Daredevil season 2 has premiered to much fanfare and critical acclaim, prompting the question of whether there will be a third season. It also raises the question of where the show will head in a potential third season, in terms of introducing a new villain. In season 1, Daredevil was introduced to several crime outfits operating in Hell's Kitchen but his primary antagonist was Vincent D'Onofrio's Wilson Fisk. In season 2, the chief antagonist was The Hand and their leader, he man who gave Daredevil the most scars in season 1, Nobu. In a third season, would it be more interesting for Wilson Fisk to find a way to leave prison, or should he arrange to make Matt Murdock's like miserable from behind bars? In their brief fight during a prison visit, Matt tried to hold back and not resists Fisk's vicious attack but a single punch was thrown and it was enough to make Fisk suspicious that Matt might be capable of a lot more than what he lets on. Perhaps season 3 will deal with Kingpin discovering the secret identity of Matt Murdock? In reality, the 5+ decades since Daredevil's Marvel debut have given fans some wonderful stories and provides plenty of source material for the show's writers and executive producers to carve out an interesting storyline for a third season.
In looking at season 1 and season 2, a large percentage of each season deals with the villain and Matt's response to what the primary antagonist of that season is trying to accomplish. In this respect, Daredevil is a lot different from the other Marvel Netflix drama, Jessica Jones; which was a much more intimate story that primarily focused on Jones' ability or inability to cope with her own personal trauma. In contrast, Matt Murdock's personality and character is largely defined by his decisions and reactions to what the villains throw at him. After Kingpin and Nobu, what villain do you want to see next? Would that villain actually make sense for where the show appears to be headed? Let's look at 5 potential candidates and examine how they could be introduced based on everything that's already happened in Matt Murdock's life.
5. GLADIATOR
Melvin Potter has made it very clear to Daredevil that he only builds his costumes and weapons so that he can keep Betsy safe. Due to the slightly unhinged nature of Potter, it seems evident that should something happen to Betsy, he's going to hold Daredevil responsible. And who better to harm Matt Murdock than the person who created his superbly armored costume - surely Potter would know every single weak point on the suit. There's also the possibility that Kingpin brings Potter back into the fold once he's released from prison. Potter still works in the same location, at the same workshop, so he's very easy to find. All Fisk would have to do is threaten Betsy. It's possible that Kingpin even tells Potter that he must kill Daredevil for disobeying him.
The writers on the show have been teasing Potter's transformation into Gladiator for quite some time and they're not likely to keep dangling the carrot too much longer. Potter already has a suit, has shown a penchant for swinging around saw blades and even had blueprints for what appeared to be an even more traditional-looking Gladiator costume. While Potter, as the character currently stands, wouln't be a very interesting primary antagonist, he would present a fun challenge for an episode or two.
4. MISTER FEAR
Mister Fear is a different type of villain for Daredevil. He inflicts mental attacks on Daredevil rather than physical ones. If the show wants to graduate from seeing Daredevil sporting numerous bruises, cuts and scrapes to dealing with emotional and mental trauma, Mister Fear would be a great route to take. The character shoots a pellet gun that fires a special fear gas based on pheromones that instinctively cause herd animals like sheep, antelope, etc. to flee when a predator is sensed. The gas inflicts extreme nausea, anxiety, edginess and hallucinations and can persist for several days. Over the years, four different individuals have worn the Mister Fear costume, each adding their own unique abilities to the Mister Fear persona and gas gun.
Larry Cranston was able to reverse-engineer the drug to make himself fearless and was able to modify the drug so that he could influence his victims into doing whatever he wanted. This ability would be similar to David Tennant's Purple Man who had a similar ability in Marvel's Jessica Jones. Perhaps this aspect of the Mister Fear abilities could be used to tie the two shows together? During Alan Fagan's time as Mister Fear, he also targeted victims in his civilian guise through the use of a ring on his right hand. The ring had a hypodermic needle which we used to inject the fear toxin directly into his victim's bloodstream. Fagan's prolonged exposure and use of the toxin resulted in him developing a condition where merely touching his skin would inflict the symptoms of the fear toxin.
Mister Fear would be a nice change of pace from the more physical-orieneted villains Daredevil has battled thus far. A more cerebral villain would allow the character to grow and perhaps provide the Devil of Hell's Kitchen with some new tactics besides punching and kicking. However, tying Mister Fear in with what's occurred already on the show would prove difficult. One of the weaker aspects of season 2 was how disjointed the Punisher-arc and Hand-arc unfolded - in some ways, season 2 felt like two separate shows. It's unlikely that the showrunners would repeat this misstep in another season and may chose to just continue the established storylines of The Hand and Fisk.
3. IKARI
Daredevil is centered around martial arts ( he is a Ninja, afterall), however, The Hand is reeling following the defeat of Nobu. This would seemingly open the door for a new, martial arts master to arise and present himself as a worthy foe. Ikari (Japanese for anger) is a relatively new creation in the Daredevil lore, debuting in Mark Waid and Chris Samnee's recent run in the Daredevil comic book. He's a character with exactly the same powers as Daredevil but with one big difference, he can see. Ikari was hired by the Kingpin to torment Matt Murdock by going after his close friends, including Foggy Nelson. The character was also a one-time hire of Bullseye and has worked with Lady Bullseye in the past.
It's possibe but unlikely that Fisk will escape jail by the time a third season wraps so perhaps he'll target Matt Murdock/Daredevil from behind bars? Hiring someone like Ikari would be a great way for Fisk to get started on his revenge before he gets released from prison and finishes the job himself (something he promised Matt Murdock he would do). As a new character, Ikari doesn't exactly have a fleshed-out back-story, something that could actually work as an opportunity for the showrunners to take some liberties.
2. TYPHOID MARY
Does Matt Murdock have terrible taste in women or what? If you thought Elektra was a poor choice, wait till Matt meets Typhoid Mary. Elektra's crazy is nothing in comparison to the gravely, mentally ill Mary Walker. In the comics, she's a mutant who possesses low-level psionic abilities including telekenis and pyrokinesis. She also has three, split-personalities - Mary, Typhoid and Bloody Mary. When Bloody Mary comes out, run for the hills. Like several individuals on this list, Tyhphoid debuted as a hired assassin by Kingpin, with Daredevil naturally being the target. Of course, Mary falls in love with Matt Murdock, not realizing that he's secretly Daredevil. Since her debut in 1988, the two have engaged in a love-hate relationship that usually leaves Matt the worse for wear.
While Typhoid Mary is a mutant, the show could easily establish her as one of the other subjects in the experiments that also gave Jessica Jones and Purple Man their powers. In fact, the mysterious organization in Jessica Jones that's running the experiments is called IGH, which appears to be a play on MGH (Mutant Growth Hormone). That same company also apparently experimented on Luke Cage while he was in prison and gave him his bulletproof skin. Bringing IGH into Daredevil would be a nice way to start tying in the threads between each of the solo Netflix series before the big Defenders team-up.
1. BULLSEYE
Obvious, right? Bullseye is the Joker to Daredevil's Batman. With the introduction of Elektra, the Netflix drama has shown that they aren't shying away from covering ground previously tread in the disastrous 2003 film starring Ben Affleck. The only character still left to be introduced is Bullseye. Arguably described as the most dangerous hitman in Marvel Comics, Lester is yet again, another assassin hired by Kingpin to kill Daredevil. In the comics, Bullseye kills both, Elektra and Karen Page, though Elektra met her demise in season 2 at the hands of Nobu. Perhaps the showrunners are saving Karen's death for Daredevil's primary nemesis?
Charlie Cox has already stated that he would like to battle Bullseye in a future season. "If we are fortunate enough to continue making the Daredevil series, I can’t imagine doing a run of Daredevil where Bullseye doesn’t show up at some point. It would be great to have him around at some point. Who would play that part I have no idea but I just think there’s such an interesting, rich character there, and also of course, the history that Bullseye has with Karen Page is an interesting dynamic. When you read the comics it’s etched in a Daredevil memory all that stuff." Netflix greenlit a second season of Daredevil after just 11 days. Perhaps we'll have our confirmation of a third season before the week's out?
Who do you want to see Daredevil take down next in a third season? Take your suggestion to the comment section below and keep the discussion going.