Welcome back for the second instalment of the five-part review on Marvel’s Daredevil. If you missed the first instalment you can catch up here.
Episode 4 – In the Blood
This episode featured Vladimir and Anatoly Ranskahov, the brothers who head up the Russian organisation. It began in a Siberian prison, an echo of their past to demonstrate their violent roots.
Matt (who we saw applying pressure to the Russians), visited Claire to get his wounds patched up. Since her apartment was no longer safe, she was staying at a friend’s (cat sitting), and using up all her sick days. There was definite chemistry between Claire and Matt, though I think she was hoping for a little more encouragement. Giving her a burner cell so he could get in touch, wasn’t exactly what she had in mind!
We discovered the reason Prohaszka was eliminated last week – his holdings had already been transferred to the new cab company; doubling distribution. Wesley argued with the Vladimir and Anatoly about Fisk’s input. The brothers weren’t particularly impressed by his criticism over the ‘mask’ situation, especially his gag about the absence of an iron suit or magic hammer. Still, it was a nice Avengers reference.
The brothers decided to visit Semyon in the hospital (the man Matt threw into a dumpster), and woke him with a shot of epinephrine. After learning of Claire’s involvement, they sent men after her.
As Foggy and Matt are leaving the office, with Foggy complaining about their lack of equipment and wishing he’d taken his mother’s advice to become a butcher, Matt received a call from Claire. Upon hearing her scream, (by then Foggy was in a taxi), he dashed into the alley and vaulted up the building onto the roof (throwing the stick was a nice touch). This whole scene was fantastic for a number of reasons – did I mention the vaulting? When he realised Claire was gone, he began listening to the sounds of the city, honing in on the Russian accents, followed by a woman’s distinct scream.
He missed them by seconds, but it didn’t slow him down all that much. He followed the breadcrumbs, and managed to save Claire from her captors.
I love how conflicted Matt was during the scene in his apartment. His vulnerability really shows with Claire, because she’s someone he can confide in. He has no fear when it comes to facing the darkness in Hell’s Kitchen, and that’s part of his strength, but his weakness lies in the responsibility he carries – for all those who get hurt in the crossfire.
It was interesting to see the roles being reversed, and Matt doing the patching up this time. He was clearly thinking of his father. It was an emotional scene, and Matt finally decided to trust Claire with his secret. He started by giving her his name – until then she’d been calling him Mike.
Comparative Geeks 