The blood-soaked comic history of Muse, the potential villain of Daredevil: Born Again

Daredevil has one of the most strikingly eccentric rogue's galleries of villains in mainstream superhero comics, and now Muse, one of his more terrifying but lesser known villains, may be getting a spotlight in the MCU.

While there are no official details, graffiti spotted on the set of Disney Plus' MCU streaming series Daredevil: Born Again which displays a signature reading "Muse" seems to point to an appearance from the deadly villain at some point in the planned 18-episode season.

So what's the deal with Muse? How does he fit into Daredevil's life and what could his potential presence in Daredevil: Born Again mean for the plot of the show?

For one thing, potentially drawing on Muse as a villain (pun intended) seems to indicate that Daredevil: Born Again won't shy away from the kind of dark and foreboding plots seen in the Netflix Daredevil series, which was recently fully confirmed as part of the official MCU timeline.

See, Muse is more than just a supervillain - he's a particularly brutal and violent serial killer who uses his murderous crimes as a kind of metaphorical "canvas" for his bloody and demented art. First appearing back in 2011's Daredevil #16 by writer Charles Soule and artist Ron Garney, Muse comes to Daredevil's attention with his first major "work of art," a mural painted from the blood of over a hundred different people.

From there, Daredevil and Muse begin a deadly game of cat-and-mouse that is complicated by Muse's ability to elude Daredevil's enhanced senses. However, Daredevil is able to finally defeat him, culminating in Muse's incarceration - though he does later manage to escape and kill again.

What's particularly interesting about Muse as a character is that his rivalry with Daredevil might even be eclipsed by his rivalry with Daredevil's sidekick, Blindspot.

Yes, you read that right. Daredevil once had a sidekick.

Also created by Soule and Garney, Blindspot is Sam Chung, a Chinese immigrant who becomes a superhero when he invents a suit that allows him to turn invisible, and who turns to Daredevil for training as a vigilante after their first encounter.

Blindspot is at Daredevil's side all through his battle with Muse, and in one of the story's most crucial moments, Muse actually stabs Blindspot's eyes out, blinding him. Blindspot's eyes were later restored through the magic of the ninja cult known as the Hand, though he remains vision impaired.

Later, after Muse escapes prison, Blindspot confronts him on his own. Muse nearly defeats Blindspot, until he calls upon the magic of the Hand to defeat the serial killer. But Muse throws himself into a fire, allowing himself to burn to death in service of his own twisted vision of so-called art.

As for Blindside, he's still active in the Marvel Universe, though he and Matt Murdock have gone their separate ways.

So, will Muse actually show up in Daredevil: Born Again? And if he does, will he bring Blindspot with him? Though he's not as well-known as villains like Kingpin, Bullseye, and the Hand, Muse is a cult-favorite for Daredevil readers, and his bizarre crimes would make for a compelling case for Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock.

And of course, Muse's crime spree coincides with Wilson Fisk's campaign and election for mayor of New York City in comics, so fitting him into an MCU story that seems to center on that same plot would make a lot of sense.

And that of course raises the second question of whether Daredevil: Born Again could also include a version of Sam Chung/Blindspot. There doesn't seem to be any evidence of Blindspot's inclusion in the streaming series yet, but the MCU is well-known for playing its cards close to its chest, so anything is possible.

Daredevil: Born Again is scheduled to premiere on Disney Plus in 2025.

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