Daredevil season 3 is very standalone in many ways, with no major crossovers or connections to the wider MCU getting in the way of its hugely dramatic central conflict between the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen and his eternal nemesis Wilson Fisk. However, “it’s all connected,” as they say, so there is still one link with another corner of the franchise hidden in the latest run of the Netflix show.
In episode 4, “Blindsided,” one scene takes place at Karen Page’s office at The New York Bulletin. If you pay attention to the newspaper clipping and front pages on the walls behind her, you might notice a headline that mentions blackouts across the city. Marvel fans with an encyclopedic knowledge of the MCU may recognize this as a callback to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
In season 4 of the ABC show, the Watchdogs – a militant hate group dedicated to eradicating Inhumans – attack the city, resulting in the power being wiped out. And though this easter egg in Daredevil isn’t game-changing or anything, it’s still interesting to know that Karen was the one to write up the story for the Bulletin.
This isn’t the first time that Daredevil has referenced Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., either, despite airing on completely different platforms. It’s not even the first time the show has called back to a group of S.H.I.E.L.D. characters with “dogs” in the name. The biker gang the Dogs of Hell first appeared in S.H.I.E.L.D.‘s first season and the New York chapter of the gang became targets for the Punisher in Daredevil season 2.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has also repaid the favor a couple of times. Back in 2016, for instance, a reference to “gang warfare in Hell’s Kitchen” could be glimpsed on a news flash on a TV screen, which again tied into Frank Castle’s war on crime in the city. Given that the Marvel-Netflix world just got a lot smaller – Luke Cage and Iron Fist have been cancelled – it’s definitely nice to be reminded that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is still a big place.
