Matt prepares to cross the line, as Dex becomes more dangerous than ever and Fisk enacts his endgame.

A three way dance is the best way to describe this finale as it brings together the three major players, Kingpin, Faux-Devil (Dex) and Daredevil in a final battle that has them all out for each other.

It’s interesting to watch as Bullseye, I mean Faux-Devil can use anything and everything as a weapon. So, to see what he picks up in the environment to use is part of the entertainment. Then there’s the physical power of Kingpin versus the skill of Daredevil. Each has their own special abilities and where they stand out as fighters.

But it really comes down to Matt and how far he’s willing to go. Wilson knows his identity. He will hunt Karen and Foggy. So does Matt have to kill him? Is there a way to solve the issue at hand and put Wilson away while also protecting his friends?

What’s interesting in the episode is that it’s Wilson Fisk almost getting everything he ever wanted. Vanessa. Respect. There’s a tragedy about it all because if he had just turned states evidence and turn in his rivals with no strings, he’d have been in a better position than he winds up. This is a man who thought he was invincible and in many ways he was, especially with how much he controlled. The fact he’s not given what he demands at the end is so important as well. His control is completely broken and we now know it.

There’s also some impressively symbolic moments within the episode. The painting, which means so much to Kingpin, is ruined with his blood. A symbolic moment showing off the taint and destruction of everything he cared about. It’s a little obvious but the fact it’s presented in the back of the scene and not called out is a subtle bit that plays quite well.

This finale is a solid one, one of the best of any Marvel Netflix series. The villain isn’t killed. There’s an excellent fight. Almost all of the plotlines are wrapped up nicely. The episode also addresses the major theme set out at the beginning, can Matt and Daredevil co-exist? It also calls back to the earlier seasons and in a way that’s nostalgic. And there’s even a bit something for comic fans.

Was it a great season, no. But, the latter half is some of the strongest of Marvel’s Netflix shows. A fine ending and one that has me hoping for a fourth season.

Overall Rating: 8.5

Fisk’s long-awaited reunion doesn’t go as planned. Nelson & Murdock take on a new client who holds key information on Kingpin.

The penultimated episode of the season is a fairly solid one delivering some things that are expected and some things that aren’t so much.

There’s a nice aspect to it as it brings Matt, Foggy, and Karen back into their lawyer element. They attempt to fight things through the legal system, something Matt has been rejecting for the season. It’s also nice to see the three of them together and not completely crap over the legal system.

I’ve had some issues with the season as it has portrayed the FBI as incompetent and/or corrupt with little good coming out of it. There’s also the NYPD who has been generally unhelpful as well.

To see the series pivot back to the side of the law is a welcome change from a season that has had Matt swing to far into the vigilante end of things and too much being corrupted. Every FBI agent is? There’s no good ones? There’s no one higher to go to? It’s a little frustrating in that the insulated world makes it all seem a bit silly at the vastness of the conspiracy.

The episode also finally makes the Foggy for DA election plot line useful. It’s a plot device which finally becomes useful and not just something for Foggy to do.

The end too has twists and turns that are more courtroom legal drama than superhero vigilante and it’s some of the best stuff of the season. None of it’s surprising and the end result is expected but still, it’s nice to see a season which has swung so much one way get back to the courtroom in a way.

It’s a good episode filled more with courtroom drama but some solid action sequences as well. A scene between Matt and Nadeem in particular is excellent and a great idea, something we haven’t seen before.

One more episode to go but this sets up what should be a solid finale.

Overall Rating: 7.75

Dex tries to run his prey to ground, Nadeem’s conscience kicks in, and Fisk looks to recover a gift from Vanessa seized during his incarceration.

The episode is one of tension as the corrupt FBI surround the Church and attempt to track down Matt and Karen for the Kingpin.

It’s an interesting episode of cat and mouse and there really is a question as to if they’ll be found and if the FBI agents will be found out.

Those involved are interesting as the game becomes more complex. There is an issue with the plot and you do have to suspend disbelief as things get a little convoluted. Witnesses contradict the FBI, the FBI contradict the witnesses and no one is raising a stink about that?

But, the episode does help in making Nadeem have an actual spine and guts something he’s missed for most of the season. The conclusion with how Foggy resolves everything and gets Karen out safely is actually inspired as well bringing together a lot of the various plots.

But that has issues too in that it exposes the FBI’s corruption. The NYPD isn’t going to step in at all and deal with that? It seems like something that’s just dropped.

Then there’s the ending of the episode which is a little odd in how it’s presented. Kingpin steps forward and suddenly everyone believes him? The crowd being won over is rather quick and a bit awkward but that seems to fit the season.

It’s a nice bridge episode as we move towards the end game and there’s solid tension. It continues the solid latter half of the season.

Overall Rating: 7.45

Hunted by Fisk and haunted by mistakes from her past, Karen seeks refuge at the church. Matt finally gets his shot, and Dex goes in for the kill.

Why did Karen run to New York? What’s up with the story about her brother? Episode ten answers all of that and more as we get a story focused on the character. It’s an origin story of sorts and depicts the troubled past we expected.

It’s also about 2/3 of the episode.

Yeah, the negative is this origin story, while interested, also takes away some of the momentum that was building in the last couple of episodes.

But, with that we get Kingpin pissed and targeting Karen with Faux-Devil. Of course that leads to a hell of a fight between Faux-Devil and Daredevil.

There’s some really solid stuff here with Karen using Matt’s ability to hear whispering to their advantage. We also get to see some of his strategy of close fighting doing damage in play and it works pretty well.

What’s really good is that the expected conclusion doesn’t happen. While this season has taken a lot on inspiration from the comics its veered where it’s needed to especially here. There’s scenes that are very reminiscent of the source material with slight twists and good ones at that.

This was a solid episode continuing the latter half of the season’s improved storytelling. There is an issue in that the Karen flashback takes so long it slows things down a bit much but still, how it’s done, and how well it’s done, makes up for that a bit.

This episode is one that I was expecting and scenes I’ve been waiting for and it delivered them in a solid way. Here’s hoping things continue in this positive direction.

Overall Rating: 7.5

Matt’s already shaky world tilts when he learns a shocking truth. Karen runs for her life. Nadeem discovers how deep Fisk’s influence runs.

Things finally have gotten interesting as early in the episode delivers a few twists. Those twists actually make the season much more interesting and begins a payoff that actually feels like one. That also could be because the previous eight episodes were so frustrating.

All those complaints I had before about the FBI being utterly incompetent? We now know why that’s the case. It makes things not quite as bad but it still leaves the issue of the first half of the season dragging. Getting to this point sooner would have made the season much more enjoyable. It’s clear in this plot alone, the Marvel Netflix issue of being about 3 episodes too long continues.

The bigger revelation is about Matt and his mother. We get the truth about his birth and we find out who his mother really is. It’s a pretty heartbreaking portion of the season but it feels like the episode didn’t give the revelation the oomph it deserved. Hopefully it’s revisited but we get to see a bit more about Matt’s childhood and it changes how we think about his father. It also touches upon an issue mother’s often face in reality but we as a society don’t talk enough about.

The episode is a better one in that it finally brings all the threads together and we get to see what Fisk, aka Kingpin’s, plan has been all along. We also get a better sense of how deep his corruption goes and spreads. It seems the latter half of the season is making up for the former showing Marvel shows continue to have issues delivering a consistent experience. Probably the best episode of the season so far.

Overall Rating: 7.75

A desperate Dex reaches out for help, Matt forms an uneasy alliance with Agent Nadeem, and Karen concocts a dangerous plan to provoke Fisk.

Dex is having some issues and seeks out help from his former coworker. The season’s best moments, at least for acting and writing, seems to revolve around Dex. Yes, he’s beyond creepy or at least we thought he is. What’s interesting here is that what we thought about him, that he’s stalking women, isn’t necessarily the case. He is, but not in the way we think he has. Or maybe he did and he’s lying? The man is a sociopath, so there’s a chance it’s all an act.

But much of the episode is figuring out the truth and the pieces of the puzzle coming together. Nadeem and Daredevil team up to spy on Dex. There’s some things turned up but nothing that really nails down the fact Dex is Faux-Devil. It’s a nice emphasis that vigilante justice is different than police justice. But, Nadeem also seems to have stopped being an idiot and going where the evidence takes him.

It also leads to an action sequence that’s entertaining and again shows off Dex’s abilities.

The whole Foggy running for DA comes up again. It feels like a storyline that they decided to throw in there, forgot about it, and now bring it up whenever it’s needed to move the plot.

There’s definite improvement in the series as it moves along the latter half but the season has definitely been peppered with pacing issues. This episode is much better in that aspect but still it feels like things could have been gotten to quicker and some other aspects just make little sense in how it’s being used like Foggy’s run for office.

The frustration continues!

Overall Rating: 6.95