10 Things You Need To Know Before Daredevil Season Two

Daredevil season two is almost upon us! Despite the popularity of Marvel’s output of films as well as strong competition in the television department, season one of Daredevil is surely the most critically-acclaimed instalment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe – renowned for its strong characters, astonishing action scenes and taut drama. On Friday, the excitement kicks off again as season two is dumped on Netflix in one go for us to binge watch. But what do we know about it so far? Well, it is common knowledge that it will introduce two fan-favourite, but previously screwed-up on the big screen, characters – namely, Matt’s assassin girlfriend Elektra and anti-hero The Punisher. Apart from that, what else should we expect? Allow us to tell you. Spoilerphobes, at ease - there will be no discussion of specifics here at all, just hints at what you can expect from the new season. With that in mind, here is our primer for Daredevil season two… 10) The Wider Universe Is Explored A Little More Season one of Daredevil was the first instalment of the corner of the MCU that will encompass other Marvel/Netflix shows and build up to ensemble series The Defenders. As you might expect, then, now that we have had Jessica Jones’s debut season as well, things are starting to heat up on that front. In particular, there are growing hints in season two that there are more vigilantes running around in Matt Murdock’s neck of the woods. However, don’t expect Krysten Ritter and Mike Coulter to turn up. Marvel are still playing things close to their chest for now, but, suffice it to say, they are slowly seeding the idea that these disparate heroes might come together sometime in the future… 9) There Is More From The Supporting Characters Apart from the main characters like Matt, Karen and Foggy, Daredevil’s first season built up a likeable bunch of people connected to the employees of Nelson & Murdock who were just as easy to invest in. It’s good to know, then, that most of these return in season two. The most obvious is Claire Temple, the character who is a blend of the comics’ creation of the same name and Night Nurse, the medical practitioner who superheroes often turn to when they need patching up. Rosario Dawson still turns up as Claire in season two – after her guest appearance in Jessica Jones’s finale – although it has to be said she is in it a lot less and remains on the periphery of the action. Other returning characters include Father Lantom, the priest who knows of Matt’s alter ego, Melvin Potter, who designs the Daredevil suit, Brett Mahoney, N & M's ally in the police, and Marci, Foggy’s ex. 8) Wilson Fisk Isn't In It As much as Charlie Cox's performance as Matt Murdock was celebrated, a lot of people's MVP of Daredevil's first season was Vincent D'Onofrio's powerhouse turn as Wilson Fisk, the crime boss known in the comics as the Kingpin. Thanks to some great scripting, D'Onofrio's take on the character was a monstrous man-child but he was also the most fleshed-out villain in the whole of the MCU. However, after his imprisonment at the end of the last run, the show is attempting to go on without him. While we have no doubt that we have not seen the last of Fisk (especially because he is yet to properly become the Kingpin), the first seven episodes that have been released to the press are completely devoid of the character. What's more, you'll find you won't even miss him, as other strong plotlines and characters are introduced to fill the Fisk-shaped hole in the show. One of whom is...... 7) Elektra Is Awesome Fans of the Hornhead still remember the poorly-conceived 2003 Daredevil movie starring Ben Affleck. However, its spinoff movie Elektra, featuring Jennifer Garner, was so bad no one seems to recall that it even exists. Thankfully, Daredevil season two gives us a far more memorable version of the character. For starters, Elodie Yung is a terrific fit for the role and brings a sultry, playful tone to the character. It is easy to see how Matt would fall for this wildcard woman who likes to live life on the edge. Daredevil has had no shortage of great characters, but they can be pretty heavy, dour individuals like Wilson Fisk. Elektra, on the other hand, is just a lot of fun to watch. As we know from a reference made to a “smoking” Greek woman in season one, Matt dated Elektra back at college but things didn’t turn out so well between them. By the time of season two, however, Elektra comes back into Matt’s life and turns it upside down… 6) The Hand And with Elektra comes another mainstay of the Man Without Fear’s world in the comics – the clan of evil mystical ninjas, the Hand. Plenty of hints were dropped in season one that the Hand were behind Japanese crime syndicate the Yakuza’s dealings with Fisk, to the extent that all that was left to do was to say the clan’s name. Thankfully, season two delivers on all this in a big way, although we won’t go into the details here. We will say, though, is that in the comics – and as was heavily hinted in season one – Matt’s mentor, Stick, was a member of the Hand’s nemesis, the Chaste; a similar group of mystical ninjas, except these ones are good. Elektra, too, was trained by Stick and the Chaste. We’ll leave it to you to put two and two together here. 5) The Punisher Is Done Justice Surprisingly, Daredevil season two is the fourth time that The Punisher has been adapted for live-action – after the 1989, 2004 and 2008 movies. That fact alone isn’t strange – the character is a good fit for the ever popular action film genre – but what is bizarre is that this is the first time the character has been done justice. Jon Bernthal is the best Punisher ever – a fearsome, formidable opponent for Daredevil but also a three-dimensional character, very different from the insane serial killer Matt thinks he is dealing with at first. This second run is split into distinct acts unlike season one and you can look forward to The Punisher’s turn in the limelight coming in the first one. Also – unlike both Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk – Frank Castle is given his alternate moniker of The Punisher from the beginning, which will please the comics fans watching. That said, you may have to wait for him to don that iconic skull symbol. 4) Office Romance As will come as no surprise to any Daredevil comic fan, season two further explores the attraction between Matt Murdock and N & M’s intrepid secretary Karen Page. In season one, Karen spent most of her screentime with Foggy or Ben Urich but, in those times we did see her and Matt together, Charlie Cox and Deborah Ann Woll’s chemistry certainly hinted at the long-lasting relationship the characters have in the show’s source material. As can be gathered from the trailer – which includes the pair sharing a tender moment in the rain – things heat up between them this season. The first season hinted that we might be in for a full-scale love triangle in future but, refreshingly, this isn’t really the case as Foggy now understands Karen and Matt’s feelings for each other and seems to have come to terms with his own. Speaking of Foggy... 3) Tension At Nelson & Murdock One of the big surprises of Daredevil’s first season was Foggy finding out that his best bud was the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen. The reveal caused the pair to fall out for a while until the finale brought them together again. However, Foggy’s issues with Matt risking his life every night have not been swept under the carpet and do resurface in season two. Thankfully, Foggy is still the same largely optimistic, funny guy who we got to know in season one. He is Matt’s best friend for a reason, so he doesn’t spend all his screen time in season two whining about Matt’s nighttime activities. On the subject of Nelson & Murdock, a criticism of the first season could be that it phased out the legal drama aspect as the series went on. However, this is brought back into play this season as the duo’s tiny lawfirm struggles to stay open in the face of Hell Kitchen’s antagonistic District Attorney. 2) There's An Ever Better Fight Scene Despite the show’s great dialogue and taut character confrontations, the standout moment of season one for many people was the hallway fight scene from episode two, "Cut Man." Filmed in one long take as Matt takes out a whole floor full of thugs, it was a fantastic, brutal moment and will go down as one of the greatest fight scenes in all of superhero entertainment. Season two was always going to be hard-pressed to beat this moment, then, but we think they might just have managed it. That may seem a big claim to make, but one episode (we won’t say which) features a similarly shot-in-one climactic fight. However, this one is even grander and more ambitious than its counterpart in season one. Charlie Cox has referred to the moment in question as: “kind of like an homage to that scene, but it’s almost like that scene on crack.” We think that’s a pretty apt description. 1) The New Costume Looks Amazing Fans loved everything about the first season – except one major aspect. While the minimalist black outfit Matt sports for most of that run was well received, the muted-red Daredevil suit he eventually dons in the finale – suitably titled Daredevil - was not met with as much positivity. And it is easy to see why. It’s not that the suit is inherently silly in Daredevil’s more realistic world, but that it just didn’t seem to be the best design of it, looking unwieldy and cumbersome on poor Charlie Cox. Thankfully, this is fixed in season two as, after a little while, Matt’s costume gets a revamp. As demonstrated by the awesome promotional images that have been released, his cowl has been streamlined and improved and the balance between the red and the black in the suit also works much better. We already knew that Charlie Cox made a fantastic Matt Murdock but, now that he finally looks the part, he is a fantastic Daredevil, too.