Nothing is more satisfying than watching something that turns out to be pretty much everything you expected or even better.
¡¡¡¡WATCH THIS SHOW!!!!
[ SPOILERS ]
A New Napkin met every single one of my expectations—a fantastic episode in every sense of the word, from minute one until the credits roll. This is an adrenaline-fueled ride injected straight into your veins, yet at the same time, a beautiful piece of television that deserves to be included when talking about the best of the best. Because even though it has the rating it deserves, somehow, I don’t see it being talked about enough. Maybe I’m looking in the wrong places, but from my personal point of view, this episode feels slightly overlooked and that's just crazy to me.
I have to expand on the idea that this feels like adrenaline injected straight into your veins because I didn’t feel bored for even a single minute—the pacing was simply perfect. This is an emotional rollercoaster, from sadness to happiness, tension, suspense—the whole package. And while watching all of this unfold, I couldn’t help but sit there with my mouth shut, my eyes wide open, and goosebumps all over my body.
Every detail was truly handled brilliantly—cinematography, soundtrack, direction, action, dialogue, emotions, acting—the things this show has always been fantastic at. But you can easily say that this episode is a collision of all these elements taken to the absolute maximum.
The first shot of the episode, where we see half of Matt’s face and half of Fisk’s, showcasing their similarities yet their complete differences, already tells you how good this episode is going to be. It’s literally a preview of the long-awaited face-off between Matt and Fisk. This entire season has been building up to this moment. Throughout the show and everything that has happened, we see how it all leads Matt to make his final decision. And if that doesn’t have you on the edge of your seat, I don’t know what will.
And when the giant finally climaxed the final confrontation, it unfolds right before your eyes, and the world seems to stop for a few minutes because what matters right now is the masterpiece you're witnessing. Matt and Fisk face each other, and with a liberating shout from both, carrying all that anger, the epic fight kicks off. Every punch they throw, you can feel it like you’re right there with them. And when that scene passes and you hear that monologue, it’s just perfect, it’d be illegal not to quote it
"You will go back to prison, and you will live the rest of your miserable life in a cage, knowing you'll never have Vanessa, that this city rejected you. It beat you. I BEAT YOU!"
Without a doubt, one of the best moments in all of television and probably the best-acted scene I’ve ever seen. Charlie Cox deserved a standing ovation after that amazing performance. I love him so much, and I just don’t get how underrated he is.
A New Napkin is not just a great episode; it’s the perfect ending for this show. It’s a satisfying wrap-up for almost all the characters, giving us a hint at what the future could look like for them but honestly, this episode, with literally one scene less, is the best possible ending, and I’m sure everyone would agree with me.
And before I finish this review, there’s one tiny—and really the only—critique I have for the episode, and I think it’s worth mentioning. Dex is one of the best characters on the show, no doubt. But in this episode, when the big final showdown is happening, he kind of gets sidelined. Even though he’s part of the fight, he’s the only character without any real closure because, well, they were expecting a Season 4, so they did the typical MCU thing with him.
But honestly, after that, I don’t think this episode has any flaws. Like, I haven’t said it enough: incredible, brilliant, magnificent episode.
𝐓𝐎𝐏 #3 𝐄𝐏𝐈𝐒𝐎𝐃𝐄 𝐎𝐅 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄