Daredevil: Born Again - The Devils Finally Get Their Due

By John Kirk

Rating: A

In my opinion, Daredevil is one of the greatest stories ever told in a comic. And the television adaptation Daredevil: Born Again does it full justice.

At its comic-origins heart, is a multifaceted narrative. It’s a villain’s story of raw, directed rage fuelled by unrestricted criminal power. It’s a story of a classic hero/villain face-off. And it’s about a protagonist realizing both his limits and the cost of being a hero.

But it’s important to know the differences from the comic to appreciate the well-crafted storytelling behind this series. Here’s the comic synopsis:

Written by Frank Miller and drawn by David Mazzucchelli, the Daredevil: Reborn fstory arc begins with Karen Paige, Matt Murdoch’s ex-girlfriend now a strung-out junkie looking for a quick fix. She trades the only currency she has left: Daredevil’s secret identity.

This information goes up the ladder and reaches Wilson Fisk, aka the Kingpin. He tests the information and systematically destroys everything in Matt Murdoch’s life: his job, his credit rating, his mortgage, his home and reduces him to an impoverished, homeless state devoid of any sense of duty. He is broken and must begin a slow climb back towards redemption and well, rebirth.

The intense and dark eight-issue comic arc is a battle of identity reclamation for our hero and of course, the story focuses on him. But the Kingpin is one of the greatest villains of Marvel comics. And it’s not because of his super-strength but his ability to harness resources - great wealth and through stratagems and logistics – to defeat his enemies.

He is a simple character in concept, a selfish and narcissistic bully. But he’s definitely complicated in how he conceptualizes and executes his plans. This series has a greater focus on the villain.

The television adaptation is obviously a lot different, given the presence of the previous three seasons of this character. (Kingpin – played then and now by Vincent D'Onofrio - was the villainous linchpin, if you will, in the Daredevil series that ran on Netflix a decade ago. Consider this one an upgraded sequel).

But while the devil may be in the details, it still keeps to the spirit of the comic book original. Without giving too much away, in this series, we see an on-scale similar breakdown of Matt Murdoch’s character in poignant and significant ways.

Here’s a difference. Wilson Fisk, aka the Kingpin of Crime is already aware of Matt Murdoch’s (Charlie Cox) vigilante alter-ego – that was made abundantly clear in the preceding series, and means that the value of his identity is not the goal in Fisk’s plans.

But, and this is widely known to any fan of the previous Kingpin series, Fisk has undergone a similar transformation. He was beaten by Daredevil. He had to come to terms with that and it seems he is trying to do that by becoming Mayor of New York. Through service to the city, and a departure from his criminal background, perhaps he can find that change.

This is made known in the trailer. However, it’s clear that the main struggle in this series is that Fisk cannot have vigilantes running around his city. Yet, in the same spirit as the original story, this is something that Murdoch has already made peace with. He is broken, and all he has left is his pursuit of the law and his resolute belief in the system of justice.

Still, if the Kingpin tries to game the system, will the Daredevil who was the defender of Hell’s Kitchen return?

Of course, this is the draw and it’s one of fascination. We know that hero and villain must return to their identities, but it’s the way in which this happens that is the compulsion to watch. The high drama of the clash of identities, the rebuilding of personas and the adage that a tiger can never change its stripes is key to understanding how powerfully theatrical this story is. Like the comic, that has earned legendary status amongst readers, this series will find the same sort of attraction to fans and viewers of the show.

Speaking of tigers and vigilantes, the trailer also promises the return of other vigilantes Daredevil has run into in the past. We see White Tiger (Kamar de los Reyes, who succumbed to cancer since filming) and Punisher (Jon Bernthal), but if Fisk is so adamant against vigilantes in his city, then there is most certainly a suggestion that others will appear. That, in itself, is a key draw for fans.

But the key message in the original comic was the idea of a hero finally meeting his emotional and psychological limits, shattered beyond human extremes, and yet finding within himself the strength to go on. Comic fans are going to clearly see that in the show. But the television audience is going to see the struggle, imagined in a new way, for the first time. That should resonate strongly, particularly in this age when corruption seems to be a common currency for those who are pledged to serve the public.

Heroes aren’t heroes because they want to be … they’re heroes because they know the right thing to do. Villains are villains because they want to do what’s right for them, regardless of how wrong it is for others.

But it takes its toll. The cost of being a hero, standing up for others, the price of having a moral compass is high and that’s why we love stories about heroes and their struggles because we want and need them there.

The Kingpin is one of Marvel’s greatest villains. He has no superpowers, other than being stronger than average. He is gifted with a keen sense of logistics, resource management and the ability to inspire fear and loyalty in others. But he also knows the breaking points of his enemies. He knows where to inflict the maximum amount of damage to his enemies and this is what viewers will see.

Vincent D’Onforio IS definitively the Kingpin.

I can’t wait for Season Two.

Daredevil: Born Again – Season 1. Starring Charlie Cox, Vincent D’Onofrio, Margarita Levieva, Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, Wilson Bethel, Zabryna Guevara, Nikki M. James, Genneya Walton, Arty Froushan, Clark Johnson, Michael Gandolfini, with Ayelet Zurer and Jon Bernthal. Begins streaming on Disney+ on March 4.