REVIEW: Daredevil: Season 1 (Netflix)

     So to start off what will hopefully be a lengthy list of reviews, let's take a look at Netflix's new 13-episode series, Daredevil.   This is the first in a cycle of five announced Marvel properties that Netflix will be producing over the next few years.  These shows not only tie in with each other, but also fit into the overall Marvel Cinematic Universe, albeit somewhat peripherally.  I should point out that this series is a completely new continuity, separate from the 2003 feature film, so if that movie has colored your opinion of the Man Without Fear, you should know there's no connection to it (other than, obviously, the source material.)

     Matt Murdock was blinded as a child by a chemical spill, and found his other senses exponentially enhanced.  Orphaned at an early age, he trained himself to be an expert fighter, before setting up shop as a lawyer in New York City's neighborhood of Hell's Kitchen.  There, by day, he defends needy clients in the courtroom, while at night, as Daredevil, he defends said neighborhood against organized crime and various other ne'er-do-wells, none more dangerous than Wilson Fisk. The series traces the origins of both characters, beginning only days into Matt's career as Daredevil, but is populated by flashbacks throughout, detailing the backstories of both Murdock and Fisk.

     So how was it?  Well, the production qualities are excellent.   The show is well cast, the scripts and direction are generally solid, the action sequences are amazing, and the overall atmosphere is evocative and fits the characters well.  In a departure from most of their other current offerings, these Netflix series will be concentrating more on street-level characters, focusing more on the human element and urban drama then on superheroics, alien invasions, etc.  Even though there are a few offhand references to the larger MCU, Daredevil stays grounded, concentrated, and visceral.

Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock

   To be fair, I have to say that overall, I did not particularly enjoy the series.  For one thing, I found it relentlessly grim, which I grant does fit the nature of the characters, but I don't think that necessarily translates to a television show.  That might just be the nature of streaming - perhaps spread out over thirteen weeks, it wouldn't seem quite as depressive, but as it is I found myself getting worn out by the constant onslaught of violence and darkness.

   That darkness is, in fact, literal.  Now, I suspect this was intentionally designed to be atmospheric, and even somewhat claustrophobic, perhaps to evoke the darkness in which the protagonist must live due to his accident, or perhaps it's just an attempt to overtly symbolize the misfortune and corruption of the neighborhood.  It's a bit much, though, and there are scenes where it borders on the ridiculous, and a viewer could be forgiven for wondering if there is a single functional light bulb anywhere in Hell's Kitchen.  Or, you know, the sun.

     Beyond the overpowering grimness of the series, I also felt like the show could, or rather should, have been condensed.  Again, this might be due to streaming the whole season over a relatively brief period of time, thereby concentrating the effect, but it felt like they could easily have done in ten episodes what took them thirteen.  Specifically, it seemed that there were several episodes which drew out certain plotlines more than were necessary; in particular, the Karen Page/Ben Urich "please write the article/No I won't/Yes I will/No I won't/please write etc..." story felt like I was watching a never-ending game of Pong.   The pace definitely picks up in the latter few episodes, which makes me think that they were spreading the material a little too thin in the middle third of the series.
    

Cox, Woll, Curtis-Hall and Henson

    The performances are solid all around.  London-born Charlie Cox plays the title character, and makes for a very solid anchor for the show.   He's got a lot to work with - rage, frustration, determination, guilt - and that's even before you factor in the 'he's blind but only kinda-sorta", which Cox manages to make fully convincing.  That's perhaps one of the best compliments you can give an actor in any kind of superhero performance, I think: the character is real.

   The supporting cast also acquits itself nicely.  Deborah Ann Woll plays Karen Page, who in the comics is a fairly unlikable character with a lot of extremely unpleasant baggage (which is only hinted at here), and makes her engaging and admirable.  Elden Henson, as Murdock's partner and best friend Foggy Nelson, gets to be the source of most of what little humor there is in the show, but manages to make his character more than just comic relief; you get the sense that this is a man using humor as a means of dealing with his world, rather than just existing to be a punchline, as so many sidekicks have been.  Vondie Curtis-Hall plays Ben Urich, who in the comics is the star reporter for the Daily Bugle (though that periodical is replaced by the "Bulletin" here), and manages to take what could have been a stock 'world-weary cynical reporter' role and make him empathetic, and even heroic.  Bob Gunton, perhaps best known as the crooked warden in The Shawshank Redemption, plays Leland Owlsley, a corrupt but exasperated financier who gets some good grousing dialogue and provides some much-needed levity among the criminal characters.  (In the comics, Owlsley becomes the long-standing villain known as "The Owl", but it appears the show is setting up a different direction for that development).  Also appearing are Rosario Dawson as nurse Claire Temple, who is probably being established here to link into the upcoming Luke Cage series, Scott Glenn as Murdock's mentor Stick, and Ayelet Zurer as Vanessa Marianna, whose only real function is to provide storyline for the series' main antagonist.
    

(Insert your own joke here about D'Onofrio going "Section 8" again.)

    Speaking of whom, Vincent D'Onofrio is Matt Murdock's villainous foil, Wilson Fisk, better known in the comics as The Kingpin - though the name "Kingpin" is never actually used in the series.   By day, Fisk is seemingly a public philanthropist seeking to restore the neighborhood, but by night, he is a crimelord capitalizing on slave labor, drugs and violence as part of his plan to own Hell's Kitchen.  D'Onofrio gives what is perhaps the most interesting performance in the show; atypical of most actors playing comic book villains, much of his acting is quiet, understated and almost shy.  This, of course, makes his darker side that much more terrifying when the audience gets to see it.  The writers have done an excellent job of making Fisk understandable if not condonable, and there are moments when you can actually sympathize with him - to a point.   The problem is that Fisk is portrayed as repressing monumental rage, which when it first gets out, is both memorable and horrifying.  As the series progresses, this rage starts to make Fisk seem less and less like a competent villain and more and more like a spoiled child.  Indeed, by the last few episodes, his temper tantrums have become predictable and tiresome, which again made me feel as though the show could have benefited by being a few episodes shorter.

   The plot itself is fairly straightforward without being simplistic, and all of the characters feel like fleshed-out, realistic people.  None of the primaries, and indeed, none of the secondaries, come across as two-dimensional, avoiding an issue that has plagued many comic book adaptations.  Even comparatively minor characters, such as a pair of Russian gangsters working for Fisk, are well-written and compelling.   The dialogue is generally on point and consistent.  There are a few nods to the comics along the way - the aforementioned infrequent references to the MCU, for example, or a sideways allusion to Elektra, Daredevil's opponent/love interest/fellow enthusiast of the color red, who I assume will be appearing down the road at some point.  The writers managed to keep these references from being too on-the-nose, though, which I fully appreciated.

   There's not too much to say about the costumes, since most of the characters are in street clothes, but there's an evolution to the outfits of both Murdock and Fisk, and by the final episode, Daredevil's in his famous red outfit, which does look quite good on screen.  One member of the Hand, the ninja clan with whom Daredevil has frequently crossed paths, appears in full regalia, and the color is striking...indeed, the one upside to the darkness of the series is that when they do use color, such as the Hand assassin, or the weird sickly yellow and purple which illuminate the windows of Murdock's shadowy apartment, the images on screen evoke thoughts of Frank Miller, which I have to think is deliberate.

   Also worth mentioning is the fight choreography, which is elegant in its brutality, and captivating to watch.  The actors are put through their paces, and Daredevil finds himself on the receiving end as much as the giving (setting up the need for a proper costume); these fights are violent, bloody, and exhausting, adding an extremely gritty component to the show.  Of particular note is a lengthy, one-take, one-shot fight in a hallway early in the series between Daredevil, several kidnappers, and a door.  You'll know it when you see it.

Daredevil's more recognizable look.

     Overall, the series is well-made, and while it suffers from some overkill in certain areas, is of a fairly high quality.   It's distinct from other entries in the increasingly-homogenous MCU, and clearly has its own identity.  Evidently, Marvel and Netflix are pleased with it, as it's already been renewed for a second season, to debut in 2016.  While I applaud the creators, cast and crew for a well executed production, though, I still didn't find it enjoyable to watch.  As much as the darkness, violence, and bleak world may be perfectly suited to the source material, it makes for something of a depressing viewing experience.  I respect the work that was done, and acknowledge its merits, even if I didn't particularly care for it.

FINAL RATING: 6 PAWS(OUT OF TEN)