D23 attendees were treated to exclusive footage of Daredevil: Born Again, which offered a taste of the new challenges facing Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock. Perhaps the biggest surprise from this trailer is the reveal that Daredevil and Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin will apparently be working together against a common threat. What could bring these two sworn enemies together? It may have something to do with a new villain teased in the trailer, the artistically inclined serial killer Muse.
Who is Muse, and why does this superhuman murderer have the ability to make even bitter rivals like Daredevil and Kingpin work together? Here’s what you need to know about this twisted Marvel villain.
Who Is Muse?
Muse is one of the more recent additions to Daredevil’s rogues gallery. The character was created by Charles Soule and Ron Garney and debuted in 2016’s Daredevil #11.
Muse is a villain who wouldn’t be out of place in the Hannibal TV series. He’s a prolific serial killer who sees murder as the highest form of artistic expression. In his first appearance, Muse paints a mural using the blood of a hundred missing persons. He later composes a piece by arranging the corpses of six Inhumans in various poses.
Part of what makes Muse so dangerous to Daredevil specifically is that his body acts as a sort of sensory black hole, pulling in stimuli and effectively scrambling Matt Murdock’s radar sense. Coupled with superhuman strength and speed and a true knack for murder, Muse is among Daredevil’s deadliest enemies.
Muse quickly makes an enemy out of Daredevil and his new sidekick, Blindspot. That rivalry intensifies when Muse gouges out Blindspot’s eyes. When Daredevil finally brings his new foe to justice, Muse breaks his own fingers, purposely robbing himself of the ability to create more art.
However, Muse’s hands are healed, and he soon escapes and resumes cutting a bloody swath through New York City. Muse becomes obsessed with the city’s vigilantes, leaving twisted monuments to men like the Punisher even as the newly elected Mayor Wilson Fisk begins cracking down on vigilante activity.
This triggers a rematch between Muse and Blindspot, with the latter tapping into the power of The Beast (the demonic entity worshiped by the ninja cult The Hand) to defeat his hated foe. Lamenting the fact that his story has become eclipsed by Blindspot’s, Muse commits suicide by walking into a fire.
That final confrontation took place in 2018’s Daredevil #600, and Muse has remained dead ever since. But this being the Marvel Universe, it seems only a matter of time before this accomplished killer returns to life and begins creating his sadistic form of art once more.
Muse in Daredevil: Born Again
The Daredevil: Born Again footage screened at D23 confirms that Muse will appear in the new Disney+ series, though we don’t know who will be playing the villain yet. Muse appears in a single shot in the teaser reel, wearing a costume almost identical to his comic book counterpart - a white mask and bodysuit with red, bloody tears running down his face.
This is a clear sign that Born Again, despite sharing the name of an iconic 1986 Daredevil storyline by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli, is also inspired by more contemporary Daredevil comics. The Born Again comic is about Wilson Fisk discovering Daredevil’s secret identity and using that knowledge to systematically destroy Matt Murdock’s life. The show, while it hinges on the ongoing rivalry between Murdock and Fisk, seems to be veering in a different direction (and let’s not forget that Fisk has already known Daredevil’s identity for some time in the MCU).
In fact, Born Again seems to be angling Daredevil and Fisk into an alliance. One of the scenes shows the two men meeting at a diner. Matt threatens Fisk with retaliation if he steps out of line, to which Fisk replies, “Is that coming from Matt Murdock… or your darker half?”. Clearly, there’s a new threat in New York City great enough to force these two bitter enemies to work together.
Could Muse be that threat? When it comes to Daredevil’s corner of the MCU, this world seems to be headed towards a status quo inspired by Soule and Chip Zdarsky’s Daredevil comics. Based on the post-credits scene in Echo, we know Fisk is eying the office of mayor. He may well have been elected by this point, with his vast resources and raw charisma winning over jaded New Yorkers.
If Born Again follows the example of the comics, Fisk will campaign on a platform of ending lawless vigilantism in New York City. Muse, like in the comics, stands in direct opposition to that anti-vigilante crusade. Muse is himself a violent killer, and he uses his work to sing the praises of men like Frank Castle.
Muse could very well be the common enemy that unites Daredevil and Mayor Fisk in the new series. Daredevil wants a cold-blooded killer off the streets, while Fisk wants to eliminate a humiliating threat to his reign as mayor. Daredevil will have no choice but to forge an alliance with Fisk, even if it means working with a man who’s crusading to make heroes like him extinct.
We also know that Born Again will feature other vigilante characters like Jon Bernthal’s Punisher and White Tiger. They’re likely to be caught in the middle of Fisk’s anti-vigilante crusade. Men like Frank Castle are exactly why the public is so fearful of unsanctioned killers roaming the streets. We’ll no doubt see Fisk’s anti-vigilante task force target both Punisher and White Tiger. At the same time, we’ll probably see Muse work to glorify both men through his twisted artwork.
Ultimately, the Born Again series may hinge on the heated rivalry between Daredevil and Fisk every bit as much as the comic. But for now, Muse is shaping up to be the most urgent threat to Matt Murdock’s world. Between his powers and his bloodlust, Muse may be the most difficult opponent Daredevil has faced yet. It’s a good thing he has a friend in Mayor Fisk.
For more on D23, check out the new trailer for Agatha All Along and see everything that was announced at D23.
Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.
