As with any Marvel property, Daredevil season 2 is chock full of Easter eggs and references. How many did you spot?
Whether you’re a die hard comic book fan or just a casual viewer of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we’ve got a list of 53 Easter eggs and references that’ll be fun to explore as you wrap up your viewing of the latest season of Daredevil. Did you catch them all? Better yet, did you find any we missed?
Whether it was a hidden Punisher skull or a comic book character on the series for the first time, we wrote it down and linked you to the appropriate wikia or comic book issue so you can do a bit of digging yourself (you can thank us later). So, without further ado, here is our list of Daredevil season 2 Easter eggs and references:
- Mr. Nesbitt (member of the Kitchen Irish) is straight from the comics and has shown up in Punisher Max.
- The “Puppies 4 Sale” sign during the game of pool between Karen, Foggy, and Matt is a hint at what’s to come. It says, “They are ugly but they are strong,” referencing the dog fighting ring the Kitchen Irish run.
- Grotto is also a character from the Daredevil comics.
- We first saw the Dogs of Hell motorcycle gang when they were featured in an episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. The Asgardian Lorelei made her way down to Earth, where she manipulated the club’s leader into doing her bidding. She was eventually defeated by Lady Sif. The Dogs of Hell we see in Daredevil are part of the club’s New York chapter.
- When meeting with the Dogs of Hell, a biker says “You got guts, Harvard” to Foggy. This is referencing an alias Foggy uses, “Guts Nelson,” in Daredevil #185.
- Foggy and Frank both joke about Matt running around in his underwear or his long johns, which is probably just a general reference to classic comic book superhero looks. Plus there was that whole “underoos” comment Tony made about Spider-Man in the Civil War trailer.
- Turk says, “You ain’t no Deadeye,” to Matt in episode 1. Deadeye was part of the Mutant Liberation Front.
- The car Karen escapes in with Grotto was Ben Urich’s, who died at the end of Daredevil season 1.
- “Guy was a grim reaper” references Frank as The Punisher, and we see his symbol (a skull) throughout the season, including Frank’s actual x-ray with the bullet hole (at the office, at the trial, in Reyes’ daughter’s backpack, and in the newspaper at Frank’s house), when we see it in the blood on his shirt at the prison, on the Punisher vest and again when he spray paints the vest, the latter of which is a direct nod to the look in the comics. Even Frank’s black eyes in the diner scene are so stark, he almost looks like the symbol himself.
- D.A. Samantha Reyes was first seen in Jessica Jones season 1.
- One of the code names Foggy jokingly throws out for Frank is Killdozer, which is a real Marvel character.
- Frank’s real code name, as given to him by the authorities, is The Punisher, which is obviously his moniker in the comics.
- Blake Tower (Reyes’ partner) is an important ally to Daredevil in the comics.
- When Melvin Potter feels threatened by Daredevil, he picks up a saw blade, which is a weapon his comic book equivalent (Gladiator) uses quite frequently.
- We also see Melvin showing off his bulletproof vest, the colors and patterns of which look quite similar to Gladiator’s suit.
- When Mahoney says, “I ever tell you what Clemons used to say? Gotta treat witnesses like mushrooms. Feed ’em shit and keep ’em in the dark,” he’s talking about Detective Oscar Clemons, who died in Jessica Jones season 1.
- Frank Castle really did have a dog in the comics, and its name was Max.
- That nun helping Matt briefly at the top of episode 3 was most likely his mother, Margaret Murdock.
- The rooftop scene between Punisher and Daredevil is straight from the comics, almost verbatim.
- The Vietnam vet from the Third Marine Division Frank talks to on the rooftop is a nod to his comic book origins. He started out as a veteran of the Vietnam War. In Punisher War Journal #4, Frank was also a Lieutenant in the Third Marine Company.
- Claire has been put on night rotation pretty consistently since she broke Luke Cage out of the hospital at the end of Jessica Jones. She’s really coming into her Night Nurse role.
- Finn Cooley’s death is a nod to his visage in the comics, which is not pretty.
- Once again we see Stilt-Man’s stilts in the background of Melvin’s shop.
- There’s a Darth Vader drawing on the wall in Frank’s house as Karen picks up the toy flashlight. Considering Disney owns both Marvel and Star Wars, this is a nice little Easter egg.
- In the comics, The Punisher Van is totally a thing.
- Pretty much any time Elektra is associated with red it’s a nod to her comic book costume. In season 2, we see her in a red car, several red dresses, and a red robe, plus both iterations of her MCU costume have some splash of red. Not to mention that final shot of her body.
- Elektra’s little joyride in the car with Matt comes from the “Man without Fear” series of Daredevil comics.
- There are dozens of newspapers in Ellison’s office detailing events surrounding the Battle of New York (which happened in Avengers).
- The Cybertek newspaper references the company that created Deathlok, whom we saw in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D..
- We also later see a newspaper about the “Harlem terror” in Ben’s office, which is in reference to the 2008 Hulk film in which Bruce Banner “kind of broke Harlem.”
- Ellison makes another reference to the Battle of New York when he says, “All the servers were wiped in the incident.”
- An article in the paper reporting Punisher’s arrest references a Lost City. This could be our first big nod to K’un-Lun, the mystical city where Danny Rand gains the power of Iron Fist.
- Marci is hired by HC&B from Jessica Jones, who later court Foggy for a job, too. Marci also makes reference to Jessica Jones in this scene (and her rather, uh, problematic habits).
- Roxxon has been a major part of several MCU properties, including all three Iron Man movies, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Agent Carter.
- At trial, Frank’s indictment number is 1986, which is the year of release for The Punisher’s first solo comic.
- The case against Punisher is labeled “The People vs. Frank Castle,” which is also the name of the first issue of The Trial of the Punisher.
- Mr. Hirochi is a leader of a faction of The Hand in the comics when it splinters after Elektra’s death. He eventually attempts to instate Matt Murdock as the leader.
- When Stick rescues Matt and Elektra from the ninjas around the pit, he cuts off one of their hands before he kills them. This foreshadows that these ninjas belong to Stick’s enemy, The Hand.
- Stick also kicks one of the ninjas into the pit much like we see King Leonidas do in 300. This is probably a sly nod to Frank Miller, who created the character of Stick. He also wrote the 300 graphic novel and was a producer on the film.
- There are several mentions of a “rising” or a “rising tide,” including when Fisk says, “The tide raises all ships.” The Rising Tide is the hactivist group Skye was associated with in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
- The Blacksmith is a real character from the comics, and though Ray Schoonover was Frank’s commanding officer in the comics, the two weren’t otherwise associated.
- The newspaper in the folder labeled with Karen’s name is about the mysterious circumstances surrounding the car accident that killed her brother, which has been hinted at since season 1.
- Fisk tells Dutton there’s “only room for one kingpin” in the prison, which is a nod to Wilson’s alter ego, The Kingpin.
- Fisk’s lawyer, Benjamin Donovan, originated as a Luke Cage character, and his alias was Big Ben. He was a lawyer in Harlem, which means we might be seeing him again in the forthcoming Luke Cage series.
- The Greek paintings on the walls in the home of the couple who adopt Elektra are a nod to her Greek origins in the comics.
- Though he’s not named in the show, the man watching Elektra, who Stick later kills to protect her, is Star, a fellow member of The Chaste.
- Wilson Fisk and Frank Castle are put in cell block D at the prison, which is likely a reference to “The Devil in Cell Block D,” a Daredevil storyline.
- We see a La Venganza de los Gladiadores poster on the wall in Melvin’s shop, as well as more plans for his Gladiator suit.
- The billy club Melvin gives Matt is straight out of the comics and a hugely significant weapon for Daredevil.
- The way Stick kills Nobu and hides his sword in his trench coat could be a nod to Highlander, since Clancy Brown (Colonel Schoonover) starred in that movie as Victor Kruger.
- A blackboard in Josie’s bar in the final episode reads, “It’s a Cold Day in Hell’s Kitchen,” which is the name of the episode.
- Frank pulls a CD out from behind a picture that’s labeled “Micro,” who was an ally of his in the comics, as well as a contact Skye had on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the Rising Tide.
- Throughout the season we see the Atlas Investments sign across the hall from Nelson & Murdock. Atlas is the publishing company that eventually became Marvel Comics.
Did you spot any other ‘Daredevil’ season 2 Easter eggs or references?
Additional research by Donya Abramo.
