Marvel’s Daredevil S1x02 “Cut Man”

WARNING! SPOILERS!

If the first episode was anything to go by, Marvel’s Daredevil has really hit the ground running and things continued to shine in the second, which featured one of the best fight scenes that you will probably see on television this yea; a bloody, brutal action sequence that really impressed, having been done in one shot, at the episode’s end. If anything, Cut Man was better than Into the Ring, showing just how good this show can be in just the second episode.

Cut Man introduced us to Rosario Dawson’s Nurse, Claire, who’s tending to Matt after he was found in a dumpster when he tried and failed to rescue a kid who had been kidnapped. It showed us that Daredevil isn’t invincible, and he’s nowhere near the same level as Captain America or Thor when it comes to dishing out and taking punishment. He’s human, and this episode is effective at showing that. Although we didn’t actually get to see the initial fight sequence where Matt fought the Russians who had captured the kid and failed, it was handled effectively well, making the fight that we did get all the more worth it.

There was some excellent flashback sequences going on here in Cut Man as we really got to explore “Battling Jack” Murdock for the first time, Matt’s dad. They were super insane and it was great that we got to spend time in the past, with these being one of the finer points of an already excellent episode. As I’m currently seven episodes in (you can expect new reviews to go up each Monday and Friday), the flashback sequences continued to explore beyond this, but it was nice to learn more about Matt’s past this early on, allowing the audience to really sympathize with both the younger Murdock and the older, Jack, played by John Patrick Hayden.

If it wasn’t evident by Into the Ring, Cut Man really illustrates this show is radically different from the rest of the Marvel Universe and it’s really hard to imagine that somewhere out there Peter Quill is out in space with a talking Racoon and a tree that only says three words, dancing to songs like Redbone’s Come and Get Your Love. The scene where Matt tortures the Russian mobster is brutal, especially when he targeted the man’s eye nerve. If you’re looking for a super intense show in the Marvel Universe, this really should be right up your street, and proves that they can handle a Punisher show well should Netflix choose to expand on Frank Castle.

Matt’s day job took a backseat this week as the focus was all on the night work. We did however get to spend some brief time with Foggy and Karen, as their scenes were handled well, with Foggy continuing to be the series’ comic relief, offering few lighter moments in show that would otherwise be completely dark. Rosario Dawson also impressed as Claire, and her interactions with Matt were also fun to watch, and it’s good to see that so far, there doesn’t really appear to be any unlikable protagonists.

On the whole then, Daredevil continues to be excellent, putting both Agents of SHIELD and Agent Carter behind it as it establishes itself as the best comic book show on television (that judgement may have been helped by the fact that I’m 7 episodes in), and not just that, but arguably the best new show of the year aside from possibly Better Call Saul, with iZombie a close third. It’s excellent stuff, folks, and if you haven’t already checked it out then you really should stop what you’re doing and watch it ASAP.