Season one of Daredevil: Born Again (or as I like to think of it, the first part of a 17-episode season) has concluded. One pressing question remains unanswered: Is Foggy dead for real or only “TV dead”? I very much hope he survived, but there are clues pointing in both directions.
Foggy’s on-screen death scene was quite convincing, with Matt hearing his heart stop and Karen’s reaction. There was a funeral. All of the characters, including Matt, believe Foggy is in fact dead and are dealing – emotionally and otherwise – with the fallout from his death. In addition, Dex/Bullseye was convicted of his murder (we saw his sentencing in episode 1). Assuming there was a trial (as opposed to a guilty plea), this would have required actual evidence of Foggy’s death. A conversation between Matt and Karen in episode 9 confirms that both of them believe Foggy is dead, and Karen seems to help Matt come to terms with Foggy’s death.
There are a few clues that may suggest Foggy survived. Some sharp-eyed fans have noticed that the number of the law office building (or maybe the building next door) is 468, the number of a comic in which Foggy fakes his death.
Although the circumstances are different, there are several similarities between what happened in that comic and what happens in the show. Matt hears Foggy’s heart stop beating in both. The scene with Karen kneeling next to Foggy’s body is staged (intentionally or not) to look like the panel in the comic where Dakota North is kneeling next to Foggy’s body after he is stabbed. Foggy’s gunshot wound and his stab wound in the comic are in the same part of his body.
In addition, we learned in episode 8 that Vanessa Fisk ordered the hit on Foggy, which was also the case in the comic. In episodes 8 and 9, we learn that the shooting was connected to a case Foggy was handling. Along with the fact that Vanessa ordered his killing, this suggests the possibility of witness protection (as in the comic) or something similar. At the beginning of episode 9, Vanessa coughs rather noticeably during her conversation with Fisk after the shooting. Perhaps this is a symptom of the fatal illness she suffers from in the comic – yet another reference to the comic. Also in episode 9, Matt and Karen find the “Avocados at Law” glasses case (or paperweight or whatever it is). Is this just a nice scene of them reminiscing about Foggy, or does it have some other significance?
In episode 1, we get a glimpse of the sidewalk in front of Josie’s as Matt’s helmet falls to the ground. There is a pool of blood where Foggy was lying, but no Foggy. Trash that looks like discarded medical supplies is scattered around. Nearby, an ambulance is pulling away from the curb. We don’t know who is in it. The patient in the ambulance could be Dex, who is no longer lying where he landed. It’s also possible the patient is Foggy. If Foggy is in that ambulance or one of the others at the scene, this would indicate that the medics were trying to save him. If Foggy had been pronounced dead at the scene, his body would have been left in place, awaiting the arrival of a representative of the medical examiner’s office and other investigators. However, even if the medics tried to save him, their efforts might not have been successful, and he might have been pronounced dead later.
All of these clues appear in episodes 1, 8, and 9, which were written and produced by the new showrunner, directors, and writers. If these clues aren’t hints that Foggy survived, why include them? It seems to me that there are too many clues pointing to Foggy’s survival to be accidental. Or are they intentionally misleading us, perhaps to keep people speculating and anticipating season 2?
Finally, there is also the widely reported statement by Brad Winderbaum, the head of streaming, television, and animation at Marvel and an executive producer on Daredevil: Born Again, that both Deborah Ann Woll and Elden Henson would return for season 2: “Without going into spoiler territory, I will say that both Deborah and Elden are coming back for Season 2.” It seems unlikely that a Marvel executive would blurt out a major spoiler, such as Foggy being alive. The caveat about “spoiler territory” may indicate that we’ll see Foggy only in flashbacks. Or maybe he simply meant he wasn’t giving any details, so no spoilers.
Whether or not Foggy survived, we will see Foggy on our screens again, even if it’s only in flashbacks. I would like to see some flashbacks to show us what happened between the end of season 3 and the beginning of Daredevil: Born Again, but I would much prefer that Foggy survived. As Charlie Cox correctly observed, Foggy and Karen are the heart of the show. And in the comics, Foggy is the only constant in Matt’s life. They may go their separate ways at times, but they always seem to circle back to one another. I am hoping that is what will happen in season 2.
