Netflix’s newest original series, “Daredevil” debuted April 10, with all 13 episodes of the Marvel Comic adaptation’s first season available on the streaming service. Ed Carroll will review each episode here on Monkeys Fighting Robots without fear and let you know if the latest entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe meets the lofty standards of its predecessors.
The sixth episode of Netflix’s Daredevil, “Condemned,” gave us a huge payoff on what I had considered to be a silly cliffhanger — Daredevil found himself cornered by the police, but he was able to quickly escape … only to become pinned down in an abandoned warehouse.
This episode was ripe with suspense and tension, and only took place in a short period of time (the night wasn’t even over by the end of the episode). The fallout from Wilson Fisk bombing the Russians continued, as we saw how the explosions had affected most of the major players on this show. The hospital scenes, while fairly uneventful, gave Foggy and Karen some more bonding time, as well as unknowingly encountering Claire. Having all three of them worried about Matt was a nice touch, and it was interesting to see these characters have small pieces of who Matt Murdock really is but only we, the viewers, have the entire picture.
But the meat of “Condemned” was focused mostly on Murdock’s struggle to escape the warehouse, with NYPD and a SWAT team bearing down on him, as well as keep Vladimir alive long enough to get the information he needed. It was a little shocking to see the SWAT officer stab the rookie cop in the neck (I figured he would die, but not THAT way), you can easily make the argument that he deserved it for snitching on Murdock and not believing the man in the black mask would really let him free. Make dumb choices, die because of the consequences, I guess.
Vladimir got a bit of redemption at the end of the episode, first by helping Murdock escape, then by giving up the name of Fisk’s accountant and finally, staying behind to fight off the SWAT team. I hadn’t really cared for his character until now, but better late than never. I was a little bummed out at the end of the episode when he (presumably) died, but I don’t see that as a bad thing, I see that as the show making me feel connected to a character in a relatively short amount of time. Great work. 
On the outside of the building, Ben Ulrich began sniffing out the warehouse, and I found the tense words between him and the police officers to be amusing and well-done (as a former journalist who often interacted with police, it was exaggerating a little, but not too much). I’m still a little unsure if the sniper was aiming at Ulrich or the cop working for Fisk; I think Ulrich was the intended target, but I’m not positive.
Which leads to probably the best part of this episode, with Fisk and Murdock speaking (via walkie-talkies) for the first time. This was absolutely perfect as a first interaction between these two characters, and Fisk definitely got into Murdock’s head with his comments about how similar the two of them really are. I’m still really enjoying Vincent D’Orofrio’s Wilson Fisk, and Charlie Cox’s Murdock is still pretty fun to watch, so it was a blast to watch the two call each other’s bluffs. Just a perfectly directed and acted scene, and easily a highlight of the series so far.
Seven episodes left in this season, and Daredevil hasn’t failed to impress. I’m not sure what to expect in the last half of the season, but I’m sure hoping it continues to be as awesome as the first half. “Condemned” was dripping with suspense and picked up from where “World on Fire” left off before ultimately eclipsing the solid fifth episode. I absolutely love Netflix’s first entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe so far.
Watching Daredevil on Netflix, too? Leave a comment and let us know what you think and feel free to tweet Ed –@EdTheRevelator
You can find his review of episode one here.
Click here for his review of episode two.
Read his thoughts on the jaw-dropping episode three here.
Ed’s review of the fourth episode is here.
Click here for Ed’s review of the explosive fifth episode.
