John Gholson, on the new Marvel TV Show that debuted on Netflix on Friday, April 10th:

Daredevil is unlike anything Marvel Studios has done. We got a look at the first five episodes of the 13-part season, and it’s nothing like the Marvel Studios films nor the spin-off shows from ABC. This is great news. This is a low-key, performance-driven crime drama, where the episodes don’t follow a tidy formula nor aim to move Daredevil kids meal toys. It’s street-level and human and it’s going to make a lot of fans of “ol hornhead” very, very happy.

Daredevil, missing the luxury of a $200 million budget like its big-screen peers, is shot like an indie crime film (or a low-budget horror movie – lots of darkened rooms with one sickly amber key light) and makes the best use of its greatest resource, a talented cast. All of the players, from Deborah Ann Woll as the complex, troubled Karen Page to Bob Gunton as the smarmy “Owl” Leland Owlsley, command the screen with the same level of interest as the title character himself.

Daredevil always struck me as one of the most interesting Marvel characters, and also one of the most underrated. Unfortunately, the completely forgettable 2003 movie starring Ben Affleck did more harm than good to the character’s popularity. Now it looks like we’re finally getting a decent show that makes the horned hero justice for a change.

If like me, you’ve been patiently waiting for the man without fear to return to the screen, it looks like this new show is everything we hoped for and more, and it “only” took 12 years. Oh well, if they don’t screw it up again, it’ll have been well worth the wait.