Matt Murdock’s Action-Packed MCU Return Still Tries To Do Too Much

The MCU has been on shaky footing for a while now. While the franchise has seen recent success with standout shows like Wonder Man and has both Avengers: Doomsday and Spider-Man: Brand New Day up next on the docket, the ultimate disappointment of a post-Endgame world is hard to deny. When I first reviewed Season 1 of Daredevil: Born Again, it was clear that the series was still finding its footing, trying to calculate the best balance between the past glories of the Netflix Marvel days and the current franchise’s agenda. It was a problem that ultimately hindered the series, but now in its sophomore season, Daredevil: Born Again is finally on solid ground.

Season 2’s fight scenes are tighter and better shot, the storylines dig past just the surface level, and the series is unafraid to lean into the more thorny issues plaguing New York in a world where Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) has ultimate power over the city that never sleeps. However, that doesn’t mean Season 2 of the Disney+ series is perfect. Although Daredevil: Born Again has corrected some of its biggest mistakes, more issues have sprung up in their place that largely all stem from the season feeling a little too jam-packed as it tries to tackle several concurrent storylines that are all meant to eventually lead back to the same conclusion.

‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Season 2 Finally Puts Action Back in the Spotlight

What shines the most in Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 is the fact that action not only takes a front seat, but also sees nearly every fight sequence filmed in a way that highlights the performers and the stunt work, with no more foggy rooms or darkly lit warehouses to obscure what’s happening. It doubles as a reminder of just how superhuman Charlie Cox‘s Matt Murdock can be when he dons the Daredevil costume — not just because he has superhuman hearing, but because his movements are so lightning-fast and dynamic that any fight scenes demand your full attention.

This is contrasted with D’Onofrio’s hulking Wilson Fisk, who is more battering ram than human being for any of the fight sequences he is in, demonstrating a horrific strength and power that speaks volumes more than any of his monologues, which are beginning to feel tiresome rather than impactful. Similarly, distinct fighting styles can be seen in both Wilson Bethel‘s precise Bullseye and Krysten Ritter‘s brawling Jessica Jones. Even Tony Dalton‘s brief appearance as the Swordsman offers an exciting new moment of him wielding a rebar like a foil in a fencing duel. It’s something that sets the series apart from the recent Marvel fare, and Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 offers a visual feast for those longing for more action-packed superhero content.

Notably, Bethel’s return as Benjamin Poindexter, a.k.a. Bullseye, is a highlight of the season. Not only does the show lean more into exploring Bullseye’s own personal philosophy and how it butts up against Matt’s, but, as a character with one of the most satisfying abilities, it’s incredibly entertaining to see just how creative this antagonist is with his permanently accurate aim. It’s enough to make us long for a standalone Bullseye show as Daredevil: Born Again brings him back into the spotlight.

‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Season 2’s Achilles’ Heel Is Its Romances

Season 2’s worst trait, unfortunately, is a problem that was already rooted in Season 1. Romance has never been Daredevil: Born Again‘s strong suit, and the lack of dedication to these storylines makes them come off as somewhat boring, as the series flanderizes every relationship, robbing them of the nuance they need. When Season 2 kicks off, Matt is officially back together with Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll), but at the core of this rather sweet relationship is a fundamental problem.

Matt, who is ruled by his religious upbringing and legal ethics, will never kill any of his enemies, no matter how bad they are. Sure, Bullseye killed his best friend, and Fisk is plunging the city into a fascist state of constant terror, but that doesn’t mean he can be judge, jury, and executioner. However, Karen, influenced both by her own past and Frank Castle’s (Jon Bernthal) beliefs, disagrees, insisting there are some people who should die and deserve to. Season 2 recognizes this problem but is unwilling to address it in meaningful ways, ultimately leaning on the answer that, at the end of the day, love should prevail over individual personal beliefs.

This isn’t just something that Matt and Karen suffer from; Fisk and Vanessa (Ayelet Zurer) have this same problem to a much smaller extent, but their issues stem from an even worse, spoilery trope that completely decimates Fisk’s character. BB Urich (Genneya Walton) and Daniel Blake (Michael Gandolfini) also suffer from a fundamental difference of opinion when it comes to Fisk, one that is never truly addressed, even at the climax of their storyline.

‘Daredevil: Born Again’ Has a Lot To Tackle in Season 2 — Maybe Too Much

The reason why there’s no time to explore the personal relationships between these characters is that there’s simply not enough time in Daredevil: Born Again Season 2. Perhaps in the days when TV seasons were 22 episodes, a show could explore multiple romantic storylines, bring back memorable characters, and take on several subplots without feeling overwhelming — but the show has too much to tackle in only eight episodes. One of the season’s biggest problems is that Fisk has unfortunately become cartoonishly evil as a result of constantly upping the stakes to a level where even D’Onofrio’s skill as an actor can’t overshadow the narrative’s shortcomings.

Viewers might also find that some of Daredevil: Born Again‘s storylines feel a little too close for comfort, specifically Fisk’s new Anti-Vigilante Task Force, which is a major part of the season. Under his new “Safer Streets” act, a group of thugs in Kevlar branded with the Punisher’s symbol can essentially charge into any home, any business, and snatch up whoever doesn’t agree with them. Those victims get tossed into a black van and disappear to a place where they are forced to sit in cages while awaiting an unknown form of “justice.” The parallels of Fisk’s administration to the U.S.’s current state of affairs have always been unsubtle. For those who feel hopeless and helpless in these times, Daredevil: Born Again Season 2’s approach to this story might just be too much to handle.

The fact is, there are no Matt Murdocks or superheroes to come in and save the day for us, and likening Fisk to the lawmakers who are directly responsible for real people’s suffering is unsavory. At the end of the day, Fisk is meant to be the villain, but not one who is outright completely evil like the show wants us to believe. Yes, he’s ambitious, power-hungry, obsessive, and he hates Daredevil — but, as Matt recognizes, he cares about New York, he does care about the people, and he dearly loves his wife. Daredevil: Born Again can’t balance these truths about Fisk with his villainy, not without feeling disingenuous or putting cracks in their real-life parallels.

Are ‘Daredevil: Born Again’s Season 2 Flaws Enough To Outweigh Its Improvements?

While Season 2 gains momentum toward the finale, culminating in a heart-pounding, action-packed conclusion, the path it takes to that point is inconsistent. It’s hard not to wonder if a 10 or 13-episode season would have evened out the bumps in pacing. Daredevil: Born Again spends a good amount of time setting up storylines for the future, which has often been an issue with most MCU projects, and that ultimately eats into the current storyline.

Characters like Karen and Vanessa get shunted permanently into wives-and-girlfriends territory without their own storylines or motivations. However, the series gives an unnecessarily large amount of screentime to Margarita Levieva‘s Heather Glenn, who is unfortunately more grating this season than ever before, with Daredevil: Born Again clearly hinting at a larger role for her in the future. In the same vein of setting things up, Season 2 refuses to fully throw Jessica Jones into Matt’s fight. Now a mother to her daughter Danielle (fathered by Mike Colter‘s Luke Cage), Jessica’s entire identity revolves around motherhood. It’s an exhausting trope and a convenient storytelling device that is seemingly resolved by the end of the season, once again suggesting that there’s more story to tell for her.

Ultimately, Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 is a far, far better showing than Season 1. Matt’s personal conflict, his relationship with his Catholicism, and his desire for justice and peace are all on display, a reminder of the Netflix Marvel days when Daredevil contained the multitudes of a brooding hero. However, the rest of the show is still a step behind. Its treatment of its supporting characters (most of them female) is severely lackluster, its runtime could use a serious increase, and the writing team has bitten off more than they can chew with Fisk’s new police state storyline. Despite all of that, it’s hard to deny that when Daredevil: Born Again is good, it’s very good. In the moments when the action hits, the writing is solid, and the performances shine, it’s firing on all cylinders. The problem is consistency, and it doesn’t feel like the Disney+ show has a full grasp on that just yet.