fisk’s compound with other people who oppose Kingpin’s initiative. However, a moronic guard gets too close and Frank breaks free to the end the season.

Daredevil: Born Again Season Finale Final Thoughts

While there were some bumpy moments throughout the season and in the finale, the new creative team succeeded in righting the ship by putting Matt and Fisk in their proper positions. Fisk has all the power he wants. Matt must become a hero for the people. The return of Karen and Frank is another positive aspect.

A massive jump in stakes in the finale doesn’t feel earned. The switch from Mayor Fisk to Mayor Kingpin is lightning fast and needed more development throughout the season.

However, the action sequence and Karen’s return are enough to make the season finale great.

Liked it? Take a second to support Chris Lee on Patreon!