Originally published April 11, 2015. Updated April 13, 2018.
Luke Owen reviews the second episode of Daredevil…
With everything set up in the last episode, it’s time for Daredevil to start introducing some of the other major players of this twisted game. Enter: Night Nurse.
The episode opens up more or less where the last one ended, with Daredevil chasing down the Russians that kidnapped a young lad from his father – only we find Ol’ Hornhead laying in a dumpster all beaten up and stabbed. Thankfully he’s found by the rather helpful nurse Claire, and the two form a rather uneasy bond (particularly after she sees Matt’s face). As Matt recovers from his horrific beating, we get flashbacks of the story of his relationship with his father Jack Murdock, and his unfortunate end.
“Cut Man” has a very clear theme as we see Jack Murdock struggle to be the father Matt needs, mirrored against Daredevil’s desires to save this little boy from the evil Russians. While not exactly subtle, it makes for a captivating story. The writing in Daredevil is so good that even when it’s just Matt telling Claire about his motivations, it’s never dull. Charlie Cox is once again fantastic as Murdock and Rosario Dawson is a superb counter-part to him. The character of Night Nurse goes on a brilliant journey throughout this episode, starting out as a helpful neighbour before becoming a masked hero herself.
On a side note, Claire naming Matt Murdock “Mike” for his new secret identity is a fantastic nod to the early days of Daredevil. There’s also a great line about his black suit being a “work in progress”.
But the brilliance of this episode really lays with the story of Battlin’ Jack Murdock, which is sure to tug at the ol’ heartstrings. John Patrick Hayden is absolutely brilliant and plays the part of the down-on-his luck father so well. He shares some incredibly emotional scenes with Skylar Gaertner as a young Matt Murdock and you can really see from his performance that Jack cares so much for this child. Likewise Gaertner is fantastic, selling the worry for his father while displaying just how proud he is at all-times. As the “unfortunate incident” inches closer and closer, you’ll find yourself praying for a different outcome (even though you know it will never come) and that all comes down to the excellence of Hayden and Gaertner.
Oh, and did you notice one of the fighters on the posters in the gym is named Barton? As in Clint Barton? A relative perhaps…
Meanwhile, there are some friendship flowers in bloom as Foggy Nelson firmly cements himself into the friend-zone with a distracted Karen Page. The two go off on a drink binge as Karen laments to Foggy about her fears of going back to the apartment where Danny was killed. Does Foggy have a thing for Karen? Perhaps not, but this episode subtly plants seeds that this sort of story could come to pass at some point further down the line. Elden Henson is less annoying here as he was in the first episode, but Deborah Ann Woll is once again perfect.
And while the crux of the episode rests on the shoulders of the flashbacks, present day Daredevil has the episode’s true shining moment: a one-take hallway fight scene that is so well choreographed, it gives The Raid and Oldboy a run for their money. This scene… oh my this scene. It’s just so epic and the performances from everyone involved are just spot on. Whether it was Cox under the mask or not, the scene is simply jawdropping and awesome from start to end. Hands down, this is not just the best moment of any superhero-based TV show to date, it might be one of the best scenes from the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe.
“Cut Man” is a brilliant follow-up to the sublime pilot and the string of excellent stories continues. More things are set up for future episodes, and we’re still yet to see the debut of Wilson Fisk – so the epicness can only grow from here. One wonders whether they can beat “that hallway” sequence, but something tells this author that this just the tip of the iceberg.
Luke Owen is the Deputy Editor of Flickering Myth and the host of the Flickering Myth Podcast. You can follow him on Twitter @LukeWritesStuff.
