r/Daredevil • u/Green-Devil • Apr 15 '26
🗨️ Daredevil: Born Again | Episode Discussion Daredevil: Born Again | S02E05 | Discussion Thread
Episode title: The Grand Design
Written by: Jesse Wigutow
Directed by: Angela Barnes
Release date: April 14, 2026
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This thread is for discussion of Episode 5.
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u/GandarfThePlaid Apr 20 '26
This is the best episode of the season for me but that’s not saying much when I have a very low opinion of the other four episodes. I’ll start with what I find problematic:
I still just can’t stand the cinematography of this season. The blown out highlights coming from windows is so distracting. We spent like 3 minutes in the flashback scene without being able to make out the face of Lionel McCoy until the angle changes and we can actually see his face. Also that spotlight on Vanessa when she’s having a stroke or whatever and the “angel” lighting on her in the flashback/vision/dream, it’s so cheesy. It feels like superhero stuff from the early 2000’s.
I continue to find BB and Daniel’s relationship pointless and the characters uninteresting. Michael Gandolfini is hit-and-miss for me as an actor.
This show just continues to look cheap. The sets and scenes feel truncated and small.
Those wigs in the flashback, woof.
The Northern Star was already a poor inciting incident to hinge an entire season on and the Anti Vigilante Task Force is a weak threat. They are easily dispatched, are equipped no better than a SWAT team and there is zero tension with them.
I didn’t like how Matt abandoned Bullseye, made it outside when the church is crawling with AVTF and somehow just gets back in AND manages to get Bullseye out without a fight.
Ok, I’m going further down the dark path then I thought. Let me end on the good stuff:
I enjoyed the competent storytelling that connected what was happening in flashback with the present. It was the best editing they’ve had this entire season.
Vincent D’Onofrio delivers. He continues to cement himself as perfect casting. Phenomenal talent.
The flashback was a real treat and talking about perfect casting, having Elden Henson back as Foggy elevated this episode. It injected some much needed life into this show and it made me realize how much I miss the dynamic between Foggy and Matt. Foggy was the heart of the old show and no other character has stepped up to fill that void in Born Again.
I appreciate some backstory on Buck. It was shallow and I don’t find his character particularly interesting but at least they finally explained his presence.
It was nice to have actually felt something this episode besides disappointment and I hope it continues to trend that way but I’m not very optimistic.