Warning: This recap contains spoilers for the Daredevil episode “A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen.” Leave the ring and find a fight away from this page if you haven’t seen the episode yet.

Season finales aren’t always about parting ways and moving on, but that was the overall theme of the final episode of season two of Marvel’s Daredevil. Everyone ended up in a different place than where they started in the first episode. Some took different career paths, some moved offices, some learned valuable lessons that changed the way they looked at the world, and some shuffled off this mortal coil. “A Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen” focused on those evolutions, particularly with Matt and Elektra.

But let’s save the best for last, shall we? Foggy got a haircut and had a fancy meeting with Jeri Hogarth, visiting all the way from Jessica Jones. She was impressed with his work on the Punisher case and, though it seemed slightly unrealistic, she offered him a ton of money and a partner slot at her firm. He took the position and later had a last hurrah of sorts with Karen at Josie’s. They reminisced, solidified their friendship, and closed the Nelson and Murdock tab at the bar for good. Weirdly enough, the settling of debt made it sink in for me that Nelson and Murdock was really over. At least Foggy’s new job probably meant he could actually afford the undoubtedly high bar bill!

Karen pushed forward, too. She’s had one hell of a time. Like Brett pointed out, she’s been part of every recent shit storm in Hell’s Kitchen. She’s been captured and threatened repeatedly–maybe one time too many–but she’s found her place at the Bulletin. Assuming she actually finishes a story. She’s survived physical and extreme emotional duress and walked away more than intact and more capable than ever. I’m disappointed her incident with Wesley was never brought up, but it did clearly affect her character so I don’t mind as much. And now, she knows the truth about Matt’s extracurricular activities.

Punisher found his next chapter, too. He burned his past down, literally, and started wearing the iconic skull on his body armor. By helping Matt with his ninja problem, he established himself as part of Hell’s Kitchen’s vigilantes. He finally got his vengeance for the deaths of his family, and I hope we get to learn more about his current mental state. Jon Bernthal was a powerhouse and proved he could absolutely carry a solo series. A Punisher series isn’t something I thought I’d be interested in, but I was wrong. So. Wrong.

The focus of the finale, though, was Elektra. Elodie Yung continued to sparkle with radiance as the conflicted character. She bought into the Black Sky label from the Hand, but Matt convinced her to help him take the group down. Their first conversation in the episode was representative of their entire relationship–Matt believing in her, Elektra not understanding why. Frankly, I’m with Elektra here. Matt is a much more understanding, forgiving person than I am because Elektra has made some cutthroat decisions.

They went forward with their plan after the Hand kidnapped people Daredevil had once saved and threatened them. It was effective bait and soon after Matt and Elektra jumped in, they realized the chances of them getting out alive were unlikely. The scene they shared before stepping forward to meet their possible end was among the best of the series. It was here I understood why Matt kept giving in to Elektra. She got him. She understood the part of him that needed to be Daredevil without judgment (cough, Foggy, cough) and encouraged it, even. He brought out the best in her, she allowed him to be himself. The give and take finally made sense to me.

The thing that got me most about their conversation was seeing Elektra scared. We’ve seen her be a little vulnerable before, but frightened was a new look for her. She covered it up as Matt and she joked about the future–and what else could you do in such a situation? It was perfect. She was a tornado and it was hard not to be swept up by her. I didn’t like the character when she first arrived in Hell’s Kitchen, but I did end up respecting her.

She sacrificed herself to save Matt. And though Stick took care of Nobu (thankfully), the Hand proceeded with their plan and stole Elektra’s body for sure to be sinister reasons.

Netflix hasn’t said anything about a third season of Daredevil, but with the teases carefully put in place, I hope we get it. I want to know what happens next, and I want to see everyone again beyond cameos in other series. The second season certainly got a little crowded what with Punisher and Elektra and was maybe not as focused as it could have been–the presence of multiple enemies made the throughline tricky. I was ready to argue Daredevil had the least character development in his own series, but I’m not positive if it’s true. Matt rode the relationship rollercoaster and learned about including the people he loves in his life, both as Matt Murdock and the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen.

Random thoughts:

• I loved the expression on Elektra’s face while she watched Melvin giving the billy club to Matt. It’s like she was proud of how much Melvin respects Matt.
• And holy hell, the billy club. It was immensely satisfying to see Daredevil’s classic comic book weapon in action. I wanted to clap every time Matt used it.

Favorite quotes:

• “Stick likes his fortune cookie wisdom.” – Matt
• “Wherever you run, I’ll run with you.” – Matt

Did you find the season two finale satisfying? What are your overall impressions about the season? Head to the comments and let me know or come share with me on Twitter.

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IMAGES: Netflix, Malisses Icons