Netflix's Daredevil is widely regarded as one of the best Marvel shows ever created, if not one of the best superhero live-action projects altogether. While the show's quality did dip a little during its second season, it reached new heights with its third and final entry. The Kingpin made a big comeback after stealing the spotlight in the opening season, Matt Murdock faced his biggest challenge yet (both physically and emotionally), and audiences witnessed how Dex Pointdexter slowly fell into madness and became a supervillain in the form of Bullseye.
All of this while the city plunged into chaos as Wilson manipulated people left and right to do his bidding. Is it wrong to say all of this was a joy to see?
The story in Daredevil Season 3 isn't simple in the slightest. It deals with many moving pieces that all converge to deliver an amazing finale. So if you need a refresher about what went down now that Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk are back in Daredevil: Born Again (or just want to relive an amazing season of television), then you're in the right place. Let's break down the ending of Daredevil Season 3 and explain how it blends into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The Kingpin rises to power yet again
Ray Nadeem was an everyday citizen with a happy family who happened to work at the F.B.I. He had a successful career and even planned to build a pool on his house for his son. Unfortunately, one day, tragedy struck as his brother's wife— Saanvi—was diagnosed with cancer. Her health insurance was curiously denied multiple times with no explanation as to why. So, being the hero that he usually is, Ray offered to pay the hospital bills and allow Saanvi to receive the treatment she needed. Fortunately, she was eventually declared cancer-free, but the whole process left Ray in a pretty complicated spot.
Money started to become a problem, so Nadeem began to push for a job promotion. Unfortunately, his credit history was a big impediment to getting the position he wanted at the F.B.I. — a pretty complicated situation that seemed to have no solution at all. Without a raise, Nadeem wouldn't be able to get the money to pay off his debts and be able to apply for that same raise. What a paradox. Everything was spiraling down for Ray until, one day, he was mysteriously tasked with visiting Wilson Fisk in prison (you know, the same unhinged guy who was arrested back in season 1 for murder, illegal business, and many more crimes).
The goal was simple: Try to make Fisk talk about any potential players in town who also happened to break the law. Many F.B.I. agents tried to make "Kingpin" talk before, but none of them achieved that goal. However, for a very strange reason, the supervillain actually gave Ray Nadeem leads that helped get the Albanian Syndicate out of the streets (a very big crime organization that managed to evade the law for a very long time). All Wilson asked in exchange was for his true love, Vanessa, to be able to return to the country without being imprisoned. However, those demands rapidly changed once he was stabbed in prison by another inmate for giving information to the F.B.I.
It didn't matter how many ridiculous demands the Kingpin made, Ray Nadeem fought to make them all come true. Ray knew that this was a golden opportunity to keep the city safe by taking down anyone whom Wilson denounced while also getting the raise he desperately needed. The key word here is "desperation", as the F.B.I. moved the Kingpin — who had manipulated and murdered countless people in the past — from prison to a literal penthouse all in an effort to keep him talking. What nobody knew, however, was that Fisk's new home had secret rooms that only he knew about, from which he could control the whole city from the shadows.
It was later revealed that Fisk had planned everything in advance. He was the one who denied Saanvi's health insurance to make Ray desperate. He later assigned Ray to his own case since he knew the agent would do anything in exchange for information and the possibility of a raise. Oh, and that time he was stabbed in prison? Yes, that was also a part of the plan. Wilson also killed the son of Nadeem's boss to put her in his pocket. It was a flawless plan executed to perfection.
Ray Nadeem gave his life away to put the Kingpin behind bars
Ray Nadeem eventually began to suspect there was more to Wilson than met the eye. Not only that, but Daredevil claimed that the whole F.B.I. organization was being controlled by Fisk without anyone knowing. Eventually, the agent's concerns grew to such a point that he had to talk to his superior about it. But wouldn't you know it, she was also in the Kingpin's pocket. So Nadeem's boss framed him for murder and informed him that he had to answer to Wilson from that point onwards.
Ray was forced to do what he wouldn't usually do, and hunt down innocent people as well as officially setting the Kingpin free. He had no other choice. Otherwise, his family would be in great danger. However, one day, he grew tired of breaking the law and directly went against one of his new boss's orders. Nadeem quickly returned home and, alongside Daredevil, protected his family from hitmen who were ready to end him and his family for his inability to follow the rules. Just like that, his situation became even worse.
Ray knew that Wilson would never stop hunting him, his son, and his wife. Furthermore, he knew that there was no way of putting Fisk behind bars, given that he basically controlled the F.B.I. So, with his hands tied, he made one last move by recording a video in which he revealed everything. He talked about how he himself acted illegally, all due to Fisk having the entire system in the palm of his hands.
After sending this video to his wife, Ray willingly walked straight into a trap where he was shot in the head. With him out of the picture, his family would finally be able to know peace. Furthermore, the video was used as evidence in court to put Wilson Fisk behind bars once and for all.
Bullseye is born
From the beginning of the season, we're introduced to Benjamin Poindexter — an F.B.I agent with a flawless aim capable of using any object as a throwing star. Remember how we mentioned that Fisk was transported from prison into a penthouse, all under Ray Nadeem's supervision? Well, that trip wasn't exactly smooth. A big attack from the Albanian Syndicate took place during the move to end Fisk's life once and for all. But just before they were able to take the Kingpin down, Benjamin Poindexter entered the scene and took the entire criminal organization down with nothing more than a handgun and perfect aim.
While Dex claimed to be doing his job when taking those lives, the F.B.I. initiated an internal investigation in regards to him and the whole situation. The news certainly didn't sit well with him, who already was in a pretty complicated psychological spot. Fortunately, Dex did the right thing and reached out to a woman named Julie Barnes for help, who agreed to support him. The only downside? Wilson Fisk had already decided that Dex could be a useful "asset", so he pulled the strings from the shadows to turn him into a subordinate.
Fisk discovered that Benjamin Poindexter never had a paternal figure to help him tell what's wrong from what's right. So, worried that Julie could take that spot, Wilson decided to kill her and be the one to mentor him instead. Slowly but steadily, the Kingpin shaped a new villain in the form of Bullseye, who wasn't afraid to do his boss's every bidding. It was a symbiotic relationship built on a murder, and it was working just fine until Daredevil entered the scene.
Matt helped Dex uncover the truth about Julie's death, and once the supervillain realized that the woman he loved was taken out of the picture by the Kingpin, he wasn't necessarily happy. A big confrontation broke out between the three parties, and no punches were held back. Eventually, Fisk broke Bullseye's spine, and the post-credits scene revealed that he was undergoing surgery with the hope that a metal alloy called Cogmium would be able to make him walk again.
During Daredevil: Born Again, it was revealed that the supervillain is back in action, and he's more dangerous than ever (even being able to survive a free fall from the top of a building).
Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk make a pact
Daredevil Season 3 ended things in a bit of an unconventional way. Sure, the big bad was defeated and taken to jail, which is standard for superhero stories. But before Fisk was taken away by the cops, he made an unusual pact with Daredevil. If Matt keeps Vanessa away from the confrontation, then Karen and Foggy will stay out of the Kingpin's sight. Both the hero and villain agreed to reduce collateral damage as much as possible — a pact that lasted all the way through Daredevil: Born Again.
The Kingpin was quick to clarify that he didn't have a role to play in Foggy's death during the Disney Plus revival series. However, he also made his intentions clear of hunting down any vigilantes in the city now that he's the Mayor of New York.
That means the rivalry between him and the Devil of Hell's Kitchen, who recently decided to wear the iconic red suit once again, is far from over. The two iconic characters are back in their old ways, and we can't wait to see if their pact will last or if either Vanessa or Karen are in great danger.
Daredevil: Born Again is now streaming in Disney Plus.
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