This site boasts of a plethora of takes on MattElektra and Karedevil, the likes of which are far more thoughtprovoking than anything I could clobber together.
However, the latter scene of Matt muttering Karen’s name has been etched into my mind ever since it aired (not in the least because of the homage it pays to Yellow) and it’s made me want to examine it more closely.
The creators of Daredevil past and present, have been known to employ analogues and foils to advance the story to its desired destination. I had in an earlier writeup spoken of the way the show parallels Matt and Karen individually and as a pair with other supporting characters and ships in the show to really bolster the ‘true love’ narrative and MattElektra is certainly no exception to that. The particular video attached above is one of the more on the nose references that the show utilised-where you have Matt utter the name of his beloved while regaining consciousness but the subtexts for both are markedly distinct. Elektra is perpetually mired in a cycle of tragedy which is wonderfully showcased in the clip above. For every tender moment that he recalls of them, there’s an element of doom lacing it. Thus, you have his grim dialogue from Midland Circle talking about their imminent demise overlaying his initial perception of her(almost positing her as the harbinger of death: sultry and bewitching), or the immediate juxtaposition of them kissing amidst the depredation as she ironically talks about finally living the life they desire.
Furthermore, s3 starts off with a Matt that’s well within the clutches of depression and despondency so when he wakes up calling for her, he’s still in the thick of the battle (in more ways than one) trying valiantly to rescue her from the annihilation; his monsters are well and truly dominating his emotions, his life is in tatters with all his relationships torn beyond (what he assumes) repair and the anguish is only exacerbated by the loss of his one comrade in arms.
Contrasting that with DDBA and the most obvious difference that springs out is how while this Matt’s also falling apart, very much trapped in the same headspace (or worse) as when we meet him way back in s3, he calls out for Karen because she’s his buoy in the middle of the tumultuous sea. Matt’s been completely estranged from Karen for almost 2 years (with a frosty exchange being the only point of contact 1 year after Foggy’s death) but this one scene makes it evidently clear that she’s never been far from his mind. This also marks the beginning of Matt’s journey at finally, FINALLY gaining some foothold in terms of how he can exist as both the Devil and the man in a world that no longer houses his best friend and we witness him gain said clarity with the help of his unflinching North Star.
Elektra recognised Daredevil from the very first moment and loved him unashamedly so much so that Matt latched onto that, having lived a life that dealt him more blows than not. However, she didn’t have much emotion to spare for the man himself and therein lies the true tragedy-because Daredevil is nobody without Matt Murdock. It is that endless well of empathy and goodness that feeds the devil and despite the taste that he has for violence, the fact that he refuses to cross the line; refuses to play the judge, jury and executioner regarding who lives and who does not….that thin sliver of a boundary is what keeps him from devolving into iniquity.
This is not to say that Matt (or Karen) are perfectly virtuous because they aren’t but they also don’t let their keenness for blood dictate their actions. Matt discerns this very same trait within Karen in the crypt, understands the cruel hand fate had dealt her both with Kevin’s accident and by forcing her to make an impossible choice to save herself. More importantly, he perceives the guilt she carried within herself over both events despite Wesley not being deserving of any of her contrition. He sees how inspite of everything she had to withstand, she never lost her moral compass and that was like looking into a mirror for him in ways he had never experienced before.
Last but not least, Karen’s always been the light of the show. Oftentimes pictured as Matt’s guardian angel (DDBA finale, the crypt scene to name a few), she’s always been depicted as the visible embodiment of hope even in scenes of despair. In the church episode, she is portrayed in the light of an angel who’s fallen and bruised but never defeated. She’s fearful of falling from grace in his eyes but she is also the one who reels him back from giving in to his impulses, saves his soul from being marred the way hers is even if a person like Fisk is better off dead and buried. From the Karedevil perspective, we see a similar thread of steadfast hope. The imagery of them emerging from within the sarcophagus is one that screams of life and resilience, of rising from the ashes like a phoenix which is in stark contrast with how we’ve always seen Matt and Elektra portrayed in the show.
In conclusion, it would be wrong to dismiss Elektra as she is always going to be one of Matt’s great loves. Their connection is one that’s borne of rage and violence and leaves destruction in its wake. Karen on the other hand, is the calm to the storm, the guardian angel he needs to temper the ghosts that claw within his mind and the tenderness Matt’s always chased his entire life after having been deprived of it time and time again. She’s his twin flame both in light and in darkness (and all the shades of grey in between) which has been developed brick, by brick, ever since the inception of the original series.
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