10 Years Ago Today, Daredevil’s Worst Season Gave Us 1 Marvel Story I Doubt Born Again Can Beat

Daredevil was the start of Netflix’s Defenders universe, and the series was so popular that it has now returned to the MCU in the form of Daredevil: Born Again. After years of wondering if the Netflix shows were still canon, Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock returned in Spider-Man: No Way Home, leading to the Netflix series getting a proper continuation on Disney+. Season 1 of Born Again recanonized many of the events of the Netflix series, and it also attempted to top a story that Daredevil told 10 years ago.

Now, the Man Without Fear is back in Daredevil: Born Again season 2, which will release on March 24 on Disney+. This is set to be the biggest Daredevil story yet, with Matt forming a team in order to take on Mayor Wilson Fisk and his Anti-Vigilante Task Force. This is an epic continuation of season 1’s biggest development, and it shows how far the character has come since he debuted on Netflix more than a decade ago.

Daredevil Season 2 Released 10 Years Ago Today (& It’s The Weakest Daredevil Season)

Daredevil season 1 was released in 2015, and Netflix followed it up with a second season that released 10 years ago today on March 18, 2016. The second season moved away from Matt’s rivalry with Fisk. Instead, season 2 focused on Matt’s continued conflict with The Hand, the return of Elektra, and the appearance of a new vigilante, Frank Castle’s The Punisher.

Despite all of these iconic stories being added in, Daredevil season 2 is the weakest season. Matt’s battle against Fisk’s corruption is the heart of the show, and it’s clear that it is what the showrunners were more interested in. Daredevil season 2 spends a lot of its time setting up the story of The Defenders, which ended up being a bit of a disappointment. The toned-down version of The Hand just isn’t all that interesting, and the hole left by Wilson Fisk and Ben Urich was definitely felt.

Daredevil season 2 isn’t just the worst of the original three seasons. It’s also worse than Daredevil: Born Again season 1. The first season of Born Again season 1 was a mixed bag, but its highs were higher than Daredevil season 2’s. The Mayor Fisk storyline and the return of Bullseye were incredibly exciting and led to some of the show’s tensest moments. While season 2 of the Netflix show is more consistent, it doesn’t compare to the last few episodes of Born Again.

Daredevil season 2 is still great, and there is a lot to love for fans of the show. However, every season of Daredevil is a near-masterpiece, meaning that there is a very high bar that season 2 had to live up to. Season 3 got back on track by being the best Daredevil season, meaning that season 2 was unfortunately squished between two incredible seasons of television.

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The MCU Will Never Top Season 2’s Daredevil vs. Punisher Arc

While Daredevil season 2 may have been a bit disappointing, there was one obvious highlight: The Punisher. Jon Berenthal’s introduction as Frank Castle was incredible, and he is one of the most praised aspects of the series. He was so popular that he ended up getting his own spinoff TV series, returned in Daredevil: Born Again, and is getting a Disney+ special this year. The MCU’s Punisher is easily the best adaptation of the character, and it’s all thanks to how he started in Daredevil.

Season 2 kicked off with a mini arc of Daredevil vs. The Punisher, and it was incredible. Not only was Matt trying to stop Frank’s killing spree, but they were also having an ideological battle. Matt and Frank’s conversation on the roof is one of the most iconic scenes from Daredevil, closely followed by Frank’s courtroom testimony later in the season. Season 2 also started teasing Frank and Karen’s relationship, something that fans have hooked onto since the episodes dropped.

Daredevil: Born Again reunited Daredevil and The Punisher, but it was nowhere near as good as the arc in season 2. The Netflix series handles their relationship masterfully, and while it was fun to see them back together, Netflix’s arc can’t be topped. Even though season 2 fell off a bit when it delved into The Hand and Elektra, Daredevil and The Punisher’s story is one of the best things to come out of Netflix’s Defenders universe.

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