The episode begins with a flashback as we see Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) and Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll) enjoying a date night at an Indian restaurant. The judge bangs her gavel and Karen snaps back to reality; everyone is waiting for Matt.
Matt, who got shot in the last episode, is still at Frank’s lair getting stitched up by Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter). He is surprised that Jessica came back and tells her that he doesn’t think Fisk will kill Karen—at least not until he has Daredevil in his sights.
Buck updates Fisk on Daniel’s status, and they both look a little saddened about the development. Fisk then tells Buck that he now knows what it means to be chosen by millions of people to run a city, and that grief hasn’t clouded his judgment. He then tells Buck that Murdock survived the attack, and Buck tells him he’ll make arrangements for the next step in their plan.
During her testimony, Heather calls Karen a sociopath but gets distracted when Matt enters the courtroom. He objects to something Heather says as he limps over to his seat, and the judge agrees with him. He checks in with McDuffie (Nikki M. James) and Karen, telling them he’s okay—he just got shot in the leg.
DA Hochberg (John Benjamin Hickey) asks Heather to read a passage from her latest book, Men in Masks, which covers the psychology of vigilantes. In the book, she wrote about how a vigilante’s mask is actually not the one they wear, but is instead their true self. McDuffie then begins her questioning and asks her about hitting Karen. Heather denies it and gets up to leave, but Matt has a question for her. He asks, “Does a vigilante need a mask?” She asks for clarification, and he inquires whether Karen should be considered a vigilante if she wasn’t wearing a mask. Heather says she didn’t need one because she was hiding behind Daredevil’s, to which Matt calls her out for doing the same with Fisk.
In a building across the street from the courthouse, an AVTF officer dressed like Bullseye sets up a sniper rifle with its scope aimed at the doorway. There are a lot of AVTF officers present under the Mayor’s direct orders.
Back in the courthouse, Matt calls Wilson Fisk to the stand. The Kingpin takes the stand wearing his whitest suit. The AVTF surround the perimeter of the room while he testifies, with Cole (Jeremy Isaiah Earl) standing guard. Fisk begins by telling a story about his childhood, claiming no man stands above the court of law. Matt begins his line of questioning and the two adversaries begin to verbally spar.
Across the street, AVTF officers start getting killed. The real Bullseye (Wilson Bethel) has arrived and he’s back to his old ways. He kills the imposter with a knife to the head and takes his sniper rifle.
Matt begins to ask Fisk about the Safer Streets Act. Fisk defends it, but Matt wants to know whether the streets are actually safer. Fisk gives him statistics, and Matt gets overruled when he begins to ask about detaining innocent people. He then brings up Bullseye and how Fisk used to employ him. Kingpin questions whether Matt really wants to do this, and Matt says he does. He then asks Fisk if he knew the Northern Star was smuggling illegal arms, but is again shut down by the judge.
Matt asks him if Daredevil sank the Northern Star, and Fisk says he has evidence that suggests that. Murdock tells him that he doesn’t—the only people saying that Daredevil sank the ship are people in his employ. The DA objects, but the judge lets Matt continue. Matt presents new evidence to the court: Christofi’s video testimony. The judges summon the lawyers to their chambers.
Matt argues that the testimony is relevant and should be played in court since Christofi was lawfully deposed by Kirsten before his disappearance. Fisk, who is still on the stand, whispers a message for Matt, threatening to expose his secret and ruin his life. Matt is ready to do the same to Fisk. The judges rule the testimony is relevant and allow it to play.
The testimony begins to play, and the crowd learns that the Northern Star did, in fact, have illegal arms aboard. Christofi also confirms that the captain sank the ship, exonerating Daredevil. He admits Daredevil was there and found the weapons, but they were under orders from the Kingpin to sink the ship if anything happened. He then says everyone knows that the Kingpin and Mayor Wilson Fisk are one and the same.
The judge has to restore order to the courtroom before Matt can continue questioning Fisk. Matt asks Fisk whether Daredevil was on the ship, and Fisk says yes. Then, Matt says it’d be nice if they could question Daredevil, and Fisk welcomes it. Matt asks him if it’s safe to say he doesn’t like Daredevil; Fisk says yes. But Matt continues and asks, "What if the public disagrees and thinks Daredevil is a hero?" Fisk scoffs and says the people know better. Matt wonders whether that’s true. He then asks, “I took a bullet for you; does that make me a hero?”
Jessica Jones and Governor McCaffrey (Lili Taylor) walk in.
Murdock asks Fisk again whether he thinks Matt is a hero. They have a tense standoff. Matt continues and describes Fisk’s obsession with Daredevil, a man who’s sent Fisk to prison on multiple occasions. He asks Fisk whether he orchestrated the sale of military-grade weapons through his office and ordered the plans to be scuttled when exposed. The DA insists Fisk not answer, but Matt tells him he has to. Fisk exclaims that he will.
Fisk tells him that no one gets to know what comes through his port; all they need to know is that he’s running the city and it’s thriving. The DA defends Fisk, but Matt says they’ve already established there was another eyewitness on the ship—someone that’s in the courtroom today. Matt tells him that both of them know who Daredevil is and that he’s the only man who knows exactly what happened on that ship. He also knows exactly what happened in Matt’s apartment and exactly who the real criminal in the courtroom is. Fisk calls him a fool, and Matt answers:
“I’m Daredevil.”
The entire courtroom erupts in shock. Heather is shaking her head in disbelief, Jessica smiles, and Karen looks surprised. The judge manages to restore order. The DA questions the claim since Matt is blind, and Matt responds by tossing his cane around the room and catching it with expert precision. The cat is out of the bag: Matt Murdock is Daredevil.
Matt begins to go nuclear on Fisk, telling him he can testify about the ship and the weapons since he was there. He tells him he and Jessica saw Fisk arm the AVTF with the same weapons from the ship and how they were obligated to destroy the weapons for public safety. He argues that everything Fisk has done has been a criminal act.
He states: “This court was formed to adjudicate the Safer Streets Initiative. An initiative created by this man, Mayor Fisk, in furtherance of his criminal agenda, which means this court has neither the ability nor the mandate to decide justice.” The courtroom starts to cheer, forcing the judge to again call for order. Based on his latest statement, she says, “Daredevil or not, Mr. Murdock is right.”
She continues, “In light of the evidence and the corroborative testimony, Ms. Page’s crimes—if they even are crimes—cannot be judged by the court.” Matt moves to dismiss the case, and the judge immediately dismisses it with prejudice. Karen Page is free! The judge does request Matt to remain in the courtroom.
People begin to cheer as Matt goes to celebrate with Karen. Jessica escorts the Governor out. Fisk is disgusted and tells Matt he’s won nothing. The Governor finally confronts Fisk and tells him the AG has filed charges against him for racketeering, smuggling, and corruption—pretty much the whole book. All of his assets have been frozen and the freeport is now under government control. He tells her none of it will stand up, and she adds attempted murder against a government official to his long list of charges. She informs him that his hired assassin lived and is ready to testify against him. She tells him it’s time for him to resign, and he tells her to start the proper process. Jessica tells him to watch himself.
He then meets Matt by the door and they exchange barbs. Outside, Bullseye has his sniper rifle pointed at the courthouse. Murdock tells Fisk that he’s lost the city, but Kingpin claims he’s lost nothing.
Officer Powell (Hamish Allan-Headley) radios the tower to tell them that Murdock is about to leave the building, but Bullseye answers, “Wrong Bullseye.” Matt overhears this and tries to stop anyone from going outside, but it’s too late. Bullseye takes a shot at Fisk, but Buck steps in the way and takes the bullet at the last second. The AVTF take Fisk back into the courtroom while Matt rushes off elsewhere with Karen and Kirsten.
The AVTF begin to open fire in Bullseye’s direction, but he’s already gone. Buck is bleeding badly, but he’s alive. They all hole up in the courtroom with Fisk as the AVTF barricades the building. Matt, Jessica, Karen, McDuffie, and the Governor are hiding in a random office. Jessica manages to find a bottle of liquor and begins to drink.
Suddenly, the news cuts to live coverage of Fisk in the courtroom. He declares a state of emergency and tells the public about Bullseye’s attack and how his aide was wounded. Fisk says they are under siege and that their enemies are assembling. The whole city is watching. He says he’s going to stand and fight and asks the people for help.
Matt implores the Governor not to call in the National Guard or Fisk will get what he wants. Matt hears something else and we get a new City Without Fear report from BB (Genneya Walton). She parodies Fisk’s message before revealing the actual footage of what the AVTF has been doing to the city. She exposes them for locking up and killing family and friends. We see photos of Ben Urich and Daniel Blake. She tells them, “It’s our city, not his.” She unmasks herself on camera and gets ready to take back the city. We see a bunch of Daredevil supporters begin to march toward the courthouse. It’s time for war.
Jessica gives Matt his costume and he suits up. The AVTF are assembled on the courthouse steps, opposing the horde of people. Cherry (Clark Johnson), Brett Mahoney (Royce Johnson), and Angie Kim (Ruibo Qian) are there too, leading the crowd with many other good cops.
Fisk says that no matter what happens to him or to anyone, he does not want Matt Murdock or Karen Page to leave this building alive. An AVTF officer tells him Murdock isn’t alone, and Fisk says that if anyone doesn’t want to do their job, they can resign. The AVTF heads out to look for Matt. Daredevil hears the task force coming, so Jessica has one last drink and the two Defenders get ready for action.
There are hundreds of people in makeshift Daredevil masks protesting the Kingpin and AVTF. Cherry calls out Powell and tells them to put their guns down. Powell tells him that Cherry and Brett don’t belong there, but they say they do—they serve the people.
Sheila (Zabryna Guevara) gets a call from the AG and hands the phone to Fisk, who hangs up. Heather tends to Buck, who isn’t doing so well. Heather asks Hochberg for his jacket; he refuses initially but ultimately hands it over. He tells her that the situation has descended into madness and that the two of them don’t need to burn down with Fisk.
Outside, Powell orders Cole to shoot Brett. Angela (Camila Rodriguez) shows up wearing her White Tiger amulet. She shouts at Powell, demanding the truth about Hector. Powell says he was a cop-killer, but Soledad (Ashley Marie Ortiz) backs up her niece and insists he was a good man. Cole begins to question Powell and asks him whether Hector actually did kill a cop. Powell repeats his previous order, but Cole says he won’t shoot another cop. Powell decides to do it himself, but Cole knocks him out before he can do any more harm. The tides are turning! Cole lets the large crowd into the courthouse.
The DA continues trying to reason with Heather and wants her to run away with him. She punches him in the throat and tells him not to touch her. She returns to Buck.
The Resistance storms the halls; they want Fisk. The AVTF are overwhelmed. Elsewhere, Daredevil and Jessica Jones begin to fight back, easily overpowering a number of officers.
Sheila gets another call from the AG and passes along the message to Fisk. She tells him that he’s been asked to tender his resignation and leave the city. She says that if he renounces his citizenship and goes into exile, the AG won’t prosecute. Fisk is angry and says he won’t leave New York. There are protestors banging on the door. Sheila insists he take the deal, but he tells the guards to open the door.
The door opens and Fisk answers, “Boo!” He punches one of the young Daredevil supporters straight in the face, knocking him into the wall and instantly killing him. He starts savagely attacking the Daredevil supporters, killing at will. The Kingpin is on the rampage!
Daredevil and Jessica Jones continue to fight their way through the halls looking for Fisk, who is still on his killing spree. He’s wrecking people all over and his white suit is now drenched in blood. The resistance is understandably scared and does their best to escape his warpath, but with little luck. Daredevil and Jessica link up with White Tiger. Karen takes out an AVTF officer too as the Daredevil army assembles in the center of the courthouse.
The Kingpin is at the top of the stairs and gets booed. He tells them they are all wrong about him and that everything he’s done has been for them. The people call him a liar and begin to charge him; they want his head. Daredevil tries to get them to stop, telling them they’re better than this, but it’s too late.
Kingpin continues to fight back with a vengeance. Daredevil fights through the crowd to reach him. Kingpin takes down a ton of people but is ultimately brought down and beaten. Daredevil finally reaches the top and stops the beatdown. He unmasks and tells Fisk to stay down, but he refuses.
Matt tells Fisk that it’s over, for both of them. He tells Fisk to take the deal, but Fisk again refuses. Matt says he can go to prison and die a memory, or keep doing what he’s doing and this whole thing starts over again. Fisk asks him, “This is your so-called retribution? It means nothing to me.” Matt asks, “What about grace?” Fisk tells him, “You’re not allowed to give that to me!” Matt tells him they have an opportunity to give the city peace, even if they have none. Fisk stands up and faces the crowd. Matt pleads with him one last time and Fisk finally concedes. They don’t shake hands, but it’s over. The Kingpin is defeated. Fade to black.
It’s a new day; things are quiet in the streets. We catch up with Matt and Karen, back in the same Indian restaurant from the beginning of the episode. They’re both slightly in disbelief that it’s finally over. They joke about no longer being hunted and share a laugh. Matt hears a police siren but doesn’t spring into action… because they’re coming for him. Matt Murdock is being arrested for his actions as Daredevil. He doesn’t resist and calmly lets them take him, telling them he used to be a lawyer.
Cut to the new office of Alias Investigations, where Jessica is playing with Danielle. There’s someone at the door… Sweet Christmas, it's Luke Cage (Mike Colter)! Danielle warmly greets her father and Jessica seems relieved to see him as well. She asks him if he’s okay, and he tells her work was different. She asks him if he’s done and he tells her that he is, and that Mr. Charles has already found someone else.
We then see Mr. Charles on a plane, going by the name Mr. Robertson. The air hostess congratulates him on becoming a million-miler. He’s thrilled to get his card and we finally see his travel companion: Bullseye! It seems like Dex has lined up a promising new job opportunity.
Speaking of new jobs, BB gets a position at the New York Bulletin and her new boss is Mitchell Ellison (Geoffrey Cantor), who greets her with a box full of her uncle’s old news clippings. She also looks at a photo of her and Daniel, and mourns her friend.
Elsewhere, Heather is again holding Muse’s mask and has tears in her eyes. She finally puts on the mask and we see her smiling at herself in the mirror. It seems as though she’s finally found her true self.
In prison, Matt is in an orange jumpsuit, walking to his cell. Former AVTF officers Cole North and Powell are locked up inside with him. Cole nods at him, so it seems like he’ll have, at least, one ally on the inside.
Fisk is on a beach somewhere, in exile, all alone.
Matt sits down in his cell and smiles at the camera. The door locks shut. Fade to black.
On to Season Three!
Read our other recaps at the following links:
Mayor Wilson Fisk crushes New York City underfoot as he hunts down public enemy number one, the Hell’s Kitchen vigilante known as Daredevil. But beneath the horned mask, Matt Murdock will try to fight back from the shadows to tear down the Kingpin’s corrupt empire and redeem his home. Resist. Rebel. Rebuild.
In our season two review, we said, "Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 is pure unadulterated mayhem! It is one of the most raw, compelling, and powerful seasons of Marvel television ever produced, with unreal action sequences that truly take things to another level. Charlie Cox delivers the performance of a lifetime and makes every second of this blockbuster season well worth your time. This is the Marvel Cinematic Universe at its finest! The Devil is back!"
Daredevil: Born Again episode three is now streaming!