Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Daredevil: Born Again season 2, episode 7
Daredevil: Born Again season 2 has not been afraid to kill off major characters, though the most recent death feels like a major waste of potential, especially when you look at the comics.
In Daredevil: Born Again season 2, episode 7, the war between Matt Murdock and Wilson Fisk escalates to new heights with Karen Page on trial and Matt coming out of hiding to publicly defend her as her lawyer. In the same episode, we also see Daniel Blake grappling with his role as Mayor Fisk’s Deputy Mayor of Communications and his relationship with BB Urich. Tragically, the episode ends with Daniel Blake losing his life for doing the right thing (and it feels far too soon).
When you look at where things could have gone, especially with Marvel Comics as a blueprint, it feels pretty evident that Daniel’s surprising death was cut off before his compelling arc could have gone in some very exciting places.
Why Daniel Blake’s Death In Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 Is So Surprising
Despite his loyalty and longstanding belief in Mayor Fisk, Daniel refused to give up BB Urich to Fisk’s right-hand man, Buck Cashman, who was going to kill her for leaking information to the public through her underground channel called City Without Fear. Daniel Blake did the right thing for someone he cared about…and it cost him everything.
Daredevil Born Again Season 2 Trailer Thumbnail
Although it seemed like he was perhaps going to spare him as they’d become friends, Buck Cashman brutally beats Daniel before shooting him in the head, making it one of the darkest and most surprising moments of the entire season.
The problem is that it really did feel like Daniel was just starting to evolve. How great would it have been if the rose-colored glasses started to come off, with Daniel eventually turning against Mayor Fisk and joining BB in exposing the truth? Instead, all of Daniel’s potential is cut short. Likewise, it gets even more frustrating considering who he could have become from the original comics.
I Really Wanted Daniel Blake To Be Kingpin’s Secret Son In The MCU
Part of what makes Daniel’s death feel like such a missed opportunity is that he could have easily been revealed as an actual character from the comics. Due to his enthusiasm and idolization of Fisk as a loyal member of his administration, I really felt as though Daniel could have eventually been revealed as the MCU version of Butch Pharris, Wilson Fisk’s illegitimate son on the page.
We never learn much about Daniel’s father, and Fisk clearly saw something in him. There was this perfect dynamic of mentorship, and just enough ambiguity to suggest a deeper connection. It was all there. This could have also perfectly tied into Fisk’s determination to leave behind a lasting legacy. There’s even a key conversation between Wilson and Vanessa Fisk (before her own death) about wanting to leave something behind, and how they never had children.
Hell’s Kitchen · Street-Level Edition How Well Do You Know Daredevil?
♻OriginsBlinded
☠VillainsKingpin
⚖AlliesJustice
⚔CombatNo killing
🎥TV SeriesNetflix
01
Matt Murdock was blinded as a child by radioactive material that fell from a truck. While he lost his sight, the accident gave him something extraordinary in return. What did the radioactive exposure give Matt?
✓ Correct! The radioactive chemicals that blinded young Matt Murdock simultaneously supercharged his remaining senses to extraordinary levels and gave him a radar-like spatial awareness. He can “see” the world around him through sound, smell, touch, and taste with superhuman precision — making him one of Marvel’s most unique heroes.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is superhuman radar-like senses. The radioactive accident didn’t give Matt strength, telepathy, or X-ray vision — it heightened all his remaining senses to superhuman levels and granted him a radar sense that lets him perceive the world around him in 360 degrees.
02
Daredevil’s greatest enemy is a massive, calculating crime lord who controls most of the criminal underworld in New York City. This villain is known by his real name and his title. Who is he?
✓ Correct! Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin, is Daredevil’s most iconic adversary. Despite having no superpowers, Fisk’s immense physical strength, ruthless intelligence, and iron grip on New York’s criminal underworld make him one of Marvel’s most terrifying villains. Their battle is deeply personal — both men believe they’re saving Hell’s Kitchen.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is Wilson Fisk / The Kingpin. Bullseye is a deadly assassin, The Hand is a ninja organization, and The Owl is a lesser crime lord. But the Kingpin is the definitive Daredevil villain — the immovable force that controls New York’s underworld from the shadows.
03
By day, Matt Murdock fights for justice in a courtroom as a lawyer. He co-founded a law firm with his best friend in Hell’s Kitchen. Who is Matt’s law partner and best friend?
✓ Correct! Franklin “Foggy” Nelson has been Matt Murdock’s best friend and law partner since they met at Columbia Law School. Together they founded Nelson & Murdock, a small firm dedicated to defending the people of Hell’s Kitchen. Foggy is the heart and conscience of the partnership — often the one pulling Matt back from the edge.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is Franklin “Foggy” Nelson. Ben Urich is a journalist at the Daily Bugle, Danny Rand is Iron Fist, and Luke Cage is a Harlem-based hero. Foggy Nelson is Matt’s irreplaceable best friend, law partner, and moral anchor.
04
The Netflix Daredevil series (2015–2018) was praised for its dark tone and incredible fight choreography. Which actor portrayed Matt Murdock/Daredevil in the Netflix series and later in the MCU’s Daredevil: Born Again?
✓ Correct! Charlie Cox brought Matt Murdock to life with a nuanced, critically acclaimed performance across three seasons of Netflix’s Daredevil. His portrayal was so beloved that Marvel Studios brought him back for the MCU, appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home and starring in Daredevil: Born Again.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is Charlie Cox. Ben Affleck played Daredevil in the 2003 film, Oscar Isaac is Moon Knight, and Jon Bernthal plays the Punisher (who appeared in Daredevil Season 2). Charlie Cox is the definitive live-action Man Without Fear.
05
Bullseye is one of Daredevil’s deadliest foes, a psychopathic assassin with an extraordinary ability. What is Bullseye’s signature power?
✓ Correct! Bullseye possesses an innate ability to turn virtually any object into a lethal projectile with perfect accuracy. From playing cards to paper clips, anything in his hands becomes a deadly weapon. He’s responsible for some of the darkest moments in Daredevil’s history, including the murder of Elektra.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is perfect accuracy — he never misses a target. Bullseye doesn’t have super speed, invisibility, or mind control. His terrifying gift is unerring aim — he can kill with a toothpick, a playing card, or anything he can throw.
06
Elektra Natchios is a complex character in Daredevil’s life — sometimes lover, sometimes enemy. She is a deadly assassin trained by a mysterious ninja organization. What is the name of this organization?
✓ Correct! The Hand is a secretive ninja organization that plays a major role in Daredevil’s mythology. Founded centuries ago, they deal in assassination, mysticism, and resurrection. Elektra was trained by The Hand and has been both their weapon and their enemy — her complicated ties to the organization mirror her complicated relationship with Matt.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is The Hand. The League of Shadows is from DC’s Batman universe, HYDRA is the broader Marvel villain organization, and The Foot Clan is from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (actually inspired by The Hand). The Hand is the ancient ninja order central to Daredevil’s world.
07
Frank Castle, the Punisher, has a complicated relationship with Daredevil. They share a mission to fight crime but disagree fundamentally on methods. What is the core philosophical difference between Daredevil and the Punisher?
✓ Correct! This is the defining tension between Daredevil and the Punisher. Matt Murdock, a devout Catholic and lawyer, believes in the justice system and refuses to cross the line into killing. Frank Castle believes the system is broken and that lethal force is the only way to permanently stop criminals. Their rooftop debate in Season 2 of the Netflix series is one of the greatest scenes in superhero television.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is that Daredevil refuses to kill while the Punisher kills criminals. It’s actually the Punisher who uses weapons (guns, explosives), and neither works with police. Daredevil fights at all hours. The real divide is moral: Matt believes in redemption and the law, while Frank believes in permanent, lethal justice.
08
In the Daredevil Netflix series, Vincent D’Onofrio’s portrayal of Wilson Fisk was widely acclaimed. In Season 3, Fisk manipulated a specific FBI agent to become the new Bullseye. What is this character’s name?
✓ Correct! Benjamin “Dex” Poindexter, played brilliantly by Wilson Bethel, was an FBI agent with a troubled past and an innate ability for perfect marksmanship. Fisk recognized his psychological vulnerabilities and manipulated him into donning a Daredevil suit to frame Matt Murdock, setting up Dex’s transformation into the classic villain Bullseye.
✗ Even Daredevil’s radar sense couldn’t find the right answer there! The answer is Benjamin Poindexter (Dex). Ray Nadeem was another FBI agent manipulated by Fisk but in a different way, Brett Mahoney is an NYPD sergeant allied with Daredevil, and Mitchell Ellison is the editor of the New York Bulletin. Dex is the one Fisk groomed to become Bullseye.
Case Closed Your Hell’s Kitchen Verdict
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Are you the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen — or just a blind spot?
Without Vanessa and Wilson’s son Richard from the comics ever entering the picture in the MCU, introducing a secret son would have totally taken that idea to the next level. In the wake of Vanessa’s death, Fisk could have had Daniel as a newly revealed family member and future heir to everything he’d built, a very compelling arc that could have been fleshed out in Daredevil: Born Again season 3.
Butch even played a key role in the wake of the Devil’s Reign storyline, becoming a new Kingpin after Wilson’s time as New York’s mayor came to an end on the page (a similar end for the MCU’s Mayor Fisk is likely on its way by the end of this season).
Instead, Daniel’s story is now over before any of that can happen. Additionally, the recent confirmation that an alternate ending was filmed for Daredevil: Born Again season 2, episode 7 where Daniel would have survived makes the wasted potential sting that much more. After all, it suggests there was at least some consideration for a longer arc we’re now never going to get.
The final episode of Daredevil: Born Again begins streaming May 5th on Disney+ from Marvel Studios.
