Let’s Talk about Daredevil Episode 1-3

When last we saw Daredevil, he’d killed a couple of cops.

Well, they said they were cops when they broke into a witness’s home.

Also, one of them may be alive. I was a bit unclear about that.

The point is that after a year of taking a break from being Daredevil, Matt Murdoch faced a decision.

He could let a dirty cop shoot him in the head, or he could defend himself. I just made it pretty clear which path he chose.

Now, we witness the fallout. So, let’s talk about Daredevil episode 1-3, the one with the White Tiger’s trial.

Meet the New Boss

Everyone’s having a bad start to the episode.

Matt Murdoch is trying to reassure Hector Ayala that the latter gentleman will see his family again as a free man.

Ayala’s face tells the story that he’d like to believe this statement, but he deems it a pretty lie.

Then, we cut to a pair of guys sitting in a van. It’s late at night at the Red Hook Terminal.

If you’ve ever watched any movie or television series, you know these two are about to get got.

Sure enough, a cocky dude with a cockney accident comes over and asks for their keys.

Then, he gets spicy and asks for their wallets as well. The driver calmly relents, trying to de-escalate the situation.

His passenger gets them both killed by talking back to the would-be hijacker.

The thief has brought a friend, one who promptly pulls the trigger, just like almost happened to Daredevil last week.

What does this random act of skullduggery have to do with the story?

Well, Wilson Fisk is having a meal at the Mayor’s mansion, and he’s joined by his estranged wife, Vanessa.

This woman has definitely broken bad, as she’s miserably unhappy that the two of them aren’t committing crimes.

She wants to sell a triptych of the Three Studies of Lucian Freud to launder $200 million.

The mayor prefers to keep his (and her) hands clean. Moments later, an assistant informs him of the crime at the docks.

Vanessa emphasizes that without the threat of the Kingpin, a power struggle has ensued.

She predicts that the winner will take a run at Kingpin.

Amusingly, the mayor dismisses the point. He’s now above blood feuds.

Bloody Knuckles

In a previous episode, Wilson Fisk started intently at his bloody knuckles, a harsh reminder of one of his prior blood feuds.

Now, the camera cuts to Matt Murdock trying to wash his hands. The metaphor isn’t subtle about the blood on them.

Immediately afterward, the dirty cop, Officer Powell, appears in the bathroom where Murdock is performing proper hygiene.

And this is when I realize the show’s gonna be a bit ridiculous. This is the same cop I thought Murdoch had killed.

Obviously, Powell looks pretty beat up, but he takes an aggressive approach anyway.

This is the first time I’ve had a problem with the new season of Daredevil.

After the beating Murdoch gave the cop, if Powell walked in a bathroom and saw any blind guy in it, he’d turn around and leave.

He may even lose bladder control while fleeing in terror. Instead, the show takes a different approach.

Powell tries to intimidate the lawyer, apparently having forgotten the previous encounter due to the savage concussion.

That’s the only way this makes sense to me. Anyway, Murdoch says, “I’ll see you in court” and exits.

Soon afterward, Powell takes the stand, where we learn he’s been decorated in the line of duty multiple times.

He’s also the same cop from the subway whom Ayala tuned up. Powell’s having a rough few weeks on the job.

Dirty cops have it hard. But Powell does a nice job of painting himself as a noble officer during his testimony.

He points out that the dead cop was his partner for eight years and that Ayala killed him “like it was nothing.”

Perjury Is Bad, Mmkay?

Powell testifies that he, his partner, and Ayala were the only three people at the subway station that night.

Murdoch senses his opportunity, and we know why. First, we saw that the dirty cops were beating up an informant.

Second, a brief scene early in the episode shows Cherry visiting a safe house and trading drugs for knowledge from the informant.

That’s the fourth person in the subway station, and Murdoch knows where he is. So, he toys with Powell a little.

First, he taunts the guy for having a black eye, cleverly pointing out that the best way to avoid them is to have fast hands.

Nobody else in the courtroom gets it, but the attorney for the defense is mocking the dirty cop whose ass the lawyer kicked.

This move’s sole purpose is to agitate the witness before pressing about the dishonest statement.

Murdoch states the name of the informant, whom Powell denies knowing…even though that guy had informed TO him.

Powell is committing a remarkable amount of perjury in a couple of minutes of testimony.

Meanwhile, another guy in the courtroom, a different cop with a Punisher tattoo, whispers that the informant, Nicky Torres, “cannot testify.”

Obviously, the Daredevil hears this, but nobody else does. So, that’s gonna be our next mini-boss fight.

We cut to Cherry and the person in charge of the safe house safeguarding Torres as the informant heads to the courthouse.

For the Defense?

Cherry faces some challenges in trying to transport the informant.

Powell himself pulls over the van and attempts to prevent Torres from testifying.

Cherry flashes his badge, but Powell is beyond caring. He’s going to stop the informant from burying his police career.

But Cherry accounted for that. He doesn’t have anyone in the back of the van. It’s the other guy who has taken Torres to court.

But this ploy backfires when Torres testifies. The previously convicted drug dealer can’t help but notice his surroundings.

It’s a roomful of vengeful cops. So, he panics and perjures himself, claiming he wasn’t at the station.

Perjury is very in right now. And this leaves the defense scrambling for a Plan B.

Murdoch, recognizing that Ayala is an innocent man, chooses to put him on the stand.

Before this happens, a fascinating crime story plays out as Buck, one of the mayor’s advisors, appears under a highway.

He’s meeting with various leaders of the Five Families, and he hands one a check for $1.8 million.

That’s the amount of money lost during the hijacking/murder earlier in the episode.

The guy who authorized the hit is standing right there, and this embarrasses him. So, he makes a threat at Buck.

At this point, the mayor’s advisor states, “I work for the man, not the mayor.” Yeah, he’s gonna kill people at some point.

But that’s not the swerve. It’s that Vanessa, not Wilson, ordered this transaction.

Wilson Fisk’s biggest threat may be in his own home. He knows it, too, stating, “Let’s not fall into a place where I don’t trust you.”

It’s gotten harder and harder to decide who is on who’s side in this story. And this all happens during marriage counseling.

For the Defense!

Murdoch has a plan, and it’s not one that his friends anticipated.

After Murdoch has Ayala explain why he was at the station on New Year’s Eve, he launches into his Plan B.

Murdoch points out that this isn’t the first time Ayala had moved to protect strangers.

And he reveals the man’s secret identity as the White Tiger. That has to break some sort of Marvel superhero rule, right?

Also, this is the very piece of evidence Murdoch had attempted to keep out of the trial, thereby infuriating the judge.

Also, the district attorney, who is right to be pissed, bluntly states that his office will make Murdoch’s life miserable from now on.

Murdoch has done this as much to garner public support for Ayala as to influence the jury.

Sure enough, the BB Report shows sentiment swelling in Ayala’s favor. And several people testify in the man’s defense.

There are also several police reports supporting the fact that Ayala is a hero and an ally to cops. Several of them nod at this.

In jail, Murdoch tells the White Tiger that he can never wear the suit again.

At this point, Ayala dismisses Murdoch for failing to understand the White Tiger is part of who he is. Is Daredevil listening?

When asked to explain his actions, Ayala repeatedly replies, “It was the right thing to do.”

At this point, Murdoch drops the bombshell that Ayala wasn’t wearing his accessory that gives him superpowers.

And the attorney asks why the White Tiger would have done that if he were planning the crime of which the dirty cops accused him.

The prosecuting attorney does make a strong closing argument, though. “Real heroes don’t need to hide.” Please be listening, Daredevil.

The Rule of Law Must Prevail

I think you can guess how the jury leans. They acquit Hector Ayala on all charges.

Do you know who that infuriates? The mayor is beside himself with rage despite his previous “no more blood feuds” stance.

As Matt Murdoch celebrates by having a romantic dinner with Fisk’s therapist, the Kingpin requests an interview.

Daniel gets to text BB Urich again, as the mayor speaks on the record about a murderer getting to walk the streets.

The irony of this statement is off the charts, as I know at least one murderer who has recently risen to the rank of mayor.

Fisk tells BB that he knows all too well that juries get it wrong, and he reiterates that he “ran on a promise.”

We cut to the White Tiger putting on his costume and going out to save the city once again.

Fisk’s voiceover narrates, stating that “the rule of law must prevail.”

A gunshot rings out in the night as someone with a Punisher tattoo surprises the White Tiger and shoots him in the head.

Folks, I don’t think we’ve seen the last of the Daredevil/Kingpin feud. Fisk is taking this trial outcome pretty hard.

 

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