Daredevil’s Biggest Enemies in Marvel Comics & the MCU

This article covers Daredevil’s greatest adversaries in Marvel Comics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

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Heroes are defined by their good deeds. Their selflessness and sacrificial natures elevate them from mere vigilantes to the super heroes whom we adore. Yet heroes are also in many instances defined by their villains. After all, what is light without dark? The good that one person accomplishes is even more amazing when we see the horrors of which their enemies are capable.

In his time protecting Hell’s Kitchen, Daredevil has made quite a few enemies. Many of them, he dealt with swiftly and surely. Others brought Matt Murdock to the brink, forcing him to stand on the precipice of all his morals and stretch the limits of his abilities. Who are these enemies? Below, meet the Marvel Comics and MCU villains who bested, beat, or came very close to becoming Daredevil’s utter ruin.

• Kingpin
• Punisher
• Elektra
• The Hand
• Bullseye
• Typhoid Mary
• Mysterio
• Muse

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Kingpin

Kingpin is Daredevil’s ultimate enemy. Cruel yet undeniably charming, Wilson Fisk wields almost indomitable authority over the New York City underworld. He has no loyalty other than to himself and his wife Vanessa. Even then, Kingpin clashes with her when she puts his business ventures, interests, or plans at risk. There is nothing Wilson Fisk would not do for power — yet he must always appear elegant in the process. Daredevil cannot abide Kingpin’s duplicity, nor his stranglehold upon Hell’s Kitchen.

Before his jump to the MCU, Kingpin defeated Daredevil both physically and morally. He forced Matt Murdock to cross a line and break his rules, giving Daredevil’s “victory” over Kingpin a sour taste. Then, in Born Again, Kingpin once again forced Matt’s hand. We left Matt in a state of total despair, forced to go into hiding and branded as a villain. Meanwhile, Wilson Fisk reigns as mayor of NYC, beloved by all.

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The Punisher

Watch out — it’s the big, bad Punisher. Although framed more recently as an antihero, Frank Castle is one of Daredevil’s original enemies. He and Matt are in many ways foils, both with Catholic upbringings and private demons with which to wrestle. But where Daredevil decides to take the noble, non-lethal approach to heroics, The Punisher has no qualms about killing. His time as a Marine scarred him, but it also prepared him to take to the streets with pure vengeance.

MCU’s Punisher is not much different. Though a little softer around the edges, especially when it comes to Karen Page, Frank is truly ruthless. Whenever there is wrongdoing in Hell’s Kitchen, Frank mounts a one-man army and suits up to deliver his version of justice. Last we left Frank, he broke out of a vigilante prison in Daredevil: Born Again season 1. There’s no sign of Punisher in the season 2 teaser trailer.

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Elektra

A deadly mercenary, Elektra Natchios is fueled by agony and anger. She met Matt Murdock in university, and the two have been embroiled in a passionate, tumultuous romance ever since. Yet Elektra’s rage and regrets often put her on opposing sides to her first love. Rejected by the Chaste and embraced by the ninja assassins called the Hand, she is Daredevil’s enemy at almost every turn. Yet her most recent comic run puts Elektra in the Daredevil costume, giving her a chance at redemption.

While Elektra appears in Netflix’s Daredevil and Defenders series, it’s unclear whether her story is part of the MCU. Marvel and Disney’s acquisition of all Marvel rights led to both hard and soft resets of the universe. If her narrative is canon, however, Elektra is dead in the MCU. Well … as dead as anyone ever really stays in the super hero genre.

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The Hand

As mentioned above, the Hand are a ninja clan who worship a demon called the Beast. Composed of various factions with different levels of fanaticism, they do have one thing in common: their hatred of Daredevil. With ties to HYDRA and many other criminal sects, the Hand are an insidious organization that Daredevil must constantly battle — although he has also been a member of their ranks before, alongside Elektra, The Punisher, and Wolverine.

The Hand aren’t officially in the MCU. In the Netflix canon, they frequently besiege Daredevil as well as his mentor, Stick. Additionally, the Hand aid in Elektra’s resurrection, turning her into an almost mindless killing machine to hurt Daredevil in every way possible. But Daredevil, Luke Cage, Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and their various allies destroy the Hand in the show, eliminating the threat well before Daredevil season 3.

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Bullseye

Benjamin “Lex” Poindexter is mysterious mercenary who spent most of his life in prison. Selfish and sadistic, Lex, or Bullseye, uses his formidable throwing skills to hurt people. He also takes immense pleasure in it. Although he’s allied with Deadpool on a few occasions, Lex is often in conflict with both Punisher and Daredevil. When Bullseye is hired to kill the lawyer Matt Murdock but thwarted, he makes it his life’s mission to restore his reputation by defeating Daredevil.

Born Again does not completely rewrite Bullseye’s history. Rather, it introduces him as a far more unstable individual in the pilot; Daredevil season 3 approached Lex with more nuance. A former FBI agent turned Fisk’s killer, Bullseye murders Foggy Nelson in order to retaliate against Daredevil’s heroics. Police capture and imprison Bullseye. But in Born Again season 1, Bullseye escapes. Season 2 promises more of his vindictive energy and terrible target practice.

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Typhoid Mary

Mary Alice Walker is a mutant. She possesses psionic powers, including telekinesis and pyrokinesis. Suffering from dissociative identity disorder, Mary has three distinct personalities: one is timid, the other is adventurous, and the final is violent. She often assists Kingpin in his fight against Daredevil, displaying impressive martial arts and assassin skills. Mary and Daredevil also struck up a brief love affair, with an on-again/off-again relationship throughout comics history.

In Iron Fist season 2, Mary Walker is a U.S. Army veteran with DID. But technically, because Netflix’s Iron Fist is not canon, Typhoid Mary has not appeared in the MCU. Yet her curly hair and connection to Kingpin gives many pause. Despite being an actual minor love interest in the comics, the cinematic Dr. Heather Glenn, to some small extent, resembles Typhoid Mary. Could Born Again season 2 compound these two characters? It’s a loose and slightly baseless theory, but sometimes those are the most exciting to consider.

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Mysterio

One particularly controversial Daredevil story arc pits Daredevil against the magician Mysterio. Leaning heavily into Catholic lore, Mysterio concocts a wild scheme as his final act, hoping to leave a legacy of a hero’s ruin. Mysterio tests Matt’s faith and also commits heinous acts against Matt’s friends. Yet Matt Murdock eventually dismisses Mysterio’s mechanizations. Many others have attempted to drive Daredevil insane; none have succeeded.

Although Mysterio has not appeared at all in Daredevil, he is part of the larger MCU. Quentin Beck targets Spider-Man with drones and technological illusions. In Spider-Man: Far From Home, Mysterio uses his computer genius to reveal Spider-Man’s identity as Peter Parker. Perhaps Matt Murdock’s official introduction into the MCU as Peter’s lawyer is an homage to the Guardian Devil run.

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Muse

Muse is a more recent addition to the Hell’s Kitchen villain coterie. A psychopathic painter, Muse uses human blood to paint murals. Then, he charges the public to view these terrifying creations. Yet Muse’s demented drawings are only half the equation. In Marvel Comics, Muse can absorb sensory information such as sight and sound, rendering himself almost invisible to Daredevil. Superhumanly strong and fast, Muse is a force to be reckoned with.

The MCU, however, takes a more grounded approach to this antagonist. Muse does not possess any inhuman qualities besides his desire to hurt innocents. Obsessed with his therapist, Muse attacks and attempts to drain her for one of his paintings. Daredevil refuses to kill him. But Dr. Heather Glenn does end Muse’s life, building an impenetrable fortress between herself and Matt Murdock in the process.

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