SMASHING

In the Blood -Smashing

This is where the proverbial "rubber hits the road." The fourth episode of "Daredevil" has the perfect amount of violence, and storytelling, that will likely pave the way for the rest of this first season (since this article has been written, a second season has already been order by Netflix).

"In the Blood" starts with a flashback of both Anatoly and Vladamir in a Ukrainian gulag five years prior to them arriving in Hell's Kitchen and leading the Russian Mob and now running into the issue of the "man in the mask."

Wesley arrives with a proposition for the brothers that will involve the help of Wilson Fisk. Speaking of Fisk, after his acquisition of "Rabbit in a Snowstorm" is goes back to the gallery and officially introduces himself to the art dealer, Vanessa, and offers to take her to dinner.

Meanwhile, the Russians are on the hunt for the "man in the mask" which brings them to abducting Claire and  questioning her for his whereabouts. Needless to say, Matt comes to Claire's rescue and their relationship continues to blossom where she finally learns Matt isn't Mike, but he's Matthew.

On the other side of town, Karen wants been to become more involved in the United Allied liquidation, and Ben explains the dangers involved. While initially, skeptical, Ben accepts Karen's proposal and begins digging a little deeper.

After the latest attack, Anatoly decides it's time to go to Fisk for help, which angers Vladamir, but nonetheless accepts. The one mistake Anatoly makes is that you never interrupt Fisk while he's at dinner....

These are just general brush strokes for an episode that unearths some interesting development, mainly about Fisk and how he views his relationships and business and how the two should never meet, and Anatoly can attest to that. "In the Blood" is our first real look into what we can expect from Fisk the rest of the season, and maybe even into the MCU if possible. Vincent D'Onofrio is calculated in every line he speaks and gives Fisk a sophisticated, but chilling, appeal. He's put together well and while he speaks with authority, he also speaks with a sense of guilt and aloofness. He's a worldly person, but at the same time afraid of the unknown and is incredibly protective of the city he lives in. While both the Claire and Matt and Foggy and Karen relationships will anchor this show, its likely the duo of Vanessa and Wilson that will have the widest and was interesting consequences in not only this show, but the future as well.

There weren't as many Easter eggs in this episode, but the one that really stood out was Wesley's comment about "men in iron suits or magic hammers." It's small, but it just goes to show you the care that has been taken with this universe.

The biggest takeaway, however, in this episode, at least for me, was the increased violence. There has been an increase in violence from the first two episodes to episode three and four, including two specific scenes; One, the attack on Claire, which hid most of the onscreen violence and swapped it with the aftermath. But it asks the question if this is going to be a trend on this show, starting with the attack on Karen in episode one, and continuing on from there. I understand that the "Damsel in Distress" plot device works, but I'd also like to see stronger female characters on this show, and there are glimpses in Karen and Claire, so hopefully that continues.

This brings me to the car door scene, which I won't spoil per say, but I will say it's one of the most violent scenes you'll see in a Marvel property up to this point, and with that being said, it's also an important scene, not only from a character trait that we see in Wilson Fisk, but from a Marvel standpoint its a flashpoint that is show the audience that they are willing to go to those dark places and they are will to possible take chances on more violent comic properties, namely The Punisher.

While episode three let it's foot off the gas a bit, you can see the series starting to ramp up with a ton of machinations put into place; what will the Russians do now? What will happen with Fisk? Where will Matt and Claire's relationship go? All this, and much more, on next week's "Marvel's Daredevil."

Fun Fact: Back in 1987, Vincent D'Onofrio played Thor! In "Adventures in Babysitting."