- "Look around, Red. This city, it stinks. It's a sewer. It stinks and it smells like shit and I can't get the stink out of my nose. I think that this world, it needs men who are willing to make the hard call. I think you and me are the same!"
"That's bullshit, Frank, and you know it!"
"Only I do the one thing you can't. You hit'em and they get back up. I hit'em and they stay down!" - ―Frank Castle and Daredevil[src]
New York's Finest is the third episode of the second season of the Netflix exclusive television series Daredevil.
Synopsis
Trapped face-to-face with the Punisher, Daredevil wrestles with the morality of vigilante justice. Meanwhile, Foggy and Karen work to save the firm.
Plot
Matt Murdock awakens from a dream in which he's a young boy being tended to by a nun. When he awakens, he realizes that he has been chained on a rooftop. The Punisher greets him sarcastically as he sips coffee.
At the location which served as a trap for The Punisher, District Attorney Samantha Reyes oversees cleanup of the site. Karen Page angrily accuses her of using Nelson and Murdock's client, Elliot Grote, as bait. As Foggy Nelson watches silently, both Reyes and Assistant District Attorney Blake Tower imply that if news of the botched sting operation were to be released to the public, they would ensure that Nelson and Murdock were blamed for it. Reyes and Tower leave, while Nelson says he will call Murdock to tell him what happened, and Page returns to the office to see if she can make sense of what happened.
On the rooftop, Murdock asks The Punisher why he didn't remove his mask. The Punisher answers that he doesn't care who Daredevil really is. Murdock can sense a large amount of military hardware and asks The Punisher what he's going to do with it. The Punisher simply answers that he'll do what is required.
Nelson arrives at the Metro-General Hospital emergency room looking for Claire Temple. The E.R. is crammed with patients, many of them criminals. He spots Temple and reminds her of who he is. Temple is not thrilled to see him.
At the Nelson and Murdock law offices, Page receives a phone call from Elliot Grote. She tries to convince him to turn himself in but he tells her that he is leaving the city and hangs up.
On the rooftop, Murdock tries to get The Punisher to talk about himself, correctly guessing that he was a soldier, a New Yorker, and a Catholic. The Punisher tells Murdock to stop digging. The Punisher accuses Daredevil of being a coward because he doesn't kill his enemies. Murdock, with his enhanced hearing, hears someone approaching and tells the Punisher. The Punisher warns Murdock that if he makes any noise at all, he will kill whoever is coming.
At the hospital, Nelson asks Temple if she has seen their mutual friend, but Temple responds that she hasn't seen him since she patched him up after he was nearly killed months ago. She tells him that she's been on E.R. duty all moth, with no breaks. Temple says this is because she helped someone else, someone stronger than Murdock, and went against hospital policy to do it. Just then one of the patients grabs a scalpel and threatens a member of a rival gang.
On the rooftop, a veteran named Jerry asks the Punisher who he is and why he's on the roof. The Punisher introduces himself as Frank and says he came to the roof for a bit of peace and quiet and a cigarette. The two bond over having served as Marines. Murdock strains against his chains, and Jerry hears it. With the open door between them, the Punisher cocks a gun so that Murdock will hear it and stop making noise.
After Jerry returns to his apartment, Murdock asks the Punisher if Frank is his real name, and accuses him of threatening the veteran. The Punisher responds that he only did it for Daredevil's benefit to keep him quiet. The two argue about their differing methods of vigilante justice, with Murdock arguing for the possibility of redemption while The Punisher argues that criminals need to be put down permanently. After Murdock tells The Punisher that he is insane, the Punisher knocks him out.
Page visits Tower in his office and reveals that she has done research into Reyes' career, and points out how many Assistant District Attorneys have lost their jobs because of Reyes' poor decisions. Tower angrily tells her to leave, but not before slipping her copies of the Punisher files.
At the hospital, Nelson angrily addresses one of the thugs who are about to fight, commenting that he knows he's been to prison. He tells him that he is a lawyer and that the thug is being so stupid that he no decent lawyer, not even Nelson's kind hearted partner, would ever represent him. He appeals to both the criminals' sense of self interest and tells them to drop their weapons and stop fighting. They do, to Temple's relief.
On the rooftop, Murdock regains consciousness and is shocked to find a gun duct taped to his hand. The Punisher casually tells him that there is only one round in the chamber, and that he is wearing body armor, so the only way to stop him would be to shoot him in the head. He drags Grotto in front of him and tells Murdock that he's going to kill him.
Over Murdock's protests, The Punisher gets Grotto to admit doing hits for the Kitchen Irish, and to murdering an old woman who witnessed one of the hits. Still, Murdock refuses to shoot him, and refuses to shoot The Punisher to stop him from killing Grotto. As The Punisher prepares to shoot Grotto, Murdock uses the one round in the gun to shoot through his chains and free himself. He launches himself at The Punisher but is unable to stop him from killing Grotto.
At the hospital, Temple searches hospital records for Murdock's name and tells Nelson that he hasn't been checked in to the hospital, nor was there any record of his body in the morgue. She compliments Nelson on how he handled the fight between the criminals. Nelson thanks Temple and tells her that Murdock made a mistake letting her go. Smiling and returning to work, she asks him what made him think he did.
The Punisher shoots at the motorcycles lined up outside the Dogs of Hell headquarters, setting off an explosion which alerts the bikers inside to his presence. Murdock attacks The Punisher and is able to subdue him. He takes him into the building and brings him into a freight elevator just as the bikers arrive. When Jerry emerges from his apartment to find out what's going on, Murdock leaves The Punisher in the elevator to come to his aid. He grabs a biker and holds the gun to his head, warning the other bikers to drop their weapons. Once Jerry is safe inside his apartment again, he laughs as he pulls the trigger on the gun he knew was unloaded.
A long and brutal fight ensues, in which Murdock is able to defeat and incapacitate the bikers. When Murdock returns to the freight elevator, he finds The Punisher is gone.
Cast
Main Cast:
- Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock/Daredevil
- Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page
- Elden Henson as Foggy Nelson
- Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle/Punisher
- Stephen Rider as Blake Tower
- Rosario Dawson as Claire Temple
Guest Stars:
- Michelle Hurd as District Attorney Samantha Reyes
- McCaleb Burnett as Grotto
- Ray Iannicelli as Jerry
- John Bianco as Jimmy the Bear
- Marilyn Torres as Louisa Delgado
- Marcos Palma as Petty Thief
- Tracy Friedman as Security Guard
- Matt Baguth as Gang Member
- Marc Basil as Felon
- Ross Brodar as Biker
- Emily Trask as Reporter
- Jay Hieron as Lowlife
- Nick Gifford as CSU Team Member (uncredited)
- Hans Marrero as Criminal #2 (uncredited)
- Caliph Jones as Criminal #3 (uncredited)
- Damien Bosco as Gang #3 Member (uncredited)
- Kristoffe Brodeur as Dogs Of Hell Gang Member (uncredited)
Appearances
Locations
- New York City, New York
- Vietnam (mentioned)
- Iraq (mentioned)
- Afghanistan (mentioned)
Events
- Frank Castle's War
- Kidnapping of Daredevil
- Attack on the Dogs of Hell
- Ambush on Punisher (mentioned)
- Attack on Grotto (mentioned)
- Vietnam War (mentioned)
Items
Vehicles
To be added
Creatures
Organizations
- Nelson and Murdock
- New York City Police Department
- Dogs of Hell
- Union Allied Construction (mentioned)
- United States Marine Corps (mentioned)
- 3rd Marine Division (mentioned)
Mentioned
Trivia
- This episode's plot is almost exactly the same as a Punisher issue from the mini-series "Welcome Back, Frank", including dialogue.
Music
| Song title | Artist | Location(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Ace of Spades | Motörhead |
|
