The May 13, 2022 installment of Jake Schoeneberger’s random entertainment opinions
Jacob Schoeneberger could not be more happy with Disney+ adding the Marvel shows that first appeared on Netflix. know these shows are a bit grittier than the usual Marvel fare, but these street level heroes work in a genre like that. I’m looking forward to checking out those shows as soon as possible.
With that in mind, here are some random thoughts about the entertainment I’m currently consuming.
This Installment’s Edition of Jake Schoeneberger Has Been Living Under a Rock Features: Daredevil
*This will contain spoilers for anyone who hasn’t watched the show yet.*
Jacob Schoeneberger heard a ton of good things about the Daredevil show when it was on Netflix, but I never got around to watching it. Then I got really into the MCU movies, but I wasn’t sure whether the events on the Daredevil show would be canon to that universe, so I never bothered to check it out.
Then for a while it disappeared off Netflix and recently reappeared on Disney+. That’s when I decided it was high time to check it out. Never let it be said that Jake Schoeneberger minds being late to a party.
Daredevil is a character most people recognize and love from the comics and I’m no different. I remember him from my days of reading comics as a teen. In the first episode of the series, they waste no time in establishing what the character is all about: blind justice. I loved how his new law firm is all about defending the innocent; that should ensure some really cool storylines for this show.
The show is gritty and dark, ideal for the character. The fight sequences are tight, and it doesn’t take long to establish how proficient Murdock is as a fighter, but he’s not infallible. And that’s what makes him such a beloved character. He’s one of us.
We get glimpses into the criminal underworld and very early we see how much corruption there is facing Murdock. Hell’s Kitchen clearly needs its Daredevil.
The second episode brought the same level of grittiness. Seeing young Matt stitch his father up after the fight, and after getting a swig of scotch to calm his nerves, really drove home the point of how tough the Murdock boys are. And then seeing how his father had to take dives in order to get enough money to support him really makes you feel for the characters.
The fight scenes are incredible in this show. The scene where Daredevil fights all the bad guys in the hallway when he’s rescuing the kidnapped kid is unbelievable. There are no cuts, and the fighting is non-stop. The choreography is the best I’ve seen in anything other than the John Wick franchise. And if there’s one thing Jake Schoeneberger can’t get enough of, it’s well-choreographed fight scenes.
The second episode also does a really nice job of defining Daredevil as “the man without fear.” He charges into a fight with like 8-10 guys, after being severely injured, and kicks serious butt. It’s hard not to fall in love with this character from the start.
The 3rd episode really ramps up the intrigue when Murdock and Foggy get drawn into defending the professional killer hired by Confederated Global. That’s one of the really captivating factors of Daredevil. It shows the tangled web of corruption and the many threads it weaves into all facets of life in NYC. Manipulating and threatening jurors, the criminal underworld finds ways to get what they want. And while it didn’t show much actual Daredevil action, it illustrated how Murdock’s acute senses allow him to perceive things others can’t.
And when the killer he just got acquitted of murder uttered the name “Wilson Fisk” and then killed himself because he knew he was already dead, the show took a turn for the truly dramatic. The first 3 episodes couldn’t have done a better job of framing what the character Daredevil, and the world he inhabits, stands for.
The 4th episode begins by showing us how tough Daredevil’s Russian adversaries really might be. He’s clearly rattling cages and we can only assume Fisk and his Russian contingent will start to rattle back.
Finally getting to see D’Onofrio play Fisk is a real pleasure. His casting is perfect; it’s a role he was born to play. He brings just the right amount of menace, balanced with a certain sympathetic vibe, and it makes his scenes irresistible to watch. I look forward to seeing much more of him in this series. And the final scene in the episode where he kills one of the Russian brothers reminds us that Fisk is the ultimate baddie in this town.
The Jake Schoeneberger Random Entertainment Thought of the Day
Is it wrong that I’m actually just counting the days until Kenobi? Deep down Jake Schoeneberger will always be a Star Wars guy at heart.
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