[DISCUSSION] [SPOILERS] Daredevil: Born Again S01E04

When I was a boy...
He said it! He said the thing!
I missed Jon Bernthal as the punisher. Such a fantastic actor, and a great entrance scene to the show. Now that Foggy is dead, it's kind of sad that Frank is really the only person he can speak to about daredevil.
Also, we finally know who Fisk has been punching all day. This won't go over well in therapy.
- Frank is really the only person he can speak to about daredevil.
  His investigator Cherry also knows Matt is Daredevil.
- Frank is really the only person he can speak to about daredevil.
  Also Karen, although she is away at the moment I expect she'll return soon.
  
  Also Karen
  Yes, but they wrote her out of the show unfortunately. She might be back next season.

So Angela is DEFINITELY taking the mantle of White Tiger by the end of the season. Her scene at the morgue was so good. She was this close to just saying ACAB.
I also loved Leroy Bradford's story. At first it seemed like just a distraction for the overall plot. Matt is still torn up over Hector's death and doesn't really want to be bothered with Leroy's case. It seems like an open-and-shut case that was even being played for laughs ("Could it have been a Skrull?"). Leroy seemed like such an asshole at first, making fun of Matt for being blind. But it ended up being a very poignant indictment of the entire criminal justice system and society more broadly. Leroy thought he was being given the dregs of a lawyer because nobody cared about his case. Matt did an absolutely great job in getting the sentence reduced down to 10 days, which seemed like a great win at first. But it really just served to highlight to Matt how the entire system is corrupt. Even when he does the absolute best anyone could hope to do in his position, it's still an absolute miscarriage of justice.
Then add in the conversation with Frank about how Foggy is dead while Bullseye is still alive. In prison, yes, but still alive.
This whole episode is just Matt's (refound) faith in the justice system getting shattered. Matt had 3 "wins" using the system as it was meant to be used (Bullseye's conviction, Hector's acquittal, Leroy's sentence getting reduced to 10 days) and all 3 ended up being massive miscarriages of justice.
Matt's right at the breaking point. He just needs 1 more thing to push him over the edge to put the mask back on.
- I expect we'll get a more specific breaking point, but Matt is already training, he's already looking for something to fix.
  His words to Angela were that we have to trust that "someone" will find the people responsible. Matt already started down the path and ended up talking to Frank. I fully expect him to continue down that path next episode. The question is, will he try and put them through the justice system first? Or just start to solve it on his own?
  
  I'm just dying for the scene of Frank slaughtering a bunch of cops with Punisher tattoos. That, and Matt's second showdown with the cop whose ass he beat at the end of episode 2. Literally every time the two have been in a scene since, Matt has taunted him for getting his ass kicked. The rematch will be very satisfying.

The whole episode is Fisk just taking loss after loss. Vanessa's affair, performative Mayoral duties ("We built this city"), and the Union story leak. Then we just cut to him having a nice meal, with Vanessa's affair partner locked up and pleading for help.
Fisk just seemed so defeated from the day, but when it was over he was still in control, still in power, still taking care of things. It was a nice reminder that in private Fisk always gets what he wants.
- I really like the symbolism of the meals he's eating. At the beginning of the season, when he was running for and had just won the Mayorship, his meals were incredibly spartan. His first meal we saw was just a small, plain, egg white omelet with a piece of asparagus. He was trying (at least outwardly) to be on the straight-and-narrow. He was living the image he portrayed as a reformed, law-abiding person.
  As he's become more and more frustrated with the job of mayor and been letting more of the Kingpin out, his meals have gotten larger and more indulgent. The breakfast he had with Vanessa at the start of this episode was larger, then the dinner at the end was a huge plate of food.
  I wonder if we'll see that reflected in his physical body. In the scene in the diner between Matt and Fisk, there was discussion about his weight. He was slimmer, more fit. I wonder, as he devolves back into the Kingpin, if he'll start putting on more weight to get back to the Kingpin physique he's well known for.

That scene at the end, before he gets out of bed. Did it feel symbolic to anyone else? The way she had her arm on his shoulder, it looked like a Michaelangelo statue. Daredevil has referenced famous works in the past, but I don't know what this one was referencing
The short right before it frames the bridge as a cross, and the shot right after has Fisk walking down some stairs with white light behind him.

A very, very good episode, with lesser reliance on camera shaking and vibration, which enabled me to view it more than once. The first episode was the most unbearable for me, with heavy camera shake and even when just talking in a peaceful setting, reminiscent of Hurt Locker, and of course that non-stop light blinking during DD's fight vs BE.
I just don't understand why they use those unnecessary additions. There are fans and viewers like me who have complicated health issues.

intonates "We built this city" �*
Great episode:
Musk getting fucked over by the realities of the major job.
Matt's case of the week.
Couple therapy, especially with the Adam twist at the end of the episode.
the Frank scene and Matt being forced to talk about Foggy took the crown
the absolutely psychopathic killer being teased at the start and end of the episode. For a minute I thought he was Frank's next victim and we're gonna see that at the end there