Daredevil is part of the Netflix segment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The giant success of the first season of the show was what led to the release of shows being produced on Netflix under the Marvel banner such as Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Punisher and Defenders. These shows are set in the same universe as the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and although we haven't seen many strong connections between the two, there are plot threads and references that bring up events from movies like Avengers that help solidify that the shows and the movies are set in the same world.
The Neftlix shows have been very hit-and-miss. The first season of Daredevil was stylish, well written, well directed, featured incredible performances, stuck true to its comic book roots and had some of the best action sequences I've ever witnessed so the show rightfully earned a lot of praise from critics. A lot of the other shows were great too and some not so much. But none of them ever really matched the quality that the first season of Daredevil had. They were plagued with problems such as too many episodes per season for a story that could easily be resolved in just 5 or 6. Season 2 of Daredevil faced similar issues and was a mild disappointment.
Season 3 ends up breaking that streak of mediocrity by bringing back the class of the first season and actually improving upon it in certain ways. The story picks up right where the Defenders miniseries ended with Matt waking up from a coma after the events of that series. The show immediately proves that it's going to have better pacing than the other seasons by keeping the focus on the character conflict from the start. The story remains focused on Matt questioning his catholic beliefs after the events of the previous seasons. We see him as a broken man working and fighting his way to his redemption over the course of the season and that already makes for a more interesting plot thread than immortal ninjas. The long number of episodes actually benefits the story for once. We see him contemplate whether or not he will murder Wilson Fisk and it never comes off as rushed. The story sticks true to its comic book roots by taking heavy influence from Frank Miller's Born Again storyline. That's always been what sets Daredevil apart from these other shows: It embraces its roots rather than shying away from them.
Speaking of which, the other characters are fantastic too. Vincent D'Onofrio reprises his role as Wilson Fisk and he's just as intimidating as ever. Explaining how Wilson Fisk got out of prison was never going to be a particularly easy task but the show found a clever way to handle that and seeing him get straight back to work on becoming New York City's Kingpin of Crime proves to be immensely satisfying. He has some of the best scenes in the season and his confrontation with Matt was iconic. Other returning characters include Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson) and Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll) and they actually have interesting things to do this season as they deal with the loss and distancing of their friend. We also have some really great new additions including the show stealing Ben Pointdexter who is portrayed brilliantly by Wilson Bethel. The actor's performance really helps empathize with him despite the things he does. He's a really great interpretation of Bullseye and they adapted him perfectly. I hope to see more of him in the future.
One thing I was really worried about was that the show would fall victim to the other Netflix series's problem of not having a lot of style. Fortunately this season ended up having some really impressive camerawork. The action scenes somehow managed to out-do the ones in the last 2 seasons which is an impressive feat. The one shot hallway sequence in episode 4 is one of the most intense and exhilarating sequences I've ever witnessed. The Daredevil vs Pointdexter fight in episode 6 was also a standout sequence with some really great choreography, setting and surprising respect to Bullseye's abilities from the comic book.
The season does have a few issues. The show using the trope of Matt seeing Wilson Fisk as an hallucination was kind of irritating, even though it's better done here than in other shows. Still it was only rarely used so it wasn't a big issue for me. There were also times I felt that Daredevil himself was put on the back-burner as the certain episodes diverted their focus too much on the side characters. There's a 20 minute long flashback sequence in episode 10 that breaks the flow and tension set up the by the previous episode's ending. I feel like this sequence could've been spread out elsewhere over the course of the season and it would've played out much better. There were also times when I questioned the use of the lens they chose to shoot certain scenes. The lens ended up making movement look very blurry and the show looked really cheap during those moments.
All in all those are just minor nitpicks and I really enjoyed this season more than any of the other Netflix seasons. I really hope it gets picked up for a fourth season as there's much more they can do with these characters later on. I'd strongly recommend checking out this show if you haven't already.
I give Daredevil season 3 a 5/5.
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