No one is ever truly "gone" on comic book pages, no matter how dire the situation might seem. Just take a look at Gwen Stacy; she died for good all the way back in 1973, and that status quo mostly remained unchanged throughout all these years... until Marvel announced she'll be back as a cold-blooded assassin. However, not every comeback is for the worse. Beloved characters such as Spider-Man or Foggy Nelson seemingly met their end in a specific comic book only to make a big appearance a few issues down the line. Furthermore, we've seen the exact same scenario play out multiple times in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Phil Coulsson, Groot, Nick Fury, and many more heroes have "died" on-screen only for them to be back one way or another in subsequent projects. However, some characters have fates way more complicated than death, such as being sidelined due to studio politics. Daredevil is the perfect example since he was the star of his own Netflix show thanks to a deal between the streaming giant and Disney. However, once the deal was over, the hero's future remained unclear for many years, which prompted a whole campaign to bring him back. But just when fans thought they'd see no more of the Man Without Fear, he made a surprising return in Spider-Man: No Way Home and eventually starred on his own show in the form of Daredevil: Born Again.
Now, we're in the era of comebacks, as Matt, Kingpin, and the Punisher have the spotlight to their own yet again. But the best part? It looks like this is only the beginning.
Karen Page will reportedly be a series regular in Daredevil: Born Again season 2
According to industry insider The Beyond Reporter, Karven Page will appear in "almost every episode" of the second season of Daredevil: Born Again. The report comes as a huge relief for fans who wanted to see more of her on the revival show, only to discover that she only appeared during the first and last episodes. While it might've been very disappointing to see so little of her (a sentiment that I also share), it's exciting to know that such a mistake will be rectified moving forward.
It's worth remembering that Karen wasn't even supposed to be a part of Daredevil: Born Again. The original version of the show didn't include her or Foggy Nelson at all. To make matters worse, the role of Vanessa Fisk was originally recast ahead of filming. It was only after a creative reboot mid-production that a new team (led by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead) decided to follow up on the Netflix adaptation by continuing its story and bringing back some of its characters. However, a lot of material was already filmed beforehand, and most had to be used for the final version of Daredevil: Born Again. Only episodes 1, 8, and 9 have been made entirely from scratch by the new team, which explains why Karen appeared only on two of those episodes and was absent throughout the rest of the series.
Fortunately, Daredevil: Born Again season 2 is looking to rectify some of the mistakes of this current season. Brad Winderbaum, Head of Streaming, Television, and Animation at Marvel Studios, has confirmed that both Karen Page and (shockingly) Foggy Nelson will return in the next batch of episodes. Whether the latter makes an appearance in flashbacks or managed to survive being shot remains to be seen (though our money is on the latter, as an easter egg kind of confirms it). However, it's clear that Marvel is making an attempt to follow up the Netflix adaptation now instead of simply ignoring it.
Karen's absence has definitely been felt throughout the entirety of Daredevil: Born Again. While the series tried to introduce new secondary characters to fill in the void, it isn't an exaggeration to say it has failed big time. We all know Matt's former friends can't simply be replaced. They already had a big fan base that waited years to see them back again. But while it's unfortunate that the first batch of episodes didn't deliver on that promise, it's nice to know that we won't have to wait long until the day Karen steals the spotlight yet again. Please, season 2, make things right.
Daredevil: Born Again is available to stream on Disney Plus.