They are joined by principal cast members Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, Toby Leonard Moore, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Bob Gunton, Ayelet Zurer, and Rosario Dawson.

Critics praised the performances, particularly D'Onofrio's, and the darker tone and action sequences of the series compared to other properties set in the MCU.

[21] Peter Friedlander, Allie Goss, Kris Henigman, Cindy Holland, Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Joe Quesada, Dan Buckley, Jim Chory, Loeb, Goddard, and DeKnight served as executive producers.

[23] Nonetheless, notable comics stories whose elements were adapted into the season include Frank Miller and John Romita Jr.'s 1993 miniseries Daredevil: The Man Without Fear, a retelling of the character's origin.

"[25] Vincent D'Onofrio likened the Netflix production more to a "13-hour film" than to a television series, noting that the format allowed for the time needed to tell the story and "be much more specific".

[28] The main cast for the season includes Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock / Daredevil,[2] Deborah Ann Woll as Karen Page,[3] Elden Henson as Franklin "Foggy" Nelson,[4] Toby Leonard Moore as James Wesley,[5] Vondie Curtis-Hall as Ben Urich,[5] Bob Gunton as Leland Owlsley,[5] Ayelet Zurer as Vanessa Marianna,[5] Rosario Dawson as Claire Temple,[6][7] and Vincent D'Onofrio as Wilson Fisk.

[29] In March 2015, this character was revealed to actually be Nobu Yoshioka, while recurring opponents for Daredevil – Madame Gao, Vladimir Ranskahov, and Turk Barrett – were also announced, portrayed by Wai Ching Ho, Nikolai Nikolaeff, and Rob Morgan.

[10][13] Additionally, the following also recur throughout the season: Geoffrey Cantor as Mitchell Ellison;[5][30] Judith Delgado as Elena Cardenas;[15] Daryl Edwards as Carl Hoffman;[11] Royce Johnson as Brett Mahoney;[11] Adriane Lenox as Doris Urich;[14] Peter McRobbie as Father Paul Lantom;[9] Amy Rutberg as Marci Stahl;[16] Chris Tardio as Christian Blake;[12] Susan Varon as Josie;[14] and Tom Walker as Francis.

[13] Murdock begins the season wearing a black costume (called the "vigilante outfit" by production), inspired by the one worn by the character in Frank Miller's Daredevil: The Man Without Fear (1993–1994), rather than the more traditional red, horned suit.

"[31] DeKnight and Quesada explained that the idea was for Murdock to start out with a homemade outfit that fits more in the "real-world" of the series, and to then evolve it into the classic Daredevil suit.

[33] On the red suit, Maslansky said, "We wanted something that looked militaristic and functional, but also dramatic and sexy" adding that it was "tricky" making it practical.

Quesada, who previously worked as an artist on Daredevil comics, gave several suggestions, including the incorporation of some of how New York was created into the suit, which led to the use of rivets and "architectural" shapes.

The suit is intended to look like a Kevlar vest, and the black sections are an homage to comic panels where the artists highlighted certain areas with red, with "deeper portions" in shadow.

For Murdock's sunglasses, Maslansky worked with series prop master Michael Jortner to make something that fit into the modern world, but paid homage to "what was familiar to fans".

[21] In April 2014, Quesada reiterated this, stating that the show would be filming in areas of Brooklyn and Long Island City that still look like the old Hell's Kitchen, in addition to sound stage work.

[40] Other filming locations in New York City included the Williamsburg, Greenpoint and Bushwick neighborhoods in Brooklyn;[41][42] Abe Lebewohl Park in the East Village; Whitestone Lanes bowling alley in Flushing, Queens; the New York State Supreme Court Building, with the interior for court scenes filmed on a set; Brooklyn Borough Hall; the Rockefeller Center rooftop gardens; Brooklyn College for Murdock and Nelson's flashback to their time in college; the Chelsea neighborhood in Manhattan; and the Honeywell Bridge in Long Island City.

[46][47] Executive visual effects supervisor Bryan Goswin explained that the company's work included the creation of digital doubles when stunts were not safe for actors or stunt doubles, as well as blood-hits and wounds, with "a lot of support to the idea of the violence and gore that happens in Daredevil" given to differentiate the series from other Marvel projects, and to try to set the series in a "more realistic and dark place, the real streets of New York.

In approaching the series' score, Paesano looked to DeKnight, who "had a very clear vision of what he wanted [...] music you could feel and not necessarily hear."

[50] In February 2015, Emma Fleisher of Marvel Television stated that Daredevil takes place in the aftermath of The Avengers (2012), but would not "explicitly [be] in that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

's Skye are raised; the insignia on Madame Gao's heroin, which is a connection to the Iron Fist antagonist Steel Serpent; and mentions of Roxxon Oil, a company featured throughout the MCU.

[28] There were discussions about having another such "coda" at the end of the season finale, one which would have featured Leland Owlsley attempting to escape New York, only to be killed by the Punisher in a surprise introduction.

The idea was dropped, again because of Netflix's playing system, and Owlsley was ultimately killed by Fisk in the episode, with the introduction of the Punisher saved for the series' second season.

"[62] By April 16, episodes for the series had been pirated by 2.1 million individual users worldwide, according to Excipio, a piracy tracking firm, surpassed in that timeframe only by Game of Thrones.

The website's critical consensus reads, "With tight adherence to its source material's history, high production quality, and a no-nonsense dramatic flair, Daredevil excels as an effective superhero origin story, a gritty procedural, and an exciting action adventure.

[22] Matt Patches of Esquire added, "The show's exterior recasts the high fructose, splash page aesthetic of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America with neo-noir attitude.

[73] Victoria McNally of MTV felt the early episodes' fight sequences were "filmed beautifully" and enjoyed that they featured little CGI, while also calling Henson "perfectly cast and endlessly amusing" as Nelson.

[78] Eric Eisenberg of CinemaBlend also had positive thoughts on the initial episodes, saying, "It's smart, entertaining, and has moments so shocking that you'll have to repress screams.

[79] Speaking of the first two episodes, Mark Hughes of Forbes added additional praise, saying, "Quite simply, in Daredevil Marvel delivers one of the greatest live-action superhero origin stories ever made.

He particularly praised D'Onofrio's performance, the "edgy" fight sequences, the fact that the hero himself got "beat on – a lot", and the unique dark take on the MCU.

[74] Liz Shannon Miller, reviewing the season for IndieWire, graded it a "B+", and though feeling that it did not quite live up to DeKnight's admitted influence, The Wire, praised the series, noting its characters and development, and the performances of the entire cast, especially those of D'Onofrio, Curtis-Hall, and Cox.