A few of the rapidly spinning plots are starting to converge already as the third season of Daredevil starts picking up steam. Matt’s recovery, his faith issues, Fisk’s new approach to what he wants, and Karen’s crusading reporting are certainly going to be crashing into each other, and I’m sure Foggy will get hit with some shrapnel. They also put a name on Fisk’s savior from last episode, and it’s one with some interesting Marvel history. As the old saying warns, “No Good Deed…”

We start off with Fisk cleaning up after being rescued, and having some flashbacks to the big firefight. It must have been especially bad for him, since he’s so used to being in control of everything and there he was chained in the back of a flipped over vehicle. Fisk is so concerned about Vanessa, he ignores Donovan’s advice about the cameras and disclaimers about what his client might or might not know. Fisk doesn’t get the answers he wants, and the agents around him aren’t too pleased about the losses they suffered on his behalf. Agent Ray Nadeem is really not in the mood to listen to Fisk, and tells him so very pointedly.

Karen, for once, isn’t working, obsessing over a crazy wall, or generally stressing herself out. She’s at dinner at her boss’ place, and actually seems to be enjoying herself. That hits a rough patch when Lily, Ellison’s wife, lets something slip that neither Karen nor Ellison’s nephew knew, and casts the dinner in a different light. Despite this, Karen and Jason, the nephew, seem to be enjoying themselves before both the newspaper workers start getting calls and learn about the Fisk fiasco. Ellison and Karen argue over how to handle it, and Karen isn’t happy. We also get a mention of the late Ben Urich, and how his death affected the Ellison household.

Foggy wakes up from a nightmare, on the couch with his girlfriend. From the conversation, Foggy is having a lot of these, and they all center on Matt Murdock. Marci is a very understanding, supportive girlfriend, and I really like the two of them together. Foggy isn’t willing to see someone about his problems, probably for fear of revealing Matt’s secret, and he shuffles around the apartment, then sees the news and has something new to worry about.

At the hotel Fisk has been stashed in, a big, protesting crowd has gathered, and Matt walks among them. He has an argument with a hallucination of Fisk himself, dressed like his comic book counterpart. Fisk taunts Matt about his lack of long-term success and all his losses. Karen arrives, and Matt slips away, clearly not ready for this meeting. Karen manages to get to talk to Ray, and presses him on Fisk not being in prison. In turn, Ray tells her to write about the good agents who died in the fight last night. They both have good points. Matt manages to sneak inside the hotel through a decent ruse, and wanders around for a while, listening in on patrolling agents and departing guests. Fisk continues to taunt and torture Matt, asking what the vigilante will do if he does manage to work his way through the maze of federal protection. While this manifestation offers Matt some horrible possibilities, the real man is upstairs getting a briefing from his lawyers about Vanessa’s situation. Fisk isn’t happy with what they have to tell him, and suggests some changes.

DA Tower is practicing a speech, since there’s an election coming up, and Foggy shows up and asks for a quick meeting. Foggy makes several very generous offers, but Tower turns them all down, and explains a piece of his reasoning. Foggy is furious and goes off on the man, who tells Foggy to go or get thrown out. The protests continue at the hotel, Matt keeps arguing with the ghost of Kingpin past, and finds another way to not get to the crime boss.

Ray drops in at the hospital, seeing the aftermath of the big battle. It’s not someplace he feels comfortable, and he works his way down a hallway of grieving kin. Ray finds Tammy, his boss, who assures him this wasn’t his fault. Fisk gets brought a dinner that’s not only not as good as the protesters think, it’s worse than the agent’s meals downstairs. Fisk tries to engage in conversation with Ben Poindexter, the hero of last night’s gunfight. Poindexter, like the other agents, isn’t in the mood to chat with the criminal. Us getting his name is important, though. Poindexter, if not the real name, is a frequently used alias of Marvel villain Bullseye, a deadly assassin and frequent archenemy of Daredevil. In the comics, his schtick is unerring aim with throwing weapons, and he certainly has that aim in this incarnation.

With a small bit of realistic procedure, Poindexter is required to see a psychiatrist to be evaluated for duty both after losing fellow agents and killing suspects. It’s a civil interview, all things considered, and Poindexter paints a great picture of his relationship. The doctor approves of how he’s handling things and clears him for duty. Donovan gets back to his car and has a bad run in with Matt, back in his black costume. Matt has some questions for the slimy lawyer, and doesn’t like the answers he gets. Matt is, to put it mildly, dubious that Fisk is doing all this to protect a loved one. Matt makes his escape after battling through many agents, starting to lose control near the end of the fight, with more goading from faux-Fisk.

Ellison drops by Karen’s office, and she lays out what she’s working on. She has done some impressive research, and Ellison acknowledges that, before once again telling her she can’t work the story, and explaining why. They’re both angry and could have handled the situation better. Matt goes back to his new home, and cleans up after the fight. Maggie comes in for more barbed conversation, and points out that Matt is being ridiculous about a few things. The conversation takes a dark turn, and she cautions him to not become a monster. I’d say she’s just about too late on that front. We also see the reality of Poindexter’s relationship, and it’s disturbing to say the least.

Foggy is drinking in a bar and angrily picks up and tosses a Tower for DA flyer. Matt finally makes himself known to his friend, and Foggy is shocked and overjoyed at first. His feelings shift as the conversation goes on, and Matt starts telling his friend how his life is going to be different from now on. Matt gives Foggy some advice, which the man ignores. Foggy gives a good description of Matt these days, and Matt agrees before leaving. After he goes, we see another reason he had for meeting Foggy, and it doesn’t make Matt look any better. Donovan reports on his encounter to Fisk, and they agree that, despite the costume change, the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen is back.

What I liked: As always, the action scenes are well done. They are doing very well at showing Matt as highly skilled, but not back to where he was. Maggie is a good presence, and Matt would be much better off if he’d listen to her at least a bit. I admire Karen’s passion and dedication, although I understand Ellison’s reservations. I feel a bit bad for Tower. I liked what they showed of Marci and Foggy together, and Foggy’s talking to Tower. I admit, I was just fine with Matt roughing up Donovan.

What I didn’t: Mostly Matt himself. He’s being a dick, treating everyone around him horribly, and making bad decisions. Poindexter isn’t what he seemed, and I wonder how they’re going to deal with him. They are juggling a lot of threads, and I hope they keep them all in balance. Now Matt’s moved on to assaulting multiple Federal agents, and you KNOW they’re going to be working that scene, and Matt’s once again leaving prints all over.

Despite Matt’s behavior, it was a good episode. I’ll give it a 4 out of 5.