Until now, the Disney+ series has largely kept its main characters apart. That all changes in ‘Isle of Joy’, which sees Matt Murdock, Wilson Fisk, and other key individuals collide in arguably the show’s most explosive episode to date. And, predictably, Marvel fans have had plenty to say about events that unfold.
Full spoilers immediately follow for Daredevil: Born Again season 1’s eighth chapter.
Who really killed Franklin ‘Foggy’ Nelson – and is he actually dead?
That big fan theory about Foggy Nelson might not be so outlandish after all (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
The death of Franklin ‘Foggy’ Nelson, Matt Murdock’s best friend and fellow lawyer, was an emotionally devastating way for Daredevil’s standalone Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) project to begin. That’s particularly true for those of us who watched Netflix’s Daredevil TV show, which Born Again is a direct continuation of.
However, while we saw Foggy die on-screen, Marvel fans have a wild theory that Foggy isn’t dead. After all, one of Daredevil’s most famous comic book runs is built around a story where Foggy is supposedly murdered, but actually faked his own death to enter a witness protection program. Born Again is somewhat inspired by that Ed Brubaker-written series, which is why some viewers aren’t convinced Foggy has shuffled off his mortal coil.
I know what you did last year, Vanessa (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
It’s looking increasingly likely that fans were right to assume this, too. At the time, we believed Benjamin ‘Dex’ Pointdexter, aka Bullseye, was responsible for Foggy’s death. Indeed, we watched him shoot Foggy in one of the best Disney+ shows’ first episode.
‘Isle of Joy’ upends that by revealing Vanessa Fisk was responsible for putting the hit out on Foggy. Bullseye might have pulled the trigger, but it was Vanessa who initiated the plan that led to Foggy’s apparent demise.
Or, so it would seem. While Vanessa doesn’t explicitly confirm Foggy is still alive, she insinuates as much to Matt. Okay, she only tells him “you need to relax”, which could be interpreted in numerous ways. I believe, though, that she’s telling Matt to calm down because, as long as he takes a few deep breaths, Matt will be calm enough for Vanessa to tell him Foggy isn’t actually dead (that’s what, like me, Redditor Responsible_Cod_3973 is hoping for, anyway).
Vanessa might’ve told Matt, too, if Bullseye didn’t shoot up the Mayor’s Ball seconds later. But, more on that later.
Comment from r/MarvelStudiosSpoilers
If Foggy is revealed to be alive in the season 1 finale or Daredevil: Born Again season 2, there are questions that require answering.
What spooked him so much that he not only faked his own death, but sought Vanessa’s help to do so? When and how did Bullseye become involved in it? As Reddit user cig_sg_throwaway points out, Dex tried to kill Vanessa in the Netflix show’s final season. Why, then, would she bring him into the fold to help ‘bump off’ Foggy?
And, most importantly, what will Matt make of this if he learns Foggy is alive, that Foggy lied to Matt and Karen, and that Foggy successfully staged his own death with the aid of criminals?
Why does Matt Murdock save Wilson Fisk’s life?
Taking the phrase ‘keep your enemies closer’ to new extremes, eh, Matt? (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
Those questions will have to wait, though, because there’s a more pressing one at hand. Namely, why did Matt save his archnemesis Wilson Fisk’s life at the Mayor’s Ball?
As I alluded to above, Bullseye – who escaped captivity earlier in ‘Isle of Joy’ with, according to some fans, Matt’s help (more on this fiercely debated topic later) – manages to infiltrate the glitzy black tie event. It appears he has a solitary goal for doing so, too: killing Wilson Fisk.
It’s not surprising that Bullseye would want to murder him. As directors Julian Benson and Aaron Moorhead pointed in a recent YouTube interview , the pair have a history.
For starters, Fisk left Dex paralyzed in the season 3 finale of Netflix’s Daredevil series, so they have previous form for *ahem* locking horns. Then there’s the fact that Fisk is responsible for getting Bullseye moved from solitary confinement to the prison’s ‘gen pop’ (general populace) area in Born Again episode 8. Effectively, Fisk is throwing Dex to the wolves with the hope that other serial offenders will bump him off.
Smile for the camera! (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
So Bullseye has two major reasons to seek out and murder Fisk in the Marvel Phase 5 TV show. He would’ve succeeded, too, if it wasn’t for Matt’s intervention.
Using his superhuman hearing, Matt learns that someone is readying a loaded rifle to shoot Wilson Fisk. As Bullseye pulls the trigger, Matt throws himself in front of the shot; the bullet hitting his chest and severely wounding the titular character.
Considering Murdock and Fisk are long-time enemies, some viewers are asking why the former wouldn’t let Bullseye kill Murdock’s sworn adversary.
Comment from r/MarvelStudiosSpoilers
To me, the answer is a simple one: Murdock (and Daredevil by proxy) has a no-kill rule. It’s something he’s regularly grappled with in Marvel Comics and his two TV shows, but Murdock’s Catholic upbringing always wins out.
Sure, he almost broke that rule in Born Again ‘s premiere when he threw Bullseye off a roof for seemingly killing Foggy. Even then, Murdock was so disturbed by his own behavior that he gave up being Daredevil for an entire year. The vigilante doesn’t take lives – he saves them, so it makes sense that he wouldn’t let Bullseye kill Wilson Fisk.
Regardless, on ResetEra, users including Violence Jack , Lonestar , and PlanetSmasher think this moment will shake up the dynamic between Murdock and Fisk again. Hopefully, we’ll see the immediate fallout in next week’s season 1 finale.
Did Matt Murdock intentionally free Benjamin ‘Dex’ Pointdexter, aka Bullseye?
Fans can’t agree on whether Matt intentionally helped Bullseye escape prison (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
Perhaps this episode’s biggest talking point, though, is whether Murdock intentionally freed Bullseye.
Remember, Dex was given a whole life sentence for killing Foggy and numerous other patrons at Josie’s Bar in this season’s opening chapter. And, after he’s moved to ‘gen pop’ under Fisk’s orders, he reaches out to Murdock to enlist the champion lawyer’s help to get sent back to solitary confinement for Dex’s own safety.
As you might expect, Murdock isn’t receptive to the idea because, well, by the time the duo meet midway through ‘Isle of Joy’, Murdock still believes Bullseye killed Foggy. Clearly still furious over his friend’s death at the hands of this psychotic killer, Murdock smashes Dex’s face into the table he’s chained to before calling the on-call pop to lead Dex back to his cell.
On the surface, it seems Murdock is simply lashing out at Bullseye for murdering Foggy and then having the audacity to ask for Murdock’s help. However, sections of the Marvel fanbase argue that Murdock actually helped Dex escape prison. Indeed, some suggest that, by roughing up Dex, Murdock knew Dex would get sent to the prison’s medical unit. With his hand unshackled, the sharpshooting sociopath would be able to break out of jail.
Comment from r/marvelstudios
Indeed, Reddit and ResetEra threads, as well as other social media sites and apps, are full of fans fiercely debating and/or offering their opinions on the above.
ResetEra user Grunty said they hadn’t even considered that Murdock would help Dex, while Lonestar believes the former purposefully helped the latter.
Others were less happy with this possible story beat, though. On Reddit and ResetEra, fans including RealDealAce and Coiote expressed frustration over the possibility that Murdock may have aided one of his biggest foes in escaping jail.
Sitting squarely on the fence, PlanetSmasher and Minthara were less sure about the true meaning behind this contentious scene.
If Matt aided Bullseye’s escape, it’s his own fault he was shot at the Mayor’s Ball (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)
Based on the YouTube video I linked to earlier, Benson and Moorhead indicated they left things intentionally vague, so fans can make up their own minds.
Will we find out if Murdock helped Dex or not in episode 9? Maybe. For now, one thing is for sure: whether he did or not, he ended up being shot by Dex in ‘Isle of Joy’. Chalk up one more bullet-based scar on Murdock’s body, everyone!
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