Bullseye! ‘Daredevil’ Season 3 hits the mark with critics and fans alike

Marvels+Daredevil+Season+Three+promotional+poster.%0A%0AFrom%3A+https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FDaredevil%2Fstatus%2F1052564441332477952%3Fref_src%3Dtwsrc%255Etfw%257Ctwcamp%255Etweetembed%257Ctwterm%255E1052564441332477952%26ref_url%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fcomicbook.com%252Fmarvel%252F2018%252F10%252F17%252Fdaredevil-season-3-poster-netflix%252F

https://twitter.com/Daredevil

Marvel’s “Daredevil” Season Three promotional poster. From: https://twitter.com/Daredevil/status/1052564441332477952?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1052564441332477952&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmarvel%2F2018%2F10%2F17%2Fdaredevil-season-3-poster-netflix%2F

Xavier Rhone, Reporter

Marvel’s “Daredevil” returned to Netflix users’ screens throughout the world with its third installation on October 19, drawing inspiration heavily from the 1986 Daredevil story “Born Again,” by Frank Miller, and introduced the universe to one of Daredevil’s most notorious enemies: Benjamin Poindexter, aka Bullseye.

The show picks up with Matt Murdock (portrayed by Charlie Cox) following the catastrophic events of Marvel’s ensemble series “Defenders” and is focused on Murdock’s disillusionment with his identity and his place in the world, while both of his lives as lawyer Matt Murdock and as vigilante Daredevil are simultaneously under a coordinated assault masterminded by his arch nemesis Wilson Fisk (portrayed by Vincent D’Onofrio).

Cox gave insight into the psyche of Matt Murdock going into the season, stating, “We meet him at rock bottom, in a place where he’s physically destroyed, but also mentally, spiritually, emotionally. He’s gone to a darker place than he ever has before, and we get to rebuild him over the course of the season.”

A hallmark of the show has been the extraordinary fight scenes and choreography. Season three set the bar even higher than its predecessors, as this season features multiple breathtaking fight scenes sprinkled throughout the season, with the pinnacle being an outstanding 11-minute one-take fight scene in the fourth episode.

The scene was filmed was in one day, in less then 12 hours, but it almost didn’t happen. Initial trepidation from Marvel television executives from a logistical standpoint were quickly eased by how eager the entire cast and crew were to tackle the challenge. Vice president of Marvel Television, Tom Leiber, remembers “Charlie was really excited about it…[and] We were like, ‘We should just do it. We should just try it. We have to set them up for success with this.’”

In addition to stellar action sequences, the cast itself was amazing. Every main and supporting character delivers a strong and passionate performance, maximizing their time on screen. One of the standouts was Charlie Cox’s captivating portrayal of Murdock’s internal torment, but the standout performance of the season was Wilson Bethel‘s performance as the deranged Benjamin “Dex” Poindexter. The level of complexity of Bethel’s performance is truly outstanding, as he manages to make the audience sympathetic to the plights of an unhinged serial killer.

Bethel believes that Poindexter is such an enthralling character due to Poindexter’s “serious psychological problems,” but its these same problems that Bethel believes makes Poindexter “super interesting” and “even sympathetic.” Bethel further elaborated, “Because it’s not just this iconic villain. It’s also a really intricately drawn, nuanced portrait of a deeply disturbed, damaged guy. So, you kind of get the best of both worlds. You get intense internal fights and also incredibly badass physical expression.”

Following two critically acclaimed seasons, the show once again managed to exceed expectations and receive high praise from both fans and critics. The third installment of the series boasts an impressive 96% audience score and a 93% critic score from Rotten Tomatoes, leaving fans satisfied and desperate to see more of the “Devil of the Hell’s Kitchen.”