By: Matt Vandenburgh, Staff Writer
Of all the senses, sight is the one people rely on the most. Try crossing a street, driving to work or studying for finals while blind. It is very difficult, if not impossible. Now try fighting crime blind.
Marvel Comics, the Disney-owned comic book company, is expanding the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They agreed to produce four shows for Netflix, which will all take place inside the current world that features movie heroes such as Iron Man and Captain America. The first show of the bunch, “Daredevil,” was released on Apr. 10.
The events of “Daredevil” begin after the “Battle of New York” scene featured in the first Avengers movie. The story centers on main character Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer in the rough and tumble village in New York City known as Hell’s Kitchen. While Murdock (Charlie Cox), acts as a humble defense attorney by day, by night he is a masked vigilante, fighting criminals that kidnap women and distribute drugs throughout the city.
Meanwhile, a shadowy businessman by the name of Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) is looking to gain power and influence in order to change Hell’s Kitchen into what he believes it should be. Morally corrupt and physically imposing, Fisk is not afraid to get his hands dirty if the need arises, although he often chooses to let other people do the dirty work for him.
Murdock and Fisk are perfect foils for each other. By giving the viewers insight into the inner thoughts of both characters, this show does a good job displaying both the similarities and differences of each character.
Another aspect of the show that Netflix and Marvel do well is the amazing attention to detail. Murdock, a Catholic, is tormented by his actions and frequently seeks guidance from the priest at his local church. Fisk is haunted by his past and constantly aims to justify his actions as both for profit and the greater good.
The choreography for the fight scenes is excellent. One fight segment in particular was completed in one shot, something both unheard of in the business as well as amazing. Again, the attention to detail shown by this shines through, and the audience greatly appreciates it.
However, there is one major flaw with this show. “Daredevil” seems to attempt to copy from other popular superhero movies and shows such as the Christopher Nolan “Batman” trilogy, as well as the popular DC Comics show “Arrow.” Like both of these, Daredevil takes to the streets, eliminating villains from the shadows and this show uses similar camera angles as “Arrow” and the “Batman” movies. One scene specifically has this problem, where Murdock takes down goons one by one, in a fashion that is so similar to a scene from the movie “Batman Begins” that it should have been called out for plagiarism.
Another issue with the show is that it is not for squeamish fans. The show is not similar to the Marvel movies or the “Agents of SHIELD” television show. This show is far gorier with violent decapitations, impalements, and copious amounts of blood.
Overall though, “Daredevil” is excellent. This is the first of four Marvel shows for Netflix, centering on the “street level” heroes, meaning heroes that take on the mob and other criminals that are not worthy of fighting Iron Man, Thor, or other more powerful heroes. The plan is for these shows to culminate in a big Avengers style mash up, and if “Daredevil” is any indicator fans are going to enjoy it.
