‘Daredevil’ Reveals How Matt Murdock Survives ‘The Defenders’

Ever since fans saw the explosive finale of The Defenders earlier this year, they’ve been wondering how Daredevil could survive the explosion at Midland Circle, ending up in the care of a group of nuns who attempt to nurse him back to life.

The third season premiere of Daredevil fills in those blanks, showing just what happens in the moments the building collapses in a fiery blaze, and how Matt Murdock manages to escape the destruction of the Hand partially intact.

Warning: Spoilers for Daredevil Season 3 below.

The series opens with a shot loaded with religious allegories, as Murdock is shown from below in a Christ-like pose as the blazes of Midland Circle rage above him. We see him fall into a body of water with debris collapsing all around him, plummeting below until he’s taken by a current and sucked out a drainage pipe.

He ends up on a Manhattan shore, finding little sustenance from the rain. Murdock crawls further up the shore where he’s noticed by a Taxi driver who attempts to check his pulse. With little energy left, Murdock grabs the man’s hand and gives him a location: the church where he grew up, where Father Lantom serves.

The next scenes show Matt Murdock under the care of Sister Maggie and Father Lantom, who angrily debate over whether or not they should be helping the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen or turning him over to the police. They decide against the latter, and he’s removed from his Daredevil armor and nursed back to health.

He has memories of Elektra, of happier times together, of kissing her as Midland Circle collapsed on top of him. He finally gains full consciousness, but his hearing has been damaged so badly that he no longer has the heightened senses that allow him to fight crime so deftly.

Murdock later heals enough to the point where he can speak with Father Lantom about the events that lead him to the church. He asks about Elektra, and Lantom addresses the funeral they held for her after the events of Season 2 — before her revival by the Hand. Murdock reveals that she was indeed alive and that he was with her when Midland Circle collapsed, but Father Lantom says the building was surrounded. No one else was seen escaping.

Of course, if Murdock made it out alive, there’s a good chance Elektra did as well. Hopefully we’ll learn more about their future very soon.

Daredevil Season 3 is now streaming on Netflix.