‘Daredevil’: Binge-Worthy for Marvel Super Fans

By Nicole Fiorica

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

Courtesy of Netflix

“Marvel’s Daredevil” was not the most hyped release during the spring TV season, but the new Netflix project — the first of several anticipated collaborations with Marvel — still succeeded in wowing viewers and critics with its intriguing story and characters.

For those unfamiliar with the original comic, “Daredevil” is about Matthew Murdock (Charlie Cox, Stardust), a lawyer who was blinded by radioactive chemicals as a young boy. In true Marvel fashion, he develops heightened senses that allow him to hear or detect things that no ordinary man could, and he uses these abilities to fight crime in Hell’s Kitchen, which has gone downhill since it was destroyed in an incident a year prior (implied to be after the events in The Avengers, although no substantial knowledge of the Marvel universe is needed to watch “Daredevil”).

The show is weirdly specific about staying within the parameters of Hell’s Kitchen, despite the fact that it only comprises about twenty Manhattan blocks. Still, the setting serves as a great starting point for the dark and grim world of crime in which Matt becomes entangled as the show progresses. Far from the glossy costumes that make the “Avengers” famous, Matt simply dons black clothes and a black mask when he takes to the streets, fighting with nothing but his fists. The result is that he spends about 90 percent of the show covered in bruises, and his ability to recover from fight after fight is a feat in itself.

Matt’s main adversary is crime boss Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio, “Law & Order: Criminal Intent”), who is probably the best character on the show. Characterized principally by his humanity, Fisk is eerily compelling when he isn’t a terrifying maniac, and it’s no coincidence that both Matt and Fisk seem to struggle with similar demons. The rest of the supporting cast is also easily lovable, but would be even better with more development. Matt’s partner Foggy Nelson and their assistant Karen Page are a fun, well-coordinated duo, although Karen could have easily carried a more complex plotline than what she received. Meanwhile, Fisk’s assistant Wesley and his love-interest Vanessa beg for deeper motives as they embody many of the show’s more sinister undertones.

Overall a source of tremendous enjoyment, the straight-shooting plot makes “Daredevil” almost too easily binge-able, considering Netflix probably won’t have more episodes for at least another year. Thankfully, it’s the kind of show you could just as easily watch several times over.

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