Where do I even start? Season 2 of Daredevil definitely brought a lot more to the table than I expected. Great characters and story building help the series to continue to impress the hell out of the audience. Unlike Agents of Shield and the Marvel Movies, Season 2 of Daredevil takes on a pace of its own. Now, the first 3-5 episodes ran a bit slow for me, yet, these episodes lay a great foundation for the multiple climaxes that occur in the last 4 episodes.

First things first: the introduction of The Punisher. If you aren’t part of the comic book world he is basically an anti-Hero, much like Deadpool, but with a military background. Some call what he does vigilantism as he takes the law into his own hands to dispense justice by any and all means. However, The Punisher aka Frank Castle, had his family killed when he came back from war. This triggers him to find those responsible for his family’s murder.

The great part of The Punisher is the fact he is a character that can relate to Daredevil. The two definitely have a dynamic of chaotic good vs lawful good. They both have similar end goals but try to reach those goals with a different set of morals. This season did a wonderful job creating the dynamic of these two heroes while adding onto a more detailed painting of who Daredevil is. Even though The Punisher seeks revenge on others, he really pulls on Matthew Murdock’s heartstrings as Foggy Nelson (Murdock’s law firm partner) and Murdock take on Frank Castle as a client. This definitely shows how The Punisher is somehow the devil on Murdock’s shoulder.

The biggest thing I was looking forward to was the introduction of Elektra. Now, I have strong opinions about Elektra since she hasn’t had a wardrobe change in decades, yet is one of my most beloved comic book characters. Not only is she well trained for combat but she has a natural love for killing. Luckily, this series took the hint and developed an outfit for Elektra that easily reflects her ninja-like training. It is pretty clear they realized her comic book outfit just didn’t do well in stealth mode.

It’s important to understand that Elektra is another anti-Hero who is being trained to fight a war she doesn’t completely understand. Trained by Stick (which we learned in season 1 is who taught Daredevil how to fight) she is given the mission to find Murdock and get him to work with her to fight against The Hand, who Murdock believes is the Yakuza. Elektra gives us more of the history of Daredevil while developing another love interest and in the end becomes an incredibly important person in the story line (no spoilers). I’m heavily impressed with what they did with her and happy they did a swell job sticking to comic book Elektra.

Warning! Spoilers may be contained beyond this point!

The second season of Daredevil left us with many questions and surprises. The first surprise is the return of Nobu. Daredevil killed this guy last season and when he appears you’re a bit confused. We totally saw him die! But that’s definitely Nobu’s fighting style! What is going on?

So, remember this war we were talking about? It’s the war between the Chaste (led by Stick) and the Hand, which Nobu is a part of and he can not die. The entire time we thought Elektra was fighting the Yakuza, we learn has really been the Hand but we aren’t completely sure what the Hand really does. Even at the end of the series we are given just enough to get an idea. One thing we know for sure is that the Hand has somehow figured out how to be immortal. Elektra plays a big part of this since the Hand wants her to be on their side and is faced with the decision of which side to choose. What she does will shock you if you never read the comics.

Kingpin also makes an appearance this season and really helps unlock the nature of The Punisher. We also get to watch Karen Page develop into Daredevil’s version of Mary Jane. Surprisingly Karen and Nelson  really help take on the stigma of who Daredevil is becoming. I truly enjoyed watching Karen grow onscreen and become pretty important as she helps unfold The Punisher’s story.

If you had doubts Season 1, Season 2 has done a wonderful job developing an even more intense storyline. The last episode had me shrieking for more.

Overall 4.5 Hand Ninjas out of 5.

The character development was completely spot on in my opinion. Yet, I want to see some of the fight scenes get polished up.

If you need more Daredevil in your life after watching season 2, click this article for a list of graphic novels to read while we await Season 3.