Since the Netflix release of season two in March 2016, “Daredevil” fans have been eagerly awaiting the next chapter in this Marvel production. While the past two seasons have been filled with surprises and a painful turn of events, the latest season takes it to the next level.
After what felt like a lifetime, season three was finally released on Oct. 19 to the delight of the show’s followers. It’s worth the wait, but it’s nearly impossible not to binge all 13 episodes. Each episode ends with such a cliff-hanger that there’s no other choice but to hit “next episode.”
The new season focuses heavily on the FBI agents assigned to the horrendous kingpin of Hell’s Kitchen, Wilson Fisk—played by Vincent D’Onofrio—along with the corruption that lies within their agency due to Fisk’s overwhelming control of virtually everyone in the city. If viewers didn’t already despise Fisk, this season will definitely reinforce how awful of a character he truly is.
Viewers are introduced to many new faces during the season, but be wary—becoming too attached to new characters may lead to heartbreak. The amount of corruption and betrayal portrayed this season is brutal, even for a show as aggressive as “Daredevil.” Season three tests viewers and their ability to withstand all the plot twists, no matter how traumatic and unbelievable they are.
Everything Fisk does this season is beyond frustrating, especially when Matt Murdock—played by Charlie Cox—or “Daredevil” isn’t back to his complete self yet.
To start the season, Murdock seeks shelter in the basement of a church that he spent his days in as an orphan. He receives the assistance of one of the church’s sisters, the same sister who helped Murdock after the childhood accident that led to his blindness.
Murdock stays in the church because it is safe from Fisk’s wrath and because he has nowhere else to go after abandoning his only friends who thought he died.
The season also dedicated an entire episode to the heartbreaking backstory of Karen Page—played by Deborah Ann Woll. The episode is extremely sad, but it adds another dimension to the show’s emotional story.
This flashback of Page shows her dancing on tables at college parties, doing cocaine and selling drugs alongside her abusive boyfriend. She sells the drugs in order to help her father keep the family diner afloat, but being involved in such a lifestyle can never end well.
Page later drives her brother back home after a fight with her boyfriend, drunk and high, causing a car crash that kills her brother. This backstory helps viewers really connect with the character once they see where she started from and how she got to where she is at the time of the season.
This new season isn’t necessarily more violent or gory than the past two, but it is more emotionally draining. The main characters are forced to try to keep Hell’s Kitchen from succumbing to Fisk.
The season ends with a heartwarming scene between the main characters, but that doesn’t mean everything is resolved in the span of 13 episodes. There is still impending doom for everyone associated with Fisk, and not everyone from this season makes it out alive, providing less hope for season four.