Daredevil Season 3 Episode 4 Review: Blindsided

This Daredevil review contains spoilers. This article comes from Den of Geek UK.

Daredevil Season 3 Episode 4

It’s the obligatory Marvel Netflix Impressive Fight Scene, as pioneered by the original season of Daredevil. In this case, however, it’s attached to perhaps one of the most tense and engaging stories yet as Matt infiltrates a prison only to find it overrun with the Kingpin’s men, then has to survive long enough to get out.

further reading: How the Daredevil Season 3 Prison Fight Scene Came Together

Driving Matt’s determination is his desire to see what Fisk is up to, and it seems like he dramatically underestimated the extent of his foe’s power. A scene where Matt is taken, seemingly benevolently, into a Doctor’s office only ramps the tension up from “Will anyone realise I’m using Foggy Nelson’s fake ID?” to “Will I get out of this alive?” with a masterful turn. We’re so busy worrying about one thing that we don’t notice the other creeping up around us.

Of course, the 10-minute one-take sequence is breathtaking on a technical level, but what makes it work is that we care whether Matt succeeds, and know what’s at stake if he doesn’t. It’s exciting and chaotic and completely successful on every level, and it’s the sort of thing that these Netflix shows benefit from: the ability to be a little more ambitious than your standard network show. If you’ve ever caught the Cambodian martial arts drama Jailbreak on Netflix, it reminded me of that.

After this extended sequence the episode sort of trails off a bit. This should either have been the whole episode, or at least the very end of it. Matt spending time passed out in a cab for the back half does lead into a decent cliffhanger, but the intervening scenes come off a little piecemeal.

Now, I admit that Foggy trying to convince the cops to support him in a run for DA might be a good moment for him, but it isn’t QUITE the height of the first section. Likewise, Karen pulling a gun on some catcallers does illustrate that she’s extremely frayed and subtly remind us that she’s got a pro-Punisher agenda with a history of murdering supporting characters. You don’t have to be a genius to see that we’ll probably get the resolution to Karen’s murder of Wesley and her long-teased backstory this season.

further reading: Daredevil Season 3 Ending Explained

Speaking of Karen, I do find Mitch’s position quite defensible here. He’s trying to run a newspaper with journalistic standards and Karen’s trying to muscle in with her extremely compromised view of Fisk. Admittedly, as the audience we know she’s correct but having an impartial journalist on the case can only make Fisk look guiltier. I feel for the guy.

Nadeem, though? His life is coming apart at the seams as his wife and son move out, understandably terrified of him being murdered by Fisk or someone trying to get to him. Likewise, Fisk covers for Dex so that he isn’t investigated for his extremely accurate murdering. Whatever happens next, it’s clear that the FBI is vulnerable to manipulation. And if Captain America: The Winter Soldier taught us anything, it’s that costumed vigilantes are a preferable alternative to easily-corrupted institutions.

further reading: Complete Guide to Marvel Comics Easter Eggs and References in Daredevil Season 3

Comics wise, the only real reference here is Matt being sent into the river in a taxi, which is a scene you’ll find in the classic Daredevil story, Born Again, on which much of this season is based –although Foggy running for DA has also happened in the comics a couple of times (unsuccessfully). Unlike Foggy, Matt has been an assistant to the DA but I don’t think he’s ever run himself.

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