Full spoilers follow for Daredevil: Born Again episode 3.
Episode 3 of Daredevil: Born Again is out now – and there's only one moment that the majority of Marvel fans are talking about in the immediate aftermath of its release.
The show's latest chapter, titled 'The Hollow of His Hand', is a tense courtroom drama centered on the trial of Hector Ayala (the late Kamar de los Reyes). And, while it's an episode that thematically holds up a mirror to Matt Murdock's (Charlie Cox) past as the vigilante known as Daredevil, nobody's really discussing what it means for Murdock's return to the crimefighting arena just yet.
The reason? A truly shocking incident, which plays out in episode 3's final scene and sets the stage for a fan-favorite anti-hero's arrival. Full spoilers immediately follow for Born Again's latest entry.
Yes, Hector Ayala – i.e., the self-appointed vigilante known as White Riger – is dead. Hey, very few people survive a point-blank gunshot to the head.
It's an awful moment for three big reasons. First, an innocent man has been gunned down in cold blood. We know Ayala didn't murder New York Police Department (NYPD) officer Shanahan on that subway platform because we watched the latter slip on said platform and subsequently get hit by that train. Indeed, we saw that incident play out in the Disney+ show's second episode. The fact that Ayala was found not guilty of all charges leveled against him in his trial, then, proved that justice had been served.
Or so it seemed. That's because the second terrible thing about Ayala's death in this Marvel Phase 5 project is it was inadvertently Murdock's doing.
When Nicky Torres, the only witness who could prove Ayala's innocence, performs an unexpected U-turn and refuses to corroborate Ayala's story during the latter's day in court, Murdock and Kirsten McDuffie's defense falls apart. That causes Murdock to perform a Hail Mary move and essentially out Ayala as the White Tiger in court, which stuns those present.
It's an out-of-the-blue measure that works in Ayala's favor, though. Following said revelation, numerous New Yorkers come forward to testify for Ayala, with many of them confirming that, as his superpowered alias White Tiger, Ayala rescued them from certain death. Based on this evidence and after much deliberation, the jury sides with Ayala. Hugs and cheers all round.
Well, until Ayala's death, anyway. You see, a target is painted on Ayala's back when Murdock reveals he's the White Tiger. That puts Ayala in the line of fire of those crooked police officers who bear a tattoo that's near-identical to The Punisher's (more on this vigilante later) iconic skull symbol.
Clearly, all these officers have to do is find Ayala and enact their own sense of 'justice' by murdering him. That might not be so easy if Ayala wore everyday clothes post-trial, which would make difficult to track down or follow in a city with a massive population. However, despite Murdock's protestations that he shouldn't suit up as White Tiger again if he's found innocent, Ayala does so anyway. It's much easier to spot someone roaming the streets in a white costume, complete with black stripes and a so-called magical amulet, so it was only a matter of time before Ayala was taken out.
Okay, maybe I'm doing Murdock a disservice by saying it's his fault that Ayala is dead. After all, he told his client not to continue being a vigilante if he walked away a free man. In my view, though, Murdock is partly to blame because he publicly revealed Ayala's secret identity. Without doing so, nobody would've known that Ayala is White Tiger and may still be alive in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) at this point.
But back to the reason that you opened this article in the first place: episode 3's misdirect.
After Ayala is killed, the murderer walks towards the camera and, before the screen cuts to black, it's revealed that they're wearing a bulletproof vest with The Punisher's skull moniker painted on it.
Now, you might think that it's the life-taking vigilante himself – aka Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal) – who murders Ayala in one of the best Disney+ shows. You'd be mistaken.
How so? Scroll back up to the paragraph where I mention those NYPD officers with the skull tattoos. Clearly, some of them have an ax to grind with Ayala because a) they believe one of their own (Shanahan) was killed by Ayala and b) Ayala walked away a free man. So, what better way to get away with murdered an innocent guy than by adopting the symbol of a crimefighter who's renowned for using lethal force to dispatch of his enemies?
So, yes, I'm convinced that it isn't Castle who took Ayala's life. When he finds out that his symbol has been repurposed by dirty cops so they can get away with executing innocent victims, though – hoo, boy, they best watch their backs.
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