The episode “Daredevil: Born Again” (Season 2, Episode 4) was perhaps the most significant one so far in the new season of the Marvel series, as it featured an epic rematch between Daredevil and Bullseye that culminated in a devastating climax… With teasers for “Daredevil 3” already emerging, here’s a recap of the episode!
After last week’s shock, we begin this episode in the apartment of Benjamin Poindexter, aka Bullseye (Wilson Bethel): we see his morning routine and discover that his neighbor knows him as “Tony.” He heads to a diner for breakfast and orders a milkshake. Poindexter then calls the police and makes a false report, claiming that Frank Castle has entered the diner with a gun. He continues drinking his milkshake as the AVTF arrives, listens to the sirens, and puts on his gloves: at that point, the AVTF storms the diner and searches for the Punisher, but finds Bullseye instead.
The villain quickly dispatches the entire horde of officers, using various objects found in the diner to kill every single corrupt cop working for Kingpin: after a sequence as bloody as it is incredibly spectacular, Bullseye lets the patrons know he’s one of the good guys, and at that point, having completed his anti-Kingpin mission, he leaves.
After the opening credits, a new video from the fake Kingpin is shown, this time focusing on the explosion at the Northern Star, before cutting to a report on Mayor Fisk’s upcoming charity event, which BB (Arty Froushan) calls a money-laundering scheme. Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll) begins recording the testimonies of the freed prisoners, starting with Soledad (Sonia Manzano). Meanwhile, Daredevil (Charlie Cox) tries to recruit Swordsman (Tony Dalton) to the team, but he refuses. He then tells Matt that Daredevil is no longer a hero: he is a symbol of hope. He leaves him his number in case they need his help, then wishes him good luck and goes into hiding.
Angela Del Toro (Camila Rodriguez) asks Karen to let her help, now that she is the White Tiger, and Daredevil agrees. Then she approaches him, and Daredevil asks her if she understands the responsibility that comes with the amulet. She says yes, and he asks if she’s ready. She retorts, “And you?” Suddenly, Daredevil feels a racing heartbeat: he orders everyone to stop, and they open the door. It’s Christofi Savva (Yorgos Karamihos), the missing first officer!
We then see Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) and Vanessa (Ayelet Zurer), who now always carries a gun with her. She is about to meet with the Governor. She asks Wilson if he is trying to send her away to protect her, and he admits it, telling her that it would be too dangerous for her to attend the meeting.
Christofi tells Daredevil and Karen what really happened on the Northern Star and what the ship was actually carrying, confirming what Matt had learned in the first episode. He wants to know if anything might be linked to Fisk, but Christofi says they’ve covered their tracks, even though everything had been approved by the Kingpin. Daredevil and Karen realize that Fisk’s upcoming charity event is actually a trap for Bullseye, not for Daredevil, and they exchange an “I love you” before he leaves.
Meanwhile, Bullseye is watching the live broadcast. The AVTF raids Murdock and McDuffie’s offices in search of Swordsman, but to no avail. Agent Powell (Hamish Allan-Headley) threatens Kirsten McDuffie (Nikki M. James) and leaves a message for Matt Murdock in case she contacts him. Fisk is furious about the fugitives and discusses the matter with Buck Cashman (Arty Froushan) until the two are interrupted by Mr. Charles (Matthew Lillard). Mr. Charles wonders why the weapons are still in New York, but Fisk replies that they can’t move them for the time being because Daredevil knows where they are. Mr. Charles seems completely uninterested in Fisk and treats him with condescension. Fisk retorts that he isn’t her employee, signaling to Buck to grab the gun, but Mr. Charles has armed reinforcements of his own. He seems to be getting the upper hand until Buck kills both of his guards and points the gun at Mr. Charles. Kingpin tells him the shipment will be delivered on time and to be patient. They leave, leaving Mr. Charles looking frustrated.
Kirsten meets with Karen and asks her point-blank where Matt is. Karen replies that he is safe, and Kirsten agrees to help her in any way she can. Governor McCaffrey (Lili Taylor) meets with Vanessa and is quite blunt in saying that she disapproves of the way Kingpin is exercising his power as mayor. Vanessa defends her husband. At that point, McCaffrey expresses sincere concern for Vanessa and asks her why she’s still with him and if she truly believes she can rein in his darker impulses. Vanessa stands her ground, reaffirming her love for Wilson.
Angela is on the street and contacts a friend. She secretly hands him an SD card, presumably containing the fugitives’ testimonies. Matt disguises himself in an AVTF uniform and goes to the restaurant destroyed by Bullseye, looking for clues. He finds a token on the ground: it’s a coin from the Church of Our Lady of Grace, which gives him an idea of how to find him. Matt heads toward the church. There he meets the seminarian (Bartley Booz), who tells him that the man he’s looking for was searching for Sister Maggie. He doesn’t know where Bullseye is, and Matt promises not to kill him, but reveals that Bullseye said he could hear the church bells and see its doors from his apartment. Matt realizes he’s nearby. Bullseye returns to his apartment and is met by Daredevil. The two exchange a few words and begin to fight.
Bullseye insists he’s on Daredevil’s side, but Daredevil knows he has to stop him before he goes too far. Just as Daredevil seems to be getting the upper hand, Bullseye’s elderly neighbor walks in and is immediately taken hostage by Bullseye. Bullseye tells Daredevil he wants to do a good deed to settle the score with Foggy Nelson, so he’ll do the one thing Daredevil will never do: kill Fisk. Daredevil manages to disarm him, but he still manages to escape. Daredevil gives chase.
Christofi records a video for Karen and Kirsten with his testimony. He admits that the Northern Star was carrying illegal weapons and says that Kingpin gave the order to sink the ship if anyone boarded it. He also states on camera that Kingpin and Mayor Fisk are the same person. Then he waits for the U.S. Marshals to come and take him in.
BB meets Daniel Blake (Michael Gandolfini) outside the scene of the confrontation. The man Angela had met earlier runs into them and slips the SD card into BB’s jacket pocket. Blake suspects something but remains silent. In the locker room, Fisk is getting ready for his match. He receives an update stating that there have been no sightings of Daredevil or Bullseye, but that there is an increased number of AVTF agents guarding the area. Buck receives a call but tells Fisk he won’t leave him alone. Fisk tells him to go; he doesn’t want to leave any traces.
The match begins. Fisk enters the ring and quickly overpowers his opponent. At the same time, the U.S. Marshals are transporting Christofi and are about to transfer him to another secure location when they are intercepted by Buck, who kills both agents and then Christofi. No trace remains. The match continues; Fisk hears the news about Buck and begins to lose control. He is ferocious in his attacks, and his punches devastate his opponent. He is about to win when Vanessa, whom he had begged not to come, enters the arena: Fisk is distracted for a moment and takes a punch. He snaps back to reality and lands a series of hooks that knock out his opponent. He towers over him and takes possession of the belt. Vanessa joins him in the ring to congratulate him, also revealing that she has secured the Governor’s support.
Just when it seems things are going the Fisk family’s way, Bullseye arrives on the scene and strikes! He quickly kills more than a dozen AVTF agents. They’re no match for him: he’s a top-tier assassin, and they’re just targets to him. Finally, he sets his sights on Vanessa and hurls something sharp at her, but in a twist, she manages to shoot him!
Though wounded, Bullseye still manages to kill Kingpin’s guards, but his luck seems to run out when an enraged Kingpin grabs a gun and shoots him. Just when it seems all is lost, Daredevil intervenes and saves Bullseye! The two vigilantes escape the building alive and immediately take off running. Kingpin, furious, orders the remaining members of the AVTF to chase after Daredevil and Bullseye. But his rage soon turns to terror when we discover that Bullseye didn’t miss his target: he hit Vanessa.
She collapses to the ground, bleeding. Kingpin calls an ambulance, but things don’t look good for Mrs. Fisk…
See you next week for Episode 5! For more content, check out the Daredevil 2 mid-season trailer.
