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(SeaPRwire) –   When *Daredevil: Born Again* concluded its first season with an intense cliffhanger hinting at a citywide confrontation involving New York City’s vigilantes and Wilson Fisk, the highly anticipated second season was expected to immediately fulfill that promise. And *Daredevil: Born Again* does so…eventually. However, the issue with Season 2, much like Season 1 of the Disney+ revival and most of the Netflix seasons, is its prolonged build-up.

By the time the action truly begins, it makes one wish that Season 1 hadn’t spent so many episodes attempting to deliver the “lighthearted” courtroom drama that the *Born Again* revival was initially conceived as.

*Daredevil: Born Again* Season 2 commences six months after the events of Season 1, with Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) and Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll) now fugitives following Wilson Fisk’s (Vincent D’Onofrio) implementation of his “Safer Streets” Protocol. This new legislation, which criminalizes vigilantism, effectively places the city under martial law and grants Fisk’s new Vigilante Task Force unchecked authority in their mission to apprehend New York’s masked heroes. Yet, half a year later, New York remains largely unchanged. Residents are going about their daily lives, mostly content that the streets are safer — at least, according to the cheerful “man on the streets” reports from BB Urich’s *BB Report*. Wilson Fisk’s authoritarian governance continues as usual, with Fisk even preparing for a charity boxing match to raise funds for his task force, which is still violently rounding up vigilantes, both masked and unmasked.

The only indications that something is amiss are sporadic sightings of “RESIST” graffiti on buildings and bus stops, and Anonymous-style reports disseminated on the dark web that reveal Wilson Fisk’s *true* agenda. And, of course, Daredevil has been on a solo rampage through Red Hook, the illicit seaport that Vanessa Fisk (Ayelet Zurer) managed to bring under Fisk’s control. There, Daredevil uncovers a ship laden with military-grade weapons and arms intended for Fisk, which Matt and Karen believe could be the key to bringing Fisk down — if they can successfully implicate him.

The strength of *Daredevil: Born Again* Season 2 lies in its seamless continuation of the superior latter half of the Season 1 narrative arc, where Fisk’s ascent to power compelled Matt Murdock to once again don the mask. However, *Daredevil: Born Again* Season 2 is plagued by two significant storytelling missteps that have become increasingly common in the streaming era: a failure to follow through on plot points, and the fundamental error of stretching too little story across too many episodes.

The six-month time jump only exacerbates the former issue, with the “army” promised by Season 1’s cliffhanger amounting to little more than Karen Page operating from an attic. This mirrors the kind of halfhearted resolution to an explosive cliffhanger seen in Netflix’s *Stranger Things*, which set up a world-altering event only for it to be a minor disturbance. However, this isn’t entirely the show’s fault — it’s largely the result of the rushed restructuring of the revival by showrunner Dario Scardapane after he took over from Matt Corman and Chris Ord. As one waits for the action to pick up again in Season 2, a desire emerges for this storyline to have been a single, cohesive season from the outset.

Nevertheless, *Born Again* Season 2 is not without its exhilarating moments. Charlie Cox clearly relishes the opportunity to showcase his action skills once more as the Man Without Fear, and even brings back some of the Catholic angst that Matt Murdock grappled with in earlier Netflix seasons (yes, Matt Murdock crying in a church is back). While it’s pleasing to see Matt and Karen as a duo again, the show’s insistence on them as a romantic pair doesn’t entirely convince this reviewer (apologies, Karedevil fans). But while that’s one remnant from the Netflix series that doesn’t quite land, most other elements do: Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones is as sharp and excellent as ever, while Wilson Bethel’s Bullseye receives the most intricate and satisfying character arc this season — his antagonistic dynamic with Daredevil almost rivals Matt and Frank’s interactions in Season 1. While the Punisher’s absence is keenly felt, at the very least, it feels like the distinct Netflix and Disney elements are finally beginning to harmonize — Kirsten McDuffie (Nikki M. James) and retired cop Cherry (Clark Johnson) feel like crucial allies rather than mere hangers-on, while on Fisk’s side, comms director Daniel Blake (Michael Gandolfini) navigates a compelling narrative of morally ambiguous compromises.

There are some tedious subplots that require resolution, and some ambitious sociopolitical metaphors that don’t quite land (or, with the Vigilante Task Force literally caging people, perhaps hit a little too close to home), but *Daredevil: Born Again* Season 2 *does* ultimately deliver in its concluding episodes. The final two episodes, in particular, stand out as some of the finest and most electrifying television Marvel has produced. However, this is typical for *Daredevil* — a show that has frequently been exceptional at its best, and a chore at its worst. Like many seasons before it, *Born Again* Season 2 is an intermittently thrilling, often frustrating, new chapter for the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen.

Daredevil: Born Again Season 2’s premiere episode is now available for streaming on Disney+. New episodes are released on Tuesdays.