March 31 : Written by 404EthanNotFound
4. Kingpin and Real-World Parallels
Spoiler warning for Daredevil Seasons 1 to 3 and Daredevil: Born Again
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has fluctuated in quality. I spoke briefly about this topic in my Spider-Man piece, but I stated at the time I was optimistic about ‘Daredevil: Born Again’. So far, I have not been disappointed. At the time of writing, there are six episodes released of season one of this revival series. In my opinion, the greatest thing Disney Marvel has produced has been Daredevil season 3. If you have not had the pleasure of watching it, but were considering it, do check it out before continuing on. I would hate to spoil anything. In summary, ‘Daredevil’ follows the intertwined story of Matthew Murdock, the titular Devil of Hell’s Kitchen and Wilson Fisk, the Kingpin. Matthew Murdock was blinded in an accident at a young age which also enhanced his other senses. He works as a lawyer by day and at night doles out vigilante justice when the system fails. Wilson Fisk is the uncontested boss of organized crime in New York City. His brutality and power are only spoken through hushed voices. The first three seasons aired on Netflix. The revival series has debuted on Disney+.
I absolutely adore this series. This video by HiTop Films largely captures the emotions and feelings that resonate with me from the original series.
Disney has recently rebooted the series after its Netflix cancellation. They have taken steps in the right direction by bringing back the original cast and ensuring that the Netflix series remains canon. I continue to watch week after week. Unlike other recent Marvel Disney+ series, I have never felt that Daredevil: Born Again has wasted my time.
As I sat and watched (and rewatched) each episode of Daredevil: Born Again over the past few weeks, I could not unsee the parallels to our very real political situation. Wilson Fisk, a.k.a. Kingpin, has had parallels to Donald Trump since season 3 of the original Netflix show. Both can be accurately described as a self-serving, egotistical, criminal who abuses power at every opportunity. One of the standout moments of parallel revolves around Fisk attacking the media after he is able to have his criminal charges overturned through his plot of corrupting the FBI. He walks up to a press conference podium and says:
“Believing the new media’s fake story…That I am evil, that I am a criminal. Quite the opposite is true…Because I challenged the system….The people in power tried to tear me down. Tear me down with false allegations.”
During the Hawkeye series (2021), Kingpin was shot in the eye by Maya Lopez, the at-the-time leader of the Tracksuit Mafia. Wilson Fisk helped raise Maya (and also arranged having her father killed). Maya’s betrayal of Fisk occurred once she learned the truth. Years later in 2024, Donald Trump is shot in the ear by Thomas Matthew Crooks at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Crooks espoused antisemitic, anti-immigrant rhetoric through activity on social media. He was by all accounts, right-leaning and a Trump supporter. If nothing else, he was a firearms enthusiast, a position that is famously pushed by right-wing politics. In both instances, Fisk and Trump cultivate the environment which creates the conditions that embolden the shooters to act. I do not claim that Crooks was inspired by the Hawkeye TV series in any way, I am simply pointing out the curious parallels.
In Daredevil: Born Again, Kingpin evolves into a new role, Mayor Fisk. Fisk ran a campaign for NYC Mayor on the tenants of law and order, and cutting through red tape as a political outsider. Sound familiar? Mayor Fisk reminds me of the first Trump administration, constantly tripping over its own feet, unsure of its ability to enact policies, mired in constant controversy. However as the season has progressed, I have seen more parallels to our present day second Trump administration.
Presently, Kingpin conspires to command the Anti-Vigilante Task Force as his personal crew of enforcers. This is a team made up of those in the NYPD who have shown a proclivity to violence, who adorn tattoos of the Punisher (not unlike real-life Police who have adopted the logo).
Real-world examples of police donning the Punisher logo:
Police officer in “Daredevil: Born Again”:
Fisk will likely use them to intimidate, harm, or otherwise incapacitate any opposition to his administration. To me, this draws large parallels to the way that the Trump administration uses ICE agents as extrajudicial arbiters in order to round up undocumented peoples without due process. This path has led them to detain and deport innocent people. Mahmoud Khalil, lead negotiator for the Columbia University pro-Palestinian protests, still remains held without being charged with a crime. As far as I can tell, Khalil has only been accused of being a Hamas sympathizer by the Trump administration (obviously without any proof being presented). The administration seeks to bypass the courts in order to silence dissent.
The other group of people targeted by ICE has been Venezuelan migrants. Anyone who fits the racial profiling who cannot produce documentation of legal status, or who has tattoos, or folks accused of being ‘illegal aliens’ by neighbors, regardless of any proof, are liable to be cornered by ICE. Harrowing footage of these abductions and subsequent incarceration without due process is gut-wrenching.
I think this Fox News headline gives away the game.
Why would the authors use the word ‘alleged’ in the title? I would argue that it shows they are less than certain that the people being deported to El Salvador may not in fact be Tren de Aragua gang members. If they are not absolutely certain that they folks committed the crimes they are being accused of (without due process) then why have they already received the punishment as if they were guilty. The sycophants who pedal in this garbage make me ill.
Being in the United States without proper documentation is a CIVIL offense as the law states. Being in the United States without proper documentation alone is NOT a criminal offense:
8 U.S. Code § 1325 - Improper entry by alien
“(b) Improper time or place; civil penalties
(1) at least $50 and not more than $250 for each such entry (or attempted entry); or
The letter of the law does not matter to these people because it does not suit their goals and narrative. The narrative Kingpin pedals is the danger of vigilantes. In season three, Fisk hires Ben Poindexter to impersonate Daredevil and massacre an office building filled with journalists. The Trump administration manufactures phony allegations against undocumented people to make them seem dangerous when the crime stats would tell you the exact opposite.
I have taken courses in regards to criminal justice during my education. A principle that is often taught about in these courses is the concept that it is better that ten guilty persons go free rather than an innocent person convicted of a crime. This concept would inform that the criminal justice system is fallible, yet would work to seek moral ends. This would suggest that the criminal justice system would favor acquittal unless absolutely certain, or beyond reasonable doubt, that a crime was committed and that the proper person or persons would face the punishment. The Trump administration and the Kingpin seek to invert this morality. Trump does not care how many innocent people are caught in ICE’s net in the same manner that Kingpin does not care if the Anti-Vigilante Task Force has collateral civilian damage so long as his rivals are silenced. The wanton disregard for human life is intolerable and sociopathic.
Treating humans like animals is unjust in any context. It is heinous sub-human behavior to deprive anyone of their human dignity. This is not to say that punishment is unjust, instead punishment but be handed out by an even hand and after due process has occurred. The Trump administration and Kingpin seek to remove due process. By eliminating the need for the judicial system, they accumulate more personal power and undermine justice in favor of tyranny and dictatorship.
I look forward to seeing once more how Kingpin’s story will unfold and the lessons it may hold for dealing with our present political moment. While Daredevil has his hands full dealing with Kingpin, I look around for those who would combat Trump and his authoritarianism. Perhaps we don’t need a vigilante like Daredevil to dole out punishment, perhaps we just need a few more Matthew Murdocks. We need more voices willing to stand for the right thing and who will not back down in the face of hardship. I strive to be one of those voices and I hope you all will be right there with me.