“Daredevil” is the latest addition of the Marvel Universe to appear on a screen. Yes, there was a movie made around the same time as the original Spiderman films, but I’m not talking about that.

Netflix decided to pick up the well-liked superhero to lead up to a Defenders series. Daredevil exists in the same city and at the same time as the Avengers.

The show is a little darker than the big screen films have been recently. It has more of an edge, like the recent Batman trilogy.

The show is visually exciting and full of action and intriguing, though it has an overused backstory. The first two episodes feature the directorial work of Phil Abraham. His style of placing the camera at sharp angles and use of slow pans is effective and appealing.

The rest of the episodes are directed by different people and there are also a slew of writers for the series, though Steven S. DeKnight, the creator of the “Spartacus” series, is the most consistent name.

The first two episodes were written by Drew Goddard, however. The writing is not particularly noteworthy because of some unoriginality, though no Marvel creation is quite void of superhero stereotypes and clichés.

The best part of the show is the intro credits. It is eerie and sets the tone for the series.

The acting is fairly strong to help buffer the writing. Charlie Cox does a good job of playing a reserved yet passionate lead hero (Daredevil/ Matt Murdoch, a blind lawyer in his everyday life). Cox’s dramatic acting experience can be traced to his time on “Boardwalk Empire.”

Elden Henson plays Franklin “Foggy” Nelson, a sarcastic and confident, yet lonely, lawyer. He most recently appeared in “Mockingjay–Part 1” as Pollux, one of the cameramen assigned to Katniss.

Deborah Ann Woll plays a lonely and eager woman, Karen Page, who is Nelson and Murdoch’s first client and future secretary.

The second episode also introduces Rosario Dawson as Claire Temple, a nurse who becomes somewhat of a sidekick to Daredevil as Night Nurse. Claire Temple, however, is supposed to be the love interest of Luke Cage, a future member of the upcoming “Defenders” miniseries. She is not the original Night Nurse.

Vincent D’Onofrio portrays Kingpin/ Wilson Fisk, a businessman and crime lord in the Marvel universe. D’Onofrio is known as the lead detective from “Law and Order: Criminal Intent.”

The series is an exciting and edgier Marvel production. Despite dark undertones, the futures of the show and its sister series’ are bright.

3.5/5