It doesn't always take a comic buff to appreciate outstanding cinematic or television adaptations of superheroes from the Marvel Universe. Marvel's newest live-action television series, Daredevil, serves as proof of this statement. After delving into the first few episodes of Season 1, which premiered exclusively on Netflix on April 10th, I could already sense the elements that will enable the show to appeal to a large audience beyond those already familiar with the original story.
Daredevil is smart and gritty, featuring a stream of insightful origin information on the title character and well-choreographed action sequences that are paced frequently enough to keep you awake. The dialogue carries the right tone of voice for the entire series, which takes place against the grim, yet authentic cityscape of Hell's Kitchen, New York. The location in itself draws a lot of attention among those well-versed in Marvel's Universe. Fans are not without expectations to see at least traces of elements from the other New York-based superhero narratives that take place in the universe.
Definitely not for the faint of heart, as it takes on a darker, more brutal stance on live-action television, Slate's Jack Hamilton even compares Daredevil to the mastermind likes of Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy and Park Chan-Wook's Oldboy. Overall, however, the scenes reflect a more intuitive style of fighting; Daredevil relies heavily on sharp sensory hand-to-hand combat in lieu of the more typical brute, all-out fighting style common to the action genre. (This detail resonates strongly with the deliberate form of fighting you see in boxing, which Matt Murdock's father did for a living in the Daredevil story.)
The story:
Charlie Cox plays Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer who protects and saves the innocent both in court and at night, when he becomes the fearless red-suited vigilante, Daredevil. At his side, we have Franklin “Foggy" Nelson (played by Elden Henson), Murdock's law firm partner, who serves as a touch of comedy and plot complexity in their friendship duo. We also meet two love interests in Season 1: Karen Page (played by Deborah Ann Woll) and Claire Temple (Rosario Dawson). And then there's Wilson Fisk, or "Kingpin," the cruel, powerful crime overlord with dark schemes in mind for Hell's Kitchen, played by Vincent D'Onofrio.
The show follows Murdock/Daredevil as he fights crime in Hell's Kitchen, using his legal wits and hyper-sensory powers, which surfaced from a childhood accident involving radioactive chemicals—at the price of saving a man's life and his defining blindness.
What to expect:
It's hard to say whether or not the later seasons will orient themselves towards the law firm procedural show or superhero origin story—so far, we see both. Without overwhelming us, the creators have managed to give us a good day-to-day spotlight on the cases handled by the Murdock and Nelson Law Office, while supplying a fluid storyline detailing the origin and adventures of Daredevil.
Critics and viewers alike have been responding well to the show; IMDB users currently rate the first season a 9.4/10, while the critics at Rotten Tomatoes give it a 97 percent.
TV.com's Kaitlin Thomas hails Daredevil as something that you've never quite experienced in previous superhero adaptations:
I've seen five of the show's 13 episodes, and I feel comfortable in stating that you've never seen the likes of Daredevil and its stylized violence and darkness in any of Marvel's big-screen blockbusters. In the hands of executive producer and showrunner Steven S. DeKnight (Spartacus)—who took over for series creator Drew Goddard (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel) relatively early in the production process—Daredevil is slick and polished in a way that belies the gritty realism of its Hell's Kitchen setting and the urban crime element at its core.
The verdict:
While many prefer other genres of television in their usual Netflix menus—solely admiring superhero stories in the realm of blockbuster cinema— Marvel's Daredevil is still worth the watch. Give it a few episodes (I'd definitely recommend getting past the first two at least) and watch as the story of a good, daring individual unfolds on the ash-born streets of Hell's Kitchen.
