Daredevil: Born Again’s Huge Death Is a Fakeout… At Least If Marvel Follows the Comics

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Warning! Spoilers ahead for Daredevil: Born Again!

Fans who have seen the first episode of Daredevil: Born Again
are likely still reeling from shocking death of Foggy Nelson. However, longtime readers of Marvel’s Daredevil comics know that if the MCU TV series is following the plot of one classic story arc, this tragic twist could all be revealed to be nothing more than a fake-out.

Foggy famously “died” in Daredevil (Vol. 2) #82 – written by Ed Brubaker, with art by Michael Lark – but his demise was not as it initially seemed. As the first issue of writer Brubaker’s run, the story picked up with Matt Murdock in prison after his superhero identity was revealed to the FBI.

When Foggy visited Matt at Ryker’s, he was brutally stabbed to death by inmates hired to do the job. Fans were led to believe that Foggy was actually dead for the next six issues. However, it was eventually revealed to all be a ruse…

If It’s Anything Like The Comics, Rumors Of Foggy Nelson Death In “Daredevil: Born Again “Could Be Greatly Exaggerated

In another major twist, Foggy was revealed to have survived in Daredevil (Vol. 2) #88, written by Ed Brubaker, with art by David Aja. Titled “The Secret Life of Foggy Nelson,” the story revealed how Foggy’s “death” was staged as a way to put him in the witness protection program. Later, it was all eventually revealed to be a larger plan enacted by Vanessa Fisk to get revenge on Matt and her husband, as she was diagnosed with a terminal illness and blamed the two men for her misfortunes – a plotline the new series could potentially parallel.

Interestingly enough, Matt himself would help Foggy fake his death once more, after his good friend was diagnosed with cancer. Matt had finally come clean and revealed that he was Daredevil to the entire world, and didn’t want to see any more misery visit Foggy Nelson. Matt conspired with Hank Pym to shrink Foggy after an attack by the super-villain Leap Frog, thus making it look as if his law partner had been killed in an explosion. After that, Matt helped Foggy relocate to San Francisco and live under the radar to protect his friend from villains looking for revenge.

Foggy eventually beat his cancer, and was revealed to have survived to the world at large. Much later, when Daredevil abandoned his life as Matt Murdock and joined Elektra to wage war on the Hand, Foggy was killed for real by the evil ninja clan to be resurrected and act as a spy. Daredevil traveled to the afterlife itself to “save” his friend’s soul from control by the Beast, the ancient deity worshiped by the Hand. Daredevil successfully freed Foggy’s soul, allowing him to go back to New York and start the Nelson North Legal Services with former detective Cole North.

The Many “Deaths” of Foggy Nelson In The Marvel Universe Hint That Theire Could Be More To His “Born Again” Demise

The Title Could Be Another Clue Itself…

Given Foggy’s comic book history, the filmmakers of Daredevil: Born Again certainly could be setting up a reveal the Foggy isn’t dead after all. In fact, Born Again show may have already tipped its hand as to Foggy’s true fate with one intriguing Easter Egg. A building address seen early in Born Again’s first episode contains the numbers “468,” which is the actual issue number of Daredevil #88, had it continued with the series’ original numbering. The filmmakers may be taking a page from “The Secret Life of Foggy Nelson” and pulled a swerve on the audience.

If nothing else, the Born Again title could itself tease Foggy’s return. Comic fans certainly weren’t happy back when Foggy “died” all the way back in 2006, mirroring how fans of the TV show are reacting now. Those original fans may want to tell the others to remain patient, as it took six months for the reveal that Foggy’s death was staged. Thankfully, Daredevil: Born Again fans won’t have to wait that long to find out if Foggy is really and truly dead, as the weekly release schedule of a TV is faster than the monthly schedule of mainstream comics.

Of course, death in comics has become something of a joke, as pretty much every major character has died and been resurrected at least once throughout their publishing history. That’s led many comics fans to become cynical whenever a character is killed off, as they feel it’s a cheap way to boost sales while lowering the overall stakes of the stories being told. The filmmakers of Daredevil: Born Again could risk this happening by killing Foggy off only to bring him back a few episodes later, but it remains to be revealed if Daredevil’s best friend comes back at all.

“}]] Let’s reconsider that Daredevil death…  Read More