Daredevil: Born Again Kills Its Past to Forge a Brutal New Future

Introduction: A New Devil Rises

🛑 SPOILER WARNING: This review contains spoilers for the first two episodes of Daredevil: Born Again. If you haven’t watched yet and want to go in blind (heh), turn back now. Otherwise, let’s talk about how this show just blew up everything we thought we knew about Daredevil.

Daredevil: Born Again doesn’t tiptoe into the room. It doesn’t ease you in with a nostalgic hug. No, this show kicks the door down, grabs your heart in its bare hands, and crushes it like Wilson Fisk testing his grip strength.

In just two episodes, Born Again makes one thing abundantly clear: this isn’t the Daredevil you remember. It doesn’t just tweak Matt Murdock’s story—it burns the past to the ground. Foggy? Gone. Karen? Missing. Daredevil himself? Retired. Even the color grading reminds us that this is a world stripped of warmth, flickering between the cold blues of Fisk and the fiery hues of Matt’s unraveling rage.

At least we got the original great costume!

This is a bold new take on Daredevil. The question is—does it work?

Foggy is Gone—And So Is the Heart of the Show

Foggy Nelson wasn’t just Matt Murdock’s best friend. He was his anchor. The voice of reason when Matt got lost in his own darkness. The balance between the man and the mask. And now? He’s gone. Brutally. Permanently.

Killing off Foggy in the first episode wasn’t just a shock—it was a gut-punch. One of those rare TV moments where you sit there, stunned, while the weight of it settles in. It hit hard. It even made my wife cry. And love it or hate it, you have to admit—it meant something.

The decision is controversial for a reason. Foggy was more than comic relief or a sidekick; he was part of what made Daredevil work. Without him, Matt doesn’t just lose a friend—he loses his last tether to normalcy.

And while the new female partner, Kristen McDuffie, steps in to give Matt a legal-world sounding board, it’s not the same. She’s a replacement, not a continuation. That’s not necessarily bad, but it changes the dynamic. Where Foggy brought warmth and brotherhood, McDuffie brings sharp intelligence and a different kind of chemistry. It keeps the legal aspect alive (which is crucial—Daredevil is a lawyer first, vigilante second), but there’s an undeniable void where Foggy used to be.

Karen’s absence adds to that void. Where is she? Why isn’t she here, mourning her best friend? Her sudden disappearance feels off, and unless we get a satisfying answer later, it risks feeling like a loose thread instead of a deliberate choice.

So, was it worth it? Did Daredevil: Born Again need to kill Foggy to make its point? Maybe. It’s a hell of a statement. But it also leaves us with a Daredevil that feels more isolated than ever. And that’s the real question—can Matt Murdock survive losing the people who made him who he is?

Watch me and CJ talk about these two episodes over on CJ’s channel CJack Productions!

A New Lens on Matt Murdock

Matt Murdock has always been a man trapped between two worlds—the lawyer and the vigilante, the saint and the sinner, the man of faith and the devil of Hell’s Kitchen. Daredevil: Born Again leans into this struggle harder than ever, and it does so with some damn smart filmmaking choices.

One of the things I love about this show is how it visually reinforces Matt’s emotional state. When the focus is on him, the colors run warm—reds, oranges, the kind of hues that feel like they belong to someone constantly teetering on the edge of fire and fury. But when we cut to Fisk? Cool tones. Blues and grays. A world of control, calculation, and cold-blooded power. It’s subtle but effective—just enough to keep the audience feeling the tension between these two men without clubbing us over the head with it.

Matt’s world is colorgraded with this orange a lot of the time.

And then there’s the way the show leans into Matt’s blindness and his heightened senses in ways we haven’t quite seen before. The sound design is one of the biggest standouts here. We hear the world the way Matt does—layers of small noises amplified, heartbeats pounding in his ears. Some people have complained about the “sound effects” being a little too much, but let’s be real—we’re all watching this while scrolling our phones or cooking dinner. If a quick auditory cue keeps the audience engaged in Matt’s perspective, I say that’s a smart move.

Then, of course, there’s the gut-wrenching scene during the fight with Bullseye. Matt doesn’t just hear Foggy’s heart stop—he hears the exact second his best friend dies. And we hear it too. It’s a brilliant storytelling moment, one that forces us to experience the moment the way Matt does: helpless, devastated, and seconds away from unleashing the kind of rage he’s spent years trying to suppress.

The show is doing something incredibly effective here—it’s forcing us to feel Matt’s loss, not just through dialogue or plot, but through the way the world is framed around him. The warm hues of his past are burning out. The sounds of his world are turning from precision to chaos. He’s alone, and it’s not just something we’re told—it’s something we experience.

And that’s what makes Born Again so compelling. It’s not just telling us Daredevil is broken—it’s making sure we feel it.

The Brutality Factor: Has Daredevil Gone Too Far?

Daredevil has always been a brutal character. He’s not Spider-Man, swinging in with quips and webbing up bad guys for the cops. He’s not Captain America, fighting with honor and restraint. Matt Murdock has always walked the line between justice and vengeance, and Born Again is pushing that line harder than ever.

The fights in this show? Absolutely savage.

Take the Bullseye fight, for example. It’s the kind of knock-down, drag-out brawl that Daredevil fans live for—fast, visceral, full of desperate energy. But what makes it hit even harder is that midway through the fight, Matt hears Foggy’s heart stop. That’s the moment something breaks inside him. Suddenly, this isn’t a fight anymore—it’s an execution waiting to happen. You can feel the shift in his body language, the sheer violence in his strikes.

But that was just the warm-up.

Episode 2 cranks up the brutality even more when Matt takes on the corrupt cops. This is not the precision fighter we saw in Season 1 of Netflix’s Daredevil, methodically dismantling opponents. This is a man ripping through people in rage, and it’s messy. It’s ugly. It’s hard to watch. And that’s the point.

By the time the fight is over, Matt is literally screaming in frustration. This isn’t heroism—this is a man spiraling. And it leaves us asking the question: has Daredevil finally lost control?

From a cinematography perspective, the scene is masterful. The lighting, the camera work—it puts us right in the chaos, making us feel the weight of every punch. But from a character perspective? This is dangerous territory.

Because if Matt Murdock lets himself slip too far, if he lets himself become the thing he fights, then Daredevil dies, no matter how many times he puts the mask back on.

And right now, it sure as hell looks like he's standing at the edge.

The He-Man Parallel—Does It Work Here?

We’ve seen this before. A long-awaited revival of a beloved character, only for the show to rip that character away almost immediately, leaving fans wondering what the hell they just signed up for. He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Revelation did it, sidelining He-Man right out of the gate and making the story about everyone except him. It wasn’t just controversial—it was a bait-and-switch that left a lot of fans feeling burned.

So, is Daredevil: Born Again doing the same thing?

On the surface, it might seem that way. We get one incredible Daredevil fight, and then—boom—he’s done. Hanging up the suit. Calling it quits. It’s a gut punch for fans who waited years to see Matt Murdock back in action, only for the show to seemingly say, nope, that’s not what we’re doing here.

But here’s the difference: Born Again isn’t erasing Daredevil. It’s breaking him down to rebuild him.

Matt’s decision to walk away isn’t arbitrary—it’s the fallout of Foggy’s death, his growing rage, and the realization that he might not be able to stop himself anymore. He’s not being sidelined for another character to take the spotlight—this is still his story. But it’s about how he comes back from this, not just whether he can punch his way through the pain.

Unlike He-Man, which left many fans feeling like they had been promised one thing and delivered another, Born Again lays out its premise clearly: this is the darkest chapter in Matt Murdock’s life. The show is making a calculated gamble—that audiences will stay invested in his journey, even if that means spending some time in the trenches with him first.

The real question is: will it work?

If the show keeps Matt sidelined for too long, or if his return doesn’t feel earned, then yeah, it’s going to frustrate fans. But right now? It feels like the show is setting up something bigger. Something that will make his eventual comeback feel legendary.

And if they pull it off? Born Again won’t be another He-Man misfire. It’ll be one of the boldest Daredevil stories ever told.

What This Means for the MCU and Daredevil's Future

For years, Daredevil has existed on the fringes of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sure, Matt Murdock showed up in Spider-Man: No Way Home. He had a cameo in She-Hulk. But those felt like nods, Easter eggs—ways to acknowledge his existence without fully committing to integrating him into the bigger Marvel sandbox.

But Born Again? This is different.

The first two episodes waste no time tying Daredevil to the larger MCU. We get direct references to Spider-Man, Punisher, and the fallout of past events. The show isn’t just acknowledging the wider Marvel world—it’s actively weaving Daredevil into it in a way that wasn’t possible in the Netflix era.

And that opens the door to something huge.

For the first time, we’re not just watching a Daredevil show—we’re watching the Daredevil of the MCU. The version that can (and probably will) cross paths with other major heroes. The version that could one day stand next to Spider-Man in a way that feels natural, not like a cool “what if.”

But it also raises questions.

This show is dark. It’s violent, brooding, and emotionally raw. That’s what makes Daredevil great, but it’s also a stark contrast to the usual MCU formula. Can Marvel keep this edge while still making Daredevil fit within the broader universe? Or will there be a push to soften him for the sake of future crossovers?

And what about Fisk?

How casually Fisk threatens the police commissioner shows that this is still the Kingpin.

Wilson Fisk is positioning himself for a massive power move—his bid for mayor is just the beginning. With the Kingpin now cemented in the MCU, this is bigger than Daredevil. Fisk’s influence can stretch across the entire Marvel street-level roster. Imagine him clashing with Spider-Man. Imagine him manipulating the Punisher. Imagine him sitting in a high-rise office, controlling the city from behind the scenes while superheroes scramble to figure out how to stop him.

Born Again isn’t just a Daredevil reboot. It’s a declaration. A signal that Marvel is finally ready to pull these characters into the main stage.

The question is: are they willing to go all the way?

Because if they are? This isn’t just Daredevil’s future we’re watching unfold.

It’s the future of the MCU itself.

Conclusion: A Bold New Path, But At What Cost?

Daredevil: Born Again isn’t interested in playing it safe. It doesn’t just shake up the status quo—it obliterates it. Foggy is dead. Karen is gone. Matt Murdock is spiraling. And the Daredevil we thought we were getting? Retired.

This is a bold, brutal, and unapologetic reinvention of the character. And whether you love it or hate it, you have to admit—it’s got guts.

The real question is: can it stick the landing?

Killing off Foggy was a risk. If handled well, it could be the emotional catalyst that makes Born Again one of the most powerful stories in Daredevil’s history. If not? It’s just shock value. Likewise, Matt’s descent into darkness is gripping—but only if we get to see him claw his way back in a way that feels earned.

And then there’s the bigger picture. This show is planting Daredevil firmly in the MCU. It’s putting Kingpin on a path to major political power. It’s making big, irreversible choices. And that’s exciting. But it also means Marvel has to commit. They have to let Daredevil be Daredevil—brutal, conflicted, full of Catholic guilt and bad decisions.

Because if they try to pull their punches? If they get scared of going too dark? Then everything Born Again is building will crumble.

Right now, it feels like we’re watching the most daring Daredevil story in years. The only question left is: will it be worth it?

I, for one, can’t wait to find out.

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