There are many similarities between Netflix's Daredevil and Disney Plus' revival series Daredevil: Born Again. However, the latter goes out of its way to prove that it's a sequel series; not a fourth season to its predecessor. Things are new, things are different, and things are unique to this show, and it goes without saying that it is making for an equally gripping tale.
The show has officially welcomed Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk (along with their many beloved supporting characters) into the world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it has done so in convincing fashion. But it has also shown us what the next chapter of these characters' lives would look like, with Matt starting up a new firm and Fisk running for Mayor of New York City. But now, those new paths may be leading them back to their former selves.
With that in mind, let's dive into the sixth episode of Daredevil: Born Again, which proves to be a pivotal one for Matt, Fisk, and even the show's frightening new villain.
Two sides of the same coin
Matt reflects on the events of Daredevil: Born Again thus far, particularly Foggy's death and the corrupt cops, the death of Hector Ayala and the recent bank robbery he prevented. In doing so, he says a prayer, holding onto his memory card of Foggy. At the same time, Wilson Fisk enters his office to be confronted by Luca, a member of one of the crime families that Vanessa was overseeing. Fisk is unnerved by the office visit, representative of how his two lives are bleeding into each other. But that doesn't stop him from telling Luca that he must pay the $1 million retribution fee by the end of the week. Luca refuses and exits, knowing full well that Fisk can't risk retaliation in his new role.
Meanwhile, Heather and Matt share a moment, after which the former asks her partner his thoughts about her next book being on vigilantes. She wants to know what he thinks as he has represented some over the years and even suggests putting her in touch with The Punisher for an interview. Matt laughs it off because there is no way that Frank Castle would sit for an interview, so she suggests Daredevil as an alternative. And suddenly it feels like Matt's two lives are once again starting to bleed into each other, too.
The pair's two sides are set to continue to wrestle with each other as the discovery of a body near the docks tells everyone that there is a new villain in town. It's the Muse victim who we met in the previous episode; his body has been drained of blood. A mural cleaner then reports to Fisk that they discovered that the murals painted in New York are compiled of human blood. With that, the Mayor decides that Muse must be tracked down and stopped.
Hector Ayala's niece Angela visits Matt at Murdock McDuffie and tells him that her uncle had been investigating kidnappings as White Tiger before his death. She says that he would want someone else to complete that work to ensure that something was done about this and whoever was perpetrating them was stopped. Matt gets frustrated because he knows he could do something about it as Daredevil, but he's not that person anymore. Angela reminds him that the law didn't help Hector, and it won't help the people who went missing. She says she's going to take it upon herself to find out who's responsible for this.
The Police Commissioner updates Fisk on what they have found out about Muse, revealing that there have been at least 60 victims thus far. Muse is seemingly mixing the victims' blood with a solution to obtain the paint residue he needs for his murals. The Commissioner thinks that the public needs to know, but the Kingpin shoots that idea down, telling them that it could cause a panic, while also potentially resulting in Muse upping the ante if he found out that people were aware of his antics.
Speaking of Muse, he is painting another mural when two women approach him, asking if he is the artist Muse. Without a word, the "artist" attacks both of them, seemingly taking them away too.
Fisk and Vanessa begin to grow closer as they prepare to head out to an elite fundraiser. Fisk tells her that the key to success is finding out what someone wants and either give it to them or withhold it, and they will do anything. This is something he plans on putting into action when he attends the fundraiser, and he might need to, too, as there are a number of people there who aren't fond of him. That includes a socialite woman who tells him that the port project he's working on is self-serving.
We also catch up with another familiar face from the MCU in Jack Duquesne, a.k.a. Swordsman (with Hawkeye's Tony Dalton reprising the role). He isn't a fan of Fisk either, telling the mayor that it wouldn't be wise to mess with the wrong people, as one call could result in him going "bye bye". Fisk asks if it's a warning, but Jack dresses up his response with a smile to keep things civil.
The Devil of Hell's Kitchen returns
Fisk continues to spiral, putting together an Anti-Vigilante Task Force to deal with Muse, selecting every corrupt cop in the city who isn't afraid to use excessive force. The commissioner doesn't agree with him but his hands are tied - especially after the bodies of the two women that Muse killed surface.
Meanwhile, Angela Ayala decides to pick up where her uncle left off in tracking down Muse, but as she ventures through the the abandoned subway tunnels, she hears something off in the distance. Shortly afterwards, Matt Murdock gets a call from her mother; Angela hasn't returned home and she doesn't know who else to call. For a moment, Matt contemplates calling the police, even dialling 911, but he quickly changes his mind. With a single "f*ck it", he suits up as Daredevil and ventures into the tunnels.
Muse carries Angela to his desk and begins draining her blood. However, he hears something and goes to look. A train wooshes past as he checks and, for a moment, it seems that this is all the disturbance was. That is, until he looks a little closer. Through the light, something appears; it's a person, and he's sprinting towards him. Enter Daredevil, who immediately engages in battle with Muse.
As this goes down, Fisk approaches Adam - his hostage and the man who Vanessa had an affair with - and opens the door to his cell, axe in hand. He tells him that he thinks Vanessa would want him freed, but he he adds that he would have trouble doing that. And thus, he wants to face him. He reveals that, when he was younger, he would battle men three times his size and that he found that a great equalizer would help him. With that, he tosses Adam the axe. Although Adam tries to hold his own, Fisk manhandles him with ease and bludgeons him. It appears as though Adam is dead.
Back in the tunnels, Daredevil and Muse get physical extremely quickly, and it's great to see action on this show again. It seems that they are equally matched, but Daredevil eventually gets the upper hand, using his iconic baton to choke Muse out. This allows him the chance to save Angela. He performs CPR on her before giving her chest a thud to restart her heart; it works. Daredevil is back and he has immediately saved a life - perhaps the first of many.
Daredevil: Born Again episode 6 ending explained: Return to form
"Excessive Force" is all about Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk. They are two sides of the same coin, struggling to walk the path of life that they are currently on due to the constant urge to return to their darker, inner selves. For Matt, that's Daredevil; he kept faith that the law would do its job, but with corrupt officials and the need to do more, that simply wasn't realistic in the Disney Plus series, meaning that Daredevil had to return. And then there's Fisk, struggling as a crook in his role of mayor because his corrupt, violent nature.
We know that these two old rivals are on a collision course with each other, but the two sides of their personalities are also on a collision course with each other. That much was clear from the opening scene of the episode, when they were both struggling with their current situations, resisting the urge to return to who they formerly were - and, in many ways, still are. Matt was seeking spiritual intervention, while Fisk was hoping that he would be able to do what Vanessa would have wanted. But challenges that both of them faced brought them back to their darker selves.
Of course, that's where the similarities end. Matt's difficulties may lead him down a violent path, but he returns to being Daredevil for the right reasons. The Devil of Hell's Kitchen may be a vigilante, but he's also a hero, standing up for those who have been harmed or are in danger in a city that won't stand up for them. And then there's Fisk, who resorts to violence when things don't go his way.
All season, Daredevil: Born Again has been showing us different, restrained versions of these two characters, but the trials of their lives have pushed back to who we once knew them to be. They will likely continue to push them back towards each other, too, as the tale of Daredevil and the Kingpin is far, far from over. The question is: How far have they gone in the meantime?
Has Fisk truly killed Adam? Surely Vanessa would have trouble forgiving him for that. Perhaps he didn't go quite as far as that. That's one question we'll no doubt get a definitive answer to in the next episode, as Fisk continues to spiral out of control again.
And what of Muse? Daredevil may have saved Angela but the villain is still out there. And that means that the saga between these two unique foes is only just getting started.
Daredevil: Born Again airs new episodes on Disney Plus every Wednesday.