DDBA episode 7 had some pretty great side character scenes, which finally made me realize what an awful person Cherry is. I’m not talking about poor writing—I don’t mind that too much since regardless I get my enjoyment from analyzing what we’ve got—but that canonically this Cherry guy is such a bad influence on Matt. So, Cherry analysis/rant below!
In episode 1, we learn that Cherry is retiring from the force, apparently owing to the fact that vigilantes are doing his job better than him. He’s an okay cop who still has the drive to help innocent people when danger arises—like when vigilantes come crashing through the window—but is old and disillusioned with it all. Then he learns Matt is Daredevil. Matt has to keep Cherry close because he knows about his secret identity, but why does a man with a grudge against vigilantes willingly become the PI of an ex-vigilante?
Because Cherry thinks he can control him. He thinks he can keep him off the street by being the ultimate enabler to the imitation of a life Matt has constructed in the last year. He doesn’t care about Matt as a person, and only seems to respect the work lawyer Matt does:
“And for what it’s worth, I like the Matt Murdock I’ve seen this year. The guy that went out and found his own way, got out of the Kitchen, wears a… normal suit. He’s doing some good.” (Cherry to Matt, episode 2) (oh you know just all the things matt did to destroy himself, he’s doing some good yep)
Cherry seems most devoted to upholding his sense of order (i.e. cops solve crimes, lawyers stick to courtrooms), which primarily is based upon the system. Unlike Matt, he doesn’t see the flaws in said system, or worse, cares more about maintaining the status quo. And he hates Daredevil. In episode 6: sixty people dead and Cherry tells Matt to stay out of it—as if the cops who didn’t notice that sixty people were missing are going to just suddenly do better. In episode 7, Cherry gets even more defensive because once again Daredevil did the job better than the cops, better than him. Because the control he thought he had is slipping away.
Everyone else around Matt is worried about him in some way, but to Cherry he’s just the “kid on his shit list”. Cherry, who thinks he has some privilege because of what he knows, who thinks he can just show up in Matt’s office and yell at him about “blowing up his life”. Sir, with all due disrespect, you don’t know jack shit about Matt Murdock’s life.
“You know, was a time when you were on the force, moments like this—you called me.” (Matt to Cherry, episode 7) (matt, you let him off way too easy)